What Pennsylvania city was the subject of a 1982 Billy Joel song about layoffs?

"Allentown" is a song by American singer Billy Joel, which was the lead track on Joel's The Nylon Curtain (1982) album, accompanied by a conceptual music video. "Allentown" reached #17 on the Billboard Hot 100, spending six consecutive weeks at that position and certified gold.

Upon its release, and especially in subsequent years, "Allentown" has emerged as an anthem of blue collar America, representing both the aspirations and frustrations of America's working class in the late 20th century.

The song's theme is of the resolve of those coping with the decline of the American manufacturing industry and the emergence of the rust belt in the latter part of the 20th century. More specifically, it depicts the depressed, blue-collar livelihood of residents of Allentown, Pennsylvania in the wake of Bethlehem Steel's decline and eventual closure.

When Joel first started writing the song, it was originally named "Levittown", after the town in which Joel had grown up. Joel remembered reading about the decline of the steel industry in the Lehigh Valley, which included the cities of both Bethlehem and Allentown. While the steel industry was based in Bethlehem with none of it in Allentown, Joel named the song "Allentown" because it sounded better and it was easier to find other words to rhyme with "Allentown."