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River of Dreams

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For the song, see The River of Dreams. For the Hayley Westenra album, see River of Dreams: The Very Best of Hayley Westenra.
River of Dreams
Studio album by
Billy Joel
ReleasedAugust 10, 1993 (1993-08-10)
Recorded1992
StudioThe Boathouse at the Island Boatyard, Shelter Island, NY
Cove City Sound Studios, Glen Cove, NY
The Hit Factory, New York City, New York
GenreRock
Length49:10
LabelColumbia
ProducerBilly Joel, Danny Kortchmar, Joe Nicolo, David Thoener
Billy Joel chronology
Storm Front
(1989) 		River of Dreams
(1993) 		Greatest Hits Volume III
(1997)
A Voyage on the River of Dreams
Australian 1994 box set cover
Singles from River of Dreams
  1. "The River of Dreams"
    Released: July 19, 1993 (UK) September 1, 1993 (US)
  2. "All About Soul"
    Released: 1993
  3. "No Man's Land"
    Released: 1993
  4. "Lullabye (Goodnight, My Angel)"
    Released: 1994
Music video
"The River of Dreams" on YouTube
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic[1]
Deseret News(Positive)[2]
Entertainment Weekly (A-)[3]
The Los Angeles Times[4]
The New York Times(Not rated)[5]
Rolling Stone [6]

River of Dreams is the twelfth studio album by American singer-songwriter Billy Joel (and his final rock/pop album), released on August 10, 1993. River of Dreams presented a much more serious tone from Joel than found in his previous albums, dealing with issues such as trust and long-lasting love. It was rumored that the themes of trust and betrayal, particularly certain lyrics from the songs "A Minor Variation" and "The Great Wall of China", stem from Joel's legal disputes with his former manager and ex-brother-in-law, Frank Weber, who reportedly embezzled millions of dollars from Joel and used dubious accounting practices to cover it up.[7]

The album cover was a painting by Joel's then-wife, Christie Brinkley. In 1993, Rolling Stone gave her the Top Picks award for "The Best Album Cover of the Year".[8]

The music video for the title track has over 20 million views on YouTube as of April 6, 2018.[9]

Due to not recording any more new studio albums after this release, River of Dreams is more likely to become Billy Joel's final studio album of original material.

Track listing

All songs were written and composed by Billy Joel.

Side one
  1. "No Man's Land" – 4:48
  2. "The Great Wall of China" – 5:45
  3. "Blonde Over Blue" – 4:55
  4. "A Minor Variation" – 5:36
  5. "Shades of Grey" – 4:10
Side two
  2. "All About Soul" – 5:59
  3. "Lullabye (Goodnight, My Angel)" – 3:32
  4. "The River of Dreams" – 4:05
  5. "Two Thousand Years" – 5:19
  6. "Famous Last Words" – 5:01

A Voyage on the River of Dreams

A Voyage on the River of Dreams is an Australian 3-CD box set released in 1994, which includes the studio album, River of Dreams, along with a 6-track live CD from the '93–'94 River of Dreams Tour, plus a Questions & Answers CD recorded at Princeton University.[10] This box set made the charts in Australia (No. 33) and New Zealand (No. 47), the only places besides Japan where the set was officially released.[11]

Disc one (River of Dreams – Studio album) – as per original album

Disc two (Billy Joel Live) All songs written and composed by Billy Joel, except where noted

  1. "Goodbye Yellow Brick Road" (Elton John/Bernie Taupin) – 5:08
  2. "No Man's Land" – 5:44
  3. "The Ballad of Billy the Kid" – 5:52
  4. "Lullabye (Goodnight, My Angel)" – 3:40
  5. "The River of Dreams" – 5:28
  6. "A Hard Day's Night" (Lennon–McCartney) – 3:20

Disc three (Questions & Answers Disc)

  1. "Q & A recorded at Princeton University"

