Billy Joel Geography Trivia Quiz

Answer: Paris

"Somewhere Along the Line" is contained on Billy Joel's "Piano Man" album, released in 1973. It's a rather pessimistic song about how Father Time catches up with all of us in the end. The opening lyrics to the song read, "Well, it's a rainy night in Paris / And I'm sitting by the Seine / It's a pleasure to be soaking in the European rain..."

Answer: Pennsylvania Turnpike

"You're My Home" is a song on the Billy Joel "Piano Man" album. Joel mentions several USA places in the lyrics; the basic message is that he is happy to be with his lover in any location. The lyrics read, "Home can be the Pennsylvania Turnpike / Indiana's early morning dew / High up in the hills of California / Home is just another word for you." The PA Turnpike is a major artery which connects New Jersey with Ohio.

It is over 500 miles in length.

Answer: Hudson

"New York State of Mind" proved to be one of Billy Joel's most popular in-concert songs. It was released in 1976 as a part of the "Turnstiles" album. In the song, a homesick Joel sings, "But I'm taking a Greyhound on the Hudson River Line / I'm in a New York state of mind." The Hudson, Harlem and East Rivers surround Manhattan Island.

The Mohawk River is not located in Manhattan; it is found in Upstate New York, in the Albany area.

Answer: Parris Island

"Goodnight Saigon" is a song dedicated to Vietnam War veterans. It was included on Billy Joel's "The Nylon Curtain" album. Joel opens the song by stating, "We met as soul mates on Parris Island / We left as inmates from an asylum..." Parris Island, located in South Carolina, functions as a major recruiting and training area for the Marines. During the Vietnam War era, many Marines went directly from Parris Island to the Nam battlefields. Camp Lejeune is located in North Carolina, Quantico is in Virginia, and Camp Pendleton is located in California.

Answer: Hackensack

Billy Joel recorded "Movin' Out" for his album "The Stranger." The song criticizes the hassles of living in suburbia. The lyrics read, "Who needs a house out in Hackensack / Is that all you get for your money?" The city of Hackensack, New Jersey, is located about 15 miles from New York City. The single "Movin' Out" reached the number 17 position on the Billboard charts in 1977.

Answer: Helsinki

Billy Joel's "Scandinavian Skies" appeared on his "The Nylon Curtain" album. Some of the lyrics read, "The sins of Amsterdam were a recent surprise... / The Stockholm city lights were slowly starting to rise.../ We watched the power fall inside the Oslo hall... / And we were flying Scandinavian skies." The singer apparently did not have a very enjoyable flight.

The city of Helsinki, Finland, was not mentioned in the song.

Answer: Canal Street

"Big Man On Mulberry Street" appeared on Billy Joel's album "The Bridge". The lyrics to the middle section of the song say, "I cruise from Houston to Canal Street / A misfit and a rebel / I can see the winos talking to themselves / And I can understand..." Manhattan's Mulberry Street contains the famous Little Italy neighborhood, and Mulberry runs from Houston Street down to Canal Street in Chinatown. Canal Street is a busy commercial hub of Chinatown.

Answer: Leningrad

Billy Joel's song "Leningrad" talks about a circus clown named Viktor. In the lyrics, Joel compares his experiences growing up on Long Island during the Cold War Era to those of Viktor, a former soldier in the Soviet army. Apparently, the two men had a wonderful time when they met in Leningrad, USSR, during Joel's 1987 Russian concert tour.

Answer: Wheeling

The song "Ballad of Billy the Kid" opens with the lines, "From a town known as Wheeling, West Virgina / Rode a boy with a six-gun in his hand / And his daring life of crime / Left him a legend in his time east and west of the Rio Grande." The song appeared on the "Piano Man" album.

The city of Wheeling is the former capital of West Virginia. Grafton, WV, is the town where the celebration of Mother's Day began. Fairmont and Charleston are West Virginian cities.

Answer: Vienna

The song "Vienna" appeared on Billy Joel's "The Stranger" album. Joel said that he wrote the song in tribute to his father, who was living in Vienna at the time. The basic message of "Vienna" is to slow down and to appreciate the good things in life. "Miami 2017" was released in 1976, "52nd Street" came out in 1978, and "Allentown" was released in 1982.