Dancing With Billy Joel

Every morning my routine looks something like this:

  • Hit snooze button 3.4 times
  • Roll out of bed and into my office
  • Hustle hard for two hours
  • Wake up my baby
  • Dress Mr. Baby (“What’s that son? The girls love your Jordans? I know.)
  • DANCE with Mr. Baby!
  • Feed my baby
  • Hand baby off to baby mama

And then he’s whisked away to day care… Nothing too out of the ordinary there, except for bullet point #6: Dance with baby!! (YAYYYYYYY!)

If there’s one thing I know about that little guy, he sure loves dancing with his daddy. And his daddy sure loves dancing with HIM :)

Sometimes we listen to the radio when we’re in a rush (and usually get disappointed – though he’s grown an affinity for Lady GaGa?), but mainly when we do it right we throw on some old LPs and listen to the crisp scratchy vocals that pump outta that bad boy. Everything from The Beatles, to Elvis, Jimmy Buffett, Simon & Garfunkle, James Taylor, CCR (Creedence Clearwater Revival – his all-time favorite!) and, lately, some Billy Joel action.

Now most of Billy’s songs have nothing to do with proper financial management, but there’s one that’s been stuck in my head after hearing it approximately 18 times this week already (Baby Money refuses to let me swap the record ). It’s called “Movin’ Out“, and perhaps you’ve heard of it? ;)

So, just like we did with Britney’s “Work Bitch” and Lorde’s “Royals“, I thought we’d break down the lyrics and get our fiscal learn on up in here. Here’s how it goes:

“Movin’ Out” [Anthony’s Song] by Billy Joel

Let’s start at the beginning, shall we?

“Anthony works in the grocery store
Savin’ his pennies for someday
Mama Leone left a note on the door,
She said, “Sonny, move out to the country.”

Takeaway: Save your money in case you get the boot! Even if you don’t make much – the pennies add up… (Though why would you need to move out of the country? Is Mama Leone or Anthony in trouble w/ the law?)

Oh but workin’ too hard can give you
A heart attack-ack-ack-ack-ack-ack

Also: Hustle, but don’t hustle TOO much. You’re liable to get a heart atack-ack-ack-ack-ack (and, apparently a stutter too).

You oughta know by now…
Who needs a house out in Hackensack?
Is that all you get for your money?

You don’t need to buy a really nice place that’s close to the city to enjoy life. You could end up “house rich and cash poor.” Who wants that?

And it seems such a waste of time…
If that’s what it’s all about…
Mama, if that’s movin’ up then I’m…….movin’ out.

(Probably to an affordable place where he can meet a sexy non-high maintenance girlfriend/mom?)

Sergeant O’Leary is walkin’ the beat
At night he becomes a bartender
He works at Mister Cacciatore’s down
On Sullivan Street
Across from the medical center

Nothing important to pay attention to yet, besides the fact the sergeant’s a hard worker…

He’s tradin’ in his Chevy for a Cadillac-ack-ack-ack-ack
You oughta know by now…
And if he can’t drive
With a broken back
At least he can polish the fenders

BAM! You had a perfectly good car before – why go out and blow all your money on a fancier pants ride? You’re about to break your back – you’re not even going to be able to drive it! ;) Okay okay, so that back thing is probably an analogy to him working his ass off just to afford it, but point taken regardless. Don’t upgrade to a Caddy unless it’s fiscally sexy like J. Money’s

And it seems such a waste of time…
If that’s what it’s all about…
Mama, if that’s movin’ up then I’m movin’ out….

Yeah yeah, we get it, you’re not into this high-falutin’ stuff… You’re over it.

You should never argue with a crazy mind
You oughta know by now…
You can pay Uncle Sam with the overtime
Is that all you get for your money?

DOUBLE BAM! You’ve gotta not only work for your paycheck, but then ALSO to pay your Uncle Sam back too! That doesn’t seem right ;)

And if that’s what you have in mind….
Yeah that’s what you’re all about,
Good luck movin up, cause I’m…..
Movin’ out!

