He is singing about his then wife, Elizabeth Joel (Elizabeth Weber). She was his manager at the time, and was known to be a tough, fierce, and determined negotiator. She had earned a degree from UCLA in business (not sure if it was an MBA or not). She was instrumental in getting Billy's affairs in order after he had signed some bad contracts early in his career. There was an article about her management skills and style in a magazine at the time, maybe Business Week, I can't remember, called "They Were Maulin' Her Man." He gave her alot of credit for getting things back on track.
The song was basically saying that while you may think she is a bitch, that she "kills with a smile" and "wounds with her eyes," to me (i.e. to Billy), she is always a woman. You may think she is "suddenly cruel" and a tough S.O.B. in negotiations, but to Billy she is always a woman. Yes, to some degree, he acknowledges she may be like that, but he loves her....just the way she is.
It is a love song, there's no question about that. It is not derogatory of woman, quite the contrary, he is saying that a "woman" does not have to be all cute, pretty, subservient, but can be strong, tough, even brutal, and still be a woman, and a woman he loves.
The song was most definitely written by Billy in 1977 (someone posted that it was written by Chantal Kreviazuk, but was corrected by another poster; rather Chantal does a cover version of this song in concert). Billy and Elizabeth divorced in 1982 or 1983 I believe,but so what, that does not make the sentiment of the song any less authentic or sincere. They had been married or together for over 10 years.
Sources? Read anything Billy has said about this song. Read his three main biographies (by Mark Bego, Hank Bordowitz, and Bill Smith "I Go To Extremes"). Incidentally, I don't really like any of thoese biographies for other reasons; it has been reported that Billy is writing an autobiography.
He is singing about his then wife, Elizabeth Joel (Elizabeth Weber). She was his manager at the time, and was known to be a tough, fierce, and determined negotiator. She had earned a degree from UCLA in business (not sure if it was an MBA or not). She was instrumental in getting Billy's affairs in order after he had signed some bad contracts early in his career. There was an article about her management skills and style in a magazine at the time, maybe Business Week, I can't remember, called "They Were Maulin' Her Man." He gave her alot of credit for getting things back on track.
The song was basically saying that while you may think she is a bitch, that she "kills with a smile" and "wounds with her eyes," to me (i.e. to Billy), she is always a woman. You may think she is "suddenly cruel" and a tough S.O.B. in negotiations, but to Billy she is always a woman. Yes, to some degree, he acknowledges she may be like that, but he loves her....just the way she is.
It is a love song, there's no question about that. It is not derogatory of woman, quite the contrary, he is saying that a "woman" does not have to be all cute, pretty, subservient, but can be strong, tough, even brutal, and still be a woman, and a woman he loves.
The song was most definitely written by Billy in 1977 (someone posted that it was written by Chantal Kreviazuk, but was corrected by another poster; rather Chantal does a cover version of this song in concert). Billy and Elizabeth divorced in 1982 or 1983 I believe,but so what, that does not make the sentiment of the song any less authentic or sincere. They had been married or together for over 10 years.
Sources? Read anything Billy has said about this song. Read his three main biographies (by Mark Bego, Hank Bordowitz, and Bill Smith "I Go To Extremes"). Incidentally, I don't really like any of thoese biographies for other reasons; it has been reported that Billy is writing an autobiography.
@kbj1000 Thank you for all the information.
@kbj1000 Thank you for all the information.