Album Page - River of Dreams

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Billy Joel's last studio rock/pop album, River of Dreams, was released on August 10, 1993. During the four years from his prior album Storm Front, Billy had gone through many turbulent changes in his life including the betrayal by his longtime manager Frank Weber and subsequent litigation, more changes to his band personnel, and the eventual demise of his marriage to Christie Brinkley (they announced their separation in April 1994, though were together prior to the release of the album). He was also approaching middle age, turning 44 a few months before River of Dreams was released. It was a time to reflect on recent events and on life in general.

Thematically and lyrically, River of Dreams is one of Billy's most mature and engaging albums. Billy was grappling with many things in his life and the greater issues and questions about life, and these struggles informed his art. Songs like "The Great Wall of China," "A Minor Variation," "Shades of Grey" and "Lullabye (Goodnight, My Angel") were intensely personal songs, based on events and issues in Billy's life. At the same time, the album overall had a heavy philosophical, even religious, bent to it as Billy explored questions about the meaning and purpose of life ("Two Thousand Years," "The River of Dreams" "Shades of Grey") and ended with a fitting denouement of his life in music, the impressionistic "Famous Last Words."

The album has overall thematic arc to it with the songs on Side One representing a man's struggles with life and relationships, it is almost painful and depressing. Then Side Two offers a more hopeful message. The five songs on Side Two of River of Dreams flow together thematically as sort of reflection on various stages of one's life. "All About Soul" is about love and finding an honest relationship. This leads to "Lullabye (Goodnight, My Angel)" about teaching a child about life and death, which flows into "The River of Dreams" in which Billy explores spirituality and the meaning of one's own life. "Two Thousand Years" then looks at life from a broader and grander level, from the perspective of world history and asks "what kind of life will [our children] live" in the future. And in "Famous Last Words," Billy closes the book on this stage of his life and career ("But now it's time to put this book away
And that's the story of my life"). This gives the album a feeling of unity, depth, and completeness

Musically, however, several of the songs seem to chug along ploddingly or haltingly ("The Great Wall of China," "A Minor Variation," "Shades of Grey" and "All About Soul"), while others could have used a lighter touch ("Famous Last Words," The River of Dreams" with its jangly high-pitched guitar) in my unprofessional opinion. Billy had recorded most of the album and then later brought in Danny Kortchmar as the producer. Versions of most of the songs before Kortchmar produced the final version of the album can be heard on a bootleg called the "Shelter Island Sessions" (see YouTube playlist). You can read fans debate the merits of these earlier versions versus the final Kortchmar-produced version of the album at this forum. "Shades of Gray," however, was produced by Billy.

Nonetheless, whether you like "River of Dreams" or not, one can get a better appreciation for the album and the process of creating it, the artistic choices made and rejected, in the well-done PBS documentary "Shades of Grey." In addition, a good article about the album's development is here.

The album was quite successful, debuting at #1 on the charts and garnering Grammy nominations for the album and the title track. Kara Manning summed up the album well in her review in Rolling Stone: "Throughout his career, Billy Joel has worried the stages of growing up — through women, children, fame, betrayal, money gained and lost, loneliness, moments of happiness. But as with any gifted artist, whether he finds that elusive inner peace isn't the point — it's the hellish searching for it that is ultimately so compelling." It is the journey not the destination that is important. We're all carried along, after all, by the river of dreams.

And these are the last words I have to say
It's always hard to say goodbye
But now it's time to put this book away
And that's the story of my life

– From "Famous Last Words"

The album cover was painted by Christie Brinkley and makes clever allusions and references to the songs on the album. Details from the album cover were also used for the singles' covers, namely, "All About Soul," "No Man's Land," "Lullabye (Goodnight, My Angel)," and "The River of Dreams."

The four singles released were, in order of release: "The River of Dreams" (#3 on the charts), "All About Soul" (#29), "No Man's Land" (#50) and "Lullabye (Goodnight, My Angel)" (#77). Music videos for each of the singles were also produced, though the one for "No Man's Land" which appears on the video Greatest Hits, Vol. III was eventually replaced online by a video of a live performance at a Columbia Records event. Billy and his band also went on Saturday Night Live on October 23, 1993 to promote the album and performed "The River of Dreams" and "All About Soul."

Billy's concert in Frankfurt, Germany on the final night of the River of Dreams tour was broadcast on the Disney Channel in 1994 and later released as a DVD "Live from the River of Dreams" which was included in the My Lives compilation in 2005. You can also see it at this playlist. The concert DVD was later made available separately.

Publicity Photo: Patrick Demarchelier (1993)

The documentary Shades of Grey describes the making of the album.

Promotional shot from 1993. Source unknown (publicity photo).

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)
6.   All About Soul (5:59)
7.   Lullabye (Goodnight, My Angel) (3:32)
8.   The River of Dreams (4:05)
9.   Two Thousand Years (5:19)
10. Famous Last Words (5:01)

Released August 10, 1993

No Man's Land

The Great Wall of China

Lullabye (Goodnight, My Angel)

The River of Dreams

Two Thousand Years

Famous Last Words

Covers for "The Great Wall of China," "Blonde Over Blue," "A Minor Variation," "Two Thousand Years," and "Famous Last Words" are fictional. Painting in "Blonde Over Blue" is Untitled#17, Mark Rothko.

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Lyrics

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Video Album

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)

6.   All About Soul (5:59)
7.   Lullabye (Goodnight, My Angel) (3:32)
8.   The River of Dreams (4:05)
9.   Two Thousand Years (5:19)
10. Famous Last Words (5:01)

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Interviews & Features

Shades of Grey. Shades of Grey is a PBS documentary on the making of the River of Dreams album from 1993. It was produced by WNET. The full video is here, followed by clips from the documentary, along with a couple extra videos.

Because of how the clips were uploaded on the official Billy Joel YouTube page, some of the documentary is clipped off before or after the live versions of songs.