A new interactive Billy Joel exhibit exploring his music, career, and roots in Long Island, New York will open at the Long Island Music and Entertainment Hall of Fame in Stony Brook on Friday, November 24.
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Called “Billy Joel – My Life, A Piano Man’s Journey,” the exhibit will feature a bevy of memorabilia items from throughout his life, many of which were donated by Joel from his personal archives. Among the items are awards, recordings, instruments, photos, videos, and much more.
[RELATED: Billy Joel Schedules 75th Birthday Concert at MSG, Second Co-Headlining Show with Sting]
According to a statement from Ernie Canadeo, chairman of the Long Island Music and Entertainment Hall of Fame, the exhibit has Joel’s approval. The Piano Man also was “involved in the planning.”
The exhibit was designed by Kevin O’Callaghan, creative director of the Long Island Hall of Fame, who shared a variety of details about the display at a press conference held this week. According to O’Callaghan, among the highlights are tributes to artists “Billy felt close to or felt … inspired by,” including Paul McCartney, Ray Charles, Otis Redding, and Beethoven.
There also will be a display devoted to The Beatles’ historic performance at Shea Stadium, which Joel considered the performance that changed his life, featuring a television playing footage of the show.
The exhibit also will feature a large TV playing classic music videos and other clips of Joel, photo op areas where visitors can take pictures of themselves with backdrops of various Joel album covers, and an interactive record shop where fans can play copies of vinyl LPs that the singer/songwriter listened to when he was growing up.
“There’s gonna be things for children to do, there’s gonna be events based around this exhibition that are gonna be happening,” O’Callaghan added during his presentation. “This is going to be a major thing. This is the Billy Joel dream come true.”
Tickets for “Billy Joel – My Life, A Piano Man’s Journey” are available now and can be purchased at LIMusicHallofFame.org.
In other news, Billy Joel has revealed the date of the next-to-last show that he will play as part of his long-running monthly residency at New York’s Madison Square Garden.
The new concert is scheduled for June 8, 2024, with tickets set to go on sale to the general public on Friday, October 27, at 10 a.m. ET via Ticketmaster.com. Pre-sale tickets can be purchased by Citi card members now. Tickets are also available on StubHub.
In June, Joel announced that his residency, which began in 2014, would end in July 2024. Joel’s other confirmed upcoming concerts at the arena are scheduled for November 22, December 19, January 11, February 9, March 28, April 26, and May 9. Visit BillyJoel.com to check out his full tour schedule.
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(Photo by Jason Kempin/Getty Images)
