Billy Joel Initially Planned To Have Different Singer For His New Song

Fans of Billy Joel are ecstatic as the singer-songwriter released his new single “Turn the Lights Back On” on Feb. 1, however, he recently admitted that he initially didn’t want to sing the song himself.

For the first time in 30 years, the “Piano Man” singer released new music. During his recent appearance on WBLM-FM with Herb Ivy, Joel recalled his conversation with Freddy Wexler, who co-wrote and produced the song. He told him “We should send it to Adele,” and continued:

“I was hellbent and determined not to [sing it].
“My whole agenda was I don’t care what you do, I’m not doing this.”

Although Wexler thought the song “would sound incredible,” if Adele had sung it, he proceeded to convince Joel to sing it. Wexler told Joel:

“Dude, you’ve got to get in that booth.”

The singer agreed and shared his reaction upon listening to the first take of the recording. He admitted:

“I did a performance of it, I came back into the control room and listened back. Now usually when I was recording, if I’d hear my recording back, I hated my voice.
“So the first thought I would have, ‘Oh my God, Billy Joel singing it. I don’t want to hear him.’ And I listened back and I didn’t hate it. And that’s maybe one of the first times that’s ever happened to me. ‘That’s actually not bad. I don’t hate the singer.’ And it was a complete turnaround for me.”

Billy Joel’s 2024 Tour Plans

Joel has a busy year ahead, including the final shows of his monthly residency at Madison Square Garden in New York City, concluding on July 25. Other highlights include headlining performances in Seattle and Denver, as well as co-headlining concerts with Stevie Nicks.

Adding to the musical festivities, Joel has planned two more co-headlining dates with Sting in 2024. Fans can catch them on October 25 at the Alamodome in San Antonio and on November 9 at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas. It’s worth noting that Allegiant Stadium is also hosting this year’s Super Bowl on February 11. Joel said:

“It’s an ending and a beginning.
“We’re ending our Garden run. And we’re here we are with a new recording, which I hadn’t even conceived of. So it’s interesting time right now.”