In 2018 I was at a party at a house that had an upright piano. I was encouraged to play a few tunes, and I happily obliged, cracking through “Easy” by the Commodores and “Africa” by Toto at the request of others in the room. Then someone piped up:
“Do you know Piano Man?”
“Yup.”
“Oh, play it then! ‘Sing us a song, you’re the piano man!’ Haha.“
“No.”
Now I’ll fully admit that was a mean approach to the situation, but if there’s a song that I’ve experienced one too many times, it’s Piano Man, not least because there’s always some wise guy that points out that I am, in fact, a piano man.
However, in what was to be my second dose of humble pie this semester, I discovered Billy Joel had released music that I really quite enjoyed – his 1977 album The Stranger.
I especially enjoyed two tracks – the bouncing “Get It Right The First Time”, its driving drum beat forming an irresistibly fun foundation underneath Joel’s earnest vocals, something I kept in mind to apply to my own songwriting. Most of the songs I’d been writing in isolation were slow brooders to emphasise serious lyrics, but this song reminded me that a strong message can be sent overtop more energetic rhythms too. The second was this week’s Song Of The Week: “Movin’ Out (Anthony’s Song)”. My favourite part is how initially jarring but ingeniously catchy the moment at the end of the line “Working too hard can give you a heart attack”9 is at 0:28:
9Billy Joel. “Movin’ Out (Anthony’s Song)”. The Stranger. Columbia Records, 1977.
Jachin's Songwriting and Performance Journal 