Billy Joel - Collected Additional Masters (2011)

Many artists record tracks that are never released on their albums. Sometimes, it's because the songs are deemed unworthy. Others are intentional one-offs intended for movie soundtracks or themed albums featuring various artists. Frequently, they serve as B-sides to hit singles. Billy Joel is no exception at having non-album songs scattered all over the place, so he released a full CD's worth of these rarities back in 2011.
Complete Additional Masters is a seventeen song bonus CD included with Joel's Complete Albums Collection that is only available at Amazon as the fifteenth disc in a package that will cost you an unfathomable $600. For some people that is a week's pay. The good news is that you can also purchase the whole set on iTunes for less than $100, or you can just buy the seventeen rarities as a standalone purchase for only $11.99, which is how I bought mine because I already have every one of his studio albums. Complete Additional  Masters is not available on any physical format if purchased alone.

I always burn my downloaded purchases to CD-R, so after I bought Joel's new, highly publicized single, "Turn The Lights Back On," with these seventeen rare tunes I put them all together on one disc.
I already own three of these tracks in various formats, but I wasn't familiar with most of them until now. As is usually the case with Joel there are no bad original songs, and he does a fine job on the covers. There are rockers, ballads, lightweight pop songs, and a couple that are a bit more serious.

Since this set was issued in 2011, there have been additional stray Billy Joel recordings that aren't included here - such as his covers of "Live and Let Die" and "Maybe, I'm Amazed" recorded for the Art of McCartney double CD release - but Collected Additional Masters is still a must have for all true fans of the extremely talented rock hall-of-famer.

The very interesting track list is below. 

1. "Elvis Presley Boulevard" (B-side of  “Allentown,” 1982)
2. "I’ll Cry Instead" (Live Beatles cover, B-side of “An Innocent Man,” 1983)
3. "House Of Blue Light" (B-side of “We Didn’t Start The Fire,” 1989)
4. "You Picked A Real Bad Time" (B-side of “All About Soul,” 1993)
5. "You’re Only Human" (Second Wind)” – outtake
6. "The Night Is Still Young" – outtake
7. "Heartbreak Hotel" (from the movie Honeymoon in Vegas, 1999)
8. "All Shook Up" (also from Honeymoon in Vegas)
9. "Where Were You On Our Wedding Day" (from the movie Runaway Bride, 1999)
10. "In A Sentimental Mood" (from A League Of Their Own in 1992)
11. "Nobody Knows But Me" (from In Harmony II, an LP to benefit Children’s Television Workshop)
12. "To Make You Feel My Love" (Bob Dylan cover and single, 1997)
13  "Light as the Breeze" (Leonard Cohen cover)
14. "Hey Girl" (Gerry Goffin-Carole King cover )
15. "When You Wish Upon A Star" (from a Disney tribute album, Simply Mad About The Mouse, 2001)
16. "Don’t Worry Baby" (Beach Boys cover from the Radio City Music Hall All-Star Tribute to Brian Wilson concert, 2001)
17. "All My Life" (single 2007)

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