From career breakthroughs to professional milestones, explore how Billy Joel made an impact.
William Martin Joel, known as Billy Joel, is a highly successful American singer-songwriter and pianist, achieving fame as a solo artist in the 1970s. His signature song, "Piano Man," gave him his nickname. He released 12 studio albums between 1971 and 1993, primarily in the pop and rock genres, and a classical album in 2001. With over 160 million records sold globally, he is among the best-selling music artists worldwide and the fourth-best-selling solo artist in the U.S. His 1985 "Greatest Hits Vol. I & II" is a top-selling album in the United States.
In 1977, Billy Joel's "The Stranger" became a smash album and introduced many fans to his earlier compositions.
In 1977, coinciding with the "Greatest Hits" album release, Billy Joel released a two-volume Video Album and recorded a video for his first hit, "Piano Man".
In 1978, Billy Joel released "52nd Street", named after Manhattan's 52nd Street, which housed the headquarters of CBS/Columbia. The album, featuring hits like "My Life", "Big Shot", and "Honesty", reached number one and sold over seven million copies. It also won Grammy Awards for Best Pop Vocal Performance, Male and Album of the Year.
In 1979, Billy Joel participated in the historic Havana Jam festival in Havana, Cuba, alongside various artists. His performance was documented in Ernesto Juan Castellanos's film "Havana Jam '79".
In May 1980, Billy Joel's song "You May Be Right" reached No. 7 on the Billboard chart.
In July 1980, Billy Joel recorded live performances at US arenas and nightclub shows for his album "Songs in the Attic", featuring lesser-known songs from his early career.
In July 1980, Billy Joel's song "It's Still Rock and Roll to Me" reached No. 1 on the Billboard chart, becoming his first number-one single.
In September 1980, Billy Joel's song "Don't Ask Me Why" reached No. 19 on the Billboard chart.
In November 1980, Billy Joel's song "Sometimes a Fantasy" reached No. 36 on the Billboard chart.
In the fall of 1981, Billy Joel began production of "The Nylon Curtain", aiming for a sonic masterpiece and more ambitious songwriting.
On December 29, 1982, Billy Joel filmed his first video special, "Live from Long Island", at the Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum in Uniondale, New York.
In 1982, Billy Joel's album "52nd Street" became the first commercially released album on the then-new compact disc format.
Around 1983, Billy Joel originally wrote the song "And So It Goes" while writing songs for An Innocent Man, but it was held back until Storm Front.
In 1983, Billy Joel released "An Innocent Man", which paid tribute to R&B and doo-wop music. The album included "Tell Her About It", which became his second Billboard number-one hit.
In 1983, Billy Joel's video special, "Live from Long Island", was originally broadcast on HBO.
In 1984, the title song from "An Innocent Man" was released as a single and it peaked at No. 10 in the U.S. Also in March, "The Longest Time" was released as a single, peaking at No. 14 on the Hot 100 and No. 1 on the Adult Contemporary chart.
In January 1985, the song "Keeping the Faith" by Billy Joel peaked at No. 18 on the charts.
In 1985, Billy Joel participated in the USA for Africa "We Are the World" project. He also released "Greatest Hits Vol. 1 and 2", which included new songs "You're Only Human (Second Wind)" and "The Night Is Still Young".
In October 1986, Billy Joel and his team began planning a trip to the Soviet Union for live performances.
On November 18, 1986, an extended version of "Big Man on Mulberry Street" was used on an episode of the TV show Moonlighting.
In 1986, Billy Joel released "The Bridge", which included the hits "A Matter of Trust" and "Modern Woman".
In 1986, Billy Joel released 'The Bridge' album, including the song "Baby Grand".
In 1986, Billy Joel's professional collaboration with Phil Ramone as his studio album producer concluded. Ramone had produced all of Joel's studio albums from 1977 to 1986.
In July 1987, Billy Joel, his family, and his band toured the Soviet Union, with concerts being simulcast on radio around the world, marking the first live rock radio broadcast in Soviet history.
In October 1987, Billy Joel released the live album КОНЦЕРТ (Russian for "Concert"), featuring performances from his tour in the Soviet Union. The album included covers of The Beatles' "Back in the U.S.S.R." and Bob Dylan's "The Times They Are a-Changin".
In 1987, during his tour, Billy Joel met a clown in the Soviet city of Leningrad, inspiring him to write the song "Leningrad".
In 1988, Billy Joel commenced the recording of Storm Front, coinciding with major changes in his career.
In 1988, Billy Joel is credited as one of the keyboard players on Mick Jones's solo album, and is featured in the official video for Jones's single "Just Wanna Hold".
In 1988, Billy Joel voiced Dodger, a character in the animated film "Oliver & Company", and sang the character's song "Why Should I Worry?".
In August 1989, Billy Joel dismissed his manager, Frank Weber, after discovering accounting discrepancies.
In September 1989, Billy Joel released "We Didn't Start the Fire", which became his third US number-one hit.
In 1989 Billy Joel released the album containing the song 'Shameless'.
In January 1990, Billy Joel was awarded US$2 million in a partial judgment against his former manager, Frank Weber, after suing him for fraud.
In 1990, "I Go to Extremes", the second single from the album Storm Front, reached No. 6. Also, the ballad "And So It Goes" reached No. 37 in late 1990.
