Billy Joel’s most well-known song, “Piano Man,” contributed to his reputation as the Piano Man. We all believe we know the tale of the pianist entertaining late-night drinkers with anecdotes from their extraordinary lives. But have you ever considered a different hypothesis on “Piano Man’s” origins? There’s one out there that sounds so well with the music you might want to give it second thought.
A Strong Hypothesis Regarding the Narrative of “Piano Man”
The potential meaning of the song has been questioned by admirers of Billy Joel in a Reddit discussion. Not so much the beginnings of “Piano Man,” but the true meaning of the song. The story, as it were. Some claim in this post that the man with the piano is actually performing in a homosexual pub. Except for the piano guy, every person in the bar is gay. But he’s completely ignorant of it and doesn’t know it. Because the piano guy is so blatantly heterosexual, this notion is best illustrated in the lyric “They sit at the bar and put bread in my jar / and say ‘Man, what are you doing here?'”
But the overall arrangement of all the verses is what truly depicts the scene. Ultimately, everything revolves around the customers who live in the piano man’s world.
At the Bar, John is a little hazy. Considering that he “gets me my drinks for free,” he is probably the bartender. He has higher goals than just being a bartender, as seen by the lyric, “Well, I’m sure that I could be a movie star / if I could get out of this place.” Of course, being a bartender in a gay pub doesn’t automatically come with this. However, John lacks specificity in the sense that someone may put their personality into him. Compared to the other characters, who appear to be more developed, he is more of a blank canvas.
Billy Joel made an odd choice when he included the line “who never had time for a wife” in the lyric about Paul the real estate author. This may be interpreted literally, meaning that he never had the time to date. Alternatively, it can indicate that Paul had no intention of marrying a lady.
The current U.S. and Royal fleets’ antiquated stereotype of sexual preference is perpetuated by Davy, who is still serving in the Navy, in the same stanza. Not that Billy Joel is speaking disparagingly. Nevertheless, considering that the song was released in the 1970s, he could be contributing to the antiquated caricature with Davy’s persona.
Billy Joel sings, “He knows that it’s me that they’re coming to see,” in the song’s last lyric. This might mean that the audience believes he is a talented pianist since they go on to say things like, “Man, what are you doing here?” However, we might also propose that the piano guy is both handsome and a talented pianist in support of this theory. But since they are aware of how stupid and hopelessly straight he is, they bribe him by saying, “Put bread in my jar.”
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