I laughed when you said there were too many words! 😂 Every Long Islander can sing this song word for word, right along with Billy. Pretty sure we learned the lyrics in the womb! 😂
@karenwalsh1143
Жыл бұрын
Ain't that the truth!!!! He still lives on long Island about a mile away from me... we see him alot in the summer riding his motorcycle around Bayville
@dipsydoodle7988
Жыл бұрын
@@karenwalsh1143 brethren!
@theConquerersMama
Жыл бұрын
Right???
@MoMoMyPup10
Жыл бұрын
Yeah the real trick is singing it while you're wailing away on the piano! Same with Elton's Funeral For a Friend. Not to mention remembering and playing every other song in the set like a legend. Each person has to come to rehearsal having their parts down pat or else.
@cowetascore8476
Жыл бұрын
You get a copy of The Stranger when you are born in the hospital on Long Island. lol.
@igmugleska966
10 ай бұрын
Old school songs tell a story, so you don’t have to remember lyrics. You remember the story.
@MrBarryb505050
3 ай бұрын
Correct
@mikemaricle9941
2 ай бұрын
Know them by heart.
@lafenatu
Жыл бұрын
Billy Joel has said multiple times that this is his all-time favorite song he has written. It’s an amazing song.
@karenwalsh1143
Жыл бұрын
I know every lyric to this song!!! Billy Joel lives about a mile away from me!!!!love seeing him riding his motorcycle around!!!!
@cog4life
Жыл бұрын
Deep deep rabbit hole!!! EXCELLENT!!!!! ❤ Billy Joel is an awesome artist! Please consider : Goodnight Saigon for our Vietnam vets🇺🇸 (Official Video) Thank you!
@50NewEyes
Жыл бұрын
One of Billy’s best… and my favourite
@dreamcruzer4743
Жыл бұрын
The memories this song brings back....Wow. The power of music is incredible isn't it?
@zararobnett8284
Жыл бұрын
I always liked to think that even though they didn’t work out, Brenda and Eddie still had enough nostalgia to meet many years later and share a bottle of wine in their old hang out
@maxking3
Жыл бұрын
I always thought that Bon Jovi could have picked up where Billy left off… “Eddie used to work on the docks” and “Brenda works the diner all day” would have been a really great hommage!
@eatsnopaste
7 ай бұрын
I think the lyrics of Piano Man may be some of the best ever written, the song" Scenes From an Italian Restaurant" with his piano work and the amazing sax playing and the composition of the entire song may make this one my favorite. Since i am now 65 and have heard all his songs, most of them when they came out originally, listening to them all again has maybe changed my mind a little.
@rosemariediamond5948
Жыл бұрын
This is a rabbit hole that you need to dive head first into. Billy Joel is an icon in American culture and needs to be honored
@jamishops
Жыл бұрын
Thanks for this reaction. Billy Joel is one of the most eclectic songwriters ever. He writes it all from jazz to rock to folk and more. A catalog worth diving into. The sax player here is Mark Rivera. This show was done in 1982. Mark still plays with Billy to this day and his energy is still amazing. Goodnight Saigon and New York State of Mind are 2 more that demonstrate his versatility,
@warmaiden
Жыл бұрын
It's a great story - he was working on two different songs he couldn't get going, and while at a restaurant, a waiter made the comment he uses in the beginning about the wine, and he combined the songs. According to him, it's his own favorite song he's made.
@lindarumsey3109
Жыл бұрын
Billy Joel fans take pride in being able to sing along with these lyrics lol. I'm one of them 😊
@user-mp4yb4wh8i
Ай бұрын
If you sing a song enough, you memorize it. The 30+ Billy Joel songs I have in my favs I know word for word & note for note... as well as all the other songs from other artists I have favs of... and gospel songs.
@christyverplank3552
3 ай бұрын
This is 3 songs he couldn’t figure out how to finish then one day he had a decision. Bottle of white. Bottle of red and it struck him and he put them all together. Brilliant. Creative. One of the best lyrical songs ever written
@howtodoitdude1662
Жыл бұрын
I liked what you said, the artists that paved our way. So so true!
@sopwithpuppy
9 ай бұрын
If you can imagine how Billy must have agonized over EVERY word whist writing the song, ensuring it rhymed when he needed it to rhyme, scan with the correct number of syllables, and flow with the music. Then he played it to his band, who then drop in their little nuances and solos and riffs, then they practice it for hours on end. They finally sit down in a recording studio and lay down the track, rehearse it many times before each night of performance, then play it live HUNDREDS of times. They play it through in their dreams at night. They know all the words to all the songs through repeatedly playing the songs, every day.
