Billy Joel - Allentown | REACTION

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Here is the video link: • Billy Joel - Allentown...
Credit: ‪@billyjoel‬
Theme Music: ‪@MattCherne‬
#BillyJoel #Allentown

[@michellep9999]

Allentown Bethlehem steel factories BUILT this country. I hope people can learn from this and understand. I Love Allentown, PA and Billy Joel has a way of understanding and explaining the life of the common man. He’s a gifted teacher in the guise of musical and lyrical genius.

[@civwar054]

❤️

[@drugfwpmed]

Well stated!

[@marytee3963]

i grew up near Allentown. The song is really about the steel industry drying up in the 1970's. Steel was produced more cheaply in Mexico, China, etc. People who were employed by the steel mills were union people and had very good benefits. So there was generational employment. My father was a welder in a steel plant in Conshohocken, PA as was his father. I remember when my father's steel mill closed in 1977 (Allen Wood Steel), there were approx 7000 people who lost their jobs. All across PA so many steel mills closed. Those were hard times.

[@nishikaze]

I'm from the area too and was going say this exact thing.

[@ClickToPreview]

Yeah, they were hard times because of greedy unions of famously ignorant people who have NO PLACE in trying to run a profitable, growing business by PARTICULARLY demanding higher wages than what you are worth. If I ran a steel mill, and you tried to unionize... You are LONG GONE so the enterprise continues to make a profit and GROW and YOUR JOB doesn't get shipped off to Mexico or China.

[@marcbla]

Not to mention the fact that between the union and the corporation they spent money like it was going out of style they had several golf courses the fixtures and the main office were gold and they never use the money to modernize any of their facilities in some ways the union was the demise of Bethlehem Steel

[@steveclarke4542]

Also shifted to Japan. Their industry has shifted to India and Pakistan

[@marcbla]

I live up in northeastern Pennsylvania and the part about pulling all the coal from the ground and Ewing and people crawling away Echoes through my head up here

[@damianwirth2313]

The song is about unemployment and the downfall of a steel city. And how the US gave up on them. They threw an American Flag in our face.

[@sunnyd4734]

I moved out of Pennsylvania in 1989 to Boston, MA. Best decision I ever made.

[@Marcus-Oh-really-yes]

Great song and insights! Yes, the song is bittersweet. A lot of Pennsylvania towns relied on the steel mills and coal mines for employment. But in the mid- to late 1970s when the economy turned sour and gas prices rose and inflation was really bad, a lot of companies closed and/or moved their factories to Mexico or abroad for cheaper labor. ... Since Veterans Day is right around the corner on Friday, Nov. 11, I recommend another bittersweet but beautiful song by Billy Joel called "Goodnight, Saigon," which pays homage to Vietnam War veterans. ... Other great Billy Joel songs are ""Just the Way You Are" (his first big hit, which peaked at No. 3), The Longest Time," "The Stranger," "Only the Good Die Young," "Uptown Girl" and "An Innocent Man."

[@jml-rj5re]

and two major recessions in the early 80s. Steel began to be made overseas and folks lost jobs.

[@mic1240]

Allentown was city he used as others with bigger steel industry didn’t work well for lyric. It’s a song isn’t a celebration, but sadness about changing times

[@ViewsFromThe502]

www.lehighvalleynews.com/music/forty-years-later-the-feud-between-allentown-pa-and-singer-billy-joel-continues In a newspaper interview shortly after, Joel summarized it by saying of the song: “It’s saying, ‘We’re not giving up or moving out - we’re going to try.’” This is why we said it a celebratory vibe. It's not celebrating the downfall of the town, it's an appreciation of how resilient the people are.

[@jaymacgee_A_Bawbag_Blethering]

I always thought it was a commentary on the demise of industrial activity in that part of Pennsylvania . But I’m Scottish do I could be wrong . 👍🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿

[@joemachine4714]

Not necessarily small towns - Detroit and Cleveland were "rust belt" steel cities in decline at the time. Other steel towns like Gary Indiana (next to Chicago), Pittsburgh, Bethlehem PA, Erie PA, etc

[@drugfwpmed]

The mixing over the vocals is intended to tell a story. It keeps one captivated, like a book you can"t put down!

[@darrinlindsey]

I was a sophomore in high school when this song was released. It's about a specific town, but really it was about factories closing down all over the country.

[@ritacal557]

Billy Joel writes songs we can all relate to. If you live between LA and NYC you know this story. Middle America died then.

[@jamishops]

Nice catch on the Beatles sound. This album was written shortly after John Lennon died. Billy was a huge Beatles fan and it hit him hard. Not sure it was a conscious effort, but most of the album has a Beatles quality to it. Pressure and Goodnight Saigon are also great songs on this album

[@sourisvoleur4854]

Billy Joel was a huge McCartney fan in particular, and it really shows on this album. I read an article about patterns that some McCartney melodies have, something that a non-trained person couldn't really do on purpose, and Joel does it too. (Has to do with a kind of symmetry when you flip the sheet music upside-down.) Billy just has a touch with melodies. And words. And singing. And playing. He's really an amazingly talented person.

[@patticrichton1135]

@@sourisvoleur4854 Paul McCartney and Billy Joel are my favorite composers (along with John Lennon as well) but Paul and Billy are similar, and they are also friends. Billy asked Paul to come on stage with him for several songs in the LAST CONCERT AT SHEA (Stadium) which Billy was the LAST rock concert there, before they demolished the stadium. He felt it was only right to have PAUL come and perform as well because the BEATLES were the very FIRST ROCK group to perform at SHEA on Aug. 15, 1965. Before that NO rock groups EVER performed in any large major stadium. It was purely for sports. So concerts at Shea Stadium BEGAN with THE BEATLES and ENDED with BILLY JOEL because it was being destroyed.

[@sourisvoleur4854]

@@patticrichton1135 That's awesome thanks for sharing that.

[@dathorndike4908]

I like to see the diversity in Billy's music. Like here, he plays guitar on this track, which he only did a handful of times on his songs

[@leojones22]

My fave Billy Joel song of all

[@brucemarshall9521]

Not a big fan of Billy Joel music except for this song. It chugs along in a nice groove from begining to end. Great lyrics, singing and piano. IMHO the song is about the demise, resurgence and then the permanent demise of American manufacturing. In the 60s we were booming. Now, we make basically nothing.

[@dianek522]

Check out "Sometimes A Fantasy" (from "Glass Houses") and "Stiletto" (amazing sax, from "52nd Street), two overlooked gems

[@justinscherline1025]

I grew up in Allentown in Southeasttern PA. 262nd largest city in the USA. The town of Bethlehem is really what he is singing about. But Allentown is large enough that most ppl will have an idea of where and the Lehigh valley

[@coudgeb]

Would love to see you guys here in Allentown. We are called the Lehigh Valley. It includes Allentown, Bethlehem & Easton. Allentown is a big city & im like a 45 min drive to Philly,an hour to the poconos, 2 hours to the beach in Jersey & 2 hrs to New York. It really is a great location to live with quick access to everything. We were a huge farming town but turned into a bustling city with a lot of great stuff. As a life long Allentownian this song always hits us a bit different. While I was a child then it didn’t take a genius to see all the suffering & countless generations knocked to there knees once Bethlehem Steel shut down. Fantastic song but a definite heart string puller for me. Happy I found your channel a big thank you for this one❤❤❤ Ps. now Bethlehem Steel has been turned into a casino 🤷‍♀️ lol

[@gpal86]

No bad Billy Joel song, but my next suggestion would be Goodnight Saigon, to see the genius along this vein.

