Sing us a music, piano man.
The brand new documentary “Billy Joel: And So It Goes” covers the life and profession of the legendary musician, 76, that includes interviews with Joel, relations, his ex-wife Christie Brinkley, and fellow trade heavyweights akin to Bruce Springsteen and Paul McCartney.
“I asked [Joel] … at the very beginning – if there were any sensitive areas. Not that I would have necessarily stayed away from them, but I wanted to know what they were,” co-director Susan Lacy solely informed The Submit. “And his answer to that was, ‘tell the truth. That’s the only way to go.”
She defined that whereas probing into the “Vienna” singer’s life, “nothing was off limits.”
“He didn’t see the film until it was finished, so he stuck by that,” Lacy defined. “And we took that as permission to tell the real story about Billy Joel.”
In truth, the “Uptown Girl” crooner had no editorial management over the movie.
“I think it was courageous of him to give us that carte blanche and trust in us to tell that story – because not everybody would do that,” co-director Jessica Levin informed The Submit. “I think he realized, ‘I need to do my part, and try to go places where it might not be 100 comfortable for me.’”
The movie covers subjects akin to Joel’s suicide try in his twenties, after he had an affair along with his good friend’s spouse – Elizabeth Weber, who would change into Joel’s first spouse from 1973 to 1982.
Joel then went on to marry Brinkley, 71, from 1985 to 1994, with whom he shares daughter Alexa Ray Joel, 39; Katie Lee from 2004 to 2009, and he tied the knot along with his present spouse, Alexis Roderick, in 2015. The 2 share daughters Della Rose, 9, and Remy Anne, 7.
Within the documentary, Joel sounds matter of reality about his try to take his personal life.
“It was a long time ago. He was young, and he was heartbroken. He felt quite lost at that point,” Lacy stated. “There were a lot of emotional elements going on. He just didn’t know which way to turn.”
Levin chimed in: “I think it’s important that it’s not that he doesn’t take suicide and depression seriously. He certainly takes those topics seriously. But for him, it was a very early moment in his career….Honestly, Billy is kind of a matter of fact guy and he’s a guy that does try to build and move on.”
After he noticed the completed documentary, Joel wrote Lacy a observe.
“He thanked me for so masterfully connecting the dots of his life and said that he now knew why he did what he did.”
“There’s a real dichotomy with Billy – a man who put his life out there in his lyrics, but he doesn’t believe in self-examination particularly….He put it in his music. And that saved his life,” she went on. “He used music to cope with his life and to express his life and to what was going on. But I don’t think he ever stood back and went, ‘let’s see how these dots connect with each other.’ And that’s what we did in this film.”
In Could, Joel revealed that he’s been recognized with regular strain hydrocephalus, a dysfunction that occurs when cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) builds up contained in the cranium and presses on the mind, disrupting cognitive functioning.
Amid his well being battle, he skipped the June premiere of “Billy Joel: And So It Goes” at Tribeca Movie Pageant.
Lacy stated his well being points didn’t affect the mission as a result of it occurred after they completed filming.
“I think he’s working on recovering, and he’s resilient. He’s a fighter.”
Apart from being a nod to certainly one of his songs, the doc title “And So It Goes” encapsulates Joel’s way of living.
“Which is, and, so it goes. ‘I’m going to move on [from setbacks] and I’m not finished yet.’ And here he is today, with this incredibly strong woman as his wife and these beautiful daughters,” Levin informed The Submit. “It’s important to him to stay around as long as he can for his children and his family. He cares deeply about that. He is the ultimate romantic.”
“Billy Joel: And So It Goes” Half One premieres on HBO Max on Friday, July 18 at 8 p.m. ET, adopted by Half Two on Friday, July 25.
