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Song of the Day #4,509: ‘Stop in Nevada’ – Billy Joel

If you’re a Billy Joel fan, as I am, you find gems no matter where in his catalog you go. OK, maybe his last couple of albums were a bit thin on great material, but prior to the mid-80s, he was firing on all cylinders.

Take today’s SOTD, a cut from the second half of Piano Man, Joel’s 1973 sophomore album and his commercial breakthrough. ‘Stop in Nevada’ is a great song in the same country rock vein as much of the record. Casual Joel fans have probably never heard it. But if you know and love the man, this is one more solid song in a sea of them.

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Song of the Day #4,508: ‘If I Ain’t Got You’ – Alicia Keys

I never really got into Alicia Keys when she was making a big splash in the 2000’s. While I appreciated her singer-songwriter chops and her use of classical piano in an modern soul setting, ultimately she just wasn’t making the kind of music I like. R&B has always been one of my blind spots.

I’ve come to appreciate Keys more in recent years thanks to her charming work as host of the Grammys. She is so earnest, positive and full of love that it’s hard to remain cynical in the face of her infectious brightness.

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Song of the Day #4,507: ‘Decoration Day’ – Drive-By Truckers

I’ve wanted to give Drive-By Truckers a listen ever since I discovered Jason Isbell a few years back. I knew he spent time in the Athens-based Southern rock band before he went solo and released some of the best albums I’ve heard in a long time.

2003’s Decoration Day, the Truckers’ fourth studio album, was Isbell’s first with the band. He replaced a departing guitarist and eventually became one of the principal songwriters. His tenure was short, however, because his drug and alcohol abuse made him impossible, and forced the band to boot him a few years later. Fortunately, he got clean and embarked on an extraordinary solo career.

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Song of the Day #4,506: ‘Slow’ – Kylie Minogue

I like when the Decades posts give me a chance to listen to an artist I’ve never heard before, and frankly will likely never hear again. Kylie Minogue is such an artist.

The 52-year-old dance-pop star is the all-time top-selling Australian artist, with more than 70 million albums sold worldwide. I don’t think I’d ever heard a note of hers until this week.

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Song of the Day #4,505: ‘Keep Me in Your Heart’ – Warren Zevon

My awareness of Warren Zevon begins and ends with his classic ‘Werewolves of London,’ released on the 1978 album Excitable Boy. That song got a lot of airplay when I was young, and really got a boost when Martin Scorsese had Tom Cruise peacock around a pool table to it in 1986’s The Color of Money.

That was Zevon’s third of 12 studio albums, in a career that spanned 24 years and saw him collaborate with the likes of Linda Ronstadt, David Letterman and R.E.M.

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