Written by Don Schlitz, this is a story told from the first-person perspective about a conversation with an old poker player on a train. The card shark gives life advice to the narrator in the form of poker metaphors, before dying in his sleep.
This song spawned the poker catchphrase, "Know when to hold 'em, know when to fold 'em." (Thanks, Andy - Arlington, VA, for above 2)
A 1979 made-for-TV movie called The Gambler, which was inspired by this song, became the biggest rated TV film of the year and spawned several other movies. (Thanks, Edward Pearce - Ashford, Kent, England)
This entered the UK charts for the first time in 2007 after being popularized by the England Rugby team. During the Rugby World Cup the prop forward Matt Stevens warmed up for games by performing the song in the dressing room on his guitar and the England team subsequently adopted it as an unofficial anthem during their successful run to final of the tournament. (Thanks, Edward Pearce - Ashford, Kent, England)
"R U Mine?" • "Shepherd of Fire" • "Something from Nothing" • "Back to the Shack" • "Rize of the Fenix" • "I Still Believe" • "Divide" • "Run for Cover" • "Throne" • "Mona Lisa" • "The Reflex" • "Move Over" • "Would You Still Be There" • "Sugar, You" • "Cowboys From Hell (Live from Monsters in Moscow Festival)" • "Summertime Boy" • "What If I Was Nothing" • "High Road" • "September" • "Backwards Company" • "One Big Holiday" • "Jane" • "Gimme Chocolate!!" • "King for a Day" • "Rebellion" • "All the Rage Back Home" • "The Mephistopheles of Los Angeles" • "My Own Eyes" • "Don't Wanna Fight" • "Failure" • "Trainwreck 1979" • "Follow Me Down" • "Cryin" • "Dude (Looks Like A Lady)" • "Eat The Rich" • "Love In An Elevator" • "Seasons of Wither" • "Rats in the Cellar" • "People Are People" • "What You Need" • "Always Something There To Remind Me" • "Long Cool Woman (In A Black Dress)" • "Lust for Life" • "Bad Case of Loving You (Doctor, Doctor)" • "Like A Stone" • "Awake" • "Lying From You" • "Sing" • "Riptide" • "Shut Up and Dance" • "Ain't Talkin' Bout Love" • "Runnin' With The Devil" • "Hot For Teacher" • Dance The Night Away" • "And The Cradle Will Rock..." • "Unchained" • "Dreams" • "Electric Love" • "Cocoon" • "First" • "Renegades" • "The Coma Machine" • "Heir Apparent" • "Nevermore" • "Ex's and Oh's" • "Irresistible" • "Stitches" • "Different Colors" • "Can't Feel My Face" • "Adventure of a Lifetime" • "On My Mind" • "What Do You mean?" • "Drag Me Down" • "Leave The Night On" • "Thank God for Girls"
"The Vengeful One" • "Immortalized" • "Warrior" • "My Wave" • "Wicked Garden" • "Hunger Strike" • "Get Lucky" • "Heartbeat Song" • "Hey Ya!" • "Locked Out of Heaven" • "Treasure" • "Dancing With Myself" • "Love Stinks" • "I Hate Myself For Loving You" • "speed fighter" • "Still The One" • "Got Your Six" • "Thunder & Lightning" • "Figure It Out" • "Chicken Fried" • "Homegrown" • "The Wind" • "What Makes You Beautiful" • "Never Enough" • "Best Song Ever" • "Story of My Life" • "Zombie" • "Dreams" • "Ode To My Family" • "She Looks So Perfect" • "My Songs Know What You Did In The Dark (Light Em Up)" • "Everybody Talks" • "Blown Away" • "That's My Kind Of Night" • "House Party" • "Day Late Dollar Short" • "Lodger" • "The Heist" • "Blink" • "Signs" • "What's Your Favorite Dinosaur?" • "Synthesized (Inside Your Mind Mix)" • "No Mercy" • "Seven" • "Cake By The Ocean" • "Stressed Out" • "The Hills" • "Sorry" • "Boyfriend" • "Love Yourself" • "Redneck" • "What I Like About You" • "Dope Noise" • "Don't Do Me Like That" • "Learning To Fly" • "Breakfast At Tiffany's" • "Take Me To Church" • "Found Out About You" • "Hey Jealousy" • "We're Not Gonna Take It" • "Cherry Pie" • "Hook" • "Famous Last Words" • "All These Things That I've Done" • "Africa" • "Lips Of An Angel" • "Where Is My Mind?" • "Rock This Town" • "Jumper" • "Uptown Girl" • "Hemorrhage (In My Hands)" • "Pompeii" • "I Gotta Feeling" • "Mr. Jones" • "Blurred Lines" • "Heaven Is A Place on Earth" • "Bad Catholics" • "If You Could Only See" • "Everything You Want" • "I'm Yours" • "Starships" • "What About Love?" • "Seventeen" • "Dirt Road Anthem" • "All For You" • "Dystopia" • "Road To Nowhere" • "The Devil In I" • "The Sound Of Silence" • "HandClap" • "Happy Song" • "Safe and Sound" • "Save Tonight" • "Sweater Wheater" • "Little Talks" • "Happy" • "Chandelier" • "Feel Invincible" • "King of the World" • "Hold My Hand" • "Only Wanna Be With You" • "Let Her Cry" • "Lovesong" • "Time After Time" • "She Drives Me Crazy" • "Complicated" • "My Happy Ending" • "What The Hell" • "24K Magic" • "Hymn for the Weekend" • "Still Breathing" • "Heathens" • "Ride" • "Royals" • "All About That Bass" • "The Greatest" • "Shadow" • "Bethany" • "Black Streak" • "I Recognize" • "Never Let 'Em Hold Ya Back" • "True Confessional" • "Mean Girls" • "Hours of Rats" • "Pain Killer" • "Closer, Closer" • "Constant Disaster" • "Black Corridor" • "Angel" • "Crazy" • "I Don't Want to Miss a Thing" • "Janie's Got A Gun" • "Livin' On The Edge" • "Rag Doll"
"Enjoy The Silence" • "We Got the Beat (Previously from Rock Band 2)" • "Torn (Ednaswap song)" • "Open Water" • "Shy (HUNNY song)" • "Bloodhands (Oh My Fever)" • "Who's Your Lover" • "Radio (No Small Children Song)" • "I Remember You (Skid Row song)"" • "Here I Go Again (Previously from Rock Band 3)"" • "