Billy Joel . . . We Know All The Words
June 12, 2015
By: O. J. Cunningham
I wonder how Billy Joel feels when he sings Piano Man at a live concert.
Carol King . . . When she sings ...You've Got a Friend.
Garth Brooks . . . I've got Friends in Low Places.
Don McLean . . . American Pie.
The Eagles . . . Hotel California.
There must be hundreds of songs (anthems) that have become part of everyday culture for millions of fans.
I was listening to a live concert performance of Billy Joel's Piano Man yesterday while driving on US-10.
I was singing along . . .
It's nine o'clock on a Saturday
The regular crowd shuffles in
There's an old man sitting next to me
Makin' love to his tonic and gin
And then I suddenly realized that Billy Joel wasn't singing. In fact, I was singing along with the audience . . . I think it was New York, maybe Yankee Stadium.
Joel was just sitting at his damn piano . . . probably holding a microphone out toward the crowd. And they (100,000 Fans) were singing his song.
I can't begin to imagine.
Sing us a song, you're the piano man
Sing us a song tonight
Well, we're all in the mood for a melody
And you've got us feelin' alright
We "ALL" knew the words . . .
Here's a (partial) list of singers who know how it feels to have everyone know the words to their songs: Blake Shelton, Bob Dylan, Reba, Tom Petty, Bruce Springsteen, James Taylor, Florida Georgia Line, Taylor Swift, Fleetwood Mac, Miley Cyrus, Luke Bryan, Aerosmith, Bon Jovi, Carrie Underwood, Bob Seger, Ed Sheeran, Jayson Aldean.
I'm jealous. Jealous of all of them.
I'm jealous and sad that nobody knows the words to my song.