Billy Joel celebrated a milestone of 150 shows and a decade of ‘Garden parties’ on July 25, but now the Piano Man is “movin’ out.”
“I know, I know, we don’t wanna go either,” Billy Joel told his audience at Madison Square Garden, speaking on behalf of his band during the final performance of the 10-year monthly residency there. “But it’s time.”
Joel’s initial performance at the venue occurred almost a half century ago, on December 14, 1978. Thirty-five years and 45 shows after that first Garden party, in December 2013, Joel became Madison Square Garden’s first-ever music franchise, alongside the venue’s two sports franchises, the New York Knicks and New York Rangers. Joel’s monthly performances began in January 2014. Joel said – at the time – that the residency would last “as long as the demand continues.”
The demand never waned. For a little more than a decade, excluding the extended COVID pause, Joel and his band performed one concert every month at the arena. However, in June 2023, the Piano Man announced that he was “Movin’ Out” and his residency would end just over a year from then, on July 25, 2024. The closing event was billed as “The Final Show of the Record-Breaking Residency.”
Over the course of Joel’s residency, he shattered record highs at Madison Square Garden – many of those established previously by himself. The “Uptown Girl” singer presently holds the record for the most consecutive shows (104 performances during this residency) and the most lifetime shows at the venue (now standing at 150). The Madison Square Garden franchise sold 1.9 million tickets to fans from all 50 states and more than 120 countries. Bruce Springsteen, Sting, Tony Bennett, Paul Simon, Olivia Rodrigo, Bon Jovi, John Mayer, Miley Cyrus, Peter Frampton, Trey Anastasio, and other guests joined Joel on stage throughout the decade-long residency.
“None of us knew we were gonna be able to do this for so long,” Joel told the audience early into the final concert last week. “This has been the most amazing gig we’ve ever done.”
Photos by Myrna Suarez
Starting in darkness to Randy Newman’s pre-recorded strains of “The Natural (The End Title)” as entrance music, Joel and his band launched into a rocking rendition of “Miami 2017 (Seen the Lights Go Out on Broadway).” Pausing only momentarily, they segued into “Pressure.” Joel then cooled the motors long enough to put the conclusion of the residency into perspective.
“Let me mention a couple of things that we’ve done,” he said. “We were the first group to play at Yankee Stadium (in 1990). We were the last band to play at Shea Stadium (in 2008). We played Berlin the night that the Berlin Wall came down (in 1990, actually, a year after the wall came down). We were the first American full-fledged performance in the Soviet Union (in 1987). And we were the first band to play after Castro came to power, and we played Cuba (1979). We played in front of the Coliseum in Rome for a half million people (in 2006) – and the food was great. But, out of all of them, this is the best. There’s no place like this.”
Joel reminisced frequently throughout the performance, and much of it was sparked by songs from 11 of his 13 studio albums. Early in the program, he played three songs in a row that have been staples in his live shows, but which were not hit songs. Introducing “The Entertainer” from 1974’s Streetlife Serenade, Joel said, “No one bought that album.” After “Zanzibar” from 1978’s 52nd Street, Joel spoke of soloing trumpeter Carl Fischer that “he’s actually a real jazz musician.” He then introduced “Vienna” from 1977’s The Stranger, by saying it was inspired by a visit to that city, where his brother, who was in the audience, is an orchestra conductor.
At the conclusion of “Vienna,” Jimmy Fallon unexpectedly appeared on stage while apologizing for interrupting the concert. He asked for a banner behind the stage to be unfurled. The blue banner read in white lettering, “Billy Joel: Most Lifetime Performances by Any Artist.”
“No one has done this,” Fallon began before asking for the banner to be hoisted into the area’s rafters. “We are here tonight witnessing this. We are part of history. Congratulations,” the late-night talk-show host said into the microphone. “I love you. New York City loves you. The world loves you. You’ve given us all great memories of being here. We’re actually getting to watch you live a memory. You’re never going to forget this night here.”
Photo by Rich Fury for MSG Entertainment
Fallon exited the stage, but was replaced by Joel’s two youngest daughters, eight-year-old Della Rose and six-year-old Remy Anne. They walked on stage together in matching dresses to join their dad for “My Life.” Remy sat on the piano wearing large headphones, waving to the audience and clapping a bit off-beat, even as Joel encouraged her to clap on the rhythm. (“On the two and the four, honey.”) Della, on the other hand, entertained the audience flamboyantly, dancing across the edge of the stage, mouthing all the lyrics and making hand and body gestures to accentuate the lyrics. “I guess it’s ‘Her Life’ now,” said Joel after Della’s performance.
