BILLY JOEL PIANO MAN FIRST REACTION

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Күн бұрын

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@kbrewski1 Ай бұрын

The song IS about Billy Joel (and ordinary people who have dreams etc). Its heavily biographical. He didn't become an overnight star. He toiled away playing and singing in these little bars and clubs before he became well known. That's why he gets it. He lived and reached the American dream but it was years struggling up the ladder.

@maggieshevelew1693 Ай бұрын

Exactly! Beautifully said.

@brenthenderson3983 23 күн бұрын

He went by Billy Martin in the video, Martin is Billy Joel's middle name..

@THESALMON8TR 2 күн бұрын

Billy Joel did work a 6 month stint at a piano bar while trying to get out of a bad contract and this song was the unintended but EPIC result!❤😁👍

@rw9019 Ай бұрын

Still giving me goose bumps since I first heard it way back in the 70s. Billy Joel part of the sound track of my younger life.

@NativeTexan-fm5dy Ай бұрын

Right! Same here!

@amyaeschbach3581 Ай бұрын

You MUST do Billy Joel live “New York State of Mind “. The most classic you can get!!!!!

@JPVLDRodrigues Ай бұрын

A song about loneliness, disenchantment and lost dreams. It's extraordinary.

@ritathomas5167 Ай бұрын

I think a lot of people overlook the fact that the people in the bar are there "to forget about life for awhile" and that there is someplace they would rather be. The piano player is there to entertain them and take their minds off all of that. Yet at the end, the piano player is just like them, but who takes his mind off the fact that there is a place he would rather be - like playing piano in a philharmonic, onstage at Carnegie Hall, or in concert before tens of thousands? VERY melancholy.

@Otokichi786 11 сағат бұрын

I remember Billy Joel saying that the hardest part of "Piano Man" was the ending. He trailed it off on the record, but he recalled a live piano player who couldn't figure how to end "Piano Man."

@davidintel Ай бұрын

The bartender was actually a real bartender who worked at the same time as Billy did at a bar called the "Executive Room".

@cherylalexander1948 Ай бұрын

Joel is a masterful storyteller. Prolific talent...rabbit hole well worth delving into...there are no bad songs. Goodnight Saigon is a must listen!!

@boomeister2 Ай бұрын

"...when I wore a younger man's clothes.", "...as the smile ran away from his face.", "Yes, they're sharing a drink they call lonliness but it's better than drinking alone." Incredible lyrics!

@JorjaRose-qc1bx 17 күн бұрын

My favourite part that nobody really talks about is “who’s still in the Navy and probably will be for life.”

@Iloveanimals369 18 күн бұрын

That's probably my favorite Billy Joel song. It's brilliant!

@Jackisnow Ай бұрын

Billy Joel's Only The Good Die Young is fantastic! He has a huge catalog of great music! ❤

@chris...9497 16 күн бұрын

The story is that Billly Joel grew up just outside of New York City, in a suburban town on Long Island. His father was a classically-trained musician from Austria and started Billy on classical piano lessons when he was 4 years old. His father left the family to return to Austria when Billy was 8 or 9 years old. Meanwhile, Billy, born in 1949, grew up in the explosion of music of the 1950s and 1960s on the outskirts of NYC, loving all different genres of music. By the time Billly was becoming an adult, he was playing in bands and writing his own songs. At 22, he signed with a NYC management agency to record his songs and manage his career. The problem was the company messed up the speed of one of his songs and refused to correct it. Billy was furious that he sounded "like a chipmunk" and the company went ahead and released the album with the error in place. Under an ironclad contract, they were due a cut of any song or performance of his under his professional name. To get out of this bind, Billy at age 23 'disappeared'. In the early 1970s, there was no internet to help find people. Billly moved to Los Angeles and took work playing and performing at piano bars under his first and middle names: Bill Martin. It wasn't great money, but it allowed him to hide out until his one-year contract timed out and he was free to seek other representation. While doing this, he wrote "Piano Man" about the clientele who frequented the Executive Room in L.A., where he performed and led singalongs. The people described in the song are drawn from his experiences there. At 24, he was able to get signed by Columbia Records. Columbia recorded a new album featuring "Piano Man", but in the glut of music released in 1972, he was being overlooked. Columbia Records was about to let his contract lapse when their marketing department edited "Piano Man" from a 5-minute song to only 3:05, to try to get radio airplay, and the song took off like gangbusters. Columbia renewed Billy's contract for multiple albums, and the rest is history. Billy Joel does not have a 'genre' as such; he draws from all the music he's heard and grown up exposed to. He's written songs in the style of 1950s Doo Wop, early 1960s, soft ballads, hard rock, Latin strains, dance boppers, gospel, Three-Penny Opera, blues, and even orchestral sweeps. Some of it is exuberant, some introspective, some a little 'soppy' romantic, but all of it amazing. Scratch any of them, and under the surface his songs are biographical. As such, they are honest and the writing is not lazy; they make you think. And on top of all that, his live performances are incredible and often studio-perfect. Recommended: -"The Entertainer" -"Honesty" -"Goodnight Saigon" -"Tell Her About It" -"The Stranger" -"River of Dreams" and too many others to enumerate here. It's a deep rabbit hole. Not so much 'Dance, monkey, dance!' when the final verse says 'They sit at the bar and put bread in my [tip] jar, and say 'Man, what are YOU doing HERE?!' The regulars either don't have the talent or the faith in themselves to achieve their dreams, but they still dream...but they also recognize Billy has the talent to make it big, so they see he doesn't belong in this 'losers' bar' marking time. But as I pointed out in the facts I gave at the beginning of my comment, he had to mark time until he was free from a bad contract.

@Hippiemetalhead-h9k Ай бұрын

On one of the videos they show him playing the harmonica the piano and singing at the same time. He's great bro. Hi from Texas

@annemaclean6634 Ай бұрын

I've heard Billy Joel a lot over the years, and this is a classic song from him, such a great melody. The song 'Piano Man' is from 1973 and it's actually based on Joel's real-life experiences as a lounge musician in Los Angeles from 1972 to 1973. Okay, been doing a bit of research here, there were two videos made of this song, the first one in 1973, same date as the song. The second version (this one) was made in 1985. It's interesting to see the original video, it's on youtube and of course he looks so much younger! Thanks for your reaction, Anthony. ❤😊

@Jayeug 25 күн бұрын

The older I get the more emotional I feel hearing it. Always loved it but it hits differently now.

@coolcat8b 28 күн бұрын

Billy Joel is the guy who sings for the common people. His songs are full of ''the real stuff'', the reality of the working / struggling people. They get you right in the feels. And he does have a great singing voice. 🥰

@missg.5940 25 күн бұрын

My first slow dance and subsequently my first kiss was to this song! 🥹🇨🇦

@KARENCOGS Ай бұрын

One of the best story telling songs ever! ❤ I love this song!

@missg.5940 25 күн бұрын

Also Taci by Harry Chaplin😊

@JustMe-vk4fn Ай бұрын

In browsing through the comments I see a lot of folks, (like me), who would really like to hear Billy Joel's "We didn't start the fire". Interesting fact: There was a group called Fall Out Boy that covered Billy Joel's Piano Man with updated historical references that's really something to listen to as well. :D

@SnowxXxAngel 25 күн бұрын

They covered "We Didn't Start the Fire", not Piano Man as far as I am aware...? If they did do Piano Man as well... I've been missing out lol.

@barbaraoneal4808 Ай бұрын

Incredible live. His band and him went 3 hrs non stop at full throttle.

@NativeTexan-fm5dy Ай бұрын

I've always loved Billy Joel. This song came out in the 70's. He's an amazing singer, songwriter, and performer. Thanks for reacting.

@Tijuanabill 27 күн бұрын

For what it's worth, he plays that harmonica part live as well, with the little bar thing that holds it up.

@WhodatLucy Ай бұрын

Billy Joel wrote this song it’s in the library of Congress as a classic

@theresastuppiello9589 Ай бұрын

A must listen to Billy Joel, "Goodnight Saigon"

@shawnpeat Ай бұрын

On his box set live album he tells the story behind the song - and is basically a true story of when he played a piano in the bar. Paul was a guy who sold realestate but wantrd to write a novel. Davey was a guy in the Navy. The waitress practicing politics was his 1st wife.

@davelang7541 28 күн бұрын

You start down this rabbit hole and you are going to be amazed. So diverse, so talented, great music, unbelievable lyrics. Enjoy the ride, AR.

@alhainmccallister3383 Ай бұрын

It is amazing to me that he is playing the piano AND the harmonica at the same time. He has a rig around his neck that lets him do it. I could recommend so many songs to watch of his but my favorite song of all time from him is Honesty. It's got a great lesson in it. Highly recommended.

@karenstrong8887 Ай бұрын

Love Billy singing anything. Thank you.

@threekidzmom04 Ай бұрын

Billy Joel and his music was such a big part of my youth! I saw in around 1979 in concert in Cincinnati.

@cathybrown8334 Ай бұрын

I saw Billy Joel in concert. He closed his show with this song and we all sang along. Check out Billy and Garth in NYC at Central Park for a concert. Over 500K in attendance.

