Glass Houses - A Billy Joel Podcast - EP 052 - In Conversation with Billy Joel Art Director Edward O’Dowd

EP 052 - In Conversation with Billy Joel Art Director Edward O’Dowd

02/01/22 • 58 min

2 Listeners

If you’ve gone to one of Billy Joel’s Madison Square Garden residency shows, saw one of his concerts near your hometown, or picked up any of his reissues or box sets over the past decade plus, then you’re familiar with the work of Edward O’Dowd.

Since 2008, the graphic designer and art director has created the iconic logos Billy uses for tour dates, show announcements, and album covers. He’s responsible for the “live” logo where photos of Billy are in the letters of his name as well as tour books and the Billy Joel at Madison Square Garden logo.

On record, he was instrumental in creating the Bridge to Russia cover and design as well as the Stranger and Piano Man box set concepts and designs. Most recently, he designed the booklet that accompanies the Vinyl Collection Volume One and carefully recreated each album’s original artwork and liner notes.

For this episode, we spoke with Edward O’Dowd about how he came to work with Billy. And the stories behind both creating new imagery for Joel’s work and recreating the classics.

O’Dowd tells us about the craft behind his work, the inspiration for the designs, and the state of the music industry in general. The conversation also celebrates the life of the late Jeff Schock, an important figure in Billy’s camp and with whom O’Dowd was close on both personal and professional levels.

Join us, as we dive deep into the man behind Billy Joel’s newest t-shirts, album covers, tour books, and more.

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Email us: [email protected]

Glass Houses - A Billy Joel Podcast on the web / social media:

Website: http://www.glasshousespod.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/glasshousespodcast/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/glasshousespod/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/glasshousespod

Support the podcast:

Paypal: https://paypal.me/glasshousespod
Venmo: @MGrosvenor

Produced by Michael Grosvenor & Jack Firneno for Groove Music Marketing

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

For this episode, we spoke with Edward O’Dowd about how he came to work with Billy. And the stories behind both creating new imagery for Joel’s work and recreating the classics.

Join us, as we dive deep into the man behind Billy Joel’s newest t-shirts, album covers, tour books, and more.

------

Email us: [email protected]

Glass Houses - A Billy Joel Podcast on the web / social media:

Website: http://www.glasshousespod.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/glasshousespodcast/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/glasshousespod/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/glasshousespod

Support the podcast:

Paypal: https://paypal.me/glasshousespod
Venmo: @MGrosvenor

Produced by Michael Grosvenor & Jack Firneno for Groove Music Marketing

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Previous Episode

EP 051 - Billy Joel Album Covers Ranked

1 Recommendations

Whoever said, “You can’t judge a book by its cover” never had to design the front of a rock and roll album. Before the internet put all the music in the world at everyone’s fingertips, that front cover first served as a siren call to anyone browsing in a record store.

Then, when you sat down and listened to the songs while checking out the artwork and liner notes, that image had to complement and enhance what you were hearing.

The best album covers worked hand-in-hand with the music to bring each fan a full, exuberant, multi-sensory experience. The worst, well, the songs better be great.

Billy Joel was no exception to this rule. And, like the songs underneath them, each album cover was distinctly different from the ones before and after it.

For this episode, we’re diving only skin-deep into 15 of Billy’s albums. This time around, the subject is only their covers: Which ones were great, which ones were so-so, and which were flops.

Join us as we rank the artwork of Billy Joel’s most significant records.

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Email us: [email protected]

Glass Houses - A Billy Joel Podcast on the web / social media:

Website: http://www.glasshousespod.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/glasshousespodcast/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/glasshousespod/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/glasshousespod

Support the podcast:

Paypal: https://paypal.me/glasshousespod
Venmo: @MGrosvenor

Produced by Michael Grosvenor & Jack Firneno for Groove Music Marketing

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Next Episode

EP 053 - Year In Review: 1997

For Billy Joel, or at least his record label, 1997 seems to be a year of acknowledgement. It had been four years since his last album, and since then Billy had been telling anyone who’d listen that he was finished writing pop songs.

Now, it seemed like Columbia Records was ready to accept that – on their terms, of course.

1997 saw the release of Billy Joel: Greatest Hits Volume III and a companion VHS and DVD release of his music videos from the same era. Then came a box-set-style release of all three Greatest Hits editions.

Meanwhile, Billy hit the press circuit to promote Volume III and the cover songs he recorded for it. Along the way, we get hints and clues to projects he’d develop early the next decade. And, in lieu of touring, fans got his VH1 “Behind The Music” and Storytellers episodes.

All this pointed the way for how Billy would handle the next phase of his career. And how his record label would make the most of its assets.

Join us as we dive deep into Billy Joel in 1997.

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Email us: [email protected]

Glass Houses - A Billy Joel Podcast on the web / social media: