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Billy Joel at Philips
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
CREDIT: Rodney Ho
At age 57, Billy Joel is no longer an angry young man by any stretch of the imagination.
“I’m actually Billy’s dad,” he joked at one point.
He mocked his receding hairline, rubbing his bald head during a reference to a pompadour in “Keeping the Faith.” His vocals were sometimes nearly drowned out by his powerful band. And he didn’t do as much frenetic jumping around during “Big Shot” like he had on past tours.
But middle-aged Billy isn’t so bad. Despite few surprises, his triumphant return to a packed Philips Arena after a five-year break satisfied both casual fans and those who wanted to hear a few oldies but goodies that he hasn’t played in years. He sifted through a bulk of his huge hits from the ’70s (“Movin’ Out,” “Only the Good Die Young”), the ’80s (“Allentown,” “We Didn’t Start the Fire”) and the ’90s (a rockin’ version of “River of Dreams.”) As typical of his shows, his production was frill free and set up so he could sell seats behind the stage as well.
“I really do need the money now,” he cracked. “You wouldn’t believe my car insurance.” Yes, he was alluding to his many vehicular mishaps in recent years.
Dressed in his usual jeans and black-shirt-and-jacket combo, Joel spent most of his time on a rotating piano so fans could see him from all angles. He did add one modern feature: a piano-cam, which enabled folks who could see the small screens off the ceiling of the arena watch his fingers fly up and down the ivories.
Joel front-loaded the more obscure tunes to the first half of the concert, even throwing in a forgotten gem from his very first album, “Everybody Loves You Now” as well as deep cuts such as “Vienna” and “Zanzibar.”
And he made sure he gave plenty of props to Georgia artists. He interluded “River of Dreams” with Little Richard’s “Good Golly Miss Molly,” snuck in a bit of Otis Redding’s “(Sittin’ on the) Dock of the Bay.” And right before he jumped into “Piano Man,” he sung a portion of “Georgia on My Mind.” (Joel and Ray Charles were quite chummy back in the day.)
His piano skills are still strong, from the eye-popping moves on “Angry Young Man” to a fun instrumental he did for his “Streetlife Serenade” album dubbed “Root Beer Rag.” And since he reportedly stopped drinking, his vocals seem to be in better shape too, especially early on. He even hit the high note in the chorus of “An Innocent Man,” a note on past tours he had outsourced to his female backup singer.
And as he sang songs about bottles of red and bottles of white, the only bottle on his piano was a Dasani.
Oddly, one of the highlights of the concert had nothing to do with Joel per se. Midway through, he let one of his roadies (nicknamed Chainsaw) show off his vocal skills. The big man romped through AC/DC’s “Highway to Hell” while Billy canoodled on a guitar. The crowd ate it up.
Odder still: given what a diehard Yankee fan Joel is, it was jarring to see him wearing a Braves cap during “Big Shot.” But he flung it into the audience as soon as the song was over.
But not odd at all: the man’s ability to sponge off the adulation from the crowd was both shameless and amusing.
Set list (concert length: approximately 2 hours and 20 minutes, starting at 8:20 p.m., ending at 10:40 p.m.)
Prelude/Angry Young Man
My LIfe
Everybody Loves You Now
The Entertainer
Vienna (voted by the audience over “All About Soul” though it was close)
Allentown
Zanzibar
New York State of Mind
Root Beer Rag
Movin’ Out
Stand By Me (brief excerpt)/An Innocent Man
Sittin’ on the Dock of the Bay (shortened version)
Don’t Ask Me Why
She’s Always a Woman
Keeping the Faith
River of Dreams (included a short interlude of “Good Golly Miss Molly”)
Highway to Hell (by his roadie Chainsaw while Billy played guitar)
We Didn’t Start the Fire
Big Shot
It’s Still Rock-n-Roll To Me
You May Be Right
ENCORE
Only the Good Die Young
Scenes From an Italian Restaurant
Georgia on My Mind (shortened version)
Piano Man
Personal disclosure: This is my sixth time I’ve seen Billy. His was the first rock concert I ever attended when I was a teen in 1986. I’ve never had the opportunity to interview him and probably never will given his general aversion to journalists. But I have spoken to his wife Katie Lee briefly and interviewed his daughter last year Alexa Ray. Plus, I had a good friend Daniel Howell from high school spend the summer of ‘85 doing landscaping and cleaning Billy’s boat and motorcycle.
