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Billy Joel's 1977 album, "The Stranger," yielded a number of "Great Songs of the '70s," two of which, we've already highlighted:
"Just the Way You Are," on 2/7/20:
"(I'm) Movin' Out," on 6/18/21:
The third "Great Song" was not a chart topper--mainly because of its controversial subject matter: a young man tries to convince a Catholic virgin to have sex.
"Only the Good Die Young" was somewhat autobiographical. Billy was referring to his junior high school crush, Virginia Callaghan--who didn't even know he existed until much later--after they became adults.
When it was released as a single, it was considered by many--especially church leaders--to be anti-Catholic and pro-premarital sex.
Lyrics included:
"You Catholic girls start much too late,
but sooner or later it comes down to fate.
I might as well be the one."
The uproar was enough for several radio stations to boycott the song. Because of this, "Only the Good Die Young" failed to reach the Top10, peaking at #18 in Canada and #24 in the US.
But as usual, when something is controversial, demand increases... and record buyers all over North America snapped up a copy of the single--and/or bought the album.
But with all the fuss surrounding the song, Billy was quick to point out something most people missed in the lyrics: Virginia refused to give up her virginity, and Billy struck out. So there's that!
Note: Melissa Etheridge has famously covered the song in concert, saying that, as a gay woman, it had always resonated with her, but she felt it wasn't the right time to cover it until recently. For more on that, click the link below, as she discusses it with Billy and Howard Stern--then performs the song.
"Only the God Die Young" by Billy Joel. Controversial? Absolutely. But a "Great Song of the '70s" nonetheless!
Billy:
Melissa:
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