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
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, di da da
La la, di di da da dum
Chorus:
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 all feelin' all right
Now John at the bar is a friend of mine
He gets me my drinks for free
And he's quick with a joke and he'll light up your smoke
But there's some place that he'd rather be
He says, "Bill, I believe this is killing me."
As his 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, di da da
La la, di da da da dum
Now Paul is a real estate novelist
Who never had time for a wife
And he's talkin' with Davy, who's still in the Navy
And probably will be for life
And the waitress is practicing politics
As the businessman slowly gets stoned
Yes, they're sharing a drink they call loneliness
But it's better than drinkin' alone
Chorus
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 got us all feeling 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 their life for a while
And the piano, it sounds like a carnivore
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, di da da
La la, di da da da dum
Chorus:
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 got us all feeling alright
If you find some error in Piano Man Lyrics, would you please submit your corrections to me? Thank You.
Thanks to Lexis for submitting the lyrics.
Review about Piano Man Yes, they're sharing a drink they call loneliness | Reviewer: soulman | 12/26/08
"Yes, they're sharing a drink they call loneliness
But it's better than drinkin' alone"
So very true. Billy Joel is saying even though the times may be bad between the two people, they still have something in common: loneliness, and having someone that can relate to your issues, having someone that can understand you and respond to you from experience, always lightens the tension.
I have been skating for quite some time and I first heard Piano Man was when I was on the ice. It is a very dynamic waltz and snapping those 3-turns (European Waltz) across the end of the rink makes for such a powerful strut... I am totally in 7th heaven when I get to skate to Piano man...
P.S. I never knew the one line of the lyrics. "When I wore a younger man's clothes", I always sang "And I worry under my toes".. hehehehe
Thank you Billy Joel
"Man, what are you doin' here?" explanation | Reviewer: Kevin Cox | 10/4/08
This is just something you hear, as a performer, in small, seemingly inconsequential venues. The person who says this to you is in effect saying, "You're way too good to be playing in a small town like this", but he doesn't mean to say you're wasting your life away or anything negative. They're just trying to say that they think you are a world class performer or at least as good as anybody they've ever heard on a local scale.
Wow! The first time I listened to this song just caught me. A frien of mine asked me to translate it for him, but I had never listened to it. I'm glad there are still good compositors like Billy Joel, and good singers as well. I'm super fan of the harmonica... I play it by ear, so I find so nice that this song has a "touch" of it. Eventhough it is a very short harmonica "solo", I love it. I like to play the whole song on my C harp.
This is a great song with great lyrics, one of my absolute favorite songs ever.
A response I have for the writer who says everyone translated this too literally:
There's is a recording from a concert that Billy Joel gave (I don't know where, I heard it on yahoo radio) where he explains each phrase of the song. And it is meant to be a literal translation. Billy Joel was once a Piano Man at a bar where John at the bar was a friend of his, there was a waitress practicing politics, businessmen were getting stoned and an old man asked him one night to play an old song.
Nueva mami | Reviewer: Tanya | 4/2/08
De acuerdo con todos! He escuchado esta cancion desde que tengo memoria, y cada vez la encuentro mejor. I think the same way! This song has been always in my life, and everytime gets better. Sorry 4 my bad redaction. I'm from Chile
Music is a way to escape from reality and by playing this song at the bar not only is he escaping reality but he's HELPING others do the same and he was also just describing the times. I love B.J. cause he was just so real and with the times. It's Hip Hop
Piano Man is a legit name because... | Reviewer: Anonymous | 2/1/08
This is a wonderful song, one of Billy Joel's finest. However, Piano Man is a literal title because Billy Joel not only was a great singer, but quite a good pianist as well. "Piano Man" is not just a fantasy song illustrating crushed dreams, although it partly is.
i love this song but i want to know what is the instrument playing in the background around 5:00 until 5:10 ... please, if u know email at danielu124@hotmail.com
Wow! | Reviewer: Fan Gurl | 12/30/07
I really loved this song, the first time I heard it on a CD, I played it over and over again! This song was really good, and I still love it! <3
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