“For the love of the music”
Billy Joel captivates capacity crowd at Jorgensen
Published: Tuesday, November 29, 2011
Updated: Wednesday, November 30, 2011 00:11
Jim Anderson
Grammy winner and Hall-of-Fame performer Billy Joel showed his many faces Tuesday night as he answered questions for a sold-out crowd at the Jorgensen center for the Performing Arts.
After a brief introduction, Joel took to the stage and was met with a standing ovation from a crowd of all ages that was screaming and waving copies of his records.
"I apologize if any of you thought this was a concert," Joel joked. "That's not even a real piano." Dressed in head-to-toe black, he dove right into audience questions with his refreshingly funny sarcasm.
He advised parents on how to support their budding musician children and reiterated that the best way to advance in the music world is to take any job that comes along. "It's not about the money," he said, "it had to be about the love of the music."
A Long Island native, Joel infused self-deprecation to show that anybody can make it big if they work hard enough. "Look at me, do I look like a rock star? No, I look like a guy who makes pizza," he said.
Joel went on to describe the inspiration behind several pieces, as well as the motivation from choreographer Twyla Tharp to turn his songs into the hit musical, "Movin' Out." Every time an audience member referenced a favorite song, Joel sat down at his piano and sang it, earning roars of applause with each soulful note.
It didn't take much longer for 7th-semester journalism and English major Danielle Ennis to shake up the theater as Joel summoned her to the stage to perform her "go-to" karaoke song, "Only the Good Die Young."
"I've listened to that song for 15 years, but I can say I never would have predicted this," Ennis said of her chance to sing alongside Joel. "It was surreal. It really was one of the greatest moments of my life."
Two other fans followed suit throughout the night, taking the stage with Joel and singing karaoke-like versions of their favorite songs. Any audience member that asked won a hug from Joel, who humbly answered their requests with a dose of wit. Though, alongside the humor, Joel was able to show how serious he was about his career.
"Sometimes your limitations become your greatest gifts," he said. "I just don't believe too much in sugar and sweetness, there's always a knife in it, and that's what makes it real."
The glow of cameras and smartphone recorders illuminated the audience as Joel took to the piano to play his favorite song of the moment, "Baby Grand," written for Ray Charles. He turned off the "funny man" for the ballad, but turned up the soul and was met with yet another roaring applause.
From "New York State of Mind" to "Piano Man," Joel served his loyal audience and humbly accepted a second standing ovation when he exited the stage for the evening.
"It was definitely the best performance I've seen because it's very intimate," said 7th-semester marketing major Nick Stevens. A four-year Jorgensen employee, Stevens said this was his favorite because of Joel's close interaction with the audience.
Seventh-semester allied health major and SUBOG social media and communications chair Sarah Lauretti has seen her fair share of SUBOG shows, but claimed "this was easily the best."
"Having him perform the songs I've listened to since I was five was mind-blowing," she said.
SUBOG next welcomes comedian Jay Montepare on December 1 in the Student Union Theater.
