A new version of the video was shot in 1985, with new extras, and was more or less the same as the original.A new version of the video was shot in 1985, with new extras, and was more or less the same as the original.A new version of the video was shot in 1985, with new extras, and was more or less the same as the original.
- Director
- Stars
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaJoel insists its parade of unfulfilled dreamers -- Paul the real estate novelist, John the bartender/aspiring movie star -- really were part of The Executive Room's Saturday night crowd; the waitress practising politics is definitely another reference to his then-other half Elizabeth.
- ConnectionsEdited into Billy Joel: Video Album Volume 1 (1989)
Featured review
Piano Bar: If the history of the world were a musical
If the history of the world were adapted into a masterful and long-running television series, we would hear the thoughts of the characters through songs, like in a musical; and this would be a masterful song from that musical.
The music video begins with melancholic jazz flourishes played on the piano, while a masterful and melancholic camera movement zooms in on the luminous sign of a remote and ignored bar in Los Angeles, whose name is Piano Bar, located on a dark street. Those jazz flourishes represent the moment before the musical, a masterful way to introduce any music video. In fact, that detail is so evident that it is the best part of the music video.
The song narrates life in a bar at nine o'clock on a Saturday night. Each customer lives a wasted life, stripped of all value, and wasting their youth drinking and talking about unattainable dreams. When we work, we all live that life. I would say that almost all lives are like that. The melancholy of the music has the nuance of accepting that situation, and Billy Joel's interpretation is of resignation to an environment like that. The music says it all.
It's no wonder that every time I resign myself to my problems, I can find comfort in this song and its music video. It's therapeutic how it makes me feel that I'm part of a majority that also resigns, so I'm not alone. This song, and its music video, is one of the most therapeutic ones you can find, as well as Always Look on the Bright Side of Life by Monty Python, accompanied by its scene from the movie Life of Brian.
The music video begins with melancholic jazz flourishes played on the piano, while a masterful and melancholic camera movement zooms in on the luminous sign of a remote and ignored bar in Los Angeles, whose name is Piano Bar, located on a dark street. Those jazz flourishes represent the moment before the musical, a masterful way to introduce any music video. In fact, that detail is so evident that it is the best part of the music video.
The song narrates life in a bar at nine o'clock on a Saturday night. Each customer lives a wasted life, stripped of all value, and wasting their youth drinking and talking about unattainable dreams. When we work, we all live that life. I would say that almost all lives are like that. The melancholy of the music has the nuance of accepting that situation, and Billy Joel's interpretation is of resignation to an environment like that. The music says it all.
It's no wonder that every time I resign myself to my problems, I can find comfort in this song and its music video. It's therapeutic how it makes me feel that I'm part of a majority that also resigns, so I'm not alone. This song, and its music video, is one of the most therapeutic ones you can find, as well as Always Look on the Bright Side of Life by Monty Python, accompanied by its scene from the movie Life of Brian.
helpful•10
- santifersan
- May 8, 2023
Details
- Release date
- Country of origin
- Language
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
- Runtime6 minutes
- Color
Contribute to this page
Suggest an edit or add missing content