Joel R. Beeke,christopher W. Bogosh

Billy Joel was born on May 9, 1949 in the Bronx and shortly after moved to the Levittown section of Hicksville, Long Island, New York where he started playing piano at the age of 4. In 1964, inspired by the Beatles, he formed his first band "The Echoes", which became "The Lost Souls" in 1965 and then "The Emerald Lords" in 1966. In 1967 he joined "The Hassles" and recorded two albums, which were not successful…

52nd Street (1978). 52nd Street is Billy Joel's sixth studio album and the first to reach #1 in Billboard. The 1978 release contains some essential American pop songs including the three Top 40 hits, "My Life," "Big Shot," and "Honesty."
The sophisticated and somewhat jazzy album is conceptualized like a musical, a showcase of masterful writing and musicianship. Joel interjects rock, soul and Latin rhythyms along with the jazz. The music flows together smoothly, thanks to Phil Ramone's seamless production and Joel's melodic craftsmanship. The jazz influences come through most strongly on "Zanzibar" - featuring Freddie Hubbard's trumpet solos - "Stiletto," and the title track. The album's standout is the gorgeously layered love song, "Until the Night"…

Billy Joel's four-disc The Complete Hits Collection 1973-1997: Limited Edition reissues his three Greatest Hits collections and adds a live rarities collection previously released in a limited-edition Australian box set to commemorate the River of Dreams tour. The songs on Greatest Hits, Vols. 1 & 2 have been restored to their album length and have been subjected to fine 20-bit remastering, and there is a 44-page booklet with handwritten lyrics, an essay, and previously unseen photographs.

In July-August 1987, after 100 shows around the world on The Bridge Tour, Billy Joel accepted the Kremlin's invitation to the U.S.S.R. for six fully-staged rock shows in Moscow and Leningrad, fulfilling a long-time desire to perform in Russia. During their stay, Billy and his family, along with musicians, staff, and a huge press entourage spent their days interacting with the Russian people, forging true bonds of friendship wherever they went.

Billy Joel's four-disc The Complete Hits Collection 1973-1997: Limited Edition reissues his three Greatest Hits collections and adds a live rarities collection previously released in a limited-edition Australian box set to commemorate the River of Dreams tour. The songs on Greatest Hits, Vols. 1 & 2 have been restored to their album length and have been subjected to fine 20-bit remastering, and there is a 44-page booklet with handwritten lyrics, an essay, and previously unseen photographs.

To enter the immersive realm of Still Point: Turning World is to join guitarist/composer Joel Harrison and colleagues in embracing the gloriously enlightening globalization of music, unhindered by category or preconception. This original eight-movement work brings together contemporary percussion quartet Talujon (Matt Ward, Michael Lipsey, Tom Kolor, David Cossin), Indian sarode player Anupam Shobhakar, and jazz musicians Hans Glawischnig (bass), Ben Wendel (saxophone/bassoon) and Dan Weiss (drums/tabla) to realize the guitarist’s striking, kaleidoscopic vision. Guests include V. Selvaganesh (perc.), Nittin Mitta (tabla), and Stephan Crump (bass).

The Bridge is the tenth studio album by American singer-songwriter Billy Joel, released on July 28, 1986. It was the last studio album produced by Phil Ramone as well as the last to feature Joel's long-time bassist Doug Stegmeyer and rhythm guitarist Russell Javors. The album yielded several successful singles, including "A Matter of Trust" (peaking at No. 10), "Modern Woman" (which also appeared on the Ruthless People soundtrack, peaking at No. 10), and "This Is the Time" (peaking at No. 18). Joel began work on the album — on which two of his major influences (Ray Charles and Steve Winwood) made guest appearances — in 1985. Charles sang a duet with Joel on the song "Baby Grand", and Winwood played Hammond organ on the song "Getting Closer".