[@itsmedrooms6071]

The dark side of the American dream. The loss of the industrial base becoming the rust belt and the fly over states with all the people jobless as well as left behind leading to the opioid crisis later on. The promises of the next generation doing better than the last were all broken..so yeah, it’s actually kind of a socially conscious critique of what happened to America in general.

[@JJ8KK]

This is my all-time favorite Billy Joel song, hands down. It's wonderful. Filled with melody and clever change ups and even those meaningful lyrics. Just the best...

[@loisrogers9042]

Yes, Allentown is in Pennsylvania, near Bethlehem.

[@Art-cn8yl]

This song came out at the perfect time. It came out when people really started feeling the affects of outsourcing jobs offshore. The son's of the greatest generation being stripped of their livelihood and dignity.

[@famat161]

The song came to be celebrated by the residents of Allentown (or at least to a former mayor), because it came to highlight the reilience of the people.

[@joannryan5929]

If you haven't reacted to it yet, you need to react to Billy's "We Didn't Start the Fire". It's a little history lesson with amazingly rhyming lyrics.

[@knoxvol7512]

Billy's a great story teller. His "Goodnight Saigon" and "New York State of Mid" are both incredible performances.

[@Bekka_Noyb]

One of my fave Billy Joel songs. Lyrics are kinda dark

[@andrewknight4746]

Hey Guys. Great reaction. Next try Goodnight Saigon and Pressure

[@craigedwards2940]

He's not just a great piano player, but also a great story teller. That's one thing I've noticed throughout his career. The ability to be able to tell a story and musically write accordingly. Donald Fagen has the same ability.

[@SueProst]

Allentown is an archetype of the American dream. Post WW2 was a boom for America. Europe and Asia were destroyed so we had no competition. When Billy wrote this there was alot of unemployment and homelessness. American families in the 50s 60s and 70s were prosperous. It's not just one place .

[@MM-xz5ig]

Movin’ Out, NY State Of Mind, My Life, Scenes From An Italian Restaurant, Zanzibar, Angry Young Man, Vienna, The Entertainer…the list of great Billy Joel songs is endless.

[@nealeger8154]

Billy Joel started writing and recording this album not long after John Lennon was killed in late 1980, so some of the songs on this album had strong Lennon/Beatles influence. "Laura" and "Scandinavian Skies" were other examples.

[@lauracorriss9538]

It's a catchy tune but the words are important. I think the tune is to catch your attention, but he is talking about a recession caused in areas where the steel mills were closed down and so many manufacturing jobs were sent overseas. It hurt only certain areas of our country back then, but now it's causing serious problems for all of us due to supply chain problems.

[@FutureAbe]

Yep, it’s about specific events. It’s interesting to witness your smiles turn to frowns as the song progressed.

[@highheartwellness]

First word the comes to mind for Billy Joel is brilliant. Love this song, one of a kind

[@user-lq4qe7pj9s]

To see a more updated version of the topics/issues mentioned in "Allentown," check out a crime drama called "American Rust" with Jeff Daniels.

[@ajruther67]

Any song from his 1980 Glass Houses album is great. My favorite on the album C’était toi (You Were the One)

[@hibhibb5429]

Billy Joel's songs "The River of Dreams", "Second Wind (you're only human)", and "A Matter of Trust" are a must to check out. Billy is Legend!! Also Allentown is a town in Northeast Pennsylvania about 45 minutes away from the Pocono mountains. An industrial town, many of the once-thriving factories and mills had fallen on hard times when Joel wrote the song, and unemployment in the area was at an all-time high of 12%. Also mentioned in the song is nearby Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, whose main employer, Bethlehem Steel, had been closing operations. Joel sings about the unemployed workers in the line, "Out in Bethlehem they're killing time, filling out forms, standing in line."

