I wonder if it's generational? My generation grew up with the album as the "natural" unit of music -- it was the way most music was sold, and many albums were created to be thought of at that level. With the shift in technology, your generation is probably more focused on mixes and individual tracks. (Mix tapes have been around for a long time, but they used to be a lot more work to create than they are now.)

And I'm quite fond of Billy Joel, although I like certain albums and songs a *lot* more than others...