Billy Joel Appreciation Thread

Am I alone on this one? Hands down my favorite musician/singer/songwriter.

I went to see him in '08 at the Farewell Shea Stadium concert. He was OUTSTANDING! 100 times better than when I saw him way back in 1986. To me Joel is like a fine wine --- he get's better with age!

Definitely one of the best.

I'm a Billy fan. A couple of years ago I saw "Movin' Out" on B'way. Fantastic. I've never seen him in concert, but BJ is truly an American musical ICON. My favorite...."NY State of Mind", especially since I had to move to NJ.

"Big Man on Mulberry Street" is one of my favorite songs, hands down.

Scenes From An Italian Restaurant = Best Song Ever.

I was backstage at a Meadowlands show and was a pube away from meeting him, but then the governor showed up.

I assume you were the enteree rather than the enterer.

This is totally cool. I knew there had to be more Billy fans here! I saw him in '83 and '89 and agree he totally rocks out in concert. All the songs you guys mentioned are my favorites as well.

I like Billy Joel, but can't stand "Piano Man." That song makes me want to jump off a bridge.

I saw him at the Meadowlands in '86, DC. "The Bridge" tour. It was a Christmas week concert, which made the news because Billy was dressed as Santa giving out gifts to kids. But he wasn't in very good voice that night. I still love him, though.

BJ is a great singer. I love just abouut everything he sings. Sorry Klyd I like Piano Man.

Klydon 1 is a friend of mine,
He represents me for free.
And he's quick with a joke
and I know he don't smoke
nowhere else he'd rather be. (than on the Gangster BB)

la-la-didee-dah, etc.

That was well done.

There's a local deli here, called The Sanwichman, and whenever we decide to order from there I sing:

Make me a sub, you're the sandwichman
Make me a sub tonight
Well, we're all in the mood for some ham and cheese
And you know how to make it just right.

I know that, like Mig, most people love this song, and I'm in the minority. His song about Allentown was always popular growing up as we lived relatively close to Allentown, which wasn't the depressed town that it was made out to be. There were other places more fitting for the song, but didn't fit the meter and rhyme scheme.

I liked that he could write songs that were incredibly specific in terms of location and time but that were still universal. That's a talent.

I thought it was the Lido Shuffle??

I love Billy Joel. I don't have all of his music but love most of it. Among my favorites: Movin' Out, Anthony's Song, We Didn't Start The Fire, Only the Good Die Young. I never saw BJ in concert, but I too saw Movin' Out and loved it.

BTW, Piano Man isn't one of my favorites either. I know, I know, it's a good song, just not my favorite. Anyway, I'd love to see him in concert some day, but he seems to appear mainly on the East Coast no?


TIS

I heard Billy Joel being interviewed on the radio here in NY before a Madison Square Garden concert. He said that he reserves several seats in the front row and, just before the concert starts, sends his people into the nosebleed seats to look for people to bring up front. I thought that was wonderful.

Just saw Joel on the HBO Rock & Roll Hall of Fame 25th Anniversary concert this past Sunday. I like a lot of his music. I think one of his coolest songs is the historical-based "We Didn't Start the Fire." I was always partial to "It's Still Rock & Roll to Me," "Matter of Trust," "Sometimes a Fantasy," and "NY State of Mind." I was never a big fan of the Motown influenced album An Innocent Man.

"Angry Young Man" would have been a great "Sopranos" song. I could see the credits rolling after one of Christopher's temper tantrums and that unbelievable piano solo starting up in the background.

There's a place in the world for the angry young man
With his working class ties and his radical plans
He refuses to bend he refuses to crawl
And he's always at home with his back to the wall
And he's proud of his scars and the battles he's lost
And struggles and bleeds as he hangs on his cross
And likes to be known as the angry young man

I will never forget Billy Joel's performance at the concert right after September 11th. He performed "NY State of Mind". It was just him at a grand piano, and perched on the piano was the helmet of a slain NY firefighter. It was an amazing performance.

SB,

That was televised right? Cause I think I saw it. Anyway what an appropriate song for that particular concert.

I thought I read somewhere that he never cared for Anthony's Song, but it's one of my favorites. Oh, and what about Uptown Girls? And "It's Still Rock & Roll." Lots of good tunes. He's a very talented artist.

TIS

I also love "Only The Good Die Young".

I'm surprised no one mentioned Billy Joel's best song.

Honesty.

One of the most beautiful songs I've ever heard.

My favorite is Lunatic. I think that's the name of it.

Eh. I get lucky once in a while, Mark .

I guess "Scenes From An Italian Restaurant" would be too obvious. Maybe just the intro, "bottle of red, bottle of white," while Artie was pouting and cooking the rabbit that he shot.