[@kenrutherford1109]

I like the line "So the graduations hang on the wall, but they never really helped us at all," but I have no idea what that means

[@moseschrute]

The diplomas/degrees are no help with mass unemployment is how I understand it

[@RaymondBCrisp]

Allentown is a medium sized town about 25 - 30 miles outside of Philadelphia, population about 126k. It was primarily an industrial town, but many of the factories closed during WWII, because most men had been shipped off to war. Sure you had the "Rosie the Riveter" woman that stepped into the some of the factory roles formerly held by men, but not all positions could be filled. After the guys came home from war, there just weren't many jobs for the veterans for a while, until things got back to order and we quit building war machines in favor of other industrial goods.

[@jml-rj5re]

Allentown and many steel towns suffered in the early 80s and beyond. People lost jobs and their way of life.

[@RaymondBCrisp]

@@jml-rj5re Yeah, the decline in the 80s was mostly due to steel being produced in other parts of the world.

[@Art-cn8yl]

Bill's not speaking of the greatest generation, he's speaking of their sons being stripped of their livelihood and dignity. The early 80s, people really started feeling the outsourcing of jobs.

[@jml-rj5re]

@@Art-cn8yl This is correct. He's comparing life in the 80s in the Rust Belt vs. the post- World War II boom.

[@victorturturici4446]

What are you guys talking about the slogans about a town in Pennsylvania with the factories I've been closed in the 1980s are you guys morons

[@brentwebster6164]

Billy always tried to make each album unique. I’m glad you guys picked up on the Beatles sound. It was very much intentional. The entire album was a celebration of the Beatles in very Billy Joel fashion instead of doing covers or making direct reference to the band or any of its members, he just wrote an album of original songs as they might have. The Beatles references are all in musical cues and vocal stylings rather than in the lyrics. His next album, An Innocent Man, he would do the same thing, but for various Motown and doo-wop greats from the Four Seasons to James Brown to the Drifters.

[@jamiepasquariello2652]

You guys have to know, there isn't special effects, that IS Billy's voice

[@joemachine4714]

"Blue Collar Man" and "Too Much Time On My Hands" by Styx were songs about the same topic of deindustrialization, unemployment, etc. Early 80s had high unemployment

[@jml-rj5re]

Yeah, this is about the Children and Grandchildren of WWII patriots.

[@colleensharris]

So glad to find you guys! Hoping you've done his "Scenes From an Italian Restaurant." It's his own favorite from his catalog and an absolute masterpiece.

[@angelagoodwin5758]

Awesome selection! Next, give "An Innocent Man" and "A Matter of Trust" a listen.

[@ryanmontgomery3215]

It’s mixed like that from how I looked it up to mimic the working class. Nature of Allentown, Bethlehem, and Easton three cities in eastern Pennsylvania that were well known for large steel mills.

[@michaelescareno7048]

Great reaction to this!! One of my favorite Billy Joel songs. One of my others is "All For Leyna" if you have a chance to check it out!!

[@BClarke]

This song is a lament more than a celebration. Have there ever been lyrics about a town quietly coming to terms with the fact that its people’s aspirations are confronting cold reality than this song? “It’s hard to keep a good man down; But I won’t be getting up today.” Ouch.

[@lokisan100]

Try Leave a tender moment alone by Joel. It has some great harmonica playing by Toots Theilmann!

[@NotANameist]

I’m just realizing that the sound of the song is evocative of mining in the same way the sound of his song Downeaster Alexa is evocative of the sea. It’s really impressive.

[@elainemarsh5170]

A deep cut from Billy Joel, and my absolute favorite, is “Vienna.” It’s one of his favorites, too - he plays it in almost every concert he performs.

[@xanajak]

Iconic song for the ages especially when you listen while watching the video.

[@heatherturner6955]

So excited!!!

[@clairejohnson6522]

More Billy Joel PLEASE +PLEASE react to Motown: The Temptations/Ball of Confusion,Marvyn Gaye/Let's Get It On,Makes Me Wanna Holler,Tina Turner/River Deep Mountain High.

[@davidcrowell3041]

I forgot how much I love this song. Thanks for the reminder.

