Rock icon joins Billy Joel on stage for surprising cover of AC/DC song
By Lee Vowell
Billy Joel is pretty fantastic live. One might not be so sure anymore as Joel has had some issues - mostly when it comes to driving - over the recent years so expecting too much from Joel now compared to 30 years ago might be expecting too much. Instead, gosh darn it, the guy still comes through with excellence time and time again.
On the final night of his run of shows at Madison Square Garden this week, though, Joel asked - and got - a little help from an old friend. The oddness comes in that one should assume the piano man and Axl Rose are actually chums because this week was not the first time they worked together. If you don't like someone, you might opt-out after meeting them once.
In 2017, Joel and Rose collaborated on AC/DC's "Highway to Hell" and that turned out to be brilliant. Why not try it again, Joel must have asked Rose. The answer must have been, "OK," because there Rose was again this week at the Garden taking the lead on the AC/DC tune while Joel joined in on his...guitar.
Axl Rose joins Billy Joel onstage to do a bit of AC/DC
To be fair, Joel did not play the solo but simply played rhythm. Nothing wrong with that. He isn't known for being the best guitarist ever. Fans rarely see him play the instrument. Joel and Rose fans also rarely, and possibly never again, get to see Joel play rhythm guitar on an AC/DC song while Axl Rose sings (the two also did Wings' "Live and Let Die"). Entertaining it certainly was and you can see it by...clicking...right...here.
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Rose actually stood in for AC/DC vocalist Brian Johnson for a couple of shows in 2016 when Johnson was dealing with some hearing issues. Only recently has Johnson returned. Rose has the same kind of tone as Johnson, but when he performs AC/DC, he isn't doing Johnson, of course. He doesn't have to. Rose is an icon in his own right.
As far as Billy Joel is concerned, he is done with his Madison Square Garden shows but he will do a series of gigs with Sting in the fall in the United States. It must be good to have talented friends in high places.
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