“I Thought It Was Too Mushy”: Billy Joel Almost Axed This Hit From His Album—Until Linda Ronstadt Stepped In

Linda Ronstadt made sure Billy Joel didn’t axe “Just the Way You Are” from his album. During an interview with Rick Beato, Joel recalled how Ronstadt advocated for the song, which wound up on his 1997 album, The Stranger.

“It’s a nice soft ballad, love song. I didn’t even want to put it on the album because I thought it was too mushy,” Joel admitted. “And then we were in the studio.Linda Ronstadt and Phoebe Snow were in the studio, and we played the song for them. I said, ‘I don’t like this song that much.’”

“Linda Ronstadt goes, ‘Are you out of your mind? That’s a hit record. You got to put that on the album. That’s a great song.’ ‘Really?’” the singer continued. “She talked me into it. So I have to thank Linda Ronstadt for that song.”

Ronstadt wasn’t the only person to express their love for the song. In the HBO documentary Billy Joel: And So It Goes, Paul McCartney praised the track.

“When I first heard Billy, it was like ‘Oh, wait a minute. He’s good. Who’s this?’” McCartney said in the doc. “You know, like you do, your ears prick up. The song that really made me know that that was happening was ‘Just the Way You Are.’ And when I get asked, ‘Is there a song that you wish you’d written?’ that’s the one I always say.”

In his interview with Beato, Joel admitted that McCartney’s comments “blew me away.”

The Success of Billy Joe’s “Just the Way You Are”

Everyone was right about “Just the Way You Are.” It became Joel’s first U.S. Top 10 and U.K. Top 20 single. It was also Joel’s first Gold single in the U.S.

Then, at the Grammys, the song took home two awards: Record of the Year and Song of the Year. The trophies marked the first Grammys of Joel’s career.

He went on to win three more: Album of the Year and Best Male Pop Vocal performance for 52nd Street, and Best Male Rock Vocal Performance for Glass Houses.

Photo by Myrna M. Suarez/Getty Images