Billy Joel - If (Unreleased) - rare demo

[@SouvikMisrawho]

WoW!!! Have been a Billy Joel fan for over 35 years. Have heard all his albums, rarities, live concert recordings, bootlegs, demos, outtakes, interviews, masterclasses, you name it. But this is the first time I'm hearing this song. Life is full of surprises! :)

[@davidjunto1008]

Whistling: Billy's unappreciated top tier skill....

[@therealbryceflorreich]

@@Anyideas14Hell Yeah He Does🤘

[@JLSydney]

Definitely from the Innocent Man era. It's very reminiscent of This Night and the whistle-solo is kinda tribute to The Stranger.

[@MisterDavidWeinstein]

Wow! Sounds like Innocent Man era. I can't believe there is a Billy outtake I've never heard. I've heard it all and this is a first. And it's awesome!

[@KingOfTheSeas_]

Its not a new song,I bet he just cut it from the album. His voice is a lot deeper now

[@NelsonVlog66]

I believe this was recorded during the An Innocent Man sessions, but was cut from the final release of the album. Would have been a good B side track for one of the singles or maybe the 12" extended mix of Tell Her About It..

[@paulgoldberg7985]

This is unreal. How could he throw this song away? I've heard Billy say he wasn't happy with some of his songs on The Bridge and Storm Front. Perhaps writing it for An Innocent Man, he thought maybe it wouldn't fit on his later albums. This song is great!

[@shanevalentine3220]

Sounds to me like this was his writing of lyrics to "This Night" prior to him choosing to use Beethoven as inspiration for the chorus

[@rolandofgilead43]

i can't remember anything about the storm that of what he said or if he did say anything but The bridge i have heard cause he's said he didn't like it.

[@TheSkirvo]

The song became this night

[@Tanmag11]

Which is a much better song. ​@@TheSkirvo

[@Tanmag11]

I don't think Joel himself liked this. His vocals are tentative, and the key is too high. As another poster said, he turned it into This Night, which is a much better song.

[@LuisPadilla-d6d]

Never ever heard this thank you so much, Billy is the fucking GOAT

[@kellyc4236]

Another great song by Billy. 40 years I'm listening to his music and I've never heard this one.

[@rustysworldofentertainment850]

This may have ultimately evolved into This Night, but it could have sat alongside it on the record very nicely. Great song. Demo? It's just about ready for release!

[@chefqxe]

Innocent man was my first cd I ever got. This song belongs on that album. Thanks for sharing.

[@seanscanlon9067]

Sounds like it did, but as the song This Night instead. The words here sound like mumbo-jumbo, bail out lyrics that are used just to have something to go on for the time being.

[@mditt7]

I once heard Billy humbly proclaim in an interview "I can't sing, but I can scream in tune." I think he does a little bit better than that.

[@dallasplattsmier1735]

this would have been a huge hit

[@godfreypigott]

I doubt it.

[@ArcaediusCommentary]

It's not that good but it's still a great song

[@jellybean8167]

Listened to this 3 times in a row, a real earworm! He really should have put some words to this tune and tidied up the bridge a little.

[@davidquinn9476]

Billy should do an album of his never released singles such as this one, Josephine, and Handball

[@felixhaggblom7562]

God I would love an actual release of Handball. And Only a Man, so many gems that never even made it to on an album

[@nedleyolpal]

@@felixhaggblom7562 what about Money Or Love great song IMO

[@mattiadellamico888]

Josephine is wonderful

[@NelsonVlog66]

There was a compilation CD set titled My Lives which was released in 2005 which consisted of unreleased demos and B side tracks. Sony released it without Billy's knowledge or involvement from my understanding. This track wasn't on it, though. Billy wasn't happy about My Lives getting released.

[@mattiadellamico888]

@@NelsonVlog66 Exactly.

[@riccardoangeli802]

Grazie !!!!! Sempre perfetto nel miscelare voce e musica .... Talento !!!! Piano MAN

[@tommercina7919]

Brilliant just when you think you've heard all the brilliant Billy Joel genius.... new releases of old his oldies classics come out!.. .. thank you 4 this & Happy Birthday 2 Billy J im so enjoying latest tunes.

[@hgpo27]

This is a great song, I love Billy

[@srtjhsrzdfhkgdf9961]

聴けてよかったです！ありがとうございます。

[@RedHotMessResell]

I would pick listening to Billy singing gibberish all day over most of today's music. LOL

[@noamont9936]

his range is INSANE

[@jimgleeson1695]

I love this song and this would be a great fit for "Innocent Man."

[@ShakespeareWilliam1600]

😮 This is amazing. I love it!

[@yukiyamato2649]

similar to THIS NIGHT

[@keywestsunset3897]

Sounds like a 50s song from Grease. I still like "This night".

[@larkefedifero]

Sounds like it BELONGS on the *second* vinyl disc of the two-disc deluxe "Grease" album itself (which had other originals from the stage show and cover songs not used in the movie)! Especially with the final, "Oooooo *aueeee* oooo oooo *ooooooooo!!" 😊

[@MattDiMarinoMusic]

My guess, as an amateur Billy historian, as to why it didn't make the cut is that it may have sounded too similar to some other tracks already slated for the album, i.e. This Night.

[@MattDiMarinoMusic]

@Owen Franklin yes. There’s at least one called Prime of Your Life from the My Lives box set released a while back.

