"Streetlife Serenade" is the third studio album by Billy Joel, released on October 11, 1974, by Columbia Records. The album peaked at No. 35 on the US album charts and has sold over one million copies.
Recorded primarily with session musicians, Streetlife Serenade marks Joel's first work with the Moog synthesizer. Key contributors included guitarists Don Evans and Al Hertzberg, and banjo/pedal steel guitarist Tom Whitehorse. Joel faced pressure to produce a new album following the success of Piano Man, even though he felt he had limited new material. This led to the inclusion of instrumentals like "Root Beer Rag" and "The Mexican Connection."
The album's artwork features a painting by Brian Hagiwara of a café in Los Angeles, while the back cover showcases a barefoot Joel, who had recently undergone wisdom teeth extraction.
Though the album included interesting musical ideas, Joel later expressed that he felt it lacked strong lyrical content, describing it as a work trying to capture a Debussy-like essence without success. The album features live favorites like "Root Beer Rag" and "Souvenir," and live versions of tracks such as "Streetlife Serenader" and "Los Angelenos" later appeared on his 1981 live album Songs in the Attic.
Streetlife Serenade was also released in a quadraphonic mix and was reissued in 2015 as a Super Audio CD, showcasing both the stereo and quad mixes. Despite mixed initial reception, the album has gained appreciation over the years for its musical experimentation.
