It took a long time to arrive, like all good things: Billy Joelone of the most important and highest-grossing figures in the music industry, will return to the ring next almost two decades of silence regarding musical news.
According to a press release on their social networks, a new song will be released in February, “a classic song in the style of Billy Joel”, which will reflect “his identity and his signature sound” and, without a doubt, will mark a new chapter in his pop history.
The lyrics of the song ask, “Have I waited too long to turn the lights back on?” The song icon has announced that the new single will be called Turn the lights back on.
Author of hits such as The man with the piano, polished and active 74 year old, Joel has already given some hints about his new material. He did so during a presentation at Madison Square Garden in December last year.
Billy Joel lives in Las Vegas in 2003.“I have good news and bad news,” the six-time Grammy winner told the crowd. “First of all I’ll give you the bad news. We have nothing new to play for you. The good news is that you don’t have to listen to something you don’t know what it is. Although we have something we’re working on that you might hear about sometime.
Why did it take so long?
Except for a classical music album called Fantasies and disappointmentsof 2001, Billy Joel hasn’t released a new album since then river of dreams in 1993.
His latest single was all my life in 2007, and before that he had only made three covers to add as rarities to the compilation Greatest Hits Vol. 3.
Since then, the musician he put all his energy into playing live and establish lengthy “residencies” in Las Vegas or New York, where he has performed in a series at Madison Square Garden that will conclude in July of this year, when he will perform his 100th performance.
In all these years without releasing new songs, even Billy Joel He had several hospitalizations for depression and alcoholism.
Details of the new song
Turn the lights back on is produced and co-written by Freddy Wrexler, who has credits on hits by artists such as Celine Dion, Ariana Grande, Selena Gomez, Justin Bieber AND Kanye West.
Billy Joel in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Photo: APColumbia Records will release the single on streaming platforms on February 1st, accompanied by a limited edition vinyl. There is no news yet on the new album.
“I don’t rule out the possibility of writing songs again,” he told Billboard magazine in 2007, a few months after the release of all my life.
“I guess,” he added, “if I had the motivation to write a song, I wouldn’t stop doing it. I just didn’t feel the need to write songs in pop format. I guess I consider myself a songwriter nowadays.” Things change, people change. It changes and the world continues to turn.
A successful career
Joel successfully navigated the 70s, 80s and 90s. He has sold approximately 100 million records worldwide. and is considered the sixth best-selling artist in the United States. His name has been in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame since 1999.
Billy Joel at Carnegie Hall theater, during a performance to benefit the Rainforest Foundation Fund, in 2006. Photo: APDuring his more than 40-year career, he left behind several songs that have become indestructible hits, including Uptown girlthe aforementioned piano man, Vienna OR We didn’t start the fire.
Billy Joel, according to specialized critics, “remains one of the most influential artists of all time and a generational storyteller”.
Source: Clarin