Personnel

  • Billy Joel – lead vocals, clavinet (1, 4), Hammond organ (1, 4, 6, 8, 10), acoustic piano (2, 6-10), organ (2, 9), backing vocals (2), synthesizer (3, 8), keyboards (5)
  • Jeff Jacobs – synthesizer (2), additional programming (8)
  • Tommy Byrnes – guitar (1, 3, 5, 6)
  • Danny Kortchmar – guitar (1-4, 6, 8-10)
  • Leslie West – guitar (1, 2, 4)
  • Mike Tyler – guitar (8)
  • T.M. Stevens – bass (1, 2, 4, 6, 9, 10)
  • Lonnie Hillyer – bass (3, 8)
  • Schuyler Deale – bass (5)
  • Jeff Lee Johnson – bass (8)
  • Chuck Treece – bass (8)
  • Zachary Alford – drums (1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 8)
  • Liberty DeVitto – drums (5)
  • Steve Jordan – drums (9, 10)
  • Jim Saporito – percussion (2)
  • Andy Kravitz – percussion (8)
  • Arno Hecht – baritone saxophone (4)
  • Richie Cannata – tenor saxophone (4)
  • Osvaldo Melindez – trombone (4)
  • Laurence Etkin – trumpet (4)
  • Ira Newborn – orchestration (2, 6-8)
  • Lewis Del Gatto – orchestra manager (2, 6-8)
  • Frank Simms – backing vocals (1, 2, 8)
  • George Simms – backing vocals (1, 2, 8)
  • Color Me Badd – guest vocals (6)
  • Wrecia Ford – backing vocals (6, 8)
  • Marlon Saunders – backing vocals (6, 8)
  • Crystal Taliefero – backing vocals (6, 8), vocal arrangement (6, 8)
  • B. David Witworth – backing vocals (6, 8)
  • Curtis Rance King, Jr. – choir conductor and contractor (6)
  • Choir on "All About Soul" – Phillip Ballou, Katreese Barnes, Dennis Collins, Will Downing, Frank Floyd, Diane Garisto, Stephanie James, Devora Johnson, Marlon Saunders and Corliss Stafford

Production

  • Producers – Danny Kortchmar (Tracks 1-4 & 6-10); Billy Joel (Track 5).
  • Associate Producer on Track 5 – David Thoener
  • Co-Producer on Track 8 – Joe Nicolo
  • A&R – Don DeVito
  • Production Coordinator – Bill Zampino
  • Engineers – Carl Glanville (Tracks 1-7, 9 & 10); Joe Nicolo and Phil Nicolo (Track 8).
  • Assistant Engineers – Dan Hetzel and Brian Vibberts (Tracks 1-7, 9 & 10); Dick Grobelny (Track 8).
  • Recorded by Jay Healy, Bradshaw Leigh, Bob Thrasher and Dave Wilkerson.
  • Mixing – Niko Bolas (Tracks 1–4, 6, 7, 9, 10); David Thoener (Track 5); Joe Nicolo and Phil Nicolo (Track 8).
  • Assistant Mixing on Track 8 – Dick Grobelny
  • Mastered by Ted Jensen at Sterling Sound (New York, NY).
  • Technical Support – Andrew Baker*, Lester Baylinson, Steve Bramberg, Laura Delia, Jon "J.D." Dworkow*, Greg Garland, Peter Goodrich, David Hewitt, Dave Hofbauer, Doug Kleeger, Howie Mendelson, Larry DeMarco, Artie Smith and Courtney Spencer.
  • Art and Commerce – Jeff Schock
  • Art Direction – Christopher Austopchuk
  • Cover Artwork – Christie Brinkley
  • Design – Sara Rotman
  • Photography – Glen Erler

Accolades

Grammy Awards

Year Nominee / work Award Result
1994 River of Dreams Album of the Year[12] Nominated
"The River of Dreams" Song of the Year[12] Nominated
Record of the Year[12] Nominated
Best Pop Vocal Performance – Male[12] Nominated

Charts

Certifications and sales

Region Certification Certified units/sales
Australia (ARIA)[44] 3× Platinum 210,000^
Austria (IFPI Austria)[45] Platinum 50,000*
Canada (Music Canada)[46] 3× Platinum 300,000^
Germany (BVMI)[47] Platinum 500,000^
Ireland (IRMA)[48] 2× Platinum 30,000^
Japan (RIAJ)[51] Platinum 241,000[a][49][50]
Netherlands (NVPI)[53] Gold 50,000[52]
New Zealand (RMNZ)[54] Platinum 15,000^
Sweden (GLF)[55] Gold 50,000^
Switzerland (IFPI Switzerland)[56] Platinum 50,000^
United Kingdom (BPI)[57] Platinum 300,000^
United States (RIAA)[58] 5× Platinum 5,000,000^
Summaries
Europe (IFPI)[59] 5× Platinum 5,000,000*

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

  1. ^ Combined sales of standard edition and its expanded reissue.

