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 The Exclusive Deluxe Edition, available at www.billyjoel.com, also comes with a t-shirt and two posters.
Billy sings to the Russian audience. Still from video: Director, Jim Brown/ SHOWTIME.
Billy Joel appears on Russian television program, The Ring. Still from video, Director Jim Brown/ SHOWTIME.
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In the summer of 1987, Billy Joel and his band held six historic concerts in Leningrad and Moscow in the former Soviet Union. These groundbreaking concerts were broadcast on Russian television and American radio stations, and were captured on the live album KOHUEPT (Russian for "concert" and pronounced "consyert") released later that year. The concerts were historic as Billy was the first western rock star to tour in the Communist Soviet Union with a full band. To read more about the 1987 concerts, go to the KOHUEPT album page.
Three decades later, in February 2014 Sony announced the re-release in May 2014 (and re-titling) of footage of Billy's historic 1987 concerts in Leningrad and Moscow in a series of special edition CDs and DVDs collectively entitled -- A Matter of Trust: The Bridge to Russia. This was an exciting new release because additional songs were added to the CD, and a concert-length DVD was also released. This coincided with the recent airing of a new documentary on the historic visit also entitled A Matter of Trust: The Bridge To Russia, that first aired on Showtime in January 2014. The documentary was part of the DVD as well. To summarize, the new releases announced were:
1. Audio CD only (two discs) 2. DVD concert only 3. Blu-Ray concert only 4. Deluxe Edition: Audio CDs, DVD or Blu-Ray concert with 90-minute new documentary, and an 80-page book with rare photos and essays. 5. Exclusive Deluxe Edition: From Sony only, has all of #4 above, plus a t-shirt and two posters. Back in 1987, the audio LP and CD released was a single disc called Kohuept and had 16 songs. The concert video (VHS), Live in Leningrad, had 10 songs only and was released in 1991. The documentary film, also called A Matter of Trust, was also released on VHS in 1991 and was very well done. See Videos & DVDs. For a more complete review of the Russian tour, see the special edition of Root Beer Rag, Billy's then-newsletter for his fan club. * * * * * For a YouTube playlist of some scenes from the documentary "A Matter of Trust" and excerpts, click here.
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Album Cover
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Songlist
Disc One |
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Buy Album
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1. Odoya (Traditional) (1:17)
2. Prelude/Angry Young Man (5:23) 3. Honesty (3:58) 4. The Ballad of Billy The Kid* 5. She's Always A Woman* 6. Scenes From An Italian Restaurant* 7. Goodnight Saigon (7:20) 8. Stiletto (5:09) 9. Big Man on Mulberry Street (7:17) 10. Baby Grand (6:09) 11. What's Your Name* (Don and Juan) 12. The Longest Time* 13. An Innocent Man |
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Disc Two
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1. Pressure*
2. Allentown (4:22) 3. A Matter of Trust (5:09) 4. Only The Good Die Young (3:31) 5. It's Still Rock and Roll To Me* 6. Sometimes A Fantasy (3:38) 7. You May Be Right* 8. Uptown Girl (3:08) 9. Big Shot (4:44) 10. Back in the U.S.S.R. (2:43) 11. The Times They Are A Changin' (2:55) |
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Billy in Russia. From Billy Joel: A Matter of Trust - The Bridge to Russia. Photo: Neal Preston/SHOWTIME.
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Bonus Tracks
1. She Loves You (Beatles)* 2. New York State of Mind* 3. Piano Man* * Previously unreleased version. Songs included on audio CD but notn on video DVD are: The Ballad of Billy The Kid, She's Always A Woman, Scenes From An Italian Restaurant, What's Your Name, She Loves You, Piano Man. |
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Full Album - A Matter of Trust: The Bridge to Russia (2014)
This is a YouTube playlist of audio and video clips of songs from Kohuept (1987) and A Matter of Trust (2014). Click on three-line icon for playlist.
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Disc One
1. Odoya (Traditional) (1:17) 2. Prelude/Angry Young Man (5:23) 3. Honesty (3:58) 4. The Ballad of Billy The Kid* 5. She's Always A Woman* 6. Scenes From An Italian Restaurant* 7. Goodnight Saigon (7:20) 8. Stiletto (5:09) 9. Big Man on Mulberry Street (7:17) 10. Baby Grand (6:09) 11. What's Your Name* (Don and Juan) 12. The Longest Time* 13. An Innocent Man |
Disc Two
1. Pressure* 2. Allentown (4:22) 3. A Matter of Trust (5:09) 4. Only The Good Die Young (3:31) 5. It's Still Rock and Roll To Me* 6. Sometimes A Fantasy (3:38) 7. You May Be Right* 8. Uptown Girl (3:08) 9. Big Shot (4:44) 10. Back in the U.S.S.R. (2:43) 11. The Times They Are A Changin' (2:55) |
Bonus Tracks
1. She Loves You (Beatles)* 2. New York State of Mind* 3. Piano Man* * Previously unreleased version. |
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Video of "You May Be Right" which had not been released back in 1987. This was released along with several other new videos for A Matter of Trust in 2014.
