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Re: Billy Joel interviewed by Howard Stern
I posted this over in the Stern thread too, but that doesn't seem to get much action. It's a fantastic interview, for anyone who's at all interested in Billy Joel.
http://lefsetz.com/wordpress/index.php/ … ard-stern/
Billy Joel On Howard Stern
He played "You Never Give Me Your Money"!
And "Dear Mr. Fantasy" and…
Howard’s on 24/7 on Sirius. And they replay the best segments on Friday. But if you miss it, you miss it forever. That’s radio. And sitting in traffic listening to Howard interview Billy was pure heaven, I didn’t want to get out.
You know how these interviews usually go. You’ve got a sycophantic celebrity or a good-looking talking head who wants to be a celebrity serving up softballs to a legend who doesn’t want to be there, who doesn’t reveal anything truly private, truly inside.
But this was like going over to Billy’s house and sitting in the living room, asking him the questions that had rolled around in your head for years, not for ratings, but because you truly wanted to know the answers.
Does he hang with other rock stars?
Of course! Billy told the story of Paul McCartney coming to his house. Pinching himself, since the Beatles were his inspiration, but also playing music for each other to gain tips and insight.
And he talked about Elton and the women he dated and motorcycles and record companies but the moments of pure joy, of sheer elation, were when he sat at the piano and whipped off those famous riffs.
"Summer, Highland Falls"… I swooned! Naked, without production, yet so perfect.
Billy talked about taking piano lessons, he even mentioned his teacher’s name, Miss Frances. And Howard asked, couldn’t everybody see he had talent?
This was after Billy played "The Rain Song" on the hundred year old piano in his living room. No, not the Zeppelin classic. Billy tickled the ivories at the top and bottom of the scale in demonstration, imitating raindrops and thunder. What little kid hasn’t done that?
And then he talked about improvising on Mozart.
And he always hears a song in his head.
And sometimes he loves the piano and sometimes he hates it. Talk to anybody famous for a skill. You love the tennis racket, but sometimes you hate it. Sometimes the notes come freely, but sometimes Billy sits at the piano and all he gets is frustrated.
Speaking of frustration… That’s the essence of "Summer, Highland Falls". The bipolarity of his personality. He wanted to capture it in a song. Billy gets in a good mood, but it never lasts. I know what he means! I’m driving up PCH with the sunroof open and the radio on and I’m feeling how great it is to be alive and then the very next day I’m depressed. Ah, life.
He literally wrote "New York State Of Mind" riding a Greyhound up the Hudson. He got home and told his wife he had to go straight to the piano, he had to capture what was in his head.
The music comes first. Then the lyrics. Except for "We Didn’t Start The Fire". Which he deplores since it has no melody.
He loves Hendrix. But Stevie Winwood is his hero.
You’re listening and then he starts playing the intro for "Vienna"… Hell, he said the inspiration for "Scenes From An Italian Restaurant" was the second side of "Abbey Road". One time he asked Paul…were those really just unfinished songs, strung together? OF COURSE! "Scenes From An Italian Restaurant" was originally three unfinished songs.
Howard requested "Miami 2017". That’s when I got into Billy. When he released live versions of the songs everybody had previously ignored. Unlike "Big Shot", which was about Bianca through the eyes of Mick!
Howard said it was the best experience he’d ever had on the radio.
"Better than the strippers?" Billy asked.
"Well…"
We live in an era where few can sing, few can play and if you can do the former, you can’t write. But Billy could do all three. He worked hard to get it right, to make it, back when you couldn’t fake it. Listen to this. You’ll be enraptured. When he puts his fingers on the keys nothing feels as good, no movie, no video game, only the touch of another person’s skin. That’s the power of music, its humanity.
Listen before they’re gone:
Part 1
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dxw1WV_qmVk
Part 2
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uqt0s-Wy … re=related
Part 3
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uX1HKy0Q … re=related
Part 4
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1VLRApNk … re=related
Part 5
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kur6MR2I … re=related
Part 6
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jD0QRFBZLgs
Re: Billy Joel interviewed by Howard Stern
While Billy Joel is well respected for his work, he is still underrated. When he dies, it's the loss of an icon. When you think of that late 70s-mid 80s period, Joel is right up there near the top of the list. His music is an emotional roller coaster for me because it takes me right back to those days of my early youth.
I loved how he eventually admitted that Uptown Girl wasn't really about Christie. He was screwing several models during the same time frame, and its more about that experience than it is her. That took balls to admit that decades later.
If you could include hits albums in a greatest albums ever made list, Joel's Greatest Hits vol. 1 & 2 are right up there.
- metallex78
- Rep: 194
Re: Billy Joel interviewed by Howard Stern
Billy Joel is a legend, I've seen him live n concert a couple of times, and he was great every time. A true talent, definitely.
Re: Billy Joel interviewed by Howard Stern
Billy said in the interview that the original concept for the song "Uptown Girls" was about banging multiple models. But over time it changed to "Uptown Girl", which IS about Christie Brinkley.
No it's not. He recently admitted in an interview it was written about a young Elle MacPherson whom he was banging at the time.
Re: Billy Joel interviewed by Howard Stern
faldor wrote:Billy said in the interview that the original concept for the song "Uptown Girls" was about banging multiple models. But over time it changed to "Uptown Girl", which IS about Christie Brinkley.
No it's not. He recently admitted in an interview it was written about a young Elle MacPherson whom he was banging at the time.
Yes it is. Do you think I'm making things up as I go along? Listen to the Stern interview. He talks about that magazine interview and says it was false and the song was indeed about Christie Brinkley. I'll choose to believe Billy's spoken word over the written word of some journalist.
Re: Billy Joel interviewed by Howard Stern
Axlin08 wrote:faldor wrote:Billy said in the interview that the original concept for the song "Uptown Girls" was about banging multiple models. But over time it changed to "Uptown Girl", which IS about Christie Brinkley.
No it's not. He recently admitted in an interview it was written about a young Elle MacPherson whom he was banging at the time.
Yes it is. Do you think I'm making things up as I go along? Listen to the Stern interview. He talks about that magazine interview and says it was false and the song was indeed about Christie Brinkley. I'll choose to believe Billy's spoken word over the written word of some journalist.
No one's denying what you heard obviously but you gotta admit its likely a bit of spin as so many Joel fans cherish that song and have always assumed it was about their early relationship.
There's obviously truth to it as some random journalist wouldn't have known he was fucking various models in that little clique of Brinkley, Macpherson, Houston,etc. and wound up falling for Brinkley.
Re: Billy Joel interviewed by Howard Stern
Axlin08 wrote:faldor wrote:Billy said in the interview that the original concept for the song "Uptown Girls" was about banging multiple models. But over time it changed to "Uptown Girl", which IS about Christie Brinkley.
No it's not. He recently admitted in an interview it was written about a young Elle MacPherson whom he was banging at the time.
Yes it is. Do you think I'm making things up as I go along? Listen to the Stern interview. He talks about that magazine interview and says it was false and the song was indeed about Christie Brinkley. I'll choose to believe Billy's spoken word over the written word of some journalist.
Fair enough