References

  1. ^ River of Dreams at AllMusic
  2. ^ Boren, Ray (1989-06-18). "`RIVER OF DREAMS' FEATURES WELL-CRAFTED SONGS". deseretnews.com. Deseret News. Retrieved 2011-08-31. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  3. ^ Sandow, Greg (1993-08-13). "River of Dreams Review". ew.com. Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved 2011-08-31. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  4. ^ Willman, Chris (1993-08-22). "BILLY JOEL – "River of Dreams"". articles.latimes.com. The Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2011-08-31. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  5. ^ Holden, Stephen (1993-08-08). "RECORDINGS VIEW; Billy Joel, A Pundit Of Suburbia". nytimes.com. The New York Times. Retrieved 2011-08-31. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  6. ^ Kara Manning (1993-08-19), "Music Reviews: River of Dreams by Billy Joel", Rolling Stone, archived from the original on 2008-08-07
  7. ^ Goldman, Andrew (24 May 2013). "Billy Joel on Not Working and Not Giving Up Drinking". New York Times. Retrieved 3 January 2014.
  8. ^ "Christie Brinkley biography". Official website. Retrieved 2009-03-19.
  9. ^ billyjoelVEVO (2009-10-02), Billy Joel – The River of Dreams, retrieved 2018-04-06
  10. ^ "Billy Joel – A Voyage On the River of Dreams Australia Box Set". Eil.com. 1994-10-14. Retrieved 2011-08-25.
  11. ^ Steffen Hung (1994-11-27). "Billy Joel – A Voyage On the River of Dreams". australian-charts.com. Retrieved 2011-08-25.
  12. ^ a b c d "THE 36TH GRAMMY NOMINATIONS : Grammy Nods: The Populists Lead the Way : Awards: Sting, who already has 10 Grammys, earns six nominations. The competition includes Whitney Houston, Billy Joel and R.E.M." article.latimes.com. The Los Angeles Times. 1994-01-07. Retrieved 2011-08-29. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  13. ^ "australian-charts.com Billy Joel – River of Dreams". Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved 2011-08-08.
  14. ^ "Billy Joel – River of Dreams – austriancharts.at". Retrieved 2011-08-19.
  15. ^ "Top Albums/CDs – Volume 58, No. 9, September 11, 1993". RPM. Retrieved 2011-10-03. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  16. ^ "dutchcharts.nl Billy Joel – River of Dreams". dutchcharts.nl. MegaCharts. Retrieved 2011-08-29.
  17. ^ https://books.google.com/books?lr=&rview=1&id=-BEEAAAAMBAJ&q=billy+joel#v=snippet&q=billy%20joel&f=false
  18. ^ Pennanen, Timo (2006). Sisältää hitin – levyt ja esittäjät Suomen musiikkilistoilla vuodesta 1972 (in Finnish) (1st ed.). Helsinki: Kustannusosakeyhtiö Otava. p. 263. ISBN 978-951-1-21053-5.
  19. ^ "Album Search: Billy Joel" (in German). Media Control. Retrieved 2011-08-08.
  20. ^ http://www.mahasz.hu/?menu=slagerlistak&menu2=archivum
  21. ^ "Tonlist Top 40". DV. Retrieved 2017-02-09.
  22. ^ a b "Hit Parade Italia – Gli album più venduti del 1993" (in Italian). hitparadeitalia.it. Retrieved 2011-10-03.
  23. ^ "ビリー・ジョエル-リリース-ORICON STYLE-ミュージック" [Highest position and charting weeks of River of Dreams by Billy Joel]. oricon.co.jp (in Japanese). Oricon Style. Retrieved 2011-08-29. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  24. ^ "charts.org.nz – Billy Joel – River of Dreams". Recording Industry Association of New Zealand. Retrieved 2011-08-29.
  25. ^ "norwegiancharts.com Billy Joel – River of Dreams". Retrieved 2011-08-29.
  26. ^ "Hits of the World". Billboard. 1993-04-12. Retrieved 9 February 2012.
  27. ^ Salaverri, Fernando (September 2005). Sólo éxitos: año a año, 1959–2002 (1st ed.). Spain: Fundación Autor-SGAE. ISBN 84-8048-639-2.
  28. ^ "swedishcharts.com Billy Joel – River of Dreams". Sverigetopplistan. Retrieved 2011-08-29.
  29. ^ "Billy Joel – River of Dreams – hitparade.ch". Retrieved 2011-08-08.
