Fans revere the Billy Joel songbook for many reasons. Few of his pop/rock music peers can approach his melodic abilities. His romantic songs stand out in the way that they avoid the well-worn platitudes on which other writers rely.

But you shouldn't shortchange his willingness to do a little brawling in his songs, whether it's against his critics or against others in his life. That tendency lends honesty and humanity to his songs and endears him to his fans, who can see something of themselves in that material.

"Try and rise above it." You've probably heard that advice many times in your life. And you probably know how hard it is to do just that sometimes. It's understandable to let your anger and frustration get the better of you. Billy Joel, who's been known to blow up now and again, understands the temptation to go after your enemies, large and small, if only to achieve a measure of catharsis.

It was evident from his very first album. "Everybody Loves You Now", from Cold Spring Harbor, comes off on the surface as a tribute to someone who's made it big. Read between the lines, however, and you'll find a deep vein of sarcasm running through the lyrics. The song ends up being more takedown than tribute.

Many music critics might call a song like that one-sided. But let's face it: How many of us can come up with nuance and understanding when we've been wronged by someone, as Joel's narrator in the song clearly was? His response is more in keeping with how many of us would react, at least in the immediate aftermath of being left behind.

Joel often reserved his fury for those aforementioned critics. A song like "It's Still Rock And Roll To Me" is fascinating because it's as if he were anticipating the critical reaction to his album Glass Houses and preemptively striking. What does it matter, the song suggests, how a song is labeled, as long as it's effective?

In some cases, Joel's ire could get him in trouble. The wonderful new documentary Billy Joel: And So It Goes talks about how his sniping at the music industry in "The Entertainer" might have actually stymied some of his career momentum. But, in the moment, that's what he was feeling, and that's what came out of his songwriting pen.

Joel's lack of a filter in songs like these and so many others just might be his most underrated quality. It makes him more of an Everyman songwriter than others who might claim to be so. We can relate to his anger, his frustration, and his tendency to let things boil over in somewhat messy ways.

In fact, we could always look forward to one or more of these songs popping up on his albums. We all love something tender like "Honesty", but isn't it fun to lash out with him while singing along to "Big Shot"? The noble gestures of "Goodnight Saigon" and "Allentown" need to be balanced out by the nasty takedown of "Laura", don't they?

Billy Joel struggled at times to "rise above it", both in his songs and in his life. And for that, fans of his can be eternally grateful, because they were one with their hero in that respect.