The song begins with the sound of crickets chirping, providing the feeling of evening coming, the sound morphing into the tinkling of wind chimes at night. This leads into the sound of helicopters, which conjures up images of helicopters carrying their loads of Marines into battle in the Vietnam War or picking up wounded Marines. Then Joel plays a figure on the piano before beginning to sing. The opening is reversed at the end of the song, as the piano figure returns, followed by the sound of helicopters, then wind chimes, and finally the crickets, before the song comes to an end.