Spotted: Billy Joel in Nashville

Posted February 7th, 2013 at 8:25 pm (UTC+0)
6 comments

By Katherine Cole

Except for his powerful performance during the  Hurricane Sandy benefit concert last December, we haven’t had a lot of  Billy Joel spottings the past few years.

But that might be changing. He’s on the lineup of the New Orleans JazzFest this spring and just last week thrilled a crowd at Nashville’s Vanderbilt University when he took part in ” what was billed as An Evening of Questions and Answers and a Little Bit of Music.”  Open only to a thousand lucky students and faculty members, the event provided the thrill of a lifetime to an 18 year-old freshman from Rosyln, NY,  Michael Pollack.  According to a story in the Nashville Tennessean, Pollack  made a pact with his roommate  that if the Joel called on either of them during his Q-andA, they’d ask to come up on stage and perform with him.  What happened next? The Tennessean has this video (as long as you’re not squeamish about a few of the astonished expletives coming from the crowd).

Host of VOA's Roots and Branches, and world traveler extraordinaire! When I'm not listening to music, I'm probably talking about it or thinking about the next band I'm going to see. Or my next interview! Join me every week for the best in folk, bluegrass and all other forms of American roots music!

6 responses to “Spotted: Billy Joel in Nashville”

  1. Mona says:

    Way to go, Michael!
    Isn’t great that Billy Joel could improvise and let an 18 year old shine.

  2. Dana says:

    What a treat! I’ve always had a soft spot for Billy Joel.

  3. If only all the “stars” were so generous!

  4. karen says:

    this is awesome! it reignited my love for billy joel. how wonderful that he made that kid’s dream come true. thanks for posting, KC!

  5. Kate says:

    ‘he’s got chops!’…I love that Billy Joel was so generous to this obviously talented kid; the kind of human generosity that makes me cry. Wonderful post.

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VOA’s music bloggers bring you info about all kinds of music. Katherine Cole will keep you up-to-date on the world of Bluegrass and Americana music while Ray McDonald rocks the Pop charts and artists. Diaa Bekheet  jams with you on Jazz.  Visit us often. Your comments are welcome.

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