Joel Has Soul Part 1: Sing Us a Song...

Hello and Welcome to my contribution to the vast and bountiful expanse that is the internet! 

Seeing as this is my first post on a blog called "Gospel of the Piano Man"(which is really a 1970s blog with heavy emphasis on Billy Joel), I figured I should start things off right and give the people what they want (and need). Without further ado, here is part one of the "Joel Has Soul" miniseries.

In the latter parts of this series, we will be exploring the meanings and historical context (get excited) of Billy Joel’s songs. But before that, it only seems right to begin with an overview of who the Piano Man really is.

Let’s start with the basics.

If you know nothing else about Billy Joel or his music, chances are you’re at the very least aware of his most popular hit “Piano Man”, which effectively launched his career in 1973.  Besides the catchy tune and soaring chorus, what really sets this song apart is the stories that it tells.

This brings us to Billy Joel Fact #1: Billy Joel is first and foremost a storyteller.

In my opinion, people love Billy Joel for the same reason people love J.K. Rowling or C.S. Lewis: they love and relate to his stories. In life, we all have our own stories to tell, but sometimes we need someone else to tell them for us.  In "Piano Man", we get to hear snippets of other people’s stories.  “John at the bar” and the waitress dream of more fulfilling careers, Paul and Davy are consumed by their work, and the businessmen need a release from reality. 

Does any of this sound familiar?

 While we may not all be waitresses or bartenders, we can all relate to that intense yearning to have/become that inexplicable something more in life, and ultimately we realize that the stories we are hearing are our own.  In this way, Billy Joel’s music stories make us aware of our similarities rather than our differences, and remind us of the power of a shared experience.

Wow, that was deep.  Here is a relevant cat cartoon:

Okay, let’s move on.  I’m just going to jump right into this one.

Billy Joel Fact #2: Billy Joel keeps it REAL. (I know, that was eloquent)

No piece of art-whether it be a painting, a piece of literature, or a musical composition- is ever created in a vacuum, but it seems that Joel was especially observant to the world around him when he was writing his songs during the 1970s.  

If you’re not already aware, the 1970s were not exactly a highlight in America’s history.  While the 70s did produce some of the best music of the century of all time, there were several political dark spots that disillusioned much of the general public.  Always a man of the people, Billy Joel reflected this by incorporating cynicism and seriousness into some of his songs.  But at the same time, he also released songs that are almost giddy with hope and straight-up emotional sappiness.  Other times, as is the case with "Piano Man", which is probably best summed up by this lyric-"yes they’re sharing a drink they call loneliness, but it’s better than drinkin' alone" -Joel toes the line between the two extremes with resonating finesse.  

In this way, the very nature of Joel’s music mirrors both the conscience of America and the ebb and flow of our everyday emotions, our defeats, and our dreams for the future.  In my humble opinion, no other artist has mastered this so well.

At this point, you may be expecting me to end this long-winded post with a nice quote from "Piano Man" to wrap everything up neatly.  However, this is my blog and I get to choose when to make sense, so here is a quote from "Summer Highland Falls", off of Turnstiles, 1976: 

"And so we'll stand upon the ledges of our lives,

With our respective similarities...

It's either sadness or euphoria."

There’s no way around it: Joel Has Soul.