He was impersonating Barry Manilow singing the songs the young girls sing, and he was performing Neil Diamond so everyone could say hi to sweet Caroline, but then Jonathon Elgart got the chance he’d been waiting for a long, long time.
Billy Joel.
“Hey listen,” the tribute artist said, “People love their Manilow and their Neil Diamond, but Billy Joel? He’s been there our whole lives singing about forgetting about life for a very long while, ya know?”
And Elgart will bring his tribute show to Billy Joel to Undo’s West in St. Clairsville this Friday evening beginning with doors opening at 6 p.m., dinner at 7 p.m., and the show at 8 p.m.
“Barry Manilow was the first big start for a lot of people because his songs were about things we could relate to, but then Billy Joel came along and that was it for me. Billy Joel was my guy, and I think most people agreed back then because of the music,” Elgart explained. “Him on drums, and then his band. It was the full package and everything everyone wanted back in those days.
“The man could write and sing about anything through the years, and it was all so diverse that it reached out to many people in so many different genres of music. And the man always has been a monster piano player,” he said. “I started playing the piano when I was 3-and-a-half years old, and I know I’ve always wanted to be able to play just like him. Who wouldn’t?”
Elgart, a native of Boston who now bases his booking business out of Ocala, Fla., said that while he often travels with other tribute artists and musicians, he’s utilizing the local talents in the Upper Ohio Valley, including saxophone player Jon Banco and guitarist Gregg Molnar.
“I’ve been working with a company that books tribute artists like me, and for a while, I did Barry Manilow and Neil Diamond, and I love their music and it’s an honor to portray them, but I never thought I’d be able to do Billy Joel because there always was a guy doing him. But then he stopped doing it,” Elgart recalled. “When I was asked if I wanted to do it, I jumped at the chance.
“When I perform this weekend, I won’t have the band members I usually perform with because of scheduling, but we have collected a group of great local musicians who are terrific and very familiar with Billy Joel’s music. It’s going to be great,” he said. “And we’ll touch upon all of Billy Joel’s greatest hits. Trust me, if I had four hours, we could really get into the personality stuff, but for this show, we’re going to stick with the favorites because, of course, that’s what the people want to hear the most.”
During Joel’s Hall of Fame career, he’s released 13 studio albums, seven live records, 18 compilations, and 12 concert videos. His first platinum single, “She’s Got a Way,” was released in 1971, and his most recent original – “Turn the Lights Back On” – was introduced at this year’s Grammy Awards.
“Once again, Billy Joel proved to us that he’s always telling his story because he debuted something new at the Grammy Awards last month, and it was a terrific song,” Elgart said. “It’s called ‘Turn the Lights Back On,’ and the reaction has been tremendous, so there is a chance I might try to throw it into the show this Friday evening. It just means so much that he’s still writing and storytelling, so it’ll be just me and the piano and that new song.
“Billy Joel has been telling those stories since most of us were pretty young, and that’s why I’m going to do my best to hit on every one of his albums,” he said. “We know he’s lived his life just like we’ve lived ours, and he’s written about the loves of his life, the good and the bad, and the best and worst times. I think that’s why we love Billy Joel so much … we can relate to his songs as if they were ours.”
Those interested in purchasing tickets to “Streetlife Serenader: Tribute to Billy Joel” can still call 304-233-5566.
“If you’re a Billy Joel fan, this show will leave you singing his greatest songs,” Elgart added. “And that’s what it’s all about.”
