New York State of Mind

Many years ago, I was playing a new song for my longtime fiddlin' friend and bandmate Michael Thornburg, and he said, "'Cool, another song about a state.'" I then realized that I often use several states as backgrounds for my songs that tell stories." Now, this episode is called States of Mind, and we're featuring three of those stated songs.

Now, this is not to be confused with Billy Joel's brilliant New York State of Mind.

These songs are mine, not in my mind.

The Hook and Billy Joel song works well because New Yorkers tend to differentiate between New York City and the rest of the state, which they refer to as New York State.

I mean, I'm a massive, you know, Billy Joel fan.

And I always like to listen to New York State of Mind because that, although it's a song about New York, you know, if I listen to it, it always reminds me of what you know, my home city of Oxford.

And, uh, you know, when I, you know, sometimes when I go back to Oxford, just, I just like it, I like to reset.

So that, that song was reminds me of resetting, but no, I do love a lot of sort of 2010s music.

Yeah, you're

thinking of New York State of Mind by Nas.

Billy Joel.

And Nas.

Yeah, Billy Joel.

Billy Joel and Nas.

New York State of Mind.

We're in a New York State of Mind.

Billy Joel.

New York State of Mind.

They sent me another one.

So the story, they sent me one.

And that was totally a note from Phil to nudge him to kind of complete that bossa language that he developed long before he ever started touring with Billy.

Now we celebrate it with all of these great selections like New York State of Mind and Miami 2017 and Prelude, Angry Young Men and all of these staples that are in the show.

But what I find really fascinating about that album is that commercially, like we said it, Columbia was disappointed and it put them in the pressure cooker.

But you don't get a Stranger or Glasshouse, you don't get all of these other signature pieces that come after it without turnstiles.

But I am curious to know, why? Why did you choose Vienna?

So we've, well, I think Deej covered New York State of Mind.

And I think on that episode and one other episode, I mentioned that my favorite Billy Joel song was Vienna.

And I just love it so much.

Thrilling.

I find it really cool.

And you mentioned New York State of Mind.

What's interesting about that song is that Vienna is very similar in that that rhyme structure.

Yeah, yeah.

Plus there's New York State of Mind, but you know.

Mine is Frank Sinatra.

It's not even close.

Little Billy Joel

I'm in a New York state of mind.

Boy, picking a, picking a favorite Billy Joel song, pfft, out of that library, please.

But this would, this would be top five.

New York state of mind, and, uh, it's kind of interesting what the state of mind will be of New York voters.

Uh, Hannity last night taking a look at...

Uh, about to welcome Bruce Blakeman, the Republican running against Kathy Hochul.

I-

... to appreciate Billy Joel when I heard New York State of Mind.

Sure.

It's a great song.