Artist
Billy Joel
Lyrics
It's nine o'clock on a Saturday
The regular crowd shuffles in
There's an old man sitting next to me
Making love to his tonic and gin
He says, ""Son, can you play me a memory?
I'm not really sure how it goes
But it's sad and it's sweet and I knew it complete
When I wore a younger man's clothes""
La la la, de de da
La la, de de da da da
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
Now John at the bar is a friend of mine
He gets me my drinks for free
And he's quick with a joke or a light of your smoke
But there's someplace that he'd rather be
He says, ""Bill, I believe this is killing me,""
As a smile ran away from his face
""Well I'm sure that I could be a movie star
If I could get out of this place""
Oh, la la la, de de da
La la, de de da da da
Now Paul is a real estate novelist
Who never had time for a wife
And he's talkin' with Davey, who's still in the Navy
And probably will be for life
And the waitress is practicing politics
As the businessmen slowly get stoned
Yes, they're sharing a drink they call loneliness
Well, it's better than drinkin' alone
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
It's a pretty good crowd for a Saturday
And the manager gives me a smile
'Cause he knows that it's me they've been comin' to see
To forget about life for a while
And the piano sounds like a carnival
And the microphone smells like a beer
And they sit at the bar and put bread in my jar
And say, ""Man, what are you doin' here?""
Oh, la la la, de de da
La la, de de da da da
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
The regular crowd shuffles in
There's an old man sitting next to me
Making love to his tonic and gin
He says, ""Son, can you play me a memory?
I'm not really sure how it goes
But it's sad and it's sweet and I knew it complete
When I wore a younger man's clothes""
La la la, de de da
La la, de de da da da
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
Now John at the bar is a friend of mine
He gets me my drinks for free
And he's quick with a joke or a light of your smoke
But there's someplace that he'd rather be
He says, ""Bill, I believe this is killing me,""
As a smile ran away from his face
""Well I'm sure that I could be a movie star
If I could get out of this place""
Oh, la la la, de de da
La la, de de da da da
Now Paul is a real estate novelist
Who never had time for a wife
And he's talkin' with Davey, who's still in the Navy
And probably will be for life
And the waitress is practicing politics
As the businessmen slowly get stoned
Yes, they're sharing a drink they call loneliness
Well, it's better than drinkin' alone
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
It's a pretty good crowd for a Saturday
And the manager gives me a smile
'Cause he knows that it's me they've been comin' to see
To forget about life for a while
And the piano sounds like a carnival
And the microphone smells like a beer
And they sit at the bar and put bread in my jar
And say, ""Man, what are you doin' here?""
Oh, la la la, de de da
La la, de de da da da
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
RS500_rank
421
Length
5:37
BPM
103.2
Released Year
1974
Genre Era
Genre
Key
A m
Produced By
Michael Stewart
Released Info
Nov. '73 on Columbia
Chart Weeks
14 weeks
Chart Top
No. 25
Musicbrainz ID
74e3537d-a319-19bf-bce5-25e3c8188eae
Song Note Source
Rolling Stone 500
Song of Day Date
Written By
Joel
Album
Piano Man (Columbia)
Song Status
Joel grew up playing in Long Island rock bands with names such as the Hassles, but a California hiatus pointed him in a more introspective direction. As a lounge pianist for six months under the name Bill Martin, he pecked out standards for lost souls. "It was all right," he told ROLLING STONE. "I got free drinks and union scale, which was the first steady money I'd made in a long time."