Billy Joel Essays

  • Billy Joel Research Paper

    953 Words  | 2 Pages

    The Life of Billy Joel Billy Joel was born on May 9, 1949 in Bronx, New York. He moved at the age of four to a small town on Long Island. This is where at the ripe age of four he discovered the art of music. Originally a classical music fan, Billy Joel honed his skills with classical piano training. This undoubtedly has had a major influence on his life and certainly his music. Growing up Joel was a big fan of such greats as Ray Charles, The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, and Otis Reading. He was

  • Song Analysis: We Didn’t Start the Fire by Billy Joel

    1442 Words  | 3 Pages

    Every song has a story to tell, and some contain hidden stories or lessons, while others are completely blatant. In Billy Joel’s song, “We Didn’t Start the Fire,” he does not hesitate to be very obvious with what he tries to prove, which is how all of the events in his song contribute to one large fire. I chose to remediate Joel’s song because it spoke to me with historical context. When researching the song, I read a majority of the history behind it and decided to reflect upon it in a visual picture

  • Personal Narrative: How Music Changed My Life

    1333 Words  | 3 Pages

    life - for better or for worse. I wonder if that day changed me - forged me into the person that I am today. I’m not quite sure if it changed me, but I am sure it changed something. After that day, whenever I listen to those lighthearted songs of Billy Joel, they just don’t feel the same. Other things in my life changed as well. I started to care about school, and developed a love for learning. My grades reflected this, and soon I began to like school again. I became cheerful and jubilant in my own

  • The Zombie Craze

    653 Words  | 2 Pages

    has been an evolution fro... ... middle of paper ... ...Nevada, n.d. Web. 23 Feb. 2014. . "Die Reichsgründung 1871/The Empire in 1871." Das Kaiserreich/The Empire. German Historical Museum, n.d. Web. 23 Feb. 2014. . Joel, Billy. "The Stranger Lyrics." The Official Billy Joel Site. N.p., n.d. Web. 23 Feb. 2014. . "Lord Byron Biography." Bio.com. A&E Networks Television, n.d. Web. 23 Feb. 2014. . "White Zombie." International Movie Database. IMDb.com, n.d. Web. 23 Feb. 2014. . "Zombie: Total Grosses

  • The Birth of Monsters

    666 Words  | 2 Pages

    NATIONAL UNITY: ITALY (1848-1876). University of Las Vegas, Nevada, n.d. Web. 23 Feb. 2014. . "Die Reichsgründung 1871/The Empire in 1871." Das Kaiserreich/The Empire. German Historical Museum, n.d. Web. 23 Feb. 2014. . Joel, Billy. "The Stranger Lyrics." The Official Billy Joel Site. N.p., n.d. Web. 23 Feb. 2014. . "Lord Byron Biography." Bio.com. A&E Networks Television, n.d. Web. 23 Feb. 2014. .

  • Elvis Presley

    1205 Words  | 3 Pages

    everything. He changed the way popular music sounded, the way it looked, the way it acted-everything about it" (Logan and Sloan 9). By creating a new sound and style of music Elvis helped set the stage for recording artists such as The Beatles, Billy Joel and Elton John. Even John Lennon said, "Before Elvis, there was nothing." (Logan and Sloan, quotesandsayings.com) While Elvis is toted as being the King of Rock-n-Roll, he was insanely self-conscious growing up. He was a young kid with acne

  • Why Is Billy Joel Hardworking

    542 Words  | 2 Pages

    Billy Joel grew up in Long Island, New York. While growing up, he studied classical music; however, when he went to a Beatles concert, he decided to become a professional musician. He later became one of the most successful artists of his generation by selling more than one hundred million records worldwide. In 1999, he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. In “Hold Fast Your Dreams - and Trust Your Mistakes,” Billy Joel is inspirational because he shows that he is hardworking, and he

  • The Piano Man

    687 Words  | 2 Pages

    Roderich. "I'm sure you know what to play." Roderich quickly nodded his head, and turned back to the microphone. He said to the crowd, "How about a different song. One that I made up. I like to call it, Piano Man." Works Cited Hetalia, Piano Man by Billy Joel

  • Jonathan Larson

    1432 Words  | 3 Pages

    piano lessons during elementary school. He could play by ear, and his teacher encouraged him to experiment with rhythm, harmony, and setting words. By high school, he was called the "Piano Man" after the enormously popular song of that title by Billy Joel; he also played tuba in the school marching band. Active in school and community theatre, Jonathan had major roles in several musicals. In 1978, Jonathan entered the acting conservatory at Adelphi University with a four-year full-tuition merit scholarship

  • British Literature: Past and Present

    2379 Words  | 5 Pages

    added that, “They (the poor) ... ... middle of paper ... .... David Damrosch, et al. Vol. 2. New York: Addison-Wesley Educational Publishers Inc., 2003. 1,060-1,068. Joel, Billy. We Didn’t Start the Fire. Storm Front. 1989. Dylan, Bob. The Times They Are A Changin’. The Times They Are A Changin’.1964. Performed live by Joel, Billy. Kohuept. 1987. Equiano, Olaudah. The Interesting Narrative of the Life of Olaudah Equiano. London: Stationer's Hall, 1789. Rpt. in The Longman Anthology of British Literature

