For the month of November, I’ll be selecting songs in conjunction with the music Twitter challenge: #WelcomeToTheOccupation.

This song will always be a fond memory for me as a music fan. The Storm Front tour show at Giants Stadium, NJ was my first rock concert. Being outside in the spring air with my high school buddies to see the Piano Man play classic after classic was an unforgettable experience. I still remember our seats. I remember the air. I remember the songs that made our bodies move. And then there were songs that we preferred to enjoy in our seats. “The Downeaster Alexa” was one of them.

As a master storyteller, many of Billy Joel’s songs are gripping, novel-like narratives. “The Downeaster ‘Alexa” is one of his finest songs, recounting the plight of a fisherman—with local references like Block Island Sound, Nantucket, Montauk and Gardiner’s Bay. The song is named after Joel’s own boat. But more strikingly, the story sounds like his own as well. Seeing Billy perform it live, I felt like my very hands were on the wheel of the Alexa. A visual song is a powerful one.

“But I've got people back on land who count on me. So if you see my Downeaster Alexa and if you work with the rod and the reel, tell my wife I am trolling Atlantis.”