Comments
Commenting is now closed for this entry.
By Steve
March 2, 2007 6:29 AM | Link to this
What a great concert. This is also my sixth time seeing Billy Joel. His voice was great & his piano playing just flowed out of his body through his hands. He is “The Piano Man”. My seats were in the second row behind the stage & I could see every expression on his face & sometimes the back of his bald head. I was sitting a few seats down from a 30 something girl that never sat down. She danced through the whole show & had appeared to have multiple orgasms while she danced.What a great show ( I mean Billy). The girl wasn’t bad either.
By Chazz
March 2, 2007 7:10 AM | Link to this
I’ve been a fan longer. :) I bought his albums in the 70’s. I’ve seen him in concert by himself as well as with Elton John. Wish I could have gone last night! Sounds awesome.
By Steve Skelton
March 2, 2007 7:45 AM | Link to this
I am not what you would call a huge Billy Joel fan, but that was a fantastic concert. The band was amazing and the crowd really got in to every song (the place was packed too…..always a plus). If he comes back to Atlanta, I will definitely go see him again.
By David A.
March 2, 2007 8:13 AM | Link to this
I was there - it rocked!!! Loved the songs by other artists he mixed in. And yes, Chainsaw was hilarious - but good, too! Billy still knows how to put on a good show, and he looked like he was having a good time, too.
By Fan
March 2, 2007 9:42 AM | Link to this
Great show - I was at that same show in 1986 - 16 years old! He’s still in top form and sounded fantastic. It was a treat to hear some of the older, more obscure songs - but I wanted a few more. The set list was about 5 songs shorter than the ones he was doing last year, which was the only let down - we could have gotten Pressure, Miami 2017, Sometimes a Fantasy, Goodnight Saigon, and Summer Highland Falls. That would have rounded out the perfect set list - but it’s hard to complain when you get 5 songs from The Stranger.
By Deb
March 2, 2007 9:52 AM | Link to this
Does anyone know what the instrumental music was that was played before he took the stage? It sounded like omething from a film score - maybe “The Natural.”
By Growler
March 2, 2007 9:53 AM | Link to this
Nice review Rodney. I think this is the 6th time, give or take, I’ve seen Billy and my complaint the last few is it’s always the same 20 songs. So it was terrific to see him mix it up in the first hour. The song from Cold Spring Harbor was expected (he played it on Conan O’Brien’s show before the tour started), but Zanzibar, Root Beer Rag and especially NY State of Mind were highlights. Also good move to end on Piano Man since his voice was shot by then, and he just let the crowd sing it! And yeah, Chainsaw rocked!
By Lou From NYC
March 2, 2007 9:58 AM | Link to this
Bravissimo from one New Yorker to another. The man’s energy and entertainment skills remain exceptional. My only disappointment was that his signature tune was ruined by a damaged(?) harmonica. But that was easily balanced-out by my thorough (and unexpected) enjoyment of “Chainsaw“‘s rendition of Highway To Hell, for which he deservedly achieved the loudest ovation of the night. Glory Be To Billy “Don’t Take No Sh*t” Joel.
By Sharon Perez
March 2, 2007 10:19 AM | Link to this
I absolutly loved the show and I have seen him a few years back. I agree he was better now then back then. As a native Long Islander, I know much of his songs and it was good to hear all that he sung, especially from Cold Spring Harbor.
By Rosemary
March 2, 2007 10:57 AM | Link to this
Attended. I have been to several of his concerts since the late 70s including the Dome show with Elton John.
This concert was very entertaining. Billy and his band are awesomely talented. Having grown older with him it’s a lesson to me that youth and beauty can be overriddent by talent and personality!!
By brian woodward
March 2, 2007 11:04 AM | Link to this
I went to the concert I had a incredible time. It was truely a Thursday night treat….