@moosecat
2 ай бұрын
If you look at Billy's left thumb, it's still bandaged. Before this concert, Billy got into a wreck while riding his motorcycle, and his left thumb took a certifiable beating. However, listening to his piano playing, it doesn't sound like he missed a note.
@cshubs
Жыл бұрын
When I was growing up, I assumed all pro singers/players were geniuses because they remembered all the lyrics and everything else. I still kind of feel that way. I've heard this song 10,000 times, and I wouldn't feel confident singing it solo.
@kimking6036
Жыл бұрын
Billy Joel has so many style and moods. He can go from jazz, gospel rock, to name a few. If you thought this had a lot of words, check out We didn't start the fire. I love River of dreams, Innocent man, You may be right. I could be here all night writing my favorites
@jofoster1596
Жыл бұрын
I miss the days when the sax solo featured in so many hits
@wpollock1
Жыл бұрын
The story is about Brenda and Eddy meeting at the Italian restaurant and then how they got divorced. A Masterpiece.
@string4755
Жыл бұрын
'Lou Ferrigno' (hilarious) is Mark Rivera. Mark has been with Billy since 1982. Billy has often commented about how this song is a mini-opera. Trained as a classical pianist, it's always amazing to see how Billy combines all of his varied musical influences to create his music. You will enjoy Billy's jazz inspired album '52nd Street', especially the 2nd side. "Half a Mile Away" and the title track "52nd Street" are highlights.
@angelarasmussen1800
6 ай бұрын
Did you notice the broken thumb? It makes his performance even more remarkable. A lot of lyrics? Have you heard "We didn't start the fire?"
@RankopediaHarvey
Жыл бұрын
Was so waiting for you to get it!!!! Ahhhhhhhh!!!! You know Brenda & Eddie who got married and divorced as teenagers in the 1970s??? Guess who met years later at the Italian Restaurant??? Brenda & Eddie!
@cindy2252
Жыл бұрын
If you want to hear a Billy Joel song that has an awesome piano solo and sax solo in one song check out "New York State of Mind" live (from Old Grey Whistle Test)🤯
@DorothyFarias
Жыл бұрын
This was probably Nassau Coliseum and I might have been there. Have no idea how many times I've been to his concerts. Local Long Island Hero, and also went to my High School. This song is a masterpiece.
@cowetascore8476
Жыл бұрын
The Sears he talks about is probably the huge one in Hicksville that only recently finally closed down. My grandparents lived in Hicksville and that's where I got all my clothes. I was a kid from Levittown/north Seaford. lol.
@carlswenson5538
9 ай бұрын
Long time band mates Marl Rivera on sax and the wonderful Liberty DeVito on drums. The more you watch Billy's live performances the more you experience his brilliance as a song writer and performer. I strongly urge you to watch Angry Young Man from Shea Stadium's final show.
@80sOGRE
Жыл бұрын
I love the song writing genius of how the Italian Restaurant couple ARE Brenda and Eddy. Telling their story in the third person.
@theConquerersMama
Жыл бұрын
Not everyone thinks that.
@80sOGRE
Жыл бұрын
@@theConquerersMama What's your take ? I never said it's what everyone thinks did i ? I just spoke on my own behalf.
@theConquerersMama
Жыл бұрын
@@80sOGRE I had never heard your take until seeing reactions a few years ago. You are not alone in thinking that. It's just not how I have thought of it or anyone who talked to me about it interpreted it. We took it as a couple or a group - some said just old friends. Some said a former couple. Some said two people. Some said a group meeting. At the old Italian restaurant and comparing notes. Someone offered that there was a new person like a wife or girlfriend who didn't grow up with them and they were explaining (after the waiter offered the wine selection) who the friends they were talking about were who didn't join the reunion, Brenda & Eddie. There is no right answer. Ours just sounds more narrative and less schizophrenic.
@80sOGRE
Жыл бұрын
@@theConquerersMama yeah i can see that. it's a bit more straight forward and less emotionally significant but yes, it's subjective anyway. It just doesn't make any sense why someone would start a narrative about a couple at a restaurant then start telling a story about some other couple that really doesn't have anything to do with the first couple. Emotionally it's not good writing.