Re: Billy Joel; His daughter is in the hospital for what is being reported as an attempted suicide. I remember one video of BJ's in which Christy Brinkley was holding her baby. I believe it's Alexa. Anyway, she looks so much like her dad. I think (and hope) she'll survive and be ok.

TIS


http://www.nypost.com/p/news/local/billy_joel_daughter_overdoses_in_DHjTBMospMkwI2Y1T2tasI

Kinda spooky that we started this thread the same week his daughter, Alexa, tried to commit suicide. I've seen her interviewed and she seems like a very sweet, very down to earth, young lady. I hope she's going to be okay.

You mean with the lyrics..."It just may be a lunatic you're lookin' for?" I believe the title is "You May Be Right". I love that song too.

FWIW, one very popular BJ song that to me is just ok IMHO is "Just The Way You Are." I like it ok, but not as much as some of the others.

TIS

Oh Tis. You're such a thistle arse .

Ha ha...Don't you just love that phrase? I mean how often is one called a "Thistle Arse?"

I couldn't get that expression out of my head on Friday night, Tis. My Dad turned 80 last week and I turned 50 last month, so we went out for dinner Friday night with the whole extended family.

I was a little tipsy and called my brother a "thistle arse." He turns around, looks at me funny and says, What the fuck is a thistle arse?

I told him I had no idea .

Where's Mark been?

This is one of his threads and it's three years old, but I had to revive it because I was watching a show on the history of the World Trade Center this afternoon and they showed this clip towards the end.

It's the concert that took place a month after the attacks (The Concert For New York City). Anyway, it gave me goosebumps 11 years ago, and it just gave me goosebumps again now.

Look at Billy when he walks out. He has a beer in his hand, God love him .

Great post, pb! I remember this concert vividly. I may be wrong but I seem to remember reading something about the helmet on Joel's piano belonging to a FDNY friend of his who perished on 9-11. I do know that Billy Joel recently signed on with a big music management company that will now be aggressively marketing the license to his song catalog. Joel is eager to have his tunes in television shows, motion pictures, advertisements, etc. He will make millions letting his tunes go to work for him. God bless - the guy has worked his butt off for every dollar he's earned and twice as hard for every million his ex-brother in law stole from him!

Edit: I just found the story...

"Legendary Singer/Songwriter Billy Joel Signs Global Publishing Agreement With Rondor Music International and ?Universal Music Publishing Group Worldwide"
(August 30th, 2012)

Music icon Billy Joel, one of the most important singer/songwriters and composers in the history of popular music, has signed an exclusive worldwide publishing administration agreement with Rondor Music (Rondor) and Universal Music Publishing Group Worldwide (UMPG), it was announced today by Lance Freed, President of Rondor, and Zach Horowitz, Chairman and CEO of UMPG Worldwide. The agreement encompasses Joel's entire catalog of music, every song written by him since the beginning of his career more than 40 years ago, including some of the biggest hits of all-time.

"We couldn’t be more thrilled that Billy Joel has chosen to bring his songs to Rondor and UMPG," said Mr. Horowitz. "There are few songwriters in the history of music that have created a catalog of such hits, depth and quality. With Rondor's distinctive focus and care, and UMPG's global scale, administrative infrastructure and network of worldwide sync specialists, we are uniquely positioned to maximize the extraordinary opportunities that exist for Billy's music."

"Publishing is a cornerstone of the music business, one of the reasons songs live and thrive around the world years after they've been written or recorded. Rondor and Universal Music Publishing Group understand the complexities of music publishing in general and the nuances of my catalog in particular. The successful ongoing administration of my songs is in good hands under the stewardship of Rondor and UMPG," said Billy Joel.

"Billy's catalog is one of the greatest in contemporary music," said Mr. Freed. "His songs are melodic and memorable, and he writes conversationally in universal themes that are timeless and borderless. Billy's music is as important to his era as George Gershwin and Irving Berlin's were to theirs. It's truly an extraordinary privilege to welcome Billy to Rondor."

Since having his first chart and sales success in the early 1970s, Billy Joel's music has remained among the most popular in the world - a constant at radio both in the United States and internationally and a vital source of material for other artists who have recorded their own versions of his songs. His albums, featuring both music and lyrics wholly written by Billy, have now sold over 150 million copies globally - over 75 million in the US alone - and continue as perennial best sellers. His recordings have hit the Top 40 on the Billboard Hot 100 charts over 33 times, and on the UK singles chart over 26 times. He's had multiple Top 10 albums everywhere in the world, including Germany, France, Japan, the Netherlands, Australia, Southeast Asia, and Latin America. In the United States, Billy is the sixth best-selling recording artist of all-time and the third best-selling solo artist. His "Greatest Hits Vol. I & II" has sold over 20 million albums and is the sixth best-selling album of all-time. His music has also served as the inspiration and score for the hit Broadway play "Movin' Out" which took home two Tony Awards including Best Orchestration and Best Choreography. Recently, Joel was honored by Steinway & Sons with a painted portrait that hangs in Steinway Hall in Manhattan. Joel is the first non-classical pianist to be immortalized in the Steinway Hall collection. Billy Joel is one of the highest grossing touring artists in the world. He played the final concerts at Shea Stadium to more than 110,000 fans. The concerts were featured in the 2010 documentary film, "The Last Play at Shea."