[@mikeroche9986]

Allentown, PA

[@happymethehappyone8300]

An Absolutely Classic Track,, Billy Joel "The Stranger"...Nuff Said.

[@shannonbrigante5764]

Allentown, Pennsylvania.. about an hour north of Philly.. old coal mining town..

[@Chiari_Queen_T]

Billy Joel was quoted as saying this song wasn't originally about Bethlehem OR Allentown! Apparently he wrote Allentown chord progressions for Allentown a decade earlier but struggled with the lyrics. Billy Joel said this song was based on his hometown on Long Island, N.Y. which would make it Hickville (definitely NOT a hick town!). Billy has only lived in Oyster Bay since making it big, obviously (if you know the area which many don't)

[@lotfilotfi7912]

"Al Stewart : On The Border"

[@mjm5081]

❤

[@PK1971PK]

"Uptown Girl". Be sure to watch the video, too. That was his wife--one of the hottest models of the time.

[@hollysmith9979]

A little tid bit this song was sung in the movie The Hangover 2 by Ed Helms with a few words changed....it was hilarious to say the least!!! The original is a great song but check the movie version out if you haven't yet but if you have disregard this...

[@tadool5352]

So many great Billy Joel albums it would be hard to choose.

[@jml-rj5re]

The Nylon Curtain is a classic. I think it's Joel's favorite album.

[@sergiodavila5269]

LOVE how he incorporated some “industrial” sounds in the song….very cutting edge for Billy 🤘🏽

[@racar47]

For an earlier song that has a very deep theme and lyrics, check out Captain Jack.

[@rachel-in-the-208]

It’s funny that you mentioned Paul McCartney … I always thought that too.

[@Fanboy0707]

You mentioned this song sounds like McCartney. If you really want to hear one of his tracks that sounds like the Beatles, check out Laura. It's from the same album and one of my all time favorites.

[@B.R.0101]

This is a good song!! Personally it sounds like a Paul McCartney's song in the Wild Life album period but played in a bolder way...

[@nancymartineau-bauman8770]

PianoMan was one of my favorites. This one is good but not my favorite. Good to see you listening to his music though.

[@robertasirgutz8800]

Great story teller. Check out "Goodnight Saigon". Predicted the factors that led to the end of manufacturing in the USA.

[@frankaq3951]

You guys have great lead-in music.

[@bry8784]

Allantown, PA guys

[@meljones5108]

You really need to see Billy Joel live. If you can try Scenes from an Italian Restaurant live at Shea Stadium to see what I mean. He is one of most talented musicians I have ever listened to..

[@ajruther67]

I can't believe he is currently touring with Stevie Nicks. They will be in Southern CA in March.

[@imtallpaul]

MUST DO BALLAD OF BILLY THE KID by Billy Joel!!!!!!

[@joelliebler5690]

Billy wrote and sang so many great tunes, some hits and some that were just fantastic. Here are my favorites that you will love;Goodnight Saigon, The Entertainer, Summer Highland Falls, Scenes From An Italian Restaurant, Miami 2017 and so many more.

[@poopsebeb]

I love how he used breath to recreate the sound of steam and machines from the factories…. Very cool

[@dickieburbank]

The whole album is a Beatles tribute. "Laura" is the best song in the album. An angry, Lennon-esque song.

[@ronparsons8786]

I spent some time in Allentown for work. The song captures it

[@bobbiewallace4008]

Please play Hey Girl by Billy Joel

[@jillk368]

Yep. Real town. But it's also being named as an example of itself and a lot of real manufacturing towns, areas that boomed from the industrial revolution through the 50s/60s, then went cold, plants shut down, jobs shipped overseas, thriving towns turning into depressed areas in a matter of a decade or less. And lack of jobs often resulted in a lot of young men being recruited to the military. I was about 10 or 11 when this song came out. It's the first time I remember hearing a song that made me think, a lot. All the best.

