There are good songs, there are great songs, there are songs that become hits, and then there are songs that transcend being a hit and weave themselves into the fabric of a community. I would argue that Billy Joel‘s 1973 song “Piano Man” belongs to the latter category. In this article, we’ll explain just what makes that song continue to resonate with musicians all over the world, even today, and what aspiring songwriters can learn from it.
Why “Piano Man” Continues to Resonate With Musicians
The key to a great song’s staying power is often quite simple – relatability, and for musicians, there is nothing more relatable than the struggles and joys of playing bar gigs early on in your career. “Piano Man” was written based on Billy Joel’s real-life experiences working as a lounge musician in the years leading up to its release. “Piano Man” gave Joel the hit he needed to get out of that rut of playing lounge gigs to make ends meet.
For some historical context, Billy Joel released his debut album in 1971, and it was, by all accounts, a commercial flop at the time. It wasn’t until after “Piano Man” that the album started to sell, and songs like “She’s Got A Way” and, ironically, “Everybody Loves You Now” began to gain notoriety.
How Billy Joel’s Bar Gig Years Shaped the Song’s Story
Following the album’s release, Joel regaled himself in Los Angeles’s bar scene, working at places like The Executive Room, where the song’s patrons are based. By the way, if you’re looking for that bar, it’s now a parking lot for a small shopping center, which, last I saw, was home to a donut shop and a place that sells ping pong equipment. According to interviews with Joel, he moved to Los Angeles to hide out while the lawyers at Columbia Records bought out his contract with his first record label, Family Productions.
Due to the contract with his label, he was not able to perform under his real name, so he went as “Bill Martin” – Bill, of course, is the narrator of the song “Piano Man”. In time, Columbia did obtain Joel’s contract, and the first album they put out was named after the track “Piano Man,” and the rest, as they say, is history.
Why “Piano Man” Still Feels So Relatable to Musicians
This story of struggling at the lower rungs of the music industry is a relatable concept for musicians. People can see themselves in the song. 1973 saw a lot of songs by bands writing about their lives as musicians. Grand Funk Railroad put out “We’re an American Band.” Deep Purple put out the autobiographical “Smoke On The Water“, Dr. Hook & The Medicine Show put out the cleverly penned “The Cover of ‘Rolling Stone'”, and Pink Floyd put out “Money“, all songs about being famous traveling rock stars.
Billy Joel’s hit, by contrast, was sung from a musician at the bottom, looking up. It was rooted in realism, and people felt that, especially those who had tried to make a living in the industry before. If we can learn anything as songwriters from “Piano Man,” it’s that sometimes the best song is the most relatable song. No matter how big a star Billy Joel got to be, he always retained that hometown boy does good sensibility, thanks in part to the song that made him a star.
