Almost five hours in length, the two-part look at the hard-to-pin-down artist flows effortlessly, making for a riveting watch even for those coming to it with little affection for his work.

And So It Goes recruits many of the title legend’s musician pals, from Bruce Springsteen and Sting to, surprisingly, Nas, who speaks to the way “Piano Man” still resonates. They all testify to Joel’s songwriting chops,

In an exclusive preview clip from the new HBO documentary “Billy Joel: And So It Goes” that aired July 18 on TODAY, the "Piano Man" explains how classical music shaped the songs he has made during his decadeslong career.

The post Billy Joel: And So It Goes Part 1 review — HBO pulls back curtain on the Piano Man appeared first on ClutchPoints.

A sprawling, worshipful documentary follows the singer-songwriter from his Long Island youth to the peak of his pop stardom and beyond.

At one point, [Billy] said to me, 'You going deep?' And I said, ‘Yeah, and you know you’re going to go deep too,'" the film’s co-director Susan Lacy says.

He didn’t see the film until it was finished, so he stuck by that, and we took that as permission to tell the real story about Billy Joel.”

I’ve long believed that the first hugely popular music you realize you hate is in many ways as important a discovery as the first music you realize you love. There’s something crucial and formative about the recognition that an artist whose music is beloved by millions makes your skin crawl,