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Billy Joel on the songwriting shortfall that “only Bob Dylan” could get away with

Sat 20 April 2024 2:00, UK

Billy Joel and Bob Dylan are two of the most famous songwriters of all time, but only one of them is considered among the best. While Joel wrote music for the masses, songs for karaoke rooms and wedding playlists, Dylan penned words filled with poetry and protest that would earn him a place among the all-time greats. There’s a disparity in the way we talk about the two and how we interact with their art, but there’s also a difference in how they write it.

There’s no real comparison to be made between the two, as they have entirely different goals in their songwriting. Joel’s ‘Uptown Girl’ could never contend with ‘The Times They Are A-Changin’ on an artistic or poetic level, but it would fill out any dancefloor within seconds. Dylan’s wonderings about the world around him are magnificently considered and crafted, but few of them are worthy of a karaoke number.

The difference in their songwriting begins at the source, as Joel noted during a 1982 conversation with Playboy. While Dylan prioritises story in his songwriting, turning observations and tales of the world around him into music, Joel’s work always starts with the music. “Words are just as important as music,” he acknowledges, “but the first thing you hear with any song is the music.”

With this in mind, Joel writes backwards compared to a lot of other singers. Rather than running with the idea for a lyric, he perfects the music and melody before penning any words to go alongside it. When he does come to lyric-writing, his intention is to enhance that melody with words, rather than to focus on any particular meaning or feeling.

“If my words don’t emotionally match the music,” he shrugged, “That’s because they are made to fit in afterwards.” This strange way of working may have led to Joel’s lesser reputation as a songwriter. His melodies may be burned into our cultural consciousness, endlessly catchy and singalong-worthy, but his lyrics can lack depth and leave much to be desired.

While lyrics may be Joel’s flaw, they are undoubtedly Dylan’s strong suit. He’s one of the most accomplished sonic storytellers of all time, weaving words into commentary on war and peace, equality and freedom. There’s a depth to Dylan’s catalogue that is undeniably absent from Joel’s, but the Piano Man suggests that the folk legend couldn’t quite match the quality of his musings in his music.

“Dylan was the only one who could get away with not having the music as complete as the lyrics,” Joel stated. It’s certainly true that Dylan’s lyrics are at the centre of his songwriting prowess and at the centre of his legacy. The instrumentation merely exists as a backdrop, as something for them to float above, to allow them to translate to listeners and make their full impact.

While Dylan’s soundscapes may not always quite match up to his words — a near impossible feat — it’s true that he is one of few songwriters who can get away with this. His unparalleled ability to string words together overshadows the slight inferiority of his instrumentation. His words are so powerful that they forgo that initial focus on melody, cutting straight through

Revisit ‘The Times They Are A-Changin’ by Bob Dylan below.