Billy Joel: True Stories Behind the Hits

💡Billy Joel originally titled 'Only the Good Die Young' as 'The Evil Shall Live Forever'.

🎶The lyrics to 'Piano Man' were inspired by a superhero character named 'Pianoman' who fought alongside Elton John's 'Rocket Man' against Bob Dylan's 'Tambourine-Man'.

🏢The 'Italian Restaurant' in Billy Joel's song was actually an Arby's.

👶The song 'Just the Way You Are' was inspired by the Incredible Hulk.

🚀The hit 'We Didn't Start the Fire' was written because Billy Joel didn't have Wikipedia and wanted to include everything that ever happened in history.

What was the original title of 'Only the Good Die Young'?

—The original title was 'The Evil Shall Live Forever'.

What inspired the lyrics to 'Piano Man'?

—The lyrics were inspired by a superhero character named 'Pianoman' who fought alongside Elton John's 'Rocket Man' against Bob Dylan's 'Tambourine-Man'.

What was the 'Italian Restaurant' in the song actually?

—The 'Italian Restaurant' was actually an Arby's.

What inspired the song 'Just the Way You Are'?

—The song was inspired by the Incredible Hulk.

Why did Billy Joel write 'We Didn't Start the Fire'?

—He wrote the song because he didn't have Wikipedia and wanted to include everything that ever happened in history.

06:50Billy Joel originally titled 'Only the Good Die Young' as 'The Evil Shall Live Forever'.

08:16Billy Joel's doo-wop song 'The Longest Time' was inspired by the time it took his toaster strudel to cool from the microwave.

08:56The song 'Just the Way You Are' was inspired by the Incredible Hulk.

09:33Billy Joel talks about the true stories behind his hits in the segment 'True Stories Behind the Hits'.