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Sadness or Euphoria?
Billy Joel is one of the greatest songwriters in modern American music. In my book, Joel stands tall alongside Stevie Wonder, James Taylor, Carole King, Jackson Brown, Bob Dylan, Paul Simon, Smokey Robinson, and Bruce Springsteen. Of course, your list may vary.
My favorite Billy Joel song? Summer Highland Falls from his 1976 album Turnstiles.
At Joel's Shea Stadium concert, he introduced the song as being “for all the manic-depressives out here tonight.” Why? He says he wrote the music “to reflect the highs and lows of manic depression.” As he put it, the reference is not just in the lyrics but also in the rising and falling arpeggios that make up the melody.
Sadness or Euphoria?
Songfacts says: “The song has a musical piano theme: the left-hand plays the depression part, going slowly up and down, while the right hand is the manic part, playing a bouncy bit.”
The song opens with a line that could be a simple distillation of Dickens' A Tale of Two Cities:
“They say that these are not the best of times. They're the only times I'll ever know.”
Joel may have written this song to describe a particular condition, but I think it's a perfect description of the times we're living in. Moreover, the more I listen to the words, the more I see the similarities.
“Now we are forced to recognize our inhumanity. Our reason coexists with our insanity.”
Think about the news these days. Regardless of which end of the seesaw you're sitting on, there's a good chance you believe you are rational and the people who disagree with you are insane.
Sadness or Euphoria?
Pick a side:
Global warming is real. Global warming is a hoax.
Masks were required for public safety. Masks were an infringement of your rights.
Racism is systemic. Racism is an excuse.
You believe whatever you believe with all your heart, and no one will change your mind.
This phenomenon was neatly summed up in the 1945 periodical Advertising & Selling, “My mind is made up. Don't confuse me with the facts.”
Or, as Billy Joel put it:
“So we'll argue and we'll compromise, and realize that nothing's ever changed.”
Thomas Friedman wrote about this in The New York Times. “If you believe that climate change is real, it must be because someone paid you off with a research grant. If you believe the president committed an impeachable offense… it's only because you want power for your party.”
Billy Joel explained it in 1976:
“For all our mutual experience, our separate conclusions are the same.”
Friedman again, “…there is no center, there are only sides; there's no truth, there are only versions; there are no facts, there's only a contest of will.”
Yes or no? Good or bad? Black or white? Up or down? Right or wrong? Democrat or Republican? Bi-polar disease or today's global reality?
Sadness or Euphoria?
Billy Joel summed it up almost 50 years ago, “Though we choose between reality and madness, it's either sadness or euphoria.”
Just a thought. We are seeing more independents than before, a lot more. I don’t think most people see things in black and white. Love the song, BTW.
You do not have to choose between extremes, believe x or y. The old false dichotomy.
“The problem with the world is that the intelligent people are full of doubts, while the stupid ones are full of confidence.”
― Charles Bukowski
As they said in Airplane:
“Are you sure?”
“I’m positive.”
“Only fools are positive.”
“Are you sure?”
“I’m positive.”
Oh Bruce – love this piece. I too love Billy Joel, that song in particular.
Here’s an article I wrote about him last year:
https://drsharongrossman.com/burnout-advice-from-billy-joel/
Happy reading!
Thank you for sharing Dr. G!!
Where is the euphoria in this reality?
All depends on your point of view about when you live and what’s happening, Catherine.
If you were alive 200 years ago, before antibiotics, an infected hangnail could be fatal.
If you lived in the ghetto in Germany in 1943 and heard the gestapo knock on your door, that visit could be fatal too.
There are things equally awful today, but they’re not the same things.
Or, as Billy Joel wrote, “it’s either sadness or euphoria.”
Now, that’s discouraging. I’d like to think that, presented with “rational” facts and stories, I could change my mind. I’ve always believed that my upbringing (thanks Mom & Dad) and ongoing self-education prepared me for effective non-linear thinking. I guess it’s time to reevaluate again, again, again…
Bruce you are a genius!
A bit of an overstatement, but appreciated nonetheless, Ron. Thank you.
Sure, we all like to think that about ourselves, Max. But do we think it of others, especially those with whom we disagree? And do they think the same of us?
Nuance and balanced thoughtful perspectives based on reality aren’t as monetizable, self-esteem building or attention-getting as extreme positions and “feelings”.
I can believe climate change is real while also believe that most of the proposed cures are far worse than the disease and don’t actually change the outcome, while simply enriching certain vested interests.
I can believe we made hard decisions under uncertain urgent conditions on masks, lockdowns, etc while acknowledging many went too far, too long and without self-reflection of mistakes (shutting down valid questioning of the Lab Leak theory, closing schools too long, separating families from dying loved ones, keeping people from outdoors, firing people for not complying with various mandates).
I can believe the 2020 election result was legitimate while acknowledging it was flawed in ways that can be fixed and contribute to mistrust.
I can believe in tolerance without accepting that women’s private spaces, prisons and sports should be open to biological men. And so forth.
You’re right, Mike. As a friend of mine used to say, “There’s no frontier in the middle.”
Your desire for “nuanced and balanced thoughtful perspectives based on reality” is not only not as “Monetizable, self-esteem building or attention-getting,” they also require solid, sober thought and the time and willingness to think them through. Those requirements don’t fit the instant gratification ecosystem we all find ourselves in today.
This is one of my favorite kinds of articles. It’s a mashup. You’ve taken your expertise in music and applied the principles in a way that helps us understand the world. That’s very cool. Plus, it reminded me to go back and listen to a great song!
A mashup is just the way my mind works, Ron. Plus, it’s a great song.
Thanks.