A Biography On The Life & Times of Billy Joel (Bite Sized Biographies Book 1) by Christy Branson

Author:Christy Branson [Branson, Christy]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Good Living Publishing
Published: 2014-12-10T18:30:00+00:00

Life Goes On

Because of the financial issues brought about by his former brother-in-law and manager, Billy was forced to tour constantly. He continued to record as well. The strain took its toll on Billy. In 1993, Billy played a show at Nassau Coliseum and decided to get a hotel room for the night instead of going home with Christie. Rumors that Billy cheated on his wife that night got back to Christie, and their marriage ended in a divorce on August 24, 1994. The divorce ushered in a period of nearly two decades where Billy wrote and recorded almost nothing new. The old demons of depression and alcohol were reborn as Billy tried to cope with his changed circumstances.

As the millennium came to an end, Billy was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. He then announced that he was going to stop touring, and his New Year’s Eve concert in Madison Square Garden was likely to be his last. A year later Billy released an album of classical piano works, but the turmoil in his life continued to escalate, despite the end of his tours.

Between 2002 and 2005, Billy was involved in a series of car accidents and went in and out of treatment in Connecticut and at Betty Ford Center for his depression and substance abuse. Billy also claimed that his depression worsened after the 9/11 attacks, which accelerated his downhill slide. In 2002, Billy was involved in a car accident in East Hampton, and a year later he smashed into a tree on Long Island. The third accident occurred in April 2004 in Bayville, New York, when his classic 1967 Citroen slid off a slick road and crashed into a home. The 94-year-old woman who owned the house was not there, and Billy was lucky. He walked away with no injuries other than a small cut on one of his fingers.

Amid his personal troubles, Billy married his third wife, Katie Lee, on October 2, 2004. Katie was 23 years old, and Billy was 55. Christie and Billy remained friendly after their divorce; she even attended Billy’s wedding and gave her blessing to the couple while their daughter Alexa Ray served as the maid-of-honor. The marriage may have played a role in Billy resuming his touring in 2006, but the union ended in divorce almost five years later.

In 2009, the ghost of past financial issues returned when his former drummer, Liberty DeVitto, sued Billy and Sony Music for a decade’s worth of royalty payments and credit on Billy’s songs. The lawsuit was settled between Billy and Liberty under friendly but undisclosed terms.

Life continues on for Billy. He continues to do performances around the world, but not to the degree he once did. His newest song, “Christmas in Fallujah”, was released in 2007 and performed by Cass Dillon as a tribute to those serving in Iraq. Billy recorded his own version of the song a year later. He also performed at the 12-12-12-benefit concert for Super Storm Sandy victims, a cause close to Billy’s heart given his life on Long Island.

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