@matthewshaffer9005 29 күн бұрын

We ended the concert in Seattle the same way.

@cathybrown8334 29 күн бұрын

@ this was years ago and I cherish the memories.

@Bumperump Ай бұрын

Epic Billy Joel!!! This song is a classic, it never gets old!

@stevemattfis 28 күн бұрын

This song is set & was written about Billy's time at The Duplex. The Duplex was a piano bar where the entire staff sang, played piano and auditioned all the time to work in Film, TV and most often in Theater. The customers were mostly gay men since The Duplex was in Greenwich Village diagonally across from the Stonewall Inn. Hollywood took issue with it being a gay bar so they replaced all the young & beautiful with the Everyman look for this video. Notice the logo for the Stonewall or how the lyrics don't even mention women? All the wait staff were working on their dreams and the clientele were mostly men talking to men. Occasionally it would get salesmen in there because where there are beautiful women there will always be men convinced they can go home with a woman who servs drinks. I use to go to the Duplex all the time. A lot of the time clients sang to the piano because they were also people who had talents. The Stonewall, Duplex Eighty Eights, Pieces and the 9 Circles were the closest piano bars and the 70's/80's it was a heaven of excellent singers. Don't believe me, check the club here in wiki. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Duplex_Cabaret_Theatre

@isinlarsa5996 25 күн бұрын

Billy was literally hiding out because he was in a contract dispute with his record company. Hence, why the line, "Man, what are you doing here." He was so clearly above the usual bar lounge piano man.

@bella-xp7qd Ай бұрын

While in a dispute with his record label, Billy played in L A under the name Bill Martin. Doesn't show it here but Billy is the person playing the harmonica.

@thomastimlin1724 Ай бұрын

Genious line "they're sharing a drink they call loneliness, but its better than drinking alone." How many even successful songwriters wish they had thought that line up?

@williamjones6031 Ай бұрын

This was his break-out hit that started his journey to stardom. The story is about the people he met working The Executive Club in LA. My name's not Davy, but I stayed in the Navy for life. I don't regret it because it's the best thing I ever did. This video takes a little of my imagination. Example: A sailor in uniform doesn't need to point it out. "Yes, they're sharing a drink they call loneliness, but it's better than drinking alone."

@deborahdennehy9937 Ай бұрын

I like it too!! I'm about 15 yrs younger than him!!! 'River of Dreams' is another song of his which I love & many more!!

@1perfectpitch Ай бұрын

The "la-la" chorus is the old man trying to remember the melody he'd forgotten.

@DAL12343 29 күн бұрын

This was Billy's story about all those coming to listen to him. He didn't think the song would amount to much. Turned out he's best known for it. He said it was so simple. A little waltz sang like a limerick. I've always loved it and saw him several times. First time after this album came out. He was a great entertainer. He'd run through the audience giving out roses. He's a legend

@hunterkyles3373 Ай бұрын

Absolutely love Billy Joel. I'd love you to react to 'Goodnight Saigon' by him. Live version is the best. There are multiple, but the one I heard first was from his Kohliept album that was recorded live in Russia, I think early 90's or late 80's. The sound of the helo's flying overhead at the beginning really makes an impact. He wrote it for his friends that went to Vietnam.

@beth5870 Ай бұрын

He has written and sang so many incredible songs. Love him! My ultimate favorite is I go to Extremes in the 80’s. Listened to him as a kid in the 70’s.

@cerisewilson4088 Ай бұрын

Billy Joel actually lived this story, playing at a piano bar in Los Angeles for awhile.

@jdbroders64 Ай бұрын

Yep, and Davey was his real name and he really was in the Navy per Billy Joel.

@user-dc6ut5uu3t Ай бұрын

"Piano Man" is based on Joel's real-life experiences as a lounge musician in Los Angeles from 1972 to 1973, which he had decided to pursue in an effort to escape his contracted New York City-based record company at the time, Family Productions, following the poor commercial performance of his debut album, Cold Spring ...

@mikeleenlaurent9691 Ай бұрын

Billy Joel is a brilliant writer. I love love this song!

@FredtheFrisian Ай бұрын

The song I always liked, but what me struck me later was that the chosen instruments so greatly support the atmosphere of the pub.

@patriciamurashige6879 29 күн бұрын

Cool that you are delving into the classics of the 70s!! He was one of the top artists of his time!! The performers at local bars get to see all kinds of people .. some regulars,some strangers , some lonely !!

@naiyomotion 28 күн бұрын

Billy Joel - all timer. Back catalogue of amazing range and song writing. You hit the nail on the head with this one - a beautifully executed bitter sweet song.

