Billy Joel’s early life and musical development were greatly influenced by his parents, Howard Joel and Rosalind Nyman.
Born into a Jewish family in Germany, his father Howard, a businessman and classical musician, fled to the United States to avoid Nazi persecution.
Billy later credited him for teaching him to classical music, despite the fact that dad left the family while Billy was still a little child.m
In contrast, Billy and his sister were reared in Long Island, New York, by Rosalind, a strong-willed woman of English-Jewish heritage.
She supported his musical abilities despite his financial difficulties, purchasing his first piano when he was four years old. Joel was greatly impacted by their divorce, which served as the inspiration for songs like “Piano Man” and “Always a Woman.”
