Billy Joel
45 quotes
Biography
William Martin Joel is an American singer, songwriter, and pianist. Nicknamed the "Piano Man", after his 1973 signature song of the same name, Joel has had a successful career as a solo artist since the 1970s.
"So I would choose to be with you,That's if the choice were mine to make,But you can make decisions too,And you can have this heart to break"
"We didn't start the fireIt was always burningSince the world's been turningWe didn't start the fireNo we didn't light itBut we tried to fight it"
"Don't take any shit from anybody!"
"And in truth, of course, I'm not just 60 - I'm twelve, I'm 23, I'm 37, I'm 42, I'm 18. I'm every age I've ever been. Depending on what day of the week it is and what the situation calls for at the moment."
"I am, as I've said, merely competent. But in an age of incompetence, that makes me extraordinary."
"In an age of incompetence, I've been able to last in this crazy business. I actually know how to play my ax and write a song. That's my job."
"As human beings, we need to know that we are not alone, that we are not crazy or completely out of our minds, that there are other people out there who feel as we do, live as we do, love as we do, who are like us."
"More than art, more than literature, music is universally accessible."
"In an age of incompetence, I've been able to last in this crazy business. I actually know how to play my ax and write a song. That's my job."
"I've crashed my car three times."
"When I was a young musician, the only option available to pursue secondary education in music was to attend a classical conservatory."
"Historically, musicians know what it is like to be outside the norm - walking the high wire without a safety net. Our experience is not so different from those who march to the beat of different drummers."
"Like family, we are tied to each other. This is what all good musicians understand."
"When I was 19, I made my first good week's pay as a club musician. It was enough money for me to quit my job at the factory and still pay the rent and buy some food. I freaked."
"Most people are satisfied with the junk food being sold as music."
"You want to give people a reason to hate my guts more? I'm making more money."
"When I was 19, I made my first good week's pay as a club musician. It was enough money for me to quit my job at the factory and still pay the rent and buy some food. I freaked."
"Don't make music for some vast, unseen audience or market or ratings share or even for something as tangible as money. Though it's crucial to make a living, that shouldn't be your inspiration. Do it for yourself."
"The whole world loves American movies, blue jeans, jazz and rock and roll. It is probably a better way to get to know our country than by what politicians or airline commercials represent."
"Why do musicians give so much time to charitable causes? The most humanitarian cause that we can give our time to is the creation and performance of music itself."
"Have you listened to the radio lately? Have you heard the canned, frozen and processed product being dished up to the world as American popular music today?"
"More than art, more than literature, music is universally accessible."
"If you make music for the human needs you have within yourself, then you do it for all humans who need the same things. You enrich humanity with the profound expression of these feelings."
"For whatever reason, not all people are born with the particular gift of being able to express ourselves through music. And, believe me, it is a gift."
"When I was a young musician, the only option available to pursue secondary education in music was to attend a classical conservatory."