Billy Joel/Tokyo,Japan 7.24.1988

In the late 1980s, when the bubble economy was at its peak, it became common for big names to come to Japan for Western music concerts, and in 1988, a unique event was held in July at the newly opened Tokyo Dome. This is an event in which a record company releases a best-of Western music album edited uniquely by Japan, and the artists gather together to promote the release. The event was named “DRY GIGS” because its sponsor was an alcoholic beverage manufacturer, and in a sense it was a revolutionary event that could be called the forerunner of today’s festivals. Since it involved a best-of album, major artists belonging to the same record company appeared at the same time, and the big three were Art Garfunkel, Boz Scaggs, and Billy Joel. Naturally, this event was a hot topic and was reported in real time, but what was heard was that Art and Boz were being criticized in order of appearance. Behind the scenes, Billy Joel came to Japan for this event when he was not active, and even served as the bird. Because it was such a one-off performance, the sound source was not available, and I think this appearance was a little veiled among Billy’s performances in Japan. This work is the release of such a valuable performance in Japan with a unique audience recording. Although it was recorded at the freshly made Tokyo Dome, it captures the state of the stage surprisingly clearly. Of course, since this was the Tokyo Dome in 1988, there was no escape from the echo spell, but it was a bit of a miracle that the sound image was recorded without any blurring. Billy’s singing voice in particular can be heard clearly. Since it’s a cassette recording, you can hear hiss, but I’m still surprised by the quality of the recording. The set list itself is like a shortened version of the “THE BRIDGE” tour that came to Japan the previous year, and when the opening “A Matter Of Trust” starts, the nearby guests are saying “eh”. In other words, it’s the same as last year… However, from Billy’s point of view, he took on the job at a time when there were no plans to perform live, so it was only natural that he used the pattern from the previous year. In fact, the MC before “Honesty” said, “This is the only live show of the year.” On the other hand, thanks to the shortened set, it is the strongest set list with hit songs lined up in a row. From around “Only The Good Die Young,” both Billy and the audience got excited, and after that, they performed so passionately that they almost forgot they were on stage at an event. Since his visit to Japan has been kept under wraps until now, you may be surprised at how passionately he performed. Billy’s own live performance ends with the Beatles’ cover “Back In The U.S.S.R.”, a memento of the Russian performance that took place after the previous year’s performance in Japan, but it continues into the finale of the event. The final song is “I Saw Her Standing There” by the Beatles. Boz Scaggs and Graham Bonnet, who was the vocalist of Impellitteri (!) at the time, were also on stage here. Originally, Art Garfunkel was also supposed to be invited, but it is said that for the aforementioned reason, he hurriedly returned to the hotel as soon as his turn was over. Still, this finale is very exciting, and the performance is interesting. Billy sings the first verse, Boz sings the second verse, and Graham sings the third verse, making for a miraculous collaboration. The climax was Graham’s cry of “Billy Joel!” An event unique to the bubble 80’s Japan that will probably never happen again. Billy’s great performance was released for the first time. There is no doubt that you will be surprised by the surprisingly rich performance content, and this is a valuable sound source that has been overlooked! KIRIN DRY GIGS ’88: Performances on this day Billy Joel Boz Scaggs Art Garfunkel Hooters Imperiali Tokyo Dome, Tokyo, Japan 24th July 1988 PERFECT SOUND(from Original Masters) Disc 1 (42:33) 1. Introduction 2. A Matter Of Trust 3. Pressure 4. Miami 2017 (Seen The Lights Go Out On Broadway) 5. Honesty 6. The Stranger 7. An Innocent Man 8. Big Man On Mulberry Street Disc 2 (38:59) 1. Only The Good Die Young 2. It’s Still Rock And Roll To Me 3. You May Be Right 4. Big Shot 5. My Life 6. Keeping The Faith 7. Back In The U.S.S.R. 8. I Saw Her Standing There