  • Social Attitudes Toward Vietnam Veterans

    1569 Words  | 4 Pages

    who fought in the Vietnam War. I have also examined the lyrics to Billy Joel’s ballad, “Goodnight Saigon.” Thus far, the most valuable sources have been a few books I took out from the library. These books include information about the history of the Vietnam War as well as about the aftermath. In addition, several of these books include powerful pictures and images from wartime to the present time. After examining the lyrics to Billy Joel’s song, “Goodnight Saigon,” I realized that it does not directly

  • Childhood In Piano Man, By Billy Joel

    982 Words  | 2 Pages

    "It's sad and it's sweet and I knew it complete when I wore a younger man’s clothes” (Piano Man, Billy Joel). Looking back on the memories of one’s youth can be bitter sweet. This line states how childhood memories can be idealistic or even naïve, as one stares off into space thinking of what it would be like to grow up and be a teacher, a doctor or maybe even an astronaut. What would it be like to travel the world or fly into space? There is no real foundation or thorough reasons behind why one

  • Comparing Rocket Man By Elton John And Billy Joel

    510 Words  | 2 Pages

    The Rocket vs The Piano Elton John and Billy Joel are arguably two of my favorite musical artists whose music I listen to. Two pieces by Elton John and Billy Joel are “Rocket Man” and “Piano Man” respectively. They are somewhat similar in the tone that they set, however, they differ in how they set this mood. The tone they set is one of slight depression and longing for something better. When discussing this aurora with Elton John’s piece, “Rocket Man,” it must be said that he uses the situation

  • love is worth the inevitable pain

    1548 Words  | 4 Pages

    their memory. The two main characters in the movie fall in love and then they both decide to erase each other from their memories. Clementine, Kate Winslet, erases Joel, Jim Carrey, because she becomes bored with their relationship. Joel goes to the Barnes and Nobles where she works to see her and she has absolutely no idea who he even is. Joel probably would not have erased Clementine, but he found a card that told him he was erased from her memory and he did not think that he could go on with the memory

  • The Sisters of Mercy

    1433 Words  | 3 Pages

    more intriguing than that of Sister Mary Joel Hopkinson. Having only heard bits and pieces, and not knowing for sure the steps that each of these women had to take to become who she is today, I asked Sister Mary Joel to share her story with me. When she was born into a Protestant family in New England, no one could have guessed that Sister Joel would end up becoming a Catholic, let alone a Sister of Mercy. But as it turned out, as Sister Mary Joel Hopkinson says, "There was no way to deny

  • Light is Like Water as Magical Realism

    1100 Words  | 3 Pages

    Water." In "Light Is Like Water" (December 1978), the use of various fantastic elements along with the realist elements is what defines this story as Magical Realism. The exclusive magical element of "Light Is Like Water" is light because Toto and Joel use it as water. The use of light as water comes into use when Marquez says that the light begins to "pour out of the broken light bulb" (158) Light having the same physical characteristic as water is the use of "an 'irreducible element' of magic,

  • Oscar De La Hoya

    761 Words  | 2 Pages

    today. PERSONAL Oscar De La Hoya lives and was born in East Los Angeles, California on February 4, 1973. His parents names are Joel, a former professional boxer from Durango, Mexico, and Dona Cecilia De La Hoya. His mother, Cecilia, passed away in her late thirties when breast cancer attacked her body. Oscar is the youngest boy in the family. He has an older brother name Joel, Jr., and a little sister name Maria. As a boy, Oscar never did like fighting or any physical sports. (Oscar, 1) He never looked

  • Cabaret

    884 Words  | 2 Pages

    to the opposing worlds of the protagonists Brian and Sally and also indicates the significance all songs in the Cabaret will be instilled with. As the camera moves from the distorted mirror to the grotesquely masked face of the Master of Ceremonies (Joel Grey) who claims, 'I am your host, wilkommen', the need to look below the 'beautiful' surface of both the cabaret and Berlin is established. As the opening progresses the MC welcomes in three languages, English, French and German, communicating from

  • Herman Melville's Billy Budd - Billy Budd as Allegorical Figure

    623 Words  | 2 Pages

    Billy Budd as Allegorical Figure An allegory is a symbolic story. Herman Melville's Billy Budd is an example of an allegory. The author uses the protagonist Billy Budd to symbolize a superior being who has a perfect appearance and represents goodness. Melville shows the reader that a superior being can be an innocent victim of evil and eventually destroyed. In, Melville's Billy Budd, the main character is an allegorical figure who symbolizes all goodness in men. Billy Budd's image

  • The Case of Billy Frank Vickers

    1197 Words  | 3 Pages

    The Case of Billy Frank Vickers According to the article, Prosecutors Doubt Inmate Confession True, by Angela K. Brown, Billy Frank Vickers, condemned inmate, received a lethal injection on Wednesday night January 28, 2004 for a 1993 murder after confessing that he was involved in about a dozen other crimes, including the shootings that placed a cloud of suspicion over Davis for three decades (Brown). Jack Strickland, a former prosecutor in the Davis case, said he had never heard of Vickers and