We Didn't Start the Billy Joel Parodies

Billy Joel wrote a song; History is going strong.
It was Nineteen-eighty-nine; and the song was doing fine.
Many copies does it sell; stuff about the past they tell:
Politics and culture, too; movies, war and what have you.

Other people came along; they do really like the song,
Realize it was a hit; want to have a part in it.
History is first to go; from Nineteen hundred back to 0.
Other topics soon include; everything from nice to lewd.

We didn’t start the riffing
It was always with us
Since the song has hit us
We didn’t start the riffing
Oh no we didn’t coin it
But we just now join it

Every singer has a version; can you really blame the person?
The song’s a really catchy tune; and you, too, will sing it soon.
Cannot get it out your head; it will likely drive you mad,
Sing it ‘til you cough up phlegm; then go back and start again.

You, too can make own lyrics soon; as long as you don’t touch the tune.
Do a List Song if you like; name all the pieces of your bike.
If story’s your imperative; you could write a narrative
Just be clever and enjoy; think of tropes you could employ.

We didn’t start the riffing
It was always with us
Since the song has hit us
We didn’t start the riffing
Oh no we didn’t coin it
But we just now join it

If you’re a really clever Hombre; you can even change the genre:
Country Music, Reggae-vibe; Heavy Metal, suicide,
New Wave, Hip Hop; Electronic, Punk Rock,
Soul and Ska you can do, but Jimmy Hart will do so, too

Or just like a bunch of dopes; make a song that’s listing tropes:
Filk Song, List Song; Stock Parodies will come along.
Piano Key Wave, Piss-Take Rap; you can really list all crap
"God Is Love" Songs, Ear Worm; Power Ballad, Seiza Squirm

We didn’t start the riffing
It was always with us
Since the song has hit us
We didn’t start the riffing
Oh no we didn’t coin it
But we just now join it

As I said, it’s often done; many versions under the sun.
We will list examples here; austerity you need not fear.
The list is not complete of course; and this is our driving force
To make you add to it tout de suite or you will be deep in shame

Examples of We Didn't Start the Billy Joel Parodies include:

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Fan Works

  • It's not a parody, strictly speaking, but an alternate version of "We Didn't Start The Fire" from an Alternate Universe appears in chapter seven of Drunkard's Walk II. It's mostly the same as the version we know, but there are a couple of changes reflecting that world's different history:

Joe McCarthy, Richard Nixon, metahumans, television,
 North Korea, South Korea, Marilyn Monroe...


Music Videos


Songs

  • German comedian Otto Waalkes did "Wir haben Grund zum Feiern" ("We have reason to celebrate") which lists off a bunch of alcoholic beverages.
  • The Tom Green song "Pet Names for Genitalia" (see I Call Him "Mister Happy").
  • "We Didn't Start the Blitzball" (lyrics), about the Fictional Sport Blitzball from Final Fantasy X.
  • Fringemunks did "Susan Pratt Started the Fire" (lyrics) about the episode "The Road Not Taken" of Fringe.
  • The Star Wars podcast ForceCast featured "We Didn't Start the ForceCast" on their October 29, 2010 cast at 1:51:40 (lyrics).
  • "We Have a Strong Desire", by Shlock Rock. It covers the history of the Jews from the Bible until present day.
  • Following the rescue of Todd Russell and Brant Webb from a collapsed mine in Beaconsfield, Tasmania, the radio team Hamish and Andy recorded a song to help them catch up: "We're filling in the miners. / They've been down there weeks, so they have missed heaps. / We're filling in the miners / So they're right across all essential goss." They concluded it by declaring that one thing hadn't changed: "Our songs are still half-assed."
  • Comedian Russell Howard used this song to list things the Daily Mail claims cause cancer. The greatest similarity is in the chorus, however.
  • Courtesy of WTAM 1100 (specifically The Mike Trivisonno Show), there's "We Live in Ohio", a good-natured tribute to all things Cleveland, as well as a gentle criticism of local politicians' tendency to focus on small or non-existent problems and ignore looming disaster:

We live in Ohio,/And we goin' broke but we can't have smokin' here;
We live in Ohio,/And our mayor's ramblin'; we can't get gamblin' here.

  • We Set the Dog on Fire by the guys at Spaff.com, enumerating dishes made from dog meat.
  • Cayuga's Waiters, a now-defunct all-male collegiate a cappella ensemble at Cornell University, wrote and recorded "We Didn't Go to Harvard" in the mid-1990s. It puts the Cornell experience in lyrical form to Billy Joel's melody.


Lyrics only

Puppet Shows


Tropes

Billy Joel, please do not sue us
It's a catchy song, that's why this list is long
Billy Joel, please do not sue us
Cause I'm not a singer, this is just The Stinger

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