  30. ^ "Chart Stats – Billy Joel – River of Dreams". UK Albums Chart. Retrieved 2011-08-29. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  31. ^ Allmusic – River of Dreams > Charts & Awards > Billboard Albums
  32. ^ * Zimbabwe. Kimberley, C. Zimbabwe: albums chart book. Harare: C. Kimberley, 2000
  33. ^ "End Of Year Charts – Top 50 Albums 1993". Australian Recording Industry Association. ARIA Charts. Retrieved 2011-08-29.
  34. ^ "Austriancharts.at – Jahreshitparade 1993". Hung Medien. Retrieved 2010-05-30.
  35. ^ "RPM Top 100 Albums of 1993". RPM. Retrieved 2011-10-03. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  36. ^ "Dutch Charts = dutchcharts.nl". Retrieved 2011-08-29.
  37. ^ "1993年 アルバム年間TOP100" [Oricon Year-end Albums Chart of 1993] (in Japanese). Retrieved January 1, 2011.
  38. ^ "The Top 50 Albums of 1993". Retrieved 4 February 2015.
  39. ^ "Hitparade.ch – Schweizer Jahreshitparade 1993". Hung Medien. Retrieved May 29, 2011.
  40. ^ "UK best albums 1993". Archived from the original on 2012-09-27. Retrieved 2011-08-19. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  41. ^ "CHART: Billboard Top Pop Albums of 1993". Retrieved 2011-08-22.
  42. ^ "End Of Year Charts – Top 50 Albums 1994". Australian Recording Industry Association. ARIA Charts. Retrieved 2011-08-29.
  43. ^ "CHART: Billboard Top Pop Albums of 1994". Retrieved 2011-08-22.
  44. ^ "ARIA Top 50 Albums for week of 146". Australian Recording Industry Association. 146.
  45. ^ "Austrian album certifications – Billy Joel – River of Dreams" (in German). IFPI Austria.
  46. ^ "Canadian album certifications – Billy Joel – River of Dreams". Music Canada.
  47. ^ "Gold-/Platin-Datenbank (Billy Joel; 'River of Dreams')" (in German). Bundesverband Musikindustrie.
  48. ^ "The Irish Charts - 1994 Certification Awards - Multi Platinum". Irish Recorded Music Association.
  49. ^ Oricon Album Chart Book: Complete Edition 1970–2005. Roppongi, Tokyo: Oricon Entertainment. 2006. ISBN 4-87131-077-9.
  50. ^ "a-ビリー・ジョエル" [Yamachan Land (Japanese Chart Archives) – Albums Chart Daijiten – Billy Joel] (in Japanese). Original Confidence. 2007-12-30. Archived from the original on 2012-02-08. Retrieved 2011-08-29. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help); Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  51. ^ "Japanese album certifications – ビリー・ジョエル – River of Dreams" (in Japanese). Recording Industry Association of Japan. Select 1993年10月 on the drop-down menu
  52. ^ "de branchevereniging van de entertainmentindustrie". NVPI. Archived from the original on 2011-10-08. Retrieved 2011-08-17. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help) Note: User needs to enter "Billy Joel" in the "Artiest" field and click below "zoek" button.
  53. ^ "Dutch album certifications – Billy Joel – River of Dreams" (in Dutch). Nederlandse Vereniging van Producenten en Importeurs van beeld- en geluidsdragers. Enter 'River of Dreams in the "Artiest of titel" box.
  54. ^ "New Zealand album certifications – Billy Joel – River of Dreams". Recorded Music NZ.[dead link‍]
  55. ^ "Guld- och Platinacertifikat − År 1987−1998" (PDF) (in Swedish). IFPI Sweden. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2011-05-17.
  56. ^ "The Official Swiss Charts and Music Community: Awards ('River of Dreams')". IFPI Switzerland. Hung Medien.
  57. ^ id MUST BE PROVIDED for UK CERTIFICATION.
  58. ^ "American album certifications – Billy Joel – River of Dreams". Recording Industry Association of America.
  59. ^ "IFPI Platinum Europe Awards – 1994". International Federation of the Phonographic Industry. {{cite web}}: |access-date= requires |url= (help); Missing or empty |url= (help)
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