@theConquerersMama
Жыл бұрын
@@80sOGRE well coming from a musical theater/radio play background it makes sense to me. As would a lot of the people who heard it when it came out. Add in that Joel himself explained it as two different songs finding a common ground when the waiter offered the wine. Like all art it is subjective. I just wouldn't write as forcefully certain as you did in your original comment. As if that is the definitive interpretation.
@maxking3
Жыл бұрын
Great choice, 4 songs for the price of one, including a ballad, some dixie land jazz, a little pop piano bridge and a great rock theme, all perfectly crafted to take you to a this little Italian place where two old friends meet and share their memories. Incredible song writing and one of the best multi-themed rock compositions (apart from Bohemian Rhapsody) But what should strike everyone is how tight the band plays this .. live! Billy’s voice and piano playing were at their peak back then. It has been said so many times before… you simply have no artists today that come close to this level of musicianship and songwriting today. Not close!
@eileenreid5348
5 ай бұрын
The Stranger was the first album I ever heard as a child, I can sing EVERY song on this album, I was born in 69…
@jamesmiller1048
7 ай бұрын
I think the word you are looking for is masterpiece.
@nancyankrom3803
Жыл бұрын
Billy Joel, ah the memories his songs bring back to me from my younger days. He is an excellent story teller.
@carolcarol3938
5 ай бұрын
I remember all these lyrics and many, many more of his huge range of songs. Billy's songs are usually stories.....he is a master storyteller, lyricist and STELLAR pianist. So much variety in his songs over the eras. You haven't even touched the surface in the genius of Billy Joel. Jump into that rabbit hole with both feet; you will never regret it.
@danivansuperstar
6 ай бұрын
Billy's masterpiece. And Mark Rivera on both saxophones sends the message home. He's a helluva player and showman. Backup vocals and air guitar when there's nothing left to do. He's amazing and still tours with him at least up to a few years ago. Billy always surrounds himself with the absolute best musicians. Thanks for reacting to the great Billy Joel.
@itchyandred4131
Жыл бұрын
His masterpiece ✌️ My all time favorite song from him ❤️
@sarahboyett9767
Жыл бұрын
Him and Stevie Knicks are going to be in concert together in May 2023 in Nashville, TN
@ijolafitts5297
Жыл бұрын
🤗 Subbed for Rush and was delighted by your reaction so much, I scrolled back and 🥰Surprise! Billy Joel! 😉 I'm 54 and Billy still has Residency Shows at Madison Square Garden. 🤯 Was blown away when he toured with Elton John! I love this man since 😒them early Long Island & South 🤦🏾♀🤦🏾♀Hampton shows! 🤩 He was an Amazing Story Teller and when Billy 'sings', he tells a story. That's so much easy to "sing" then some 'regular pop songs' in my opinion! Pleasure hearing this again! Always feels like MSG shows seeing videos of what I've enjoyed Live since 😳JHS! 🤦🏾♀ I'm showing my age! 😁😂🐰
@angelashepherd4429
5 ай бұрын
I saw him around this time and he was FANTASTIC ❤
@cshubs
Жыл бұрын
"The Stranger" was one of the first three albums I bought, 41 years ago, on cassette. It's part of my soul. I am sure that guy is the reason I took up saxophone in sixth grade. I'd use my Walkman, which was like a small hardcover book. I went through countless AA batts. It needed 4 at a time.
@kellysimmons8437
Жыл бұрын
It's telling the story, that's how he remembered the words.
@marcobenedetto2175
10 ай бұрын
When you've been listening to him for nearly 50.years the lyrics are embedded lol
@annabinksy1694
7 ай бұрын
That was my favorite song off that album!!!!
@sarahboyett9767
Жыл бұрын
Saw him in England in the late 80's. Fabulous performer.
@leslieharding7335
Жыл бұрын
Kind of like rock opera, with clear and distinct movements in the story.
@christophermckinney3924
4 ай бұрын
Would love to see you react to Billy Joel’s Goodnight Saigon as a tribute to the Vietnam Vets. Live from this same concert in Madison Square Garden sometime around 1982-83.
@KL-nm6nl
Жыл бұрын
You may notice Billy's hammering the piano with a wrapped thump, not sure if broken or just injured but impressive, the best of showmen!!!
@seanscanlon9067
Жыл бұрын
He had recently had surgery on his hand and other wrist after being knocked off his motorbike when a driver went through a red light and hit and flipped him. The bone in the tip of the thumb had to be removed and so the taping was to help support it because he can no longer moved the tip part of his thumb by itself. There were parts of this concert and I think even in this song itself (have not gone back to check) where he is shaking out his hand too.
