“Vienna” is, on the surface, about growing older. The song is also about Billy Joel’s relationship with his father.

Most songs about growing older encourage folks to grab hold of life and to live every day as if it were their last. Joel, however, encourages folks to slow down and to take time to enjoy what they’ve got rather than to strive for every brass ring within reach. Joel had been estranged from his father since he returned to Europe when Joel was only 10 years old. The elder Joel had considered the United States to be too materialistic. He also thought that it didn’t provide the right kind of education. When Joel was in his 20s, and after he had signed a record deal, he went to Vienna to try to find his father. He did, and they took a walk around the city. Vienna is well-known to be slow-paced where people while away an afternoon drinking coffee in one of the many cafes within the city. Joel saw an old woman sweeping, and he mentioned to his father that he was sorry that she had to do that at such an age. His father replied that she felt good about contributing to the betterment of the city in her own small way. That was instrumental, pardon the pun, in Joel reevaluating his worldview.

The Beethoven Connection

Joel idolizes Beethoven. He says that Beethoven is the greatest composer who ever lived. Joel’s father used to play Beethoven piano pieces when Joel was growing up. His mother used to play phonograph records of the master composer. Although German, Beethoven spent most of his career in Vienna. Joel admires the struggles that Beethoven had in composing, marking out great swaths of music as he went. This was in comparison to Mozart, whom Joel says was “almost godlike.” Joel’s realization when he was on that walk with his father combined with his love of Beethoven to inspire the song “Vienna.” Joel mentions that even the architecture in that city is inexorably tied to the music made there. There are gargoyles with harps, angels with violins, and all sorts of other figures holding all manner of instruments that adorn buildings all over the city. That fascinated him then and fascinates him now. Joel is glad that he made peace with his father and his half-brother, Charles Alexander Joel, who is himself a great musician and conductor in Europe.

Lyrics

Slow down you crazy child
You’re so ambitious for a juvenile
But then if you’re so smart tell me
Why are you still so afraid? (mmmmm)

Where’s the fire, what’s the hurry about?
You better cool it off before you burn it out
You got so much to do and only
So many hours in a day (Ay)

But you know that when the truth is told
That you can get what you want
Or you can just get old
You’re gonna kick off before you even get halfway through (Oooh)
When will you realize, Vienna waits for you?

Slow down you’re doing fine
You can’t be everything you want to be before your time
Although it’s so romantic on the borderline tonight (tonight)

Too bad, but it’s the life you lead
You’re so ahead of yourself that you forgot what you need
Though you can see when you’re wrong
You know you can’t always see when you’re right (you’re right)

You got your passion, you got your pride
But don’t you know that only fools are satisfied?
Dream on, but don’t imagine they’ll all come true (Oooh)
When will you realize, Vienna waits for you?

Slow down you crazy child
Take the phone off the hook and disappear for a while
It’s alright, you can afford to lose a day or two (oooh)
When will you realize, Vienna waits for you?

And you know that when the truth is told
That you can get what you want or you can just get old
You’re gonna kick off before you even get halfway through (oooh)
Why don’t you realize, Vienna waits for you?

When will you realize, Vienna waits for you?

Source: Musixmatch

Songwriters: Billy Joel

Vienna lyrics © Impulsive Music

Listeners that enjoy this song about Desire may also enjoy the song Flowers by Miley Cyrus