Billy Joel wants nothing more than to get back onstage. Whether he can is still an open question.
“I have to take a series of tests before I know,” he tells The Hollywood Reporter. “I can’t drive right now. I’m not allowed to drive.”
Joel is speaking ahead of a Gooding Christie’s auction of more than 70 motorcycles from his personal collection, a decision he attributes both to getting older and to hydrocephalus, the condition that has affected his balance.
His doctors have also advised him against performing for now, he says.
“What the neurologist told me, every time you do a show, it’s like you’re getting a concussion,” Joel says. He describes the combination of extreme sound volume, lighting, stress and energy as the concern. Further testing, he adds, will help determine whether he can return.
For now, he is preparing to part with bikes he accumulated over decades of riding.
Gooding Christie’s will offer the collection without reserve at its Rétromobile New York auction Nov. 20–21 at the Javits Center.
Among the lots is a custom 1978 Triumph Bonneville T140 given to him by Madison Square Garden to commemorate his 150th sold-out show at the venue. Joel intends to use proceeds from the sale to support the Joel Foundation.
He has little patience, however, for the idea that these were merely trophies.
“I was not a collector,” he says. “I was actually a rider.”
Why are you selling your motorcycle collection?
Well, I ended up having over a hundred motorcycles, and the truth is you can only ride one at a time. I’m into my 70s now, and I realized I can’t ride as much as I used to. I don’t want to die like a bug on a windshield. So I thought I’d put a lot of them on auction.
And also I have a condition called hydrocephalus, which makes driving a little bit iffy. So I realized it’s time for me to turn it over to somebody else.
I love motorcycles. I love biking. I love driving. I love the anonymity of it. And I love the customization of these bikes, the modifications, the messing around with things. I was not a collector. I was actually a rider. So I figured it was just time to let it go.
I’ve read that riding helps you write songs. Is that true?
Well, yeah. I mean, everything helps me to write songs. But I wrote a song called, I think it’s called “You May Be Right,” where I said I even rode my motorcycle in the rain, which people from England would go, “Yeah, so what?”
But I think people assumed he was drunk or something and he rode his bike when he was drinking. I never did anything like that. Never. I’ve always tried to be a safe driver, but I love motorcycling.
The “Uptown Girl” video ends with you taking Christie Brinkley away on a motorcycle. Is that one up for sale?
No, that wasn’t even my bike. I think that was an old Harley Davidson or something. I’m not necessarily a Harley enthusiast. I know everybody in America loves Harleys, but everybody assumes if you ride a motorcycle, it’s a Harley, but it’s not.
So what do you like?
I like all of them. I like Japanese bikes. I like Italian bikes. I like English bikes. I like American bikes. I like Asian bikes. I like them all.
Which is the crown jewel that’s hardest to let go of?
My crown jewel is a Moto Guzzi California Vintage 1100.
What’s the estimated value of that?
I don’t have a goddamn clue. I bought it back in 2007 or something. I don’t remember what it cost. They’re great bikes. Moto Guzzis are great.
I hadn’t thought about the anonymity. You have a helmet on, and no one knows it’s Billy Joel driving right next to them.
That is correct. That’s one of the things I love about riding a motorcycle. You have the helmet on; you got goggles on. Nobody knows who you are. Just another schmuck on a motorcycle.
Have you had any accidents?
Oh yeah, I’ve had an accident. This was back in 1982. I was on Long Island. I was driving down a main road and the light was red for me, but then the light turned green, and then a woman on the right side on the cross street ran her red light, and I smashed my bike into her car. I broke both hands and I injured my leg and went flying over her car. But I had a helmet on, I had boots and gloves.
I dragged the bike out, brought it to a sidewalk. I sat down on the corner, and a policeman comes and he goes, “Can I have your license?” And I said, “Can you get it out of my back pocket because I can’t get it?” So he pulls my wallet out and he sees my license, and he says to the woman who ran the red light, “Hey lady, you just had an accident with Billy Joel.”
So eventually I got a lawsuit notice. She sued me after she ran the red light. I turned around and I said, “Fuck you.” It’s typical of what happens to motorcyclists. Car drivers are not all that great about watching out for motorcyclists.
Did the accident leave you with lasting damage to your hands?
I still have no bone in my left thumb. And my right arm, the wrist got pulled out of its socket on my right hand, and my left hand got smashed and my leg got broken.
Did you have to relearn how to play?
No, I was never that good to begin with.
How’s your health now?
Well, my health is good. I have this thing called hydrocephalus. It used to be called water on the brain, so it affects your balance, it affects your memory, it affects your vision, your hearing. But I’m OK. They call it a brain disorder, but it’s not that serious. It’s just something that affects your balance mostly.
Are you going to be able to tour again?
I don’t know. I have to take a series of tests before I know, but I can’t drive right now. I’m not allowed to drive. And I can’t do performances because what the neurologist told me, every time you do a show, it’s like you’re getting a concussion.
What is it about performing that causes that?
The volume. Rock and roll is loud, man. Rock and roll made me deaf already. So it’s the lighting, the sound, the stress of the show, the audience, the energy of the performance. There’s a lot going on when you’re onstage. And they said, “Well, you really shouldn’t be doing that right now.” So they have to test me further to see if I can go back and do performing again, which I would like to be able to do.