Pop Song 356 of 500 'Life's Been Good' Joe Walsh 1978

Pop Song 356 of 500 'Life's Been Good' Joe Walsh 1978

In the song, Walsh satirically reflects on the antics and excesses of the era's rock stars, with nods to Keith Moon and others: "I live in hotels, tear out the walls/I have accountants pay for it all", and "My Maserati does one-eighty-five/I lost my license, now I don't drive".

The 1979 Rolling Stone Record Guide called it "riotous", and "(maybe) the most important statement on rock stardom anyone has made in the late Seventies". His later Ordinary Average Guy is written as a late-life followup

I have a mansion, forget the price
Ain't never been there, they tell me it's nice
I live in hotels, tear out the walls
I have accountants pay for it all
They say I'm crazy, but I have a good time
I'm just looking for clues at the scene of the crime
Life's been good to me so far
My Maserati does 185
I lost my license, now I don't drive
I have a Limo, ride in the trunk
I lock the doors in case I get drunk
I make hit record, my fans, they can't wait
They write Tim letters, tell Glenn Don's great
So I got me an office, gold records on the wall
Just leave a message, maybe I'll call
Lucky I'm sane after all I've been through
(Everybody says I'm cool, he's cool)
I can't complain, but sometimes I still do
Life's been good to me so far
I go to parties, sometimes until 4:00
It's hard to leave when you can't find some more
It's tough to handle this fortune and fame
Everybody's so different, we're all insane
They say I'm lazy, but it takes all my time
(Everybody say oh, yeah, oh, yeah) oh, yeah
Keep on going, guess I'll never know why
Life's been good to me so far
Yeah, yeah, yeah, uh, ooh
Thank you