Billy Joel and his band then returned to the regularly scheduled program, and as they have done in past concerts, the musicians launched into a snippet of the Rolling Stones’ “Start Me Up,” on which Joel joined briefly, then went into a string of fan favorites.
The singer-songwriter prefaced “An Innocent Man” by standing away from his piano and explaining that, when he wrote the song, he was not sure he would be able to hit its high notes as he aged (which he did). “New York State of Mind” and “Allentown” were dramatized with video images projected onto screens above the stage. Joel performed the romantic ballad “This Is the Time” at the request of his wife, Alexis Roderick; the song was accompanied by a kinetic collage of candid photos of his wife and daughters.
As “special guest” time began, Joel introduced Axl Rose. The Guns N’ Roses vocalist strolled onto the stage wearing sunglasses and a black sequined blazer before leading the band through “Live and Let Die,” the Wings song that he frequently covers in Guns N’ Roses, and “Highway to Hell,” which he sang nightly when he briefly replaced Brian Johnson on AC/DC’s 2016 tour. (The latter song became a duet with Joel rocking the piano keys.)
A series of even more fan favorites drew the concert to a faux conclusion, but fittingly ‘ending’ with “Piano Man.” He and his musicians returned for a nearly half-hour encore featuring five more hits. Rose also returned for the encore, tackling Joel’s “You May Be Right” and interjecting a snippet of Led Zeppelin’s “Rock and Roll.” (“Souvenir” was reportedly supposed to be the last song, but Joel walked off stage holding the hands of his daughters after “You May Be Right.”)
Surprisingly, Joel did not perform the one new song he recorded this year, “Turn the Lights Back On.” Joel’s output in the 21st century has been sparse, so the evening’s repertoire was grounded on his vintage catalog from the 1970s and 1980s. Throughout the concert, though, Joel sang those songs in strong voice. He shared endearing anecdotes with the fans between most and the musicians were as tight as could be. Overall, this close-out concert was a stellar performance.
“It’s been a dream come true,” said Joel, perhaps breaking some hearts with his goodbye-for-now. “We’ll be back,” he added.
True enough, Joel is not retiring from the road. While last Thursday marked the end of an era at the Garden, Joel will resume performing on August 9 in a stadium in Cardiff, Wales. Later in the year, he will headline stadiums across North America with either Rod Stewart or Sting. Who knows, but in time he may decide to return to Madison Square Garden for another decade or so. In the meantime, his name will be hanging from the Madison Square Garden rafters for “The Longest Time.”
Key Moments from the Billy Joel at Madison Square Garden
January 27, 2014: Billy Joel’s residency begins
March 21, 2014: AC/DC’s Brian Johnson joins Joel as first special guest of the residency
April 18, 2014: A string quartet comprised of first responders joined as special guest
May 9, 2014: Howard Stern and Jimmy Fallon join Joel as special guests in celebration of Joel’s 65th birthday
July 2, 2014: Gavin DeGraw joins Joel as a special guest
August 7, 2014: INXS and The Dead Daisies’ Jon Stevens joins Joel as a special guest
November 25, 2014: Sting and John Mellencamp join Joel as special guests
January 9, 2015: Joel breaks his own record of the “most consecutive performances by any artist” with the 13th show of the residency; a new banner is raised to the Garden’s rafters
March 9, 2015: Violinist Itzhak Perlman joins Joel as a special guest
April 3, 2015: Joel plays “Running on Ice” live for the first time since 1986
May 28, 2015: The Rascals’ Felix Cavaliere joins Joel as a special guest
June 20, 2015: Bon Jovi’s Richie Sambora joins Joel as a special guest
July 1, 2015: Joel breaks another MSG record for the “most lifetime performances by any artist,” for which a second banner is raised to the Garden’s rafters; comedian Kevin James joins Joel as a special guest and helps him raise the new banner
August 20, 2015: Violinist Itzhak Perlman joins Joel as a special guest
October 21, 2015: John Mayer and Steve Miller join Joel as special guests
November 19, 2015: Chick Corea (jazz pianist) joins Joel as a special guest
January 7, 2016: Jimmy Fallon joins Joel as a special guest
February 13, 2016: Musician and son of George Harrison, Dhani Harrison, joins Joel as a special guest