Standards written by Billy Joel include "Just The Way You Are," "Only The Good Die Young," "Big Shot," "Movin' Out (Anthony's Song)," "Piano Man," "New York State of Mind," "You May Be Right," "Pressure," "Don’t Ask Me Why," "She's Always A Woman," "My Life," "It's Still Rock and Roll To Me," "Tell Her About It," "Uptown Girl," "The Longest Time," "Say Goodbye To Hollywood," and "We Didn't Start The Fire," to name just a few. The wide range of artists who have recorded cover versions of his songs include Beyoncé, Ray Charles, Diana Krall, Garth Brooks, Isaac Hayes, Tony Bennett, Bette Midler, Dolly Parton, Barbra Streisand, Westlife, and Barry White, among many others.

Billy Joel has received six GRAMMY® awards including "Record of The Year" and "Song of The Year" for "Just The Way You Are," "Best Male Pop Vocal Performance" and "Album of The Year" for "52nd Street," "Best Male Rock Vocal Performance" for "Glass Houses," and the prestigious "Grammy Legend Award." He has been inducted into the "Songwriter's Hall of Fame" and the "Rock and Roll Hall of Fame," and received numerous industry awards including the "Billboard Century Award," "NARM President’s Award," "ASCAP Founders Award," and the "RIAA Diamond Award," among many others.

In the United States and Canada, where Billy's publishing has been self administered, the new deal with Rondor will start October 1st of this year. Outside those territories, the Rondor/UMPG arrangement will begin January 1st, 2013 when Billy's current administration deal expires.

BJ's one of my favorites (shush!)... always was, since I was a kid. He kinda lost me later on, but he puts on a great live show. I just wish he knew it was ME who got him that autographed Puzo Godfather novel (inscribed to him) that I gave to his road manager. But then again, I did get backstage and got good seats for a sold-out show.

I told you to spring for the first edition hardcover.

Here you go, Mark:

That is cool beyond words. What a great rendition. Two legends!

Just an aside: I was at a Christmas party with a lot of lawyers and got to talking to one of the wives as she and I h ad something in common. She said she grew up on Long Island and her mother took her with her to a friends house. They were talking older lady stuff when the friend told this bored girl- "Why don't you go down in the basement where my son and his band are practicing. THe son turned out to be a very young Billy Joel. She said the family is very nice.

Nov 25 we are going to his concert in the garden

Sirius/XM recently dedicated their channel 4 to all Joel, all the time.

Not a bad idea .

Three, if you count pizzaboy.

favorite billy song is Keeping The Faith, then Scenes From an italian Restaurant. why wife taught me about him

I do okay, Counselor .

Of course, how could I forget?

Agree.

I was introduced to Billy Joel's music indirectly when I heard a rap song that borrowed the cadence of "Still Rock n Roll To Me". Interestingly enough...when I heard "We Didn't Start the Fire" ....with his flow..(and the not too subtle diss line-"Rock n Roll in Cola Wars/I can't take it anymore/") ....I see that the influence works both ways.

My favorite songs of his are "Leave a Tender Moment Alone" and "For the Longest Time"

I don't usually watch but I caught this Jimmy Fallon show some months back and was very pleasantly surprised when he and Billy Joel did this fun version of "The Lion Sleeps Tonight".

Nice, SC. I'm not crazy about Fallon. I don't dislike him, but of the younger guys I prefer Kimmel. But that was sweet .

PB Fallon's the best give him some time he'll grow on you, Jimmy Kimmel I don't know about that guy seems a lil light in the loafers

I like Kimmel because he's half-Italian .

I like Fallon's musical imitations. His Neil Young terrific!

I too LOVE Fallon's imitations.He's fantastic. I agree with you on his Neil Young and he does a great Dylan, Bruce and others that I can't think of at the moment. I've even seen him do Justin Bieber. LOL

Oh and also his David Bowie's Space Oddity. LOL




TIS

Tis is going to love this.

Tonight they showed the 2008 concert at Shea Stadium. The LAST concert ever at Shea. So who did Billy bring out? How about the guy who did the first major Shea concert in 1965.