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Interviews & Documentaries
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Trailer to the documentary "A Matter of Trust: The Bridge to Russia"
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This is the 1987 documentary "A Matter of Trust" that was released on VHS chronicling Billy's tour of the former Soviet Union in 1986.
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This is a YouTube playlist of video excerpts from the documentary "A Matter Of Trust - The Bridge To Russia" from 2014. From the official Billy Joel YouTube page: "In 1987 Billy Joel made history, becoming one of the first American performers to play in the Soviet Union since the construction of the Berlin Wall. 'A Matter Of Trust - The Bridge To Russia' is a documentary film about this groundbreaking string of live performances."
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This is a YouTube playlist of interview of Billy Joel from 1987 to 1991. Several of these interviews, particularly those from 1987, focus on the Russian concerts.
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Behind-the-scenes look at the 2014 documentary "A Matter of Trust: The Bridge to Russia."
Update: Video was removed from YouTube. |
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Reviews
AllMusic PopDose PopMatters The Morton Report The Second Disc "30 Years Ago, Billy Joel Had A Meltdown in Moscow," by Dan Ozzi, Vice, July 27, 2017 
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[Billy Joel] was at the top of his game during this period; An Innocent Man was a big hit in '83, and whilst follow-up The Bridge did not achieve such huge commercial success, artistically it was no stinker, with Ray Charles, Steve Winwood and Cyndi Lauper appearing for the defense. Looking at the concert DVD, Joel's performance levels are still on a par with the Innocent Man tour, and mighty impressive. The band is tight and there's a distinctive sense of the camaraderie of a gang enjoying a new audience together. -- Charles Pitter, PopMatters
The animated Joel’s crowd-surfing and engagement with his audience took on significance in Russia, and the documentary also chronicles his offstage connections with people from an ardent fan named Viktor [Raznikov] to one vocally disapproving woman. Throughout it all, Joel and his band are as relatable and passionate as the music they performed. Jim Brown’s film is joined by a handsomely restored and expanded version of the Live from Leningrad concert movie running nearly 90 minutes with seven previously unreleased performances. -- Joe Marchese, The Second Disc
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Tracks
Disc One
1. Odoya (Traditional) (1:17) 2. Prelude/Angry Young Man (5:23) 3. Honesty (3:58) 4. The Ballad of Billy The Kid* 5. She's Always A Woman* 6. Scenes From An Italian Restaurant* 7. Goodnight Saigon (7:20) 8. Stiletto (5:09) 9. Big Man on Mulberry Street (7:17) 10. Baby Grand (6:09) 11. What's Your Name* (Don and Juan) 12. The Longest Time* 13. An Innocent Man Disc Two 1. Pressure* 2. Allentown (4:22) 3. A Matter of Trust (5:09) 4. Only The Good Die Young (3:31) 5. It's Still Rock and Roll To Me* 6. Sometimes A Fantasy (3:38) 7. You May Be Right* 8. Uptown Girl (3:08) 9. Big Shot (4:44) 10. Back in the U.S.S.R. (2:43) 11. The Times They Are A Changin' (2:55) |
Credits
Words and Music by: Billy Joel, John Lennon, Paul McCartney, Bob Dylan, Claude Johnson Liberty DeVitto Drums Kevin Dukes Guitar (Electric) Pete Hewlett Vocals (Background) Russell Javors Guitar (Acoustic), Guitar (Electric) Billy Joel Composer, Guitar, Keyboards, Primary Artist, Quotation Author, Vocals Dave Lebolt Keyboards Marc Rivera Saxophone George Simms Vocals (Background) Doug Stegmeyer Bass Jim Boyer Engineer, Mixing, Producer Gretchen Brennison Project Director Bruce Dickinson Reissue Supervisor Mandy Eidgah Project Director Frank Filipetti Mixing Ted Jensen Mastering Bradshaw Leigh Engineer, Mixing Tim Leitner Associate Engineer Arthur Levy Liner Notes Edward O'Dowd Art Direction, Design Neal Preston Photography Brian Ruggles Mixing, Producer Oleg Smirnoff Translation Georgian Singers "Zhournalist" David Aberzadze Giya Chirakadze Timur Chkuatzeli Georgi Dylidze Tomaz Eliava Nugree Gamtjebeli Zurab Loladze Yosif Zurbauli |
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