March 15, 2016: Violinist Itzhak Perlman joins Joel as a special guest
July 20, 2016: Tony Bennett joins Joel as a special guest
November 30, 2016: Julian Rachlin (violinist) joins Joel as a special guest
March 3, 2017: John Mellencamp and the Rascals’ Gene Cornish and Felix Cavaliere join Joel as special guests
September 30, 2017: Paul Simon and Miley Cyrus join Joel as special guests
December 20, 2017: Steve Miller joins Joel as a special guest
January 11, 2018: Foreigner’s Mick Jones and Lou Gramm join Joel as special guests
March 28, 2018: MSG celebrates 50th residency show; the New York Rangers’ Mark Messier presents Joel with 50th consecutive show banner onstage; comedian Jim Breuer joins Joel as a special guest
May 23, 2018: Gavin DeGraw joins Joel as a special guest
June 2, 2018: Joel’s daughter, Alexa Ray Joel, joins Joel as a special guest
July 18, 2018: To commemorate his 100th lifetime performance at MSG, then Governor Andrew M. Cuomo officially proclaims July 18, 2018 “Billy Joel Day” in the State of New York in honor of Joel’s extraordinary history of leadership and contributions to the music industry and New York State; Bruce Springsteen joins Joel as a special guest
October 27, 2018: Bryan Adams joins Joel as a special guest
November 10, 2018: Aerosmith’s Joe Perry and Elliott Murphy join Joel as special guests
January 24, 2019: Foreigner Mick Jones and Lou Gramm join Joel as special guests
March 21, 2019: John Fogerty joins Joel as a special guest
May 9, 2019: Joel’s daughters, Alexa Ray Joel and Della Rose Joel, and Peter Frampton join Joel as special guests in celebration of Joel’s 70th birthday; Paul McCartney, Don Henley, Garth Brooks, AC/DC’s Brian Johnson and P!nk wished Joel a happy birthday via surprise video message throughout the show
June 2, 2019: Def Leppard’s Joe Elliot joins Joel as a special guest
November 15, 2019: Joel’s daughter, Alexa Ray Joel, joins Joel as a special guest
January 25, 2020: Jon Bon Jovi joins Joel as a special guest
February 20, 2020: Violinist Itzhak Perlman joins Joel as a special guest; final show before COVID-19 pause
November 5, 2021: Joel returns to MSG for the first show following COVID-19 pause
June 10, 2022: MSG celebrates 80th residency show; the New York Rangers’ Adam Graves and Mike Richter present Joel with an 80th consecutive show banner onstage
August 24, 2022: Olivia Rodrigo joins Joel as a special guest
January 13, 2023: Joel’s daughter, Alexa Ray Joel, joins Joel as a special guest
April 25, 2023: ZZ Top’s Billy Gibbons joins Joel as a special guest
August 29, 2023: Kevin Bacon joins Joel as a special guest
December 19, 2023: Elvis Costello joins Joel as a special guest
March 28, 2024: 100th show; special guest Sting and Jerry Seinfeld raised the 100th banner
April 2024: Joel’s daughter, Alexa Ray Joel, joins Joel as a special guest
June 8, 2024: Phish’s Trey Anastasio joins Joel as a special guest
July 2024: Final show of the residency and Joel’s 150th lifetime concert; Jimmy Fallon joins Joel as a special guest and helps raise the new banner to the Garden’s rafters; Guns N’ Roses’ Axl Rose joins Joel as a special guest
Photos by Myrna Suarez
A/N: SiriusXM’s Billy Joel Channel is broadcasting the audio of the final Madison Square Garden concert multiple times until the channel ends its current run on August 15. The audio also is available for on-demand listening exclusively on the SiriusXM app until August 29.
Setlist
- Miami 2017 (Seen the Lights Go Out on Broadway)
- Pressure
- The Entertainer
- Zanzibar
- Vienna
- My Life (Beethoven’s “Ode to Joy” intro; with Della Rose Joel and Remy Anne Joel; miming by Della.)
- Start Me Up (The Rolling Stones cover, snippet)
- An Innocent Man
- The Downeaster “Alexa”
- Don’t Ask Me Why
- New York State of Mind
- Allentown
- This Is the Time
- Live and Let Die (Wings cover, with Axl Rose)
- Highway to Hell (AC/DC cover, with Axl Rose)
- Movin’ Out (Anthony’s Song)
- Only the Good Die Young
- The River of Dreams (with an interlude of Ike & Tina Turner’s rendition of “River Deep, Mountain High,” sung by Crystal Taliefero)
- Nessun dorma (Giacomo Puccini cover, sung by Mike DelGuidice)
- Scenes From an Italian Restaurant
- Piano Man (preceded with teases of “Oh! Susanna”, Joplin’s “The Entertainer” and “The Ballad of Billy the Kid”)
Encore
- We Didn’t Start the Fire
- Uptown Girl
- It’s Still Rock and Roll to Me
- Big Shot
- You May Be Right (with Axl Rose, with an interlude of Led Zeppelin’s “Rock and Roll”)