[@larkefedifero]

Yep! That and "Careless Talk," too. 😊

[@kk-qb3cj]

Where did you get this stuff man thanks for uploading 👍👍 I really appreciate it

[@joeantainemusic]

Epic.

[@zeitgeistyreport]

innocent man was the height of his vocal power

[@carlosandino2996]

Can someone write the lyrics of the song please? I love this song, so much.

[@Anyideas14]

He mustn’t have written all the lyrics yet for this because he mumbles more than half of it. There’s just snippets like ‘if you take me for a while’ ‘if I only had you’

[@carlosandino2996]

​@@Anyideas14 Oh, it's fine, it's a great song. Thanks

[@mdelaubergine8930]

It's as if there is no such thing as a bad Billy Joel song. This one is great and would have been a terrific addition to "AIM."

[@antoniopaonessa3077]

Facts

[@Pieintheface-qr8ej]

I feel like I heard it before. Sounds like this night from an innocent man. Maybe it’s the old version of it. Listen to both at the same time, they sound very similar especially the consistent high beats.

[@tdunph4250]

This is a great song but the Innocent Man album is ICONIC the way Billy intended it. To all those who feel this song should be on it, what song would you take off and replace it with this song IF??

[@jeeristueo3539]

Careless talk

[@nedleyolpal]

Christie Lee, Careless Talk is a superb tune with great lyrics and the best bridge however there’s no rule to say 11 songs can’t be on an album

[@larkefedifero]

What I've inferred happened is that this is one of those songs that Billy "chopped up" and used for "parts" for other songs. "If" is a great *one* , but I'd still rather have the *TWO* songs on IAM that *I AM* convinced were derived from it: "This Night" and "Careless Talk." Don't forget that he pushed this album out pretty fast - I think he just wanted some "simple oldies" fun after the stress of writing and recording "The Nylon Curtain" - but he needed material for it. Remember that he also wrote "And So It Goes" around this time period, but he really couldn't use it since it didn't fit the theme of the album. So, cutting "If" up just made logical sense. 🙂

[@Jantonov1]

Honestly, if Billy wanted to, he could knock off twenty of these a day.

[@JLSydney]

I wonder if this was in the group of unfinished songs that he gave to Freddy Wexler.

[@John-du6ec]

Theres a fantastic demo album of inocent man retold (not the interview video of the same name) i had it downoaded about 10 year ago.but u.t took its search off as im in the uk..inocent man is more echoey and every ttack is different versions

[@m.j.carroll2465]

Even without words it's better than careless talk

[@MattDiMarinoMusic]

If not Careless Talk, definitely a better cut than Christie Lee.

[@mrbob424]

Wow

[@前橋みき]

Great track I why didn’t it get released? Sounds like Frankie Valli!

[@thederpypidgey910]

Where did you find these?

[@RobPrisament]

A dumpster behind Chipotle.

[@NelsonVlog66]

@@RobPrisament Or a dumpster behind Zanzibar.

[@calebonstead7143]

@@RobPrisament - I wish you'd dumpster dive more often for us 😉😉😉

[@gokhanpinar1547]

There is a wınderful song of Billy, I can't find. Lawyers And Divorces.

[@tonyficca2719]

Whoa! Where did this come from?

[@utub1473]

Can anyone decipher the lyrics?

[@davidjunto1008]

They are only dummy lyrics, which is basically whatever syllables are lying around to help remember the melody by. Billy never got to writing proper lyrics for this song.

[@DorisSusen-Schultz]

Is this an out take from An innocent man ?

[@domreid6169]

When was this recorded?

[@Kitnet2500]

Most likely 1983, when his 50s/60s inspired album 'An Innocent Man' was released.

[@davidseagalmusic]

took a few bars and now I see, def another Billy take on Elvis Costello! Very kool song though!

[@danielmarra1555]

I don’t believe Billy likes Costello. Costello is known for bad mouthing Billy.

[@danielmarra1555]

When you say ‘another’? Which songs?

[@davidseagalmusic]

@@danielmarra1555 I don't want to be alone anymore from Glass Houses. Btw, just because an artist doesn't like another, doesn't mean they still don't respect their music and want to imitate or emulate that person! Another issue, perhaps at one point an artist is pissed at another. The media will have you believe they hate each other forever. Case in point Lennon vs. McCartney. Paul has said, I have read so much crap of me vs. John, sometimes I started believing it myself!

[@danielmarra1555]

David Seagal, I actually heard an Elvis Costello interview when he made fun of Billy’s song “just the way you are”. Regarding “I don’t want to be alone anymore” the only similarity is his voice, Billy’s composing is fare superior. Costello does have some catchy tunes though.

[@Tolstoy111]

Elvis Costello? This is doo-wop.

[@riverxvi9092]

he actually cut this from the album because he thought his voice was too high

[@BillyJoelLostTapes]

A big Beatles vibe

[@Tolstoy111]

It’s totally pre Beatles. That was the point of the album.

[@Deckers-zf9mm]

i know you!!!

[@agilblom]

@@Tolstoy111 I can hear This Boy in it.

[@Tolstoy111]

@@agilblom This Boy was the Beatles trying to sound retro

[@agilblom]

@@Tolstoy111 Great song!

[@christianschmill981]

When was this recorded?