Don't Ask Me Why (Billy Joel song)

"Don't Ask Me Why" is a Billy Joel song released in 1980. The track contains all acoustic and Latin percussion instruments performing in an Afro-Cuban rhythmic style. An eclectic, instrumental "Latin Ballroom" piano solo, played over the bridge section after the second verse, is also featured in part of the song; Joel states that the mix for the midsection includes "fifteen pianos overdubbed on top of each other."[5] The song spent two weeks at number one on the Adult Contemporary chart and peaked at number 19 on the Billboard Hot 100.[6]

"Don't Ask Me Why"
Single by Billy Joel
from the album Glass Houses
B-side"C'était Toi (You Were the One)"
ReleasedJuly 24, 1980
Recorded1979
Genre
Length2:59
LabelColumbia Records
Songwriter(s)Billy Joel
Producer(s)Phil Ramone
Billy Joel singles chronology
"It's Still Rock and Roll to Me"
(1980)		 "Don't Ask Me Why"
(1980)		 "Sometimes a Fantasy"
(1980)

It was released as the third single from the album Glass Houses and later included on Greatest Hits Volume 2. Billboard found the song to be "catchy" and felt that Joel's vocal performance sounded similar to Paul McCartney.[7] Cash Box said it has a "crisp pop/Latin/rock rhythm" and that the lyrics deal with the "themes of success and chance."[4]

Charts

Weekly charts
Chart (1980) Peak
position
Canada RPM Top Singles[8] 4
Canada RPM Adult Contemporary[9] 1
Dutch Singles Chart 42
French Singles Chart[10] 42
US Billboard Hot 100 19
US Billboard Adult Contemporary 1
US Cash Box Top 100 21

Year-end charts
Chart (1980) Rank
Canada[11] 45
US (Joel Whitburn's Pop Annual)[12] 122

Personnel

See also

References
  1. "Don't Ask Me Why - Billy Joel | Song Info". AllMusic. Retrieved 20 January 2022.
  2. "Don't Ask Me Why - Billy Joel". Onefinalserenade.com. Retrieved 20 January 2022.
  3. "The Stranger at 70: Billy Joel's 25 best songs". Yardbarker.com. 31 March 2020. Retrieved 20 January 2022.
  4. "CashBox Singles Reviews" (PDF). Cash Box. August 2, 1980. p. 18. Retrieved 2022-01-01.
  5. Bordowitz, Hank (2006). Billy Joel: The Life & Times of an Angry Young Man. New York: Billboard Books. p. 128. ISBN 978-0-8230-8248-3. Retrieved July 26, 2016.
  6. Whitburn, Joel (2002). Top Adult Contemporary: 1961-2001. Record Research. p. 127.
  7. "Top Single Picks" (PDF). Billboard. August 2, 1980. p. 60. Retrieved 2020-07-08.
  8. "RPM 100 Singles (Vol. 34, No. 2, October 25, 1980)". Collectionscanada.gc.ca. Archived from the original on August 17, 2016. Retrieved July 26, 2016.
  9. "Image : RPM Weekly". Bac-lac.gc.ca. 1980-09-27. Retrieved 2022-01-20.
  10. "InfoDisc : Bilan des Ventes par Artiste". Infodisc.fr. Retrieved 2016-10-16.
  11. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2016-04-25. Retrieved 2017-02-08.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  12. Whitburn, Joel (1999). Pop Annual. Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin: Record Research Inc. ISBN 0-89820-142-X.


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