@markhorn8451 6 күн бұрын

If this song was the only thing you left on this Earth wouldn't you be so happy.

@AnnaMarie66 Ай бұрын

One If The GREATEST lyricists ever!!

@carolhayward7369 Ай бұрын

Another great story song of his is Scenes From An Italian Restaurant. I highly recommend it.

@Kazeemi2810 29 күн бұрын

Billy is a master storyteller! Any of his songs!! Billy was actually a piano man in a bar before he got his recording contract.

@katjawege6886 Ай бұрын

Thanks for your reaction to a milestone in music history

@chelseahaley8350 22 күн бұрын

Billy Joel has mad bangers! New York State Of Mind is a must listen! 🙌

@anthonyblakely399 Ай бұрын

This is the first song I heard from Billy Joel on the radio. Made me fall in love with his music. You ought to hear his recent new release, "Turn The Lights on." which will make you very emotional because it is just that great!!!! React to it!!! React to the video music version!!!

@kimkovaly2393 Ай бұрын

I'm a huge Billy Joel fan. This is such an amazing song. ❤❤❤

@maryhuhnke4706 28 күн бұрын

A Master Story Teller!! He's from my hometown in Long Island NY❤

@Jules-um4yy Ай бұрын

Such a classic by Billy Joel. The lyrics are spot on. Merry Christmas AR to you and your family❤🎄🎄

@aura81295 Ай бұрын

Love "Piano Man" - definitely among my favorite Billy Joel songs. "We Didn't Start the Fire" is one I recommend to lyricists of younger generations. The music is catchy, but the lyrics is worth the listen.

@MissSJ4429 Ай бұрын

I recently heard this for the first time and it’s become a firm favourite on the playlist (I’m 60 but had bad music taste when I was younger 😂). This is the first time I’ve seen the video 😊

@evalehde3869 Ай бұрын

The video may have been posted fourteen years ago but the recording of the song was much longer ago.

@SD-mw1hz Ай бұрын

It's about the piano mans observations of the people in the bar. Everyday life.

@charliemac64 Ай бұрын

Your soliloquy in the middle of the song harkens to another Billy Joel classic, "Movin' Out". That's exactly what he's singing about in that song.

@AudioVile Ай бұрын

When I saw that you reacted to this, I KNEW you would get it on both levels. You are very tuned in to lyrics and poetic expression. This is a 'superficial' feel good, catchy tune for some. For others, it's a deep and probing exploration of the way many folks endure the endless rewind/play, rewind/play of their lives... and often drink with other regulars to deaden the pain. Or as Joel says, "...to forget about life for a while." Very profound. I've Been there. You used the right word...melancholy. Great reaction!!

@sheryldoughty8820 Ай бұрын

He used to work in piano bars back in the day.

@jdhlsc169 29 күн бұрын

I haven't heard this song in years, but I can sing every word to it. But don't ask me to remember what I went into the kitchen for. :)

@lilamuzik3385 Ай бұрын

It's about stories of lives, hopes, and the grind.

@yogibear6363 Ай бұрын

At 5:25 - Paul the Real Estate Novelist is played by Tommy Lee Jones in only his 3rd acting gig.

@maggedo-x1s Ай бұрын

This video's like a classic montage out of a good ol' 70's movie...📽️🚬🥃🎹 Speaking of history & entertainment, AR, you should also react to Billy Joel's '89 video We Didn't Start the Fire!🔥🌎📆

@kbrewski1 Ай бұрын

This classic song is a 70s SONG.

@maggedo-x1s Ай бұрын

@kbrewski1 I know that, & I said the video! (looks) like!...an '80's movie: I didn't say it is! '80's. It just looks like it. To me. & yet I thank you for this...👍

@kbrewski1 Ай бұрын

@@maggedo-x1s Just making sure people know this was a 70s song, and early 70s in fact. I want to guard against people co-opting our 70s music, even if it was an innocent mistake. 😉 😜

@maggedo-x1s Ай бұрын

@kbrewski1 🫡👌 I definitely respect that, & so I changed it to '70's!

@maggedo-x1s Ай бұрын

@@kbrewski1 I definitely respect that, & so I changed it to '70's...🫡👍

@davidrichards6509 Ай бұрын

Back in the early 80s my best friend in Navy Boot Camp and A School at Great Lakes NTC had family in Chicago. On the weekends he and I would hop on the commuter train into Chicago and "home port" from his Grandparents'. I still remember the train stop that was just a few blocks from their house by this memory trick Jimm's favorite "piano man" was Billy Joel and my favorite "piano man" was Van Cliburn and the train stop was North/Clybourn

@Tiyedyed Ай бұрын

An interviewer once asked Elton John if he’d heard this new song by Billy Joel and what he thought of it and he said, “Jealous”. This song always kinda makes me cry. I need a song to have a good melody, but I’m hyperlexic and if the lyrics are ass, I will not be listening. Instrumental music has its own brain section, of course. 😂 Billy Joel almost never disappoints with either.

