As the holidays approach, the Piano Man
shares a weekend in a New York state of mind.
In 1975,
Billy Joel flew home to New York after three years of
living the itinerant rock-and-roll life in
Los Angeles. Desperately
homesick, he rushed off the plane and grabbed a Greyhound bus into
Manhattan, his emotions swelling the closer he got to the city.
"I'm a New Yorker, and it's indelibly imprinted on my soul that
this is where I'm from and where I should be," he says. When he got
home he ran straight to the piano and within 30 minutes had written
"New York State of Mind," which he calls "a celebration of
a homecoming."
His latest musical endeavors are of a different genre. His current
album, Fantasies & Delusions: Music for Solo Piano, is, as of
this writing, number-one on the classical music charts. It features
12 original compositions by Joel that are performed by pianist
Richard Joo.
But Joel still maintains his rock-and-roll roots. He sang at the
star-studded America: A Tribute to Heroes telethon and The Concert
for
New York City that raised relief funds after the September 11
attacks.
When Joel's not onstage, he often cruises up the
East River in one
of the 38-foot Shelter Island Runabout powerboats that he designed.
As he makes the trip from his home in Long Island to Manhattan,
he's still awestruck by the New York skyline, and the strength of
his fellow New Yorkers. "Even after the recent atrocities, people
in New York are very resilient," he says. "They're not sissies.
They go on with life, and adversity makes them even stronger."
Traditionally, the holidays are an ideal time to enjoy the spirit
of the Big Apple, so here's a perfect weekend with Billy Joel in a
New York state of mind.
FRIDAY
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