By Sebastian
March 2, 2007 11:05 AM | Link to this
It was a a good show, he really was in better voice than he’s been in the past. What a great piano player, and his band was tight. Despite the bad weather, we enjoyed ourselves quite a bit. I still can’t get used to seeing thousands of cell phones held up instead of lighters… though I did see a few flames flickering here and there. Didn’t smell any pot smoke so I wasn’t sure if I was at a concert or not, but hey… the times they are a-changing. My only regret is that Unleashed played at the Masquerade on the same night, but my wife said “NO” to Swedish death metal at a rock bar for Billy Joel at Phillips. Go figure!
By Mike
March 2, 2007 11:05 AM | Link to this
Unfortunately, I didn’t attend his show last night. Concerts have gotten SO expensive that I only go to 2 or 3 a year now, even though I used to go to as many as 35 a year…back in the day! I have seen Billy at least 3 times before and he ALWAYS put on a great show. Two things I would like to see from him: a Live Concert DVD (thought he would have done that in conjunction with his recently release live CD from Madison Square Gardens. And I wish he would release a new CD with new material on it. River of Dreams was WAY too long ago. Hope both of these happen soon.
By Andy
March 2, 2007 11:22 AM | Link to this
I love Billy Joel and thought the concert was pretty good. However, with all his hits he didn’t need to stray into other songs that weren’t his even with the Georgia theme. Also, Chainsaw was good but I think he’s allowed to perform to give Billy a break. Bily sounded great in the beginning but you wouldn’t have even known it was him during Piano Man. I think the hard living has caught up to him. I definitely will go again if he comes around. Let’s just hope he has another tour.
By TK
March 2, 2007 11:44 AM | Link to this
I attended the concert with my grown daughter last night. Billy was awesome. This was my third time to see him. He was very self-effacing, making fun of his baldness (as the reviewer said) and advancing age, After a young woman in the front row yelled “I love you Billy!” Joel responded with “I’m not Billy. I’m Billy’s dad. Billy’s in the back getting ready, combing his hair. I’m just here to warm you up.”
Great songwriter, great performer. Let me tell you what Joel thinks of his fans too. Our tickets were originally in section 320. As we were going upstairs to get to our rafters seats there were some Philips Arena employees herding us to a roped off section where we were directed to get new tickets. Billy didn’t like our rafter seats location so we were given new seats about 5-6 rows in back of the open stage area. Great seats and Joel,and his bandmates played to us much of the concert.
Tell me who else thinks enough of his fanbase to do something like that? In addition to his incredible talent this is why Joel has such a huge fanbase.
By Rick Willett
March 2, 2007 11:50 AM | Link to this
Billy Joel Review-
The dexterity for Angry Young Man and Root Beer Rag were marvelous. Billy Joel may look like his Dad, yet has the energy of a twentysomething evidenced by BigShot, You May Be Right, We Didn’t Start the Fire. The comic shift to American Idol with Chainsaw singing Highway to Hell was a good change up. One noticeable aspect was the age of the crowd varied from early 30s on signaling the wide appeal he has despite not having a Top 40 hit since 1992.
The vocals throughout the show were clear, clean, and hit the high notes.
One can readily attest that Billy Joel is a great pianist, lyricist, and showman for his audience.
RWillett
By Susan
March 2, 2007 12:11 PM | Link to this
Bill was AWESOME!
By Susan
March 2, 2007 12:14 PM | Link to this
too drunk to remember the show!!
By Clay Gunter
March 2, 2007 2:02 PM | Link to this
The concert ROCKED!!! Kudoos to the Piano Man!
By betty stein
March 2, 2007 2:03 PM | Link to this
Although I think paying $85.00, plus junk fees, for my seat (directly across from the stage and in the nosebleed section) was a disgrace on the part of Phillips Arena I admit I LOVED the show. Billy Joel put on a very enjoyable show and his musicians blew me away.
By Kaye
March 2, 2007 2:40 PM | Link to this
So inspirational. I am still on top of the world. Driving through tornadoes alone from the southern side of middle GA to see Billy Joel, I can say I am a pretty dedicated fan and apprepriate music at it’s finest. The concert was awesome. His moves cracked me up. The video of the ivories added an awesome touch. His rodie really rocked the house and Billy on the guitar, so cool! Loved the Braves hat and his coverage of all the GA artists. His voice is still great and the entire band, awesome, the lady was so cool! Phillips Arena does a wonderful job. Most of all I loved the people and enjoying my new friends. Times like this are remarkable and ones that will never be forgotten. Hope to see you again Billy Joel!
