The Piano Man was joined on stage Wednesday night by two very special ladies in his life.
During the December outing of Billy Joel’s monthly Madison Square Garden show, the hitmaker surprised the crowd with appearances from adult daughter Alexa Ray, 32, and her toddler sister, 3-year-old Della Rose.
Both were on hand for special reasons.
Alexa Ray, a musician in her own right, was there to sing — duetting with her dad on the holiday classic “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas.” She looked elegant in a black gown with gold details on the dress’ corseted bodice.
Della Rose, wearing pink Christmas pajamas with a Mrs. Claus design, popped in to also sing with her dad on her favorite song of his: “Don’t Ask Me Why.”
Billy’s wife Alexis and 13-month-old daughter Remy Anne were also on the scene, as was Alexa Ray’s beaming fiancé, Ryan J Gleason — all of whom cheered from the wings.
“We like to roll the family in [at Christmas],” Billy joked in video of Alexa’s performance posted online.
January will mark the fifth anniversary of Joel’s monthly MSG residency. It’s the first (and only) arena-sized residency in music history.
Since January 2014, every single show has been sold out. A slew of stars have joined Joel on stage, including Jimmy Fallon, Bruce Springsteen, John Mayer, Tony Bennett, Miley Cyrus, Bryan Adams, Paul Simon and Aerosmith’s Joe Perry (who showed up on Wednesday).
As a Long Island native, Joel’s music runs through the veins of those raised in the TriState area. Songs like “Big Shot,” “Movin’ Out,” “Only the Good Die Young,” “Scenes from an Italian Restaurant,” “Still Rock and Roll to Me,” “Uptown Girl,” “New York State of Mind,” “We Didn’t Start the Fire,” and of course, “Piano Man” typically have the crowd on their feet all night long, many singing along with Joel to every lyric.
They’re just some of the 33 Top 40 hits Joel had as a recording artist, all of which he wrote and three of which landed at No. 1 on the Billboard charts. The 23-time Grammy winner has sold over 150 million records worldwide, including 1985’s Greatest Hits Vol. 1 & 2 — which falls behind Michael Jackson’s Thriller and The Eagles Greatest Hits as the best-selling album in history.
Among his many accolades, Joel’s a member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, a Kennedy Center honoree, and a winner of The Library of Congress Gershwin Prize for Popular Song.
Back in July, Joel recalled his first show ever at MSG, which was on Dec. 14, 1978. “That was a milestone,” he remembered in an interview with Newsday. “If someone would have projected that I would do 100 shows there, I would have laughed at them. I’d say, ‘You’re being ridiculous.’ “
“The audiences are great,” he added. “The venue is great. It’s a world-class venue. To have a residency there is a dream already. I never imagined that anyone could have a residency at The Garden. We’re a franchise. We’re like a sports team. The whole thing has just been one crazy, exhilarating night after another.”
Tickets for Billy Joel at The Garden can be purchased here.
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