And off he goes. Into the land of the non-BookieBoos… (You knew I had to throw that in there at some point, right? You won’t ever catch ME talking about the Joneses up in here! Crap – I just slipped…)

I think I should make a mix tape record for us to dance to going forward… Anyone know how to do that with LPs? ;) I should probably pack in as much quality – and educational – time together before I turn un-cool and the last thing he wants to do is dance with his ol’ pop… Or, God forbid, hear another word about budgeting! Gotta subliminally insert all this knowledge now while I can, haha…

Can I get a Hell Yeah?

——
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33 Comments

  1. a terrible husband... March 4, 2014 at 5:44 AM

    Hell Yeah! Thanks for posting the YouTube video here so I didn’t have to IMMEDIATELY go there and then get all caught up in the related ones on the side and wake up in a pile of Cheetos three hours from now wondering where my day (and career) went. :)

    YouTube and Wikipedia: two of the reasons I know a lot and do a little.

    Reply
    1. J. Money March 4, 2014 at 8:18 AM

      Haha…. they get ya every time!

      Reply
  2. Becky @ Runfundone March 4, 2014 at 6:30 AM

    Whoa. That’s a lot of financial thought from just one song!

    Reply
    1. J. Money March 4, 2014 at 8:20 AM

      I guess he knew financial blogs would start popping up 30 years from then and he wanted to market to us ;)

      Reply
  3. Catina Mount March 4, 2014 at 7:40 AM

    Hellz yeah!
    I will never look at music the same again….gonna go see what I can decipher via a little Brass Monkey.
    :-)

    Reply
    1. J. Money March 4, 2014 at 8:20 AM

      Now that I’d like to see!

      Reply
  4. One Frugal Girl March 4, 2014 at 7:46 AM

    I love dancing with my little guy too. Even at 2 he giggles like crazy when the music turns on. He started potty training a few weeks ago and his favorite part was the potty dance I made up. He sat and I sang and danced in front of him. Worked like a charm .

    Reply
    1. J. Money March 4, 2014 at 8:28 AM

      Oooh, really?? We’re about to start that adventure here ourselves so I might need to steal that idea from you! You wouldn’t happen to have that dance recorded anywhere would you? ;)

      Reply
  5. Glen Craig March 4, 2014 at 8:08 AM

    Good to know I’m not the only one to rock out with the kids, though it’s more air guitar for me!

    Reply
    1. J. Money March 4, 2014 at 8:29 AM

      Do you slap the bass too? :)

      Reply
  6. Slackerjo March 4, 2014 at 9:14 AM

    Why don’t you put the alarm clock on the opposite side of the room? :-)

    It’s Still Rock and Roll to Me has some interesting advice too.

    Don’t waste your money on a new set of speakers,
    You get more mileage from a cheap pair of sneakers.

    Where have you been hidin’ out lately, honey?
    You can’t dress trashy till you spend a lot of money.

    Reply
    1. J. Money March 4, 2014 at 5:12 PM

      hahahhaa… yes! Brilliant song – way to dissect!

      Reply
  7. Petra March 4, 2014 at 11:46 AM

    Nice :-)

    I have the same CD (what are the odds!) and I am going to dig it out right now.

    Reply
    1. J. Money March 4, 2014 at 5:12 PM

      That is pretty cool, but not *as* cool as having the LP ;)

      Reply
  8. Matt Becker March 4, 2014 at 12:51 PM

    That is an awesome routine! The dancing is of course great, but I’m amazed that you get 2 hours of uninterrupted time. I wake up at 5 and still have trouble because my son’s been waking up at like 5:30. What’s your secret for getting him to sleep so late?

    Reply
    1. J. Money March 4, 2014 at 5:14 PM

      We got so SO lucky with him in the sleep department. Down by 7:30 and up at 9:00. Though, he does talk a lot and play in his crib for a while on and off until my wife physically goes in to “wake him” haha…. Still, he loves his sleep! Maybe cuz he barely naps at daycare?

      Reply
  9. Mel @ brokeGIRLrich March 4, 2014 at 1:06 PM

    Geez, even Sergeant O’Leary side hustles. And that’s why you don’t need a house in Hackensack and a Cadillac.

    Who knew Billy Joel had such great financial advice?

