The Executive Room: The bar that inspired Billy Joel to write ‘Piano Man’
In 1971, a misjudgement in mastering caused Cold Spring Harbor, the first album from Billy Joel, to flop commercially. The poor reception to the record led the singer-songwriter to take up a job at The Executive Room in Los Angeles, playing piano for the patrons. In a roundabout way, his disastrous debut paved the path for him to write one of his trademark tracks.
Joel played piano at The Executive Room for six months in 1972 under the name Bill Martin. During his time in the job, he penned an all-time great based on his interactions with and observations of the piano bar’s patrons. Released just one year later in 1973, ‘Piano Man’ formed the lead single for Joel’s second record of the same name. Half a century on, the song has only increased its iconic and beloved status.
The Executive Room was situated in the Wilshire area of Los Angeles, providing patrons with cocktails and entertainment courtesy of the piano man himself, Bill Martin – a name presumably borrowed from Joel’s full name, William Martin Joel. Though the establishment no longer exists – it was demolished and replaced with a car park – the bar and its regulars were immortalised in Joel’s lyrics.
Throughout the song, Joel depicted several of The Executive Room’s attendees. From the old man making love to his tonic and gin to Paul, the real estate novelist, Joel based each of the song’s characters on real-life patrons. There was a real broker named Paul who was penning a novel and a real Davy who was part of the Navy. The waitress practising politics even reportedly refers to Joel’s future wife, Elizabeth Weber Small.
The ‘Uptown Girl‘ singer once spoke about the inspiration for the song in an interview with the Metro, recalling, “It was a gig I did for about six months just to pay rent. I was living in LA and trying to get out of a bad record contract I’d signed. I worked under an assumed name, the Piano Stylings of Bill Martin, and just bullsh–ted my way through it.”
Though it’s now one of his most well-loved and well-known songs, Joel couldn’t quite understand why people were so enamoured with ‘Piano Man’. “I have no idea why that song became so popular,” he continued, “It’s like a karaoke favourite.”
“The melody is not very good and very repetitious, while the lyrics are like limericks,” he argued, “I was shocked and embarrassed when it became a hit. But my songs are like my kids and I look at that song and think: ‘My kid did pretty well.’”
‘Piano Man’ did more than “pretty well.” It turned around the failure of his debut and earned Joel his first place in the Billboard top 40. 50 years on, it’s Joel’s most streamed song and remains one of his most beloved. Between karaoke rooms, family functions and piano bars, ‘Piano Man’ remains a staple hit.
