Can anyone help me? I'm going do be playing Piano Man at a family Christmas get together.
One brother on guitar and the other on Harmonica, my question is: What key harmonica do they use for this song and does it have to be a chromatic one.
I don't know much about harmonica playing as you have probably guessed,so any help will be greatly appreciated. Thanks ,Gene

i would use a regular c harmonica.. my brother plays the c harmonica and since piano man is in c major (at least my version) it uses a c harmonica

This is the better of these two TV vds of Joel Piano Man ...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sH-FlzVc4jg

Billy Joel Piano Man Video
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=edWOYy5Ld3U

Great concert footage of Billy Joel doing Piano Man http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jh4lzsuKodI

Another version:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nasksew-QNU

Thanks for the input. I've got the "real" transcription of the song..it's in C and my brother already has a C harmonica, so I guess we're all set.

Thanks again, Gene

Where did you find a "real" transcription of the song? I have several of the piano books for Billy Joel, but none of them sound like him (hmmm...I wonder if it's "user error"!)

Nancy

I hope you guys will eventually add your rendition of PIANO MAN to the piano bar.

Sounds like you both will be having some fun.

Nancy, I bought the Piano Man sheet music on e-bay.I think the Billy Joel keyboard book: note-for-note keyboard transcriptions has about 16 originals. Amazon has it for about $15.00

What did you mean real transcription?
Am I using a "fake" transcription?
My version came out of a friends "billy joels works complete"

Matt

Debussy,
I guess instead of real I should have said original transcription. The same thing Billy Joel plays..with the intros solos etc.. I don't know if the complete works set contains the originals or someones arrangements of Billy Joel songs. So I couldn't say.
Gene