On This Day in 1989, This Rock and Roll Piano Maestro Landed His Third No. 1 Album With a Cold War Era-Defining Single

If you were grown or were growing up in the 1980s, you surely remember Cold War-inspired songs such as “Russians”, “Wind Of Change”, “1999”, and, of course, Billy Joel‘s 1989 hit, “We Didn’t Start The Fire”. In the Cold War pop culture catalog, Billy Joel’s single is right up there with Red Dawn, “99 Red Balloons”, and War Games. It is a staple, and on this day, December 16, 1989, the album on which it resides peaked at No. 1 on the Billboard 200.

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Released on October 17, 1989, Billy Joel’s 11th studio album, Storm Front, debuted on the Billboard 200 at No. 47 in November of that year. Roughly a month later, Joel’s album reached the No. 1 spot and delivered him the third No. 1 album of his career. Prior to Storm Front, Joel scored No. 1 albums with 52nd Street and Glass Houses. Following the success of Storm Front, Joel scored his fourth No. 1 album, River Of Dreams, in 1993.

Needless to say, Joel’s 11th studio album is one of the most successful albums of his career, and that is thanks to the laundry list of hit singles on the body of work. Other than the No. 1 hit, “We Didn’t Start The Fire”, some other notable tracks on the album include “And So It Goes”, “The Downeaster ‘Alexa’”, and “Leningrad”; all of which reached the Billboard Hot 100 following their release. Although, and as you probably guessed, the album’s most successful single was the Cold War-defining hit, “We Didn’t Start The Fire”.

The Success and Cultural Significance of Billy Joel’s Cold War Single

Released as a single on September 27, 1989, Billy Joel’s single, “We Didn’t Start The Fire”, climbed to the No. 1 spot on the Billboard Hot 100 on December 9, 1989. It was the third No. 1 single of Billy Joel’s career, but more importantly, it illustrated that the world had been going through Cold War conflicts prior to the 1980s, and that his generation was not singularly at fault for the current political landscape of the Cold War during the decade.

To illustrate his point, Joel rhythmically lists at least 100 major historical events that all took place during the Cold War Era. As its chart history suggests, it was both a musical and cultural hit, and just possibly one of the most successful politically themed tracks of the 1980s.

Photo by Richard E. Aaron/Redferns