By methinks
March 2, 2007 3:13 PM | Link to this
i wasn’t at the concert but big props to all the fans who voted for “vienna” over “all about soul”. there is no comparison between the two…”vienna” is one of his gems.
By GARY B
March 2, 2007 4:07 PM | Link to this
What a thrill it was to finally see him do his thing. And hit the high notes he did, was surprised at that. I’ve been smiling all day thinking of what a great time we had, and to close with the piano man, well just don’t have the words. Thanks, Billy Joel.
By Michael
March 2, 2007 4:56 PM | Link to this
Billy Joel has a way to put us all back in the 70s/80s with his uplifting music and personality. The crowd was “rockin” from the start of “Angry Young Man”. The range of his songs—which includes jazz, raggae, classical, rock, ballads, and acoustic is phenomenal. The closing song “Piano Man” ushered the audience to personally relate with Billy and the decades we have spent together through his music—bringing many to tears. He is an unbelievable, incomprehensibly talented songwriter and musician.
By Harriet Carter
March 2, 2007 5:06 PM | Link to this
Thanks for writing such a great article about the show. I was there, too - and you really captured a wonderful night. I hope that EVERYONE gets to see Billy Joel in concert at least ONCE in their lifetime! The man, the band, the music - an experience that no one should miss! Check out upcoming concert dates at www.billyjoel.com !
By Don
March 2, 2007 5:13 PM | Link to this
An accurate review indeed. He was fantastic, as always (my third time seeing him — last time was with Elton John) and given his performance singing the National Anthem at the Super Bowl, I had low expectations. Unfortunately for me, he’s not the only one gettin’ older…
By Tracey
March 2, 2007 5:27 PM | Link to this
It’s a good thing the audience wasn’t as picky as you seem to be. Fact of the matter is Billy Joel put on a great show and the audience really responded.
He’s a class act.
By Danielle
March 2, 2007 7:57 PM | Link to this
I too had the pleasure of seeing Billy when I was a teenager (except mine was in 1997!) I thought his concert yesterday was his best ever. My mom and brother also agreed, whom have seen him seven times. He still rocks the house! And Chainsaw was a great addition!!!!!
By Stacy Walker
March 2, 2007 8:25 PM | Link to this
I was overwhelmed, touched, nostalgically transported, and reminded of what a huge impact Billy Joel has had on my life for almost 30 years now. The show was “just right,” simply put. He ommitted a couple of my all-time favorite songs by ANY artist (“Uptown Girl,” “Goodnight Saigon” and “Extremes”), but I still have my box set, Billy, so I’ll get by… Loved the “roadie rendition” of AC/DC — it shows Billy’s still got a great if not better sense of humor and a big heart as well. My husband gave me the tickets for Christmas, and I sceamed like a little teenager when I opened them. I was not disappointed in the least. Merry Christmas, Billy Joel. I only have one last request — please pen a song for the guys and gals coming back from Iraq and Afghanistan. Only you could do it right. Peace brother.
By Stephen
March 3, 2007 3:55 AM | Link to this
That’s a great set list.
By Jim
March 3, 2007 7:20 AM | Link to this
I can’t believe you said Billy “isn’t so bad”. How many artists have hits over 3 decades. He is a legend! I understand why he doesn’t want to talk to reporter that are jerks. I have seen him four times over 30 years and he still has it.
By Debby
March 3, 2007 11:47 AM | Link to this
Does anyone know what the music was that was played before the concert started? It sounded like something from a film score, maybe “The Natural.”
By Jim in Marietta
March 3, 2007 8:38 PM | Link to this
I grew up listening to Billy Joel in the 70’s. What dawns on me today after seeing him in concert for the second time is Billy’s incredible tallent. He has written so many songs AND performed them in such a memorable way. There is no question that Billy Joel is one of the greatest composers and entertainers of our generation. Long live the Piana Man.