In 1991, Garth Brooks reached No. 1 on Billboard's country charts with his recording of the song "Shameless" from Billy Joel's 1989 album.
In 1992, Billy Joel inducted the R&B duo Sam & Dave into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. That year, Joel also started work on River of Dreams.
Billy Joel mentions in 2007 that it has been since 1993's release of River of Dreams when he released a pop/rock song.
In early 1993, Billy Joel finished the album River of Dreams, which included the hit singles "All About Soul" and "Lullabye (Goodnight, My Angel)". The first single reached No. 3 on Billboard's Hot 100 and ranking at No. 21 on the 1993 year-end chart.
Beginning in 1994, Billy Joel and Elton John began touring extensively together on a series of "Face to Face" tours.
During a Masterclass session in Pittsburgh in 1996, Billy Joel described Storm Front as a turbulent album and portrayed "And So It Goes" as the calm after a violent thunderstorm.
During his Central Park concert in 1997, Billy Joel performed with Garth Brooks.
In 1999, Billy Joel was inducted into the Rock 'n Roll Hall of Fame. Ray Charles made the induction speech.
On December 31, 1999, Billy Joel performed "2000 Years" at his millennium concert at Madison Square Garden.
In 2000, Billy Joel's concert from December 31, 1999, was released as "2000 Years: The Millennium Concert".
On September 21, 2001, Billy Joel performed "New York State of Mind" live as part of the America: A Tribute to Heroes benefit concert.
On October 20, 2001, Billy Joel performed "Miami 2017 (Seen the Lights Go Out on Broadway)" and "Your Song" with Elton John at the Concert for New York City in Madison Square Garden.
In 2003, Billy Joel and Elton John's "Face to Face" tour grossed over US$46 million in just 24 dates.
In 2003, Billy Joel inducted The Righteous Brothers into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and noted that his song "Until the Night" from the album 52nd Street was a tribute to the duo.
In 2005, Columbia released the box set My Lives, a compilation of demos, b-sides, live/alternative versions, and top 40 hits. It also included software to remix "Zanzibar" and a DVD from the River of Dreams tour.
On January 7, 2006, Billy Joel began a tour across the U.S., featuring songs from throughout his career. His tour included 12 sold-out concerts at Madison Square Garden, breaking a record previously set by Bruce Springsteen.
On June 13, 2006, Columbia released 12 Gardens Live, a double album containing live recordings from the 12 different shows at Madison Square Garden during Billy Joel's 2006 tour.
On July 31, 2006, Billy Joel performed a free concert in Rome, Italy, with the Colosseum as the backdrop, as part of the European leg of his 2006 tour.
In 2006, Billy Joel's song "The Great Wall of China" was a regular part of the setlist for his tour.
On February 27, 2007, Billy Joel's newest single, "All My Life", was released, with a live version of "You're My Home" from the Madison Square Garden 2006 tour as the second track.
In February and March 2007, Billy Joel toured the Southeastern U.S. before hitting the Midwest in the spring.
In 2007 Cass Dillon sings "Christmas in Fallujah" in the studio recording.
On January 26, 2008, Billy Joel performed with the Philadelphia Orchestra celebrating the 151st anniversary of the Academy of Music. He performed his classical piece "Waltz No. 2 (Steinway Hall)" and rarely performed Nylon Curtain songs.
On March 10, 2008, Billy Joel inducted his friend John Mellencamp into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
On June 19, 2008, Billy Joel played a concert at the grand re-opening of Caesars Windsor in Windsor, Ontario, Canada.
From May to July 2008, Billy Joel sold out 10 concerts at the Mohegan Sun Casino in Uncasville, Connecticut, and was honored with a banner displaying his name and the number 10.
On July 16 and 18, 2008, Billy Joel played the final concerts at Shea Stadium before its demolition. His guests included many famous musicians.
In March 2009, Billy Joel and Elton John resumed their "Face to Face" tour.
In February 2010, Billy Joel denied rumors that he canceled a summer 2010 leg of the "Face to Face" tour with Elton John, stating there were never any dates booked.
In March 2010, Billy Joel and Elton John's "Face to Face" tour ended in Albany, New York, at the Times Union Center.
The 2008 concerts at Shea Stadium by Billy Joel were featured in the 2010 documentary film Last Play at Shea.
On February 8, 2011, the film 'Last Play at Shea' was released on DVD.
On March 8, 2011, the CD and DVD of Billy Joel's show, Live at Shea Stadium, were released.
In November 2011, Piano Man was re-released in a two-disc Legacy edition to commemorate the 40th anniversary of Billy Joel's debut album, Cold Spring Harbor.
In 2012, Billy Joel signed an exclusive worldwide publishing agreement with Universal Music Publishing Group (UMPG).
On December 29, 2013, Billy Joel received Kennedy Center Honors in Washington, D.C., the nation's highest honor for influencing American culture through the arts.
On July 22, 2014, the Library of Congress announced that Billy Joel would be the sixth recipient of the Gershwin Prize for Popular Song.
In November 2014, Billy Joel received the Gershwin Prize for Popular Song at a performance ceremony from James H. Billington, the Librarian of Congress, and Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor.
On July 18, 2018, Governor Andrew Cuomo proclaimed the date to be Billy Joel Day in New York state to mark Billy Joel's 100th performance at Madison Square Garden.
On April 14, 2024, Billy Joel was featured on CBS in commemoration of his 100th performance at Madison Square Garden.
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