Bruce Hornsby and the Range made a spectacular musical debut. 'The Way It Is' is a poignant, soulful, and powerful album with a flawless tracklist, beautiful melodies, feel-good rock numbers, phenomenal ballads, and socially conscious tunes such as the title track. There isn't a minute of 'The Way It Is' that suggests it's a debut album. The album was an instant classic, one of the most complete and cherished recordings of the 1980s that went on to win the 1986 Grammy Award for Best New Artist. Not since Elton John and Billy Joel came along, had a piano player made such a major impact on the pop/rock music scene.