[@user-lq4qe7pj9s]

Like other posters, I grew up and still live in a "Rust Belt" region (locations that had plentiful factory jobs for decades which were beginning to clearly slip away by the early 1980s). I can recall having teachers in elementary school at that time lecturing us in class about "wanting to be better" than our parents and "not end up working in factories when you grow up." The part that the teachers didn't understand was that 90% or more of those jobs would be gone by the time we graduated. It's that memory and the nearly 25 years that I've worked in higher education that's made me most partial to a segment of a verse which has the following lyrics: "For the promises our teachers gave If we worked hard, if we behaved So, our graduations hang on the wall But they never really helped us at all No, they never taught us what was real..." Perhaps I've become jaded as I've gotten older, but there's been difficult times when I've included those lyrics in the auto-signature box for my account with the institution that I work for's email system.

[@riccardoangeli802]

Piano Man unico artista che ha solo gioielli nel suo repertorio

[@jonsher7682]

This song is about the breaking of the American dream and the shattering of the myth that each generation will do better than the next. It is the opposite of a celebration. It is a wake.

[@brianorzel1873]

Billy is a genius! So many classics in his catalogue. Some deep cuts that I love are "Miami 2017", "Stiletto", "All For Leyna" and "Sleeping With the Television On".

[@ajruther67]

Love Stiletto and Close to the Borderline!

[@starlightperkins330]

He's talking about ppl losing jobs, factories closing down and the lie about the American dream

[@patrickkellogg6031]

Do the "Goodnight Saigon" from the old HBO special, when he has the Vietnam veterans onstage to help sing the chorus. Goosebumps.

[@danielviney]

Billy Joel inspired me to start singing and playing piano writing music 32 years ago... Check out 52 street and stiletto...

[@heatherturner6955]

Bingo that is what it is about! But the way he sings and how it is arranged is so good! Always loved this song!!! Glad you did it!

[@jgsrhythm100]

Curtis Mayfield - Superfly (1973) Title track off the groundbreaking soundtrack. Doesn't matter if this comment gets any likes, it means most are not hip to the roots of Funk

[@Jules-um4yy]

Agree, Superfly is superb - love that entire album

[@jgsrhythm100]

@@Jules-um4yy Though sadly reactions seem to be a popularity contest. Because the majority are unfamiliar unlikely it sees the light of day.

[@novacrowsnest597]

Billy Joel is of course one of my favorites of all time. My first piece of music I got was an 8 track of Glass Houses. I was hooked from there as a preteen.

[@judgildea]

Please..listen to him live..lol

[@Jules-um4yy]

I enjoy Billy's songs - most tell a story. I don't see him very often in reactions so thanks guys for posting this! "Only the Good Die Young" is a good one by him.

[@Laniefj]

I haven't looked to see if you've reacted to TSO. You should, for Christmas.

[@davidolson2729]

Matter of Trust is one of my favorites, kind of underrated in my opinion.

[@howtodoitdude1662]

This is Billy’s ‘sergeant pepper’ album. He’s a big Beatle fan!

[@jaymacgee_A_Bawbag_Blethering]

Abs love this song , so tuneful , such personal and thought provoking lyrics 👍🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿

[@bradsullivan2495]

Billy grew up near Levittown, NY (on Long Island) and was originally planning on writing a song about it. However, he realized that there wasn't anything particularly notable about what was going on--as opposed to the layoffs taking places in cities like Allentown.

[@pinoybalut7715]

You guys are good reactors.. May I suggest for a reaction on Ez Mil (IDK, Fraud, The Slashy Show)

[@Rogers_Ranger]

you guys are so young

[@dianecostanza]

It’s a song about the factories shutting down and the new generation having to leave home to find jobs.

[@happymethehappyone8300]

This MUST HEAR Truly Smooth Groove Comes With A Bass So FAT That It Had To Go On Weight Watchers🤪...Jamiroquai "Talullah" (Stop That Plane)

[@seanscanlon9067]

The irony is, there actually is no chorus in this song.