Often referred to as Mr. "Piano Man" after the 1973 hit single title track, William Martin Joel was born on May 9, 1949 in the Bronx, New York, son to a German father Howard Joel and a British mother Rosalind Nyman, daughter of an agnostic Jewish family.
When Billy Joel was just a child, his parents divorced and his father moved back to Vienna, Austria and his mother to the Long Island suburb of Hicksville, carrying with her a daughter and young Billy, who then wanted to learn European classical music but was reluctant with piano lessons in which his mother enrolled him.
Billy Joel became a successful amateur boxer in the Golden Gloves Circuit during his teen years but retired shortly after his nose was broken. Joel attended Hicksville High School, but his late-night musician's lifestyle prevented him from studying enough to fulfill the required credits to graduate so he decided to quit instead.
From 1964 to 1970 Billy Joel joined two Long Island's bands, The Echoes, that eventually changed their name to The Emeralds and later The Lost Souls, and The Hassles, a rock & roll band that after disbanding in 1969, let Billy Joel make the duo Atilla with drummer Jon Small; producing a self-title album before splitting up.
During the early 1970’s Billy Joel was signed to Artie Ripp of Family Productions, recording his first solo album "Cold Spring Harbor", released in 1971 with no major success. Joel moved to Los Angeles, California, married Elizabeth Weber, and tried a deal from his record label.
In the meantime he played in the Executive Lounge piano bar under the stage name Bill Martin, getting the inspiration for the release of "Piano Man", his second solo album that catapulted into the international mainstream. Between 1971 and 2001, Billy Joel recorded 13 full-length studio albums.
Billy Joel has embarked on the "World Tour" from 2005-2007 featuring the major hits achieving throughout his career after thirteen years without writing or releasing any new song. He has been inducted into the Songwriter's Hall of Fame (1992), the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (1999), and the Long Island Music Hall of Fame (1999).
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