    Reply
  10. Jay Fleischman March 4, 2014 at 1:45 PM

    I always took, “Sonny, move out to the country,” to mean that it’s less expensive to live in a rural area than in an urban one. Anthony works like a dog, and all he gets is a house in Hackensack (in New Jersey, but considered a bedroom suburb of New York City). If he listens to Mama Leone and follows her to the country, he won’t have a heart attack-ack-ack-ack.

    Reply
    1. J. Money March 4, 2014 at 5:15 PM

      Ahhhh yes. That probably does make more sense, haha…

      Reply
  11. Crystal March 4, 2014 at 2:04 PM

    Nice. I rarely listen to the actual words of a song, so it always catches me by surprise when I really listen and there’s a message there. :-D

    Great parental routine – dancing with your baby. Seriously, that’s majorly awesome!

    Reply
  12. Cat Alford (@BudgetBlonde) March 4, 2014 at 2:29 PM

    I just watched a whole episode of Glee last night that was devoted to Billy Joel. Amaaazzzingggggggg. :)

    Reply
  13. Brad @ RichmondSavers.com March 4, 2014 at 3:21 PM

    I spent nearly my entire life living on Long Island, so I’m a huge Billy Joel fan! I think I know every one of his songs by heart — great music…

    Loving the dancing! My 5-year old daughter and I always dance to ‘Wouldn’t it be Nice’ by the Beach Boys; that has always been our favorite song :)

    Reply
    1. J. Money March 4, 2014 at 5:16 PM

      Cute! I believe we actually have that record too. Will dig it up for tomorrow’s dancing and see what he thinks :)

      Reply
      1. Brad @ RichmondSavers.com March 6, 2014 at 4:01 PM

        Nice! That is definitely one of my all time favorite songs. It is wonderfully melodic and the lyrics are great.

        Maybe throw in Good Vibrations into the mix (the harmony in the first section still gives me chills…) and you’re golden!

        Reply
        1. J. Money March 7, 2014 at 9:12 PM

          Haha… will do Captain.

          Reply
  14. Shannon @ Financially Blonde March 4, 2014 at 3:25 PM

    Every Monday on my blog I devote a song to a financial lesson a) because I am old and grew up listening to Casey Kasem’s countdown on Sundays and it was my only lifeline in a house full of crazys b) sometimes music is the best teacher and c) it makes financial lessons so much more interesting (in my mind). Loved all three of your breakdowns! And I play one song in particular for my son (whose 8 now) all the time, “You can’t always get what you want” by the Stones.

    Reply
    1. J. Money March 4, 2014 at 5:17 PM

      Hah! Love it! It makes blogging pretty fun too, right? :)

      Reply
  15. Done by Forty March 4, 2014 at 5:40 PM

    Ha! Funny stuff, J Mo. :) Back in the day, Billy Joel probably could’ve used some of the financial advice you’re sharing now. I think he sued his manager for $90 million, for stealing money.

    Reply
    1. J. Money March 4, 2014 at 5:46 PM

      Ouch, really?? That’s horrible.

      Reply
  16. Tara @ Streets Ahead Living March 4, 2014 at 9:09 PM

    AHHH, I was literally just about to write a post about this!!! great minds think alike. I guess I can’t now. :( (it’s even in my drafts… lol)

    But yes, such a song about materialism! The song was originally written because of all the 0 and 1st generation immigrants in NYC who fall for the “American dream” of materialism. I never really liked Billy Joel til I moved to NYC… and then I became a fan. He’s definitely a great lyricist.

    Reply
    1. J. Money March 4, 2014 at 9:33 PM

      What, REALLY??? What are the odds?? That means you TOTALLY need to do it now! :) I’m sure yours will be way different than mine anyways – do it! DO IT!! DOOOO IT!!!!

      Haha… seriously though, do it ;)

      Reply
  17. jim March 4, 2014 at 11:20 PM

    billy joel’s “moving out” – ha! had a college roommate who played that ALL the frickin time. never got the message in college. get it now.

    enjoy the dances – ha! they’re very, very short-lived.

    Reply
    1. J. Money March 5, 2014 at 5:57 PM

      maybe he was trying to tell YOU something? ;)

      Reply

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