And being the classy guy that he is, Billy let Paul close out the show, and Shea Stadium, with "Let it Be."

Thanks PB. I saw that last night and meant to reply earlier.

Great clip. Of all the artist I regret never seeing, its Beatles or Paul in concert. Both as the Beatles and with Wings, there were at least a couple Detroit concerts. That's as close as they came to my neck of the woods. I wish I would have gone. Can't get that era back.

I really like Billy Joel too. A few years ago he and Elton John (another of my favorites) did a Vegas show together. I think it was called the "Piano Men" . I would have loved to seen them but damn, tickets cost an arm, a leg, and a firstborn.


TIS

Going August 2nd in Philly. Got my satellite radio tuned to channel 4. I saw him way back in the 70s and have been a fan ever since. Heard his playlist includes "Balad of Billy the Kid" and "The Entertainer", which were songs he played back when I first saw him.

For all you die hard Joel fans... go to YouTube and search Billy Joel Town Hall. It is a 2 hour plus audio of Billy Joel with Howard Stern. It is awesome!

Update: Here is the link...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qFLy1Dg6zHs

Joel to break record at MSG...

http://www.nydailynews.com/entertainment...ticle-1.2020194

http://www.billyjoel.com/news/thanksgiving-state-mind-billy-joel-concert-marathon-msg-network

Wish I had this channel after the Bears game!

the song "just the way you are" is one of my all time favorites, the sax in that song is over the top.

I could not go to the concert on the 25th. So I gave the tickets to my oldest son and his relatively new wife.

They saw it she never heard OF Joel before BARBARIAN but it turned out they both liked it. A couple of Joel's friends performed with him Sting and John Cougar. My son told me John Cougar looked high.

They did complain about the seating it was close but he told me the seats were very narrow, and not much leg room.Hey but the fucking price was right.

Here you go... See which Billy Joel song best describes you with this quiz.

http://www.msg.com/shows/billy-joel-saturdays/what-is-your-billy-joel-theme-song.html

I'm a "New York State of Mind" guy.

Billy Joel tickles my ivories.

Does your girlfriend mind?

I think you spelled ovaries wrong

Now THAT'S funny .

He is frequently kind
And he's suddenly cruel
He can do as he pleases
He's nobody's fool
But he can't be convicted
He's earned his degree
And the most he will do
Is throw shadows at you
But Dellacroce is always a woman to me

Anybody catch this on PBS last weekend? Pretty good renditions of Joel's tunes by various artists.

http://video.pbs.org/video/2365395049/

My personal favorite is Tony Bennett's version of the classic "New York State of Mind".

Tho, there's nothing like the original IMO, I can totally picture Tony Bennett singing that song. The guy is still going strong. Or maybe he just does well singing about cities (San Francisco)

TIS

TIS - I love the original as well but there is a fabulous rendition with Joel and Bennett on The Last Play at Shea DVD. At the end of this PBS special, there is a great finale with all the guest artists, including Joel, performing Piano Man. Kevin Spacey hit a home run playing the harmonica.

Billy was on with Jimmy Fallon last night and they killed it with a duet of the Rolling Stones', "Beast of Burden".

He closed the show with his band and they rocked the classic, "Scenes From an Italian Restaurant".

If you can catch this OnDemand it is terrific!

It was great Mark. Here it is:

http://www.today.com/popculture/jimmy-fa...es-beast-t65701

Nice, Beans. Thanks!

Here is Billy Joel with Scenes from an Italian Restaurant:
http://www.nbc.com/the-tonight-show/video/billy-joel-scenes-from-an-italian-restaurant/2964266

One of my favorite BJ tunes ever. Thanks for the links, Beans!

Mine too Mark!

Favorite album?

Piano Man, of course! LOL

Some good unknown tunes on PM. I like Travelin' Prayer & Worse Comes to Worst. My fave album is Turnstiles or Nylon Curtain.

Great picks Mark. I also like Nylon Curtain too.

New York State of Mind in Turnstiles is beautiful.

Scandinavian Skies is great.

Of course, I like all the hits but some of the lesser known stuff is very good.

Agree Mark. He's a very talented musician. You got me psyched I am putting on his Cold Spring Harbor Album to relax. Thanks for the inspiration.

Awesome. Everybody Loves You Now is terrific.

Thanks and your welcome! You have the multi disc album, My Lives? A must have for a mega fan.

Is that the 4 or 5 CD set?

Yeah, not sure exactly... I have it all MP3 on my computer at work. At least 3 or 4 discs...

Does it contain new material on them Mark?

Unreleased songs, different versions of hits and some cover stuff and songs that aren't even complete but a good listen. My fave is Money or Love from that 4 disc set. I just Googled it to be certain.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/My_Lives

Thank you Mark. Sounds like a must buy.