@vincentvancraig
4 ай бұрын
thats EXAXTLY how you remember words like this, its a story & having that linear thing/story helps u to remember, especially if youve performed it a thousand times....also, teleprompters for some...theres no sin in teleprompters, ppl get nervous, & forget words, the teleprompters help put that part of their nervous brains at ease & perform better....i dont think billy has one here tho, it may have been before teleprompters were super common, &, im not sure billy gets nervous, hes the greatest, & one of the most intense, but also, the most laid back & funny performer ever.
@reborndaughter445
Жыл бұрын
I noticed you did the Prayer, which I love and I appreciated your chills from it. THEN, it came up that you were reviewing this gem. Billy always said it was his favorite and it's a stellar performance. The Horn guy is simply amazing! Glad you loved it. Subscribed.
@normancharlesworth1289
10 ай бұрын
LOVE your channel! Took me a while to figure out that you were on a treadmill! Cheers!!
@MrBarryb505050
Жыл бұрын
I'm originally from Kentucky and now live in South Carolina. 60 years old, and I know every word this song since this song came out. Fantastic story, fantastic song
@Chiari_Queen_T
Жыл бұрын
Lou Ferrigno? Try "New York State of Mind" "Vienna" "Captain Jack" & "Goodnight Saigon" **talk about remembering lyrics, how does he sing "We didn't Start the Fire" remembering every word?! I guess if you write it, it's always a part of you?👍😎
@hoolihanmick5897
6 ай бұрын
I'm just watching this video and first time I've heard the whole song in 20 years and i remember ALL the lyrics. The classics and masterpieces you NEVER forget!
@cynsabonorris1924
Ай бұрын
lyric sheet lolol I mean no more lyrics than a rap song, and I remember singing along and loving how the lyrics fit together
@angelashepherd4429
5 ай бұрын
Billy wrote this and said it's his favorite ❤
@anthonyhitchman9789
6 ай бұрын
You know when you love a song that you watch the same video reacted to different people. Quite startling really. Apart from piano man this Billys most flamboyant. Both brilliant.❤❤❤❤❤❤❤
@tomhawk8330
11 ай бұрын
One of the great rock story songs..
@risktaker53
6 ай бұрын
Heck, I'm 70, and I still remember all the lyrics, lol!
@risktaker53
6 ай бұрын
...yet I can't remember what I had for dinner last night, lol!
@twwtjohns
10 ай бұрын
Billy Joel is a genius.
@bobsteinzig
Жыл бұрын
Mark Rivera (SAX) i am now 70 yrs old. Saw billy just after The Stranger came out. 50 foot runway into audience he was ding this and the lights went down. Mark had come to the end of ramp hit a blast and my ear popped. still have a buzz in that ear
@kj320175
Жыл бұрын
Downeaster Alexa- Billy Joel.... is a great one as well
@KevinMyers0619
Ай бұрын
nice reaction. Satir stepper or treadmill. haha, doubling your work into one.
@stuarthornsby7023
Жыл бұрын
I saw him on New Year's Eve in South Florida about 5 years ago. He was still great. His show was over 3 hours long (with no opener) and he took about one five minute break while his band continued to play. He was on stage at midnight and it was amazing. He still wears a jacket for every show he does.
@lisakaufman7366
11 ай бұрын
Billy Joel is very versatile in his music. He's my number 1 favorite male singer.
@johnthegreek5836
Жыл бұрын
Definitely a masterpiece
@lightatthecape2009
Жыл бұрын
Great song..
@katrinaprescott5911
Жыл бұрын
You are impressed by his remembering these lyrics? Have you ever heard "We Didn't Start the Fire"? That song requires Cliff's Notes.
@lindazee
7 ай бұрын
I think you should really revisit this video because I have observed your growth and evolution over the past year, and you will definitely see this masterpiece with new eyes. There was so much going on in this piece that I think you may have missed a lot. In any case, Billy Joel was on FIRE 🔥 and so were all the other musicians, not just the saxophonist, whom I believe is the amazing Mark Rivera. Go ahead and give it another look and listen!
@deennaemilio
Жыл бұрын
It's a masterpiece.
