Piano Man is the song
most people associate
with Billy Joel.
What many people don’t realize
is he worked as a piano man
AFTER he received a record contract.
The record contract sucked
and he was trying to break it
yet he still had to earn money
and he still loved to play.
This experience taught him a lot.
“What you’re doing
in a piano bar basically
is playing for tips,
so you try to pick out
what will get bread out of the audience.
Is this guy Italian?
You play the ‘Godfather’ theme
or something like that.
Is this guy Irish?
You play ‘Danny Boy.’
You try to get those $5 bills
in the brandy glass.”
“I’ve never given myself
more than two seconds of self-pity,
ever since I realized that
the piano bar gig is something
a lot of people have to do for years
and maybe their entire lives.
And they’re happy to have the work.”
There are lessons to be learned
from every set back.
There are also people
who would be thrilled
to have the experience
you view as a set back.