BILLY JOEL 100. Today: #5. More-  tomorrow.

Caffè Lattè presents:

THE 100 MOST ESSENTIAL SONGS BY

BILLY JOEL

William Martin Joel was born in The Bronx, New York in 1949. He grew up on Long Island and began studying the piano in 1953. Billy joined his first band 10 years later. In 1971, he signed a recording contract as a soloist. That year, he released his solo debut album. Since then, his music has been the soundtrack for countless fans.

 

Here are 100 of his best works…

🎙

5

SHE’S ALWAYS A WOMAN

Arguably one of the most misunderstood of Billy‘s songs is “She’s Always A Woman”. The ballad appears to be a tender love song. Closer attention to the lyrics reveal a different angle. Billy wrote the song about Elizabeth, his wife at the time. She had assumed the role of being his manager and was developing a reputation as a tough negotiator. He explains: “She can kill with a smile, she can wound with her eyes”. Billy continues: “she’ll take what you give her as long as it’s free. She steals like a thief, but…”- he confesses- “she’s always a woman to me”. Lifted as a single off ‘The Stranger’, the disc reached #17 in America. In Britain, a 2010 remake by Fyfe Dangerfield was featured in a TV ad and peaked at #7. Its success led to a re-issue of Billy’s original. This time, the single climbed to #29 in the same year.

🎹