Sometimes A Fantasy by Billy Joel

Album: Glass Houses (1980)

Charted: 36

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Songfacts®:

This song is about phone sex, which in the days before the Internet was a popular outlet for sexually frustrated men like the narrator of this song. The subject matter is fairly obvious considering the sound of the phone at the beginning of the song, but Joel was careful to leave the lyrics ambiguous enough to make sure the song received airplay. The video was another matter, as it shows Joel engaging in phone sex.
As indicated by the dialing tones of the phone in the beginning of the song, the number dialed is 516-673-1112. >>
Suggestion credit:
Annabelle - Eugene, OR
When introducing this song in concert, Joel has told a story about it being inspired by a girl named Debbie, who he was into, but the farthest he got with her was talking on the phone.
Glass Houses was Joel's second consecutive #1 album in the US (following 52nd Street), and earned him the Grammy Award for Best Male Rock Vocal Performance in 1981.
This was used on the TV show Scrubs in the 2007 episode "My Night To Remember."

Comments: 11

Dana Myers from Fairfield, CaThe orignal LP release version of this song features a different phone number at the beginning than the CD and singles. On the LP mix, the phone number appears to be that of Grusin-Rosen Productions in New Jersey, Dave Grusin and Larry Rosen. I speculate it was a prank/in-joke but then people started callling that number (you need only play the song into a telephone mountpiece to dial it) and it was changed to a Long Island number.
Douglas from PittsburghThis song came out before MTV. When was the video shot? I seem to recall seeing it not long after the song came out.
Don from OoooklahomaJoe, this was released three years before Brinkley and Joel met.
Bec from Queensland, AustraliaIn answer to Joe - if he was on tour and she stayed home, it'd make sense.
John from Long Island, NyIn the 1980's the 516 area code covered Long Island, and the 673 exchange was for the town of Huntington, where Billy Joel lived.
Aimee from PhiladelphiaJust saw Billy in concert tonight and he said this song was about a girl he met in Philly and really liked but they only talked on the phone.
Dan from New York, Ny(516) - Nassau County, Long Island. Though, back then, everything east of Queens was (516)
Joe from Grande Prairie Alberta, Cape VerdeWhy would Joel write about phone sex, when at the time of this record he was married to super-hot Christie Brinkley? I guess the divorce thing was a foregone...
Tony from Chicago, IlI really like this song! I did not know that's about sex until i read that here!
Dale from Santa Fe, NmWikipedia says 516 is the area code on Long Island.
Annabelle from Eugene, OrI wonder if the phone number dialed is one of Billy Joel's friends. Also, is 516 the area code in New York City? Or is that Long Island?

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