Billy Joel revealed in a recent interview with Access Hollywood’s Scott Evans at the 66th annual Grammy Awards that a fan played a pivotal role in persuading him back into the studio to record a new song after nearly three decades.
The musician shared the story behind his latest track, ‘Turn the Lights Back On,’ explaining:
“I met some guy who I was told, ‘This guy wants to meet you. He’s a fan.’ So I thought, ‘Okay, I’ll talk to him for a couple minutes. That’ll be the end of that.’ We ended up becoming friends, and he talked me into going into the studio, working on a new song blah blah blah. He’s right here. Freddy Wexler, the guy with the camera right there.”
From Reluctance To Realization
When asked to detail how their conversation went, Joel continued:
“It went very well. He knows what he’s doing. He knew what he was talking about. Okay, I was still reluctant to go and start the whole thing again, but after about a year and a half, it all came together.”
Written alongside Arthur Bacon, Wayne Hector, and producer Freddy Wexler—who has worked with notable artists like Ariana Grande, Selena Gomez, and Post Malone—this track was also accompanied by a lyric video. The song saw a special release on limited-edition 7-inch vinyl, with Joel performing it live at the Grammy Awards.
Overcoming The Torment Of Songwriting
Joel’s journey back to songwriting was not without its challenges. In a new interview with WBLM-FM, he discussed his long hiatus from creating new songs with the following words:
“I had not wanted to do it. Because it was all my life. When I was writing songs, I was doing this by myself. And it’s a very lonely job. And the job started to become torment. If it wasn’t as good as I wanted it to be, I would tear myself to shreds.”
Despite the urging of friends, colleagues, and even industry giants like Rick Rubin, Clive Davis, and Elton John, Joel remained hesitant to dive back into recording—until now.
You can watch his Access Hollywood interview below.
