The Extreme Moods That Led Billy Joel to Write “Summer, Highland Falls”

Billy Joel’s fourth album, Turnstiles, is best known for “New York State Of Mind”. But Joel had to leave to appreciate his hometown. His New York postcard arrived after living on the opposite side of the country. And this extreme also describes another Turnstiles track, “Summer, Highland Falls”.

Videos by American Songwriter

Regarding the album’s title, the word “turnstile” is itself a passageway. People come and go. Some leave home while others return. Joel’s homecoming led to his great New York love song. And to a self-critique on “Summer, Highland Falls”.  

About “Summer, Highland Falls”

Joel said the song reflects how artists suffer extreme mood swings, from sadness to euphoria. Tapping into these dramatic emotional shifts for a work is good, but if an artist cannot find an outlet for their mercurial behavior, the results are often bad. Especially for those around them.

It wasn’t the only time Joel addressed the issue. He explores a similar theme on “I Go To Extremes” from his 1989 release Storm Front.

They say that these are not the best of times
But they’re the only times I’ve ever known
And I believe there is a time for meditation
In cathedrals of our own.

He wrote “Summer, Highland Falls” in 1976, after moving back to New York from California. Joel lived in Los Angeles for three years, but instead of returning to New York City, he moved upstate.

In the quiet of his surroundings, Joel reflected on his faults and how they affected a relationship he was in at the time. Pastoral upstate New York and personal reflection came out in Joel’s cascading piano chords. The circular sequence lulls you into a meditation. And Joel’s voice sounds detached, giving the tune a universal sentiment.

Now we are forced to recognize our inhumanity
Our reason coexists with our insanity
And though we choose between reality and madness
It’s either sadness or euphoria.

The Albums Aren’t Selling

While Turnstiles celebrates Joel’s return home, it could have ended his career. Though critically acclaimed, Joel’s previous pair of albums failed to duplicate the commercial success of Piano Man (1973).

Now it’s shocking to imagine a record label dropping an artist who’s just recorded “New York State Of Mind”. But Turnstiles sold modestly, and Joel’s next album, The Stranger, was likely to be his final release on Columbia Records if it didn’t perform well commercially.

Columbia avoided the humiliation of dropping one of America’s greatest songwriters because Joel recorded a masterpiece, and The Stranger sent the piano man on a path to becoming one of the biggest-selling artists in history. He channeled the tumult of his own life, the city he loved, and its vibrant characters, adding standards to America’s songbook.

Thankfully, he had those broad mood swings to pull from. Like on “Summer, Highland Falls”.

Photo by Michael Putland/Getty Images