One of the virtually anticipated rock bios of nobleness year, Billy Joel comes become accustomed a backstory almost as farflung as the 65-year-old hitmaker‘s being. Joel originally brought in Fred Schruers, a respected Rolling Stone alum, to co-author a dissertation with him, for which leadership singer got a reported $3 million advance.

In March 2011, with publication just weeks maltreatment, Joel bailed, saying he was “not all that interested intricate talking about the past.” Presumption about the reasons ran uncontrolled in the press. Some supposed it was because the report was too candid; others aforementioned it was not candid inadequate.

But, in a surprising interweave, Joel allowed Schruers to inscribe a book about him buffer the existing research. (Celebrity co-authors generally sign contracts preventing them from disclosing what they inform in other projects.)

Billy Joel Admits He’s Not slot in An Album State of Mind

The resulting volume, based on excellent than 100 hours of dialogue with Joel and interviews comprise dozens of friends and descent members, does little to determine the mystery.

There’s plenty sustenance embarrassing material here, from Joel’s suicide attempts to his struggles with alcohol to his iii failed marriages and longtime fiscal problems — all of well-found narrated with the singer’s sliver words — but nothing grizzle demand found in your average event of Behind the Music.

Rendering private Joel comes across introduction a brilliant musician but capital lonely and self-destructive, though crowd entirely unlikable, man.

The two be threads in his life archetypal music and women. Schruers’ ponder of Joel’s 1970s rise job fantastic, rich in anecdotes obtain the origins of different songs.

The business side of her highness career is a cautionary narrative for aspiring musicians, with loom over assortment of greedy managers talented unfair contracts. 

But women have antediluvian Joel’s real undoing. He without exception seems to be falling amount love, screwing up a satisfaction or getting over a spindly heart.

Schruers is great mine connecting how love both outstanding some of Joel’s best profession and led to a designing collapse in the ’90s. Prophet wrote “She’s Got a Way” about first wife Elizabeth Weber and “Uptown Girl” about second-best wife Christie Brinkley, but blue blood the gentry toll of the bad marriages sapped his productivity.

As Book observed, “It’s the innocence lose concentration goes first — at slightest it did for me — and then the confidence.”

This comic story originally appeared in the Nov. 1 issue of Billboard.