From: ds@westnet.westnet.com (Dirk Stanley)
Newsgroups: alt.music.billy-joel
Subject: BillyBoard Award
Date: 8 Dec 1994 00:47:37 -0500
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Did anyone else catch Billy on the Billboard awards tonight?!?!?!

AMAZING.

I was so happy I almost cried!

For those of you who missed it, Billboard magazine presented Billy with 
the century music award - Given to the best musician of the century. They 
first showed a very neat 3 minute video montage of his work - Including A 
LOT of OLD concert footage (I wish I knew where they got it - There was a 
VERY old film of Billy doing "The Entertainer", among other things...). 
As Heather Locklear put it, "His work is too vast to summarize here"... 
It then went through a whole slew of his stuff, right up through ROD...

THEN...

They went live, via satellite, to Melbourne, Australia, where TORI AMOS 
presented the award to Billy. She talked a bit about how, when she was 
starting to play in clubs, she was always asked to play Billy's music. 
She said Billy was a "mentor" to her, and was delighted to be there to 
present him with the award. 

THEN... 
 
 Billy took the award, and in his awesome, modest manner, said something 
to the effect of "Gosh, I can't believe I got this, considering the 
musicians this century has seen... Gershwin, Igor Stravinsky, ..." (and 
some other people - I forgot who.)

  He also mentioned how he was happy to be there with Tori, and said how 
he was happy that women were finally starting to make it into the rock 
world, which "used to be a male-oriented domain"... And he was especially 
happy that it was a piano player, at that.

  Finally, he said thanks, and said that it reaffirmed his belief that 
going into music as a career was the right decision. (Heck, *I* could 
have told him that!!) ;)

  I was so happy to see that. 
 
  AND THEN I WAS THINKING... Boy, if I approve of Billy dating anyone, it 
would be Tori Amos. I think she's sensitive, intelligent, and a good 
piano player. Wouldn't they be a cute couple? 

   So then the interview ended, and the show went back to Snoop Doggy Dogg.

   Watching the whole thing about Billy, though... It sorta made me aware 
of how important music is in my life. He's really incredible - His gift 
for song is so amazing. So I was so happy for him to win this awesome 
award - He totally deserves it. Man, almost 25 years on the scene - And 
still surviving. That's gotta say something. 
  


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               d/dx [ Dirk Stanley ] = [ ds@westnet.com ]^2
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