Billy Joel

Musician, singer, and songwriter best known for his true-to-life lyrics, his piano playing, and his ex-wife Christie Brinkley. Joel started his musical career in a high school band, and went through some hard times and a lot of piano lounges before getting a big break with the release of Piano Man in 1973. The Stranger (1977) was his first big commercial success, and several subsequent albums, such as 52nd Street (1979), Glass Houses (1980), and An Innocent Man (1983) went platinum. Divorced from Brinkley in 1994, Joel is now concentrating on composing classical music.

Fact Monster/Information Please® Database, © 2007 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.

• • Cite
  • Print