Video Classics: 'New York State of Mind'

To honor WNEW's legendary Firecracker 500, every day we are highlighting the music that populated the 1991 and 1996 lists, with classic videos, live performances and little-known facts about the songs and how they came to be...

For some, a 'New York state of mind' conjures up images of oppressive crowds, endless noise, cabbies that either don't speak or pretend not to speak English while they weave maniacally in and out of traffic, and frozen spit on the sidewalks. But if you're a New Yorker who loves the city and is returning there after three long years in Los Angeles you might regard the Big Apple a bit more warmly.

Such was the situation Billy Joel found himself in in 1976. He had just finished up a three-year stint in L.A. (a very successful period that saw the recording of his album Piano Man) and was returning home to his native New York. Shortly after arriving, he released the album Turnstiles, many songs of which deal with his cross-country relocation (including Say Goodbye to Hollywood, I've Loved These Days, Highland Falls, and Miami 2017 (Seen the Lights Go Out on Broadway).

Of all these songs, New York State of Mind is perhaps the best, and is certainly filled with a great deal of authentic fondness for that great metropolis. The lyrics, it has been said, read almost like a love song, as Joel sings about locations in and about the city with deep sentimental attachment. Though it was not a hit when originally released, the song had something of a revival following the attacks of September 11th, 2001, and is often played at arenas following local professional sports games. The song rests on the 1991 Firecracker 500 list at spot #62, and on the 1996 list at spot #288.

The video below is taken by a Billy Joel performance on British television from 1978. One has to wonder what a modern audience would find more alarming ... Joel's smoking onscreen, or his hair? Watch as he does a bit of shtick with the audience to start things off.

Have memories of this song or the Firecracker 500? Add your thoughts to the comments below or take a look at Video Classics past...

Comments

[Avi Goldstein]

Hi.I am really enjoying the site. One of the mainstays of the old WNEW was Renaissance, along with similar-genre bands such as Steeleye Span and other British folk artists such as Fairport Convention and the artists who sprung from it. Any chance we can hear some of their music?
Another group that had a home at NEW was Kate and Anna McGarrigle.