I was so privileged to have met him a few decades ago. What started off as a question about a quote he had given in an interview turned into the best lay therapy I have ever had, before or since. A supremely empathic man..
RagnarokNCC I’ve heard he is very down to earth. He own/works at a bike shop. He has a 4th Of July party every year and invites basically all of Long Island
Billy Joel is such a great performer. I've seen him six times and every show has been amazing. First show was New Years Eve 1999/2000. Most recent show was June 2019.
My father was in Billy Joel's French class in Hicksville High School. They weren't friends or anything but apparently Billy Joel skipped school a lot to head into the village.
Billy Joel, the man who got me into classic music of the past half a century when I was just a kid. Thanks Mr. Joel, still listen to your songs everyday.
"Stiletto" AND "Rosalinda's Eyes" AND "52nd Street". If only he'd remembered "Zanzibar"! I love 52nd Street (the album). It was Billy Joel's jazziest ever. But the only song from it that most people seem to know is "Big Shot" - which I like too, but it doesn't really represent the album it's on.
Glad that Billy is still out there singing his classics. Shame too many bridges were burned and he cannot perform them with the original Billy Joel band: Liberty DeVito, Russell Javors, David Brown, Richie Canatta. RIP Doug Stegmeyer.
"You should come to the garden and do that one night" *IMMEDIATELY EXTENDS HAND TO SEAL THIS DEAL ON TELEVISION BECAUSE IT'S AN INVITE FROM BILLY JOEL"
I used to think Billy Joel was overrated, even though I have always respected his place in the pantheon of rock n roll and popular music history, it wasnt until listening to The Sirius Billy Joel Channel during a transition between A Day In The Life into an introduction by him regarding it's influence on him and the creation of Goodnight Saigon, oh and I was in the middle of a K hole during this (somewhat important component there), and it was that moment hearing Goodnight Saigon in that state when I was teleported there and experienced that reality through the power of his lyrics (and the 'Special'ness) but it was then when I realized Billy Joel was the man, and he does deserve the praise and everything he has earned. Incredible songwriter and performer, even if he is a "borrower". All great works are often an artists personal take on their influences, whatever they may be. And as a guy who has been a Beatles disciple since I was a fetus, I finally gave credence and credit to Billy Joel. Never give up on an artist, especially if you think you dont like them right away, never be so stubborn that you prevent yourself from living. *THE MORE YOU KNOW* (~);}
C'mon Colbert, you left out Captain Jack? Just kidding. That was an awesome rendition of what goes through my head instantly whenever the name "Billy Joel" is mentioned...
He loved classical music! Remember, he composed a classical album which was performed by Richard Joo. "Fantasies & Delusions," I think it's called. If you like solo piano, there's great stuff in there
As someone from Long Island who has worked in Hicksville before, I still find it hilarious that a town like that is in one of the least "hick" parts of the island
They should totally get him to play Darth Vader's force Ghost in the next one. (Google 'Billy Joel looks like Darth Vader' and you'll get not only my joke, but his 'may the 4th be with me' joke, too.)
Anyone know somewhere or some website where we could start some sort of petition to urge Billy to give us at least just one more amazing studio album? If there's enough noise, he might just do it. And if he doesn't, he'll at least know how much his fans genuinely want it.
I remember the news this got back in the day when this happened, being in NYC area. I hope they do a full concert together before its ummm.. cant be done..
Hm, I'd say Billy Joel = The Beatles, only in the aspects in which they can be compared. The Beatles, being a band of four extremely talented musicians, could achieve things that a single singer could never even dream of achieving. I'm a very avid fan of them both.
Tough guy Billy from Hicksville wouldn't hug Stephen walking on.?? Hey, he's from an older, tougher generation when the greasers were cruzin. And, the popular class steady's were named Brenda & Eddie. And, Father's in the U.S.O. spent their weeks hauling coal from the ground in Hackensack after they all bought Cadilacs. Give em a break, huh.
So where's part 2? "We'll have more of Billy Joel in the second half" then that's it? Come on @the late show you gotta be kidding ... put the rest up!!! .... please. :)
I have a love/hate thing with Colbert. When he sticks to comedy, he's just about the most clever comedian anyone has ever seen and I love it. When he overly engenders his political views, he comes off as really nothing more than a preachy soapbox celebrity that forgets his place in the world as an ENTERTAINER. And here, he got too caught up in the moment and tarnished what could have been a much better interview by talking WAY too much and taking the awesomeness of Billy Joel OUT of the Billy Joel interview. He could learn a thing or two from his predecessor, Dave Letterman, in that regard.