@riccardoangeli802
Жыл бұрын
Piano Man unico artista che ha tutti gioielli nel suo repertorio... Da giovane poi dal vivo miglior performer in assoluto.... Guardare i suoi concerti per credere
@grilledspaghetti
Жыл бұрын
He was playing here with a broken thumb. Which is mind boggling.
@TexasMagnolia
Жыл бұрын
Yes! Let us take you on a Journey of our music! A must, please react: Elton John - Funeral for a Friend/Love Lies Bleeding (live)…..a freakin’ masterpiece!
@Pixelologist
Жыл бұрын
Lou Ferrigno....LOL!
@mistylee717
7 ай бұрын
I totally was able to sing along the whole time. Didn’t know all those lyrics were still in my brain somewhere.
@seanshukoski3457
Жыл бұрын
If you love saxophone solos, PLEASE check out Bruce Springsteen’s song Jungleland, preferably one of the earlier versions. Clarence Clemons is a master of the sax, and his solo during that song is practically a religious experience.
@mikefetterman6782
Жыл бұрын
During the writing and arranging of the song before recording, he probably sang each of these lines 200 times before going to the studio. And I am being conservative. Hearing from Glen Frey (Eagles) talk about living above Jackson Browne (70s singer songwriter) basement apt. He heard nothing but one song being slowly written line by line 10 hours a day, for weeks. That song became Doctor my eyes.
@bobsteinzig
Жыл бұрын
Billy brought sax back to R&R
@micheles1887
Жыл бұрын
The couple he’s singing about and the couple sharing the table are Brenda and Eddie - “they parted the best of friends”.
@seanscanlon9067
Жыл бұрын
I found your channel a while back via country music act reactions you did with Ali and have been watching only that genre on your channel here in London, UK. I am a massive fan of Billy Joel and so was pleasantly surprised to see you were reacting to this song too now. And I got into country music via Garth Brooks covering Billy's song Shameless. Billy himself though had quite a few songs with a bluegrass/country/western sound to them on his Piano Man album, with tracks like Travelin' Prayer, You're My Home, The Ballad of Billy the Kid, Worse Comes to Worst and Stop in Nevada.
@davidjacobucci3326
4 ай бұрын
My grandson knows all the lyrics and he,s 7 yrs old! He does live in Long Island
@christinapeck966
Жыл бұрын
Music is life 🎶🎹🥁🎺🎷👏🏽🎶😊
@TrevorPalmatiershow
Жыл бұрын
New York State of Mind and Just The Way You Are are my favs. He's genius.
@GillDawe
9 ай бұрын
Why haven't you done more Billy Joel!? So much more where this came from!!!
@warmaiden
Жыл бұрын
Oh, I'm so glad you made it to this one!! Thank you
@PCallahanPhilly
Жыл бұрын
Trivia: He was playing with a broken thumb. Note the bandage.
@cog4life
Жыл бұрын
Idk how he remembers all these either. I’ve heard people comment on that for years. SMH. It’s crazy how he does it! His catalogue is so extensive!
@hayleycomet8029
Жыл бұрын
that was actually epic
@riccardoangeli802
Жыл бұрын
La Perfezione 👏🎹👏🎹👏
@TheAlmaward
Жыл бұрын
The sax player's name is Richie Cannata. (Lou Ferrigno.... LOL)
@Tessie46255
Жыл бұрын
Check out Billy doing “Piano Man” live. He is so talented. We saw him in concert and he was phenomenal.
@DannyLeeOGT
Жыл бұрын
Love this!!
@johnkent9582
Жыл бұрын
I memorized these lyrics in 1977)
@Pothos969
Жыл бұрын
We all remember all the lyrics...
@EessaTube
Жыл бұрын
If you like Sax, check out the band 'Supertramp' and songs like 'The Logical Song' and 'Bloody Well Right'.
@EessaTube
Жыл бұрын
Check out his song, 'Shades of Grey'.
@stephenmelone8589
5 ай бұрын
If you want to hear more of Billy's sax player listen to NEW YORK FRAME OF MIND at Old Whistle Test . You won't be sorry .
@MrBarryb505050
3 ай бұрын
I know every single word until this day
@inthedarkanonymous5625
5 ай бұрын
I’m almost 73, I’m not from Long Island, and I can sing all the lyrics too.
@rozafrrozafr
10 ай бұрын
I hadn't seen thus before Billy forgot some of his words lol
@jnagarya519
27 күн бұрын
One remembers the lyrics because it is a story told chronologically. It isn't that difficult.
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