Listen to Bob Dylan’s “Like a Rolling Stone,” his famous 1962 story about a woman who pushes too high, too hard, and too fast, and lives to regret it.
You will find that story strangely similar to “Big Shot,” the 1979 story written by Billy Joel.
In a 2010 interview with Howard Stern, Billy said he was inspired to write the song after spending an evening with Mick and Bianca Jagger. He imagined Mick singing the song to Bianca.
Billy has also said the song was a general commentary on the late ‘70s disco scene, which he found distasteful due to its emphasis on celebrity and glamour.