We Didn't Start the Fire
1989 single by Billy Joel
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Key Takeaways
- " We Didn't Start the Fire " is a song written by American musician Billy Joel.
- A list song, its fast-paced lyrics include a series of brief references to 119 significant political, cultural, scientific, and sporting events between 1949 (the year of Joel's birth) and 1989, in mainly chronological order.
- Storm Front became Joel's third album to reach number one in the US.
- Despite its early success, Joel later noted his dislike of the song musically.
- In a 1993 interview with David Horn, Billy Joel claimed the song to be “terrible, like a dentist drill” and that the song is “a terrible piece of music”.
"We Didn't Start the Fire" is a song written by American musician Billy Joel. The song was released as a single on September 18, 1989, and later released as part of Joel's album Storm Front on October 17, 1989. A list song, its fast-paced lyrics include a series of brief references to 119 significant political, cultural, scientific, and sporting events between 1949 (the year of Joel's birth) and 1989, in mainly chronological order.
The song was nominated for the Grammy Award for Record of the Year and, in late 1989, became Joel's third single to reach number one in the United States Billboard Hot 100. Storm Front became Joel's third album to reach number one in the US. "We Didn't Start the Fire", particularly in the 21st century, has become the basis of many pop culture parodies, and continues to be repurposed in various television shows, advertisements, and comedic productions. Despite its early success, Joel later noted his dislike of the song musically. The song originally started as a country music tune. In a 1993 interview with David Horn, Billy Joel claimed the song to be “terrible, like a dentist drill” and that the song is “a terrible piece of music”. It was critically panned as one of his worst by later generations of music critics.
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