"No Man's Land" is a song by American singer-songwriter

Billy Joel William Martin Joel (born May 9, 1949) is an American singer, songwriter, and pianist. Nicknamed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Piano Man" after his Signature song, signature 1973 song Piano Man (song), of the same name, Joel has ha ...

, released in February 1994 by

Columbia Records Columbia Records is an American reco ...

as the second single and opening track from his twelfth studio album, ''

River of Dreams ''River of Dreams'' is the twelfth studio album by American singer-songwriter Billy Joel, released on August 10, 1993. ''River of Dreams'' presented a more serious tone than found in Joel's previous albums, dealing with issues such as trust and ...

'' (1993). The song, both written and co-produced by Joel, is about the growth of suburbia and its negative environmental and social aspects. It was performed by Joel on the premiere episode of ''

Late Show with David Letterman ''Late Show with David Letterman'' is an American late-night talk show hosted by David Letterman on CBS, the first iteration of the ''Late Show'' franchise. The show debuted on August 30, 1993, and was produced by Letterman's production com ...

'' on August 30, 1993. The song peaked at number 18 on the US ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...

Album Rock Tracks Mainstream Rock is a music chart published by ''Billboard'' magazine that ranks the most-played songs on mainstream rock radio stations in the United States. It is an administrative category that combines the " active rock" and " heritage rock" fo ...

chart. In 2017, Joel performed the song in concert as part of the story line in the

Thanksgiving Thanksgiving is a national holiday celebrated on various dates in October and November in the United States, Canada, Saint Lucia, Liberia, and unofficially in countries like Brazil and Germany. It is also observed in the Australian territory ...

episode of the sixth season of the TV series ''

Arrow An arrow is a fin-stabilized projectile launched by a bow. A typical arrow usually consists of a long, stiff, straight shaft with a weighty (and usually sharp and pointed) arrowhead attached to the front end, multiple fin-like stabilizers c ...

''. In 2018, he recalled the song as containing his best lyrics, with "biblical imagery skewed by

consumerism Consumerism is a socio-cultural and economic phenomenon that is typical of industrialized societies. It is characterized by the continuous acquisition of goods and services in ever-increasing quantities. In contemporary consumer society, the ...

". On the 1994 River of Dreams Tour, Joel often opened concerts with "No Man's Land".

Critical reception

Pan-European magazine ''

Music & Media ''Music & Media'' was a pan-European magazine for radio, music and entertainment. It was published for the first time in 1984 as ''Eurotipsheet'', but in 1986 it changed name to ''Music & Media''. It was originally based in Amsterdam, but later m ...

'' wrote, "Woken up after his own '

Lullaby A lullaby (), or a cradle song, is a soothing song or piece of music that is usually played for (or sung to) children (for adults see music and sleep). The purposes of lullabies vary. In some societies, they are used to pass down cultural knowl ...

', Joel immediately puts on his rocking shoes.

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programmers, for whom he is a core artist, don't panic! Lead guitar is only used for fill ins."

Track listings

All songs were written by Billy Joel. * UK CD single # "No Man's Land" (LP version) – 4:45 # "No Man's Land" (live) – 5:03

Charts

References

{{Authority control 1992 songs 1993 singles Billy Joel songs Columbia Records singles Song recordings produced by Danny Kortchmar Songs written by Billy Joel