Billy Joel

Released: July 9, 1986

Featuring: Cyndi Lauper

Songwriter: Cyndi Lauper Billy Joel

Producer: Phil Ramone

Everybody's got a million questions
Everybody wants to know the score
What you went through
It's something you should be over now

Everybody wants to hear the secrets
That you never told a soul before
And it's not that strange
'Cause it wouldn't change what happened anyhow

But you swore to yourself a long time ago
There were some things that people never needed to know
This is one that you keep, that you bury so deep
No one can tear it out

And you can't talk about it
'Cause you're following a code of silence
You're never gonna lose the anger
You just deal with it in a different way

And you can't talk about it
And isn't that a kind of madness
To be living by a code of silence
When you've really got a lot to say

You don't want to lose a friendship
There's nothing that you have to hide
And a little dirt
Couldn't hurt no one anyway

And you still have a rage inside you
That you carry with a certain pride
In the only part of a broken heart
That you could ever save

But you've been through it once, you know how it ends
You don't see the point of going through it again
And this ain't the place and this ain't the time
And neither's any other day

So you can't talk about it
'Cause you're following a code of silence
You're never gonna lose the anger
You just deal with it in a different way

So you can't talk about it (No you can't)
And isn't that a kind of madness
To be living by a code of silence
When you've really got a lot to say

I know you well enough to tell
You've got your reasons
That's not the kind of code you're inclined to break
Some things unknown are best left alone forever
And if a vow is what it takes
Haven't you paid for your mistakes?

After the moment passes
And the impulse disappears
You can still hold back
'Cause you don't crack very easily

It's a time-honored resolution
Because the danger is always near
It's with you now
But that ain't how it was supposed to be

And it's hard to believe after all these years
That it still gives you pain and it still brings tears
And you feel like a fool, 'cause in spite all your rules
You've got a memory

But you can't talk about it
'Cause you're following a code of silence
You're never gonna lose the anger
You just deal with it in a different way

But you can't talk about it (No you can't)
And isn't that a kind of madness
To be living by a code of silence
When you've really got a lot to say

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.

more tracks from the album

The Bridge

From the album

The Bridge (1986)

Billy Joel popular songs

Code of SilenceBilly Joel

Billy Joel

The Bridge