@stephenpresley5772 Ай бұрын

Great song and reaction

@luckylenny8634 Ай бұрын

In concert he plays the harmonica and piano

@ozarkhillibilly9584 Ай бұрын

B. Joel- Scenes from an Italian Restaurant.

@mrtim5363 Ай бұрын

In addition to song writing skills both lyrics & music. Billy Joel plays the harmonica the piano & sings at the same time.

@darleendionne6403 2 күн бұрын

Billy Joel is great! Try "Scenes from an Italian Restaurant" , "Only the Good Die Young" or "Big Shot". Huge catalogue.

@harleyadam4813 29 күн бұрын

I recently transitioned from customer service to working on big trucks with my hands and tools. I'll be honest.....I keep ending up with random cuts, scrapes and bruises and my hands and fingernails are always dirty, but I'm happier. It's hard work being over 50, but I'd take it all day long.

@hippiemama52 Ай бұрын

Another song that touches on the subject of lost dreams is "The Pretender" by Jackson Browne. He and Billy Joel are two of the best poetic songcrafters in recent history. I'm a big fan of both artists.

@jennytalks5882 Ай бұрын

Thank you❤

@ellenbakker-w8x Ай бұрын

SUGGESTION: PAOLO NUTINI - IRON SKY(ABBEY ROAD LIVE SESSIONS) 87 mln views/10 years ago. This a singer from Scotland with a raspy voice, a beautiful song with a message and a fantastic live band. At the same time Adele was there in the studio and stayed for this performance and she was blown away.

@richardjoubert2047 13 күн бұрын

Billy Joel always been good and always will be.

@genehenne2919 Ай бұрын

You need to dive into the Bill Joel rabbit hole! You won’t be sorry

@JDogg1971 Ай бұрын

Awesome reaction! You should really check out his song “Scenes from an Italian Restaurant”. Besides being a fantastic piano player and singer, he is an American Legend as a lyricist/song writer. Brilliant!

@robertbunker817 Ай бұрын

Of course it's about everyday people.... Everyday people go to bars and everyday people have everyday people stories, and that's what he's singing about ;him playing the piano in a bar full of everyday people, and they're there to see him because he's already famous this actually happened while he was in dispute over a contract with the studio he went to the nearest bar and started playing in it and people were tripping out

@robertbunker817 Ай бұрын

In the verse that says, "they put bread in my jar and say man what are you doing here?" He was already a well-known Rockstar when he went into that piano for I don't know how long it must have been like weeks on a daily basis to get away from the entanglements that he was in with the studio execs and he was getting paid by the people in the barn and they were like man what are you doing here Billy Joel

@josephciolino5493 Ай бұрын

This is a very dark, dark song. Great song.

@bookjeannie 19 күн бұрын

His concert was my fave of all time, FIVE encores!!!!!

@Coastal15 Ай бұрын

One of the few genius singer/songwriters

@joannatrosettefloral1369 Ай бұрын

We had the best music in the 60s and 70s !

@myowndrum286 Ай бұрын

I put myself through university playing weekends in piano bars in the 70s. I must have performed this song at least 200 times! LOL Certainly one of Billy Joel's best. Off his first album too.

@tombanaski3251 Ай бұрын

If you are truly interested in or a fan of Billy Joel, check out his appearance on “Inside the Actor’s Studio” which you can see on KZbin for free. He explains both his upbringing as well as the origin of a lot of his songs. Check out his song “New York State of Mind” for another classic.

@Rogers_Ranger 27 күн бұрын

good tune man

@johnathanstruble1064 Ай бұрын

" New York State of Mind" and "Scenes from an Italian Restaurant" are must hear Billy Joel. There's a reason Billy sold out Madison Square Garden, Everytime for decades. ❤

@Steigs Ай бұрын

Billy Joel is definitely one of the great American songwriters. As far as telling a story, check out 'Scenes From An Italian Restaurant'. Amazing talent.

@HenryMichaels-i1t 29 күн бұрын

Piano Man ,at least had a life

@kathleenmayhorne3183 Ай бұрын

He actually played the harmonica too just not in the official video.

@lilamuzik3385 Ай бұрын

If you want to hear another song that will bring you to absolute tears from Billy...then review "Night in Saigon". It's a killer of a song for the veterans of Vietnam.