Billy Joel

Released: May 19, 1976

Songwriter: Billy Joel

Producer: Billy Joel

[Verse 1]
I've seen the lights go out on Broadway
I saw the Empire State lay low
And life went on beyond the Palisades
They all bought Cadillacs and left there long ago

[Verse 2]
They held a concert out in Brooklyn
To watch the Island bridges blow
They turned our power down and drove us underground
But we went right on with the show

[Verse 3]
I've seen the lights go out on Broadway
I saw the ruins at my feet
You know we almost didn't notice it
We'd seen it all the time on 42nd Street

[Verse 4]
They burned the churches up in Harlem
Like in that Spanish Civil War
The flames were everywhere, but no one really cared
It always burned up there before

[Verse 5]
I've seen the lights go out on Broadway
I watched the mighty skyline fall
The boats were waiting at the Battery
The union went on strike
They never sailed at all

[Verse 6]
They sent a carrier out from Norfolk
And picked the Yankees up for free
They said that Queens could stay
They blew the Bronx away
And sank Manhattan out at sea

[Verse 7]
You know those lights were bright on Broadway
But that was so many years ago
Before we all lived here in Florida
Before the mafia took over Mexico

[Verse 8]
There are not many who remember
They say a handful still survive
To tell the world about the way the lights went out
And keep the memory alive

Billy Joel (born May 9, 1949) is an American pianist, singer/songwriter, producer, and composer who ranks as one of the most iconic and influential artists from the mid to late 20th century.

He is the sixth best-selling recording artist and the third best-selling solo artist in the United States, wrote a total of 121 songs that achieved 33 Top 40 hits in the US, a 6-time Grammy winner out of 23 nominations, and one of the best-selling recording artists of all-time with 150 million albums sold worldwide.

Joel has since continued to tour and sells out in stadiums globally. He also delved into classical music composition, arranging an album, Fantasies and Delusions released in 2001, opened a motorcycle shop on his native Long Island, and is now regarded as one of the most influential musicians of the 20th century. Among his numerous accolades, he was inducted in the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1992, bestowed with the Kennedy Center Honors in 2013, and awarded the Gershwin Prize for Popular Song by the Library of Congress in 2014.

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