Dartblog

A friend, a pianist, a sometime composer, and a teacher of music writes:

A few years ago, one of my best friends questioned my seemingly unabashed interest in Billy Joel: “But he’s, like, music for aunts!” Perhaps. I had no worthy response for him then, but I’m wise enough to defend my New York brethren now.

First, an admission - Billy Joel is not cool. Billy Joel is not rock and roll. If I had to fault him for anything, it’s that he pretends to be a card-carrying member of the rock and roll elite, when in fact he’s a throwback to an older era. I’d argue that he has more in common with Gershwin, Porter or Berlin than Dylan or Springsteen. In a sense, he is the heir to the great American songbook tradition.

Just like those composers, many of his songs can be considered maudlin. You could characterize Rodgers and Hammerstein’s “If I Loved You” just as schmaltzy as “Just the Way You Are”, but no one criticizes Carousel. I guess it’s easier to castigate a schlubby lounge lizard from Long Island than the men who wrote some of the most endearing musicals of all time.

And just like those composers, he knows how to write a melody. Even if you don’t like Billy Joel, you must admit the man has an ear for a catchy tune: “Uptown Girl”. “Piano Man”. “It’s Still Rock and Roll to Me”. His ballads are unapologetically mushy: “She’s Got a Way.” “I’ve Loved These Days.” “Goodnight My Angel.” Take out the rock and roll instrumentation, add a well-trained tenor and drop the snare on 2 and 4, and you’ve got yourself the first act of a 1940s musical.

And what about his influences? Joel’s daughter Alexa stated that her father listened to three main artists while she was growing up: The Beatles, Ray Charles and Beethoven. Surprising? Absolutely not. Each is the epitome of melody-based music in their respective genres (rock and roll, R&B, classical). [You could probably easily convince me that Beethoven did not create melody-based music, but for the sake of this discussion, he’s close enough.] In fact, he wrote and recorded a song with Ray Charles, (“Baby Grand”) and reworked the stunning adagio section of Beethoven’s Pathetique Sonata into a 6/8 doo-wop. (“This Night”) Look at his retrospective album My Lives to see what other artists he has covered: The Beatles (“A Hard Day’s Night”, “Back in the U.S.S.R.”); The Beach Boys (“Don’t Worry Baby”); Duke Ellington (“In A Sentimental Mood”). He even plays “When You Wish Upon a Star”! Seriously, what other “rock” star would ever dream about playing the most unapologetically sentimental song in history in concert! Not to mention it’s from a Disney movie!

So, while his lyrics might be indignant cynics, his melodies are hopeless romantics. While the popular music of the last quarter of the 20th century lost its taste for melodies, AABA song structures, or chord progressions that are more interesting than a I-IV-V, Billy Joel kept the old Tin Pan Alley style alive.

This is not to say I do not enjoy, for comparison, Bob Dylan. In fact, I think his music is (mostly) fantastic. But their music is meant for completely different things: Joel’s for singing and Dylan’s for listening. Dylan was first and foremost a lyricist and even admitted to The Band’s Robbie Robertson that the music didn’t really matter to him; it was simply a vehicle for his words. Dylan couldn’t write a pretty melody if he tried. The closest he got was “A Simple Twist of Fate”, which though incredibly beautiful, relies on its lyrics, descending chromatic lines and post-production for its power rather than its rather simple, repeating melody. On the other hand, Joel could never rock the way Dylan did - he was well, just too square. You can tell he has tried - he’s covered Dylan’s “Highway 61 Revisited” as well as a slew of Elvis songs (“All Shook Up”, “Heartbreak Hotel.”) Dylan has the words and the attitude. Joel has the melody and the chords.

And maybe that’s why the hipsters love to scorn Billy Joel. If Dylan represented the new, Joel represented the old. If you’re going to hate Billy Joel, you might as well hate the entire stage musical tradition. So listen hipsters - get off your high horses. You’re allowed to like Bob Dylan and Billy Joel. You’re allowed to like the “literary” and the “schmaltzy”. And while you’re at it, go listen to “South Pacific” or something. You’ll probably like it.