The Billy Joel song that almost caused a train crash

When you think about it, Joel’s ode to the Big Apple is one of his more complex songs to become a hit. Aside from Joel’s incredible piano intro, much of the piece goes through various twists and turns with the chord progression, which becomes especially challenging when the tempo starts to change, almost as if Joel is playing with the rhythm to match the meter of what he’s singing.

There were certainly songs that appealed more to the masses, but when you have a song that mentions New York in the title and captures the spirit of life in Manhattan, there’s no question it’s going to do well in “The City That Never Sleeps.” So when Joel played some of the last shows at Shea Stadium, there was no question the song had to be somewhere in the setlist.

When Bennett performed, it was the kind of performance that even the fans’ grandmothers could love. Even though younger listeners are new to his collaborations with Lady Gaga, Bennett’s track record of standards over the years was one of his greatest strengths. When they reached the end of the song and everything seemed completely wrapped up, Joel remembers everyone getting nervous when Bennett started to go off script in the middle of the outro.

After some back and forth, Joel remembered that Bennett was doing his own thing and told Stephen Colbert, “When we get to the live show, we say, ‘I’m in New York…’ and (he says), ‘New York, New York, the greatest city in the world. You’re the best city, the best people.’ And we sat there and thought, ‘Where is he going? Just follow Tony.’ Tony does what he wants and that’s where he’s going, so just follow Tony and we came out fine.”

Then again, that kind of chemistry only comes when bands have been playing together for years, and Joel has practically turned his backing band into a behind-the-scenes machine. Even outside of his traditional soft-rock circles, Joel’s group has won the respect of other rock legends, who recall being put through their paces when they saw him live on his last tours.

But that’s the kind of magic that makes every live show work. It’s one thing to belt out a song that everyone loves, but the little moments where everything seems to hang in the air are what always keep people hooked.

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