“Piano Man”
Adult Contemporary peak: No. 4, April 20, 1974
Here Are All of Billy Joel’s Adult Contemporary Top 10s, From ‘Piano Man’ to ‘Turn the Lights Back On’
Written by djfrosty on February 16, 2024
Billy Joel is back in the top 10 of Billboard’s Adult Contemporary chart (dated Feb. 24) as “Turn the Lights Back On” – his first single release in 17 years – rises to No. 10.
Joel achieves his 24th Adult Contemporary top 10 and first since his version of Bob Dylan’s “To Make You Feel My Love” hit No. 9 in August 1997.
Notably, Joel logs his latest Adult Contemporary top 10 a week shy of the 50th anniversary of his first appearance on the chart: On the list dated March 2, 1974, he debuted at No. 48 with his breakthrough classic “Piano Man,” which went on to become his first top 10, peaking at No. 4 that April.
Among Joel’s 24 Adult Contemporary top 10s, he has sent eight songs to No. 1, from “Just the Way You Are” in 1978 to “The River of Dreams” in 1993.
Following its release at 7 a.m. ET Feb. 1 on Columbia Records, “Turn the Lights Back On” debuted at No. 11 on the Adult Contemporary chart (dated Feb. 10) and held at the rank in its second week on the survey. As previously reported, the piano ballad, which Joel performed on the Grammy Awards Feb. 4, returned him to the Billboard Hot 100 (dated Feb. 17) for the first time as a recording artist since 1997.
The song’s official video arrived Feb. 16.
“Turn the Lights Back On” was written by Joel, Arthur Bacon, Wayne Hector and Freddy Wexler.
“I started the song with Arthur and Wayne,” Wexler told Billboard. “Billy and I met some time later in Sag Harbor, NY. We became close friends, and we started quietly working on his unfinished material from over the years. This period was about a year and a half during which Billy, unbeknownst to nearly anyone, started to dip his toe into writing again. I travelled with him to many of his shows and, eventually, I showed him ‘Turn the Lights Back On.’ He helped me finish it at a studio and, as I suspect he does with anything, he made it much better.”
Below (and mirroring the time-travel effects of his new video), browse all 24 of Joel’s Adult Contemporary top 10 hits.
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“Just the Way You Are”
Adult Contemporary peak: No. 1 (four weeks), beginning Jan. 7, 1978
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“She’s Always a Woman”
Adult Contemporary peak: No. 2, Oct. 28, 1978
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“My Life”
Adult Contemporary peak: No. 2, Dec. 16, 1978
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“Honesty”
Adult Contemporary peak: No. 9, May 26, 1979
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“Don’t Ask Me Why”
Adult Contemporary peak: No. 1 (two weeks), Sept. 6, 1980
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“She’s Got a Way”
Adult Contemporary peak: No. 4, Feb. 6, 1982
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“Tell Her About It”
Adult Contemporary peak: No. 1 (two weeks), Sept. 24, 1983
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“Uptown Girl”
Adult Contemporary peak: No. 2, Nov. 19, 1983
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“An Innocent Man”
Adult Contemporary peak: No. 1 (one week), March 3, 1984
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“The Longest Time”
Adult Contemporary peak: No. 1 (two weeks), May 19, 1984
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“Leave a Tender Moment Alone”
Adult Contemporary peak: No. 1 (two weeks), Sept. 8, 1984
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“Keeping the Faith”
Adult Contemporary peak: No. 3, March 9, 1985
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“You’re Only Human (Second Wind)”
Adult Contemporary peak: No. 2, Aug. 31, 1985
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“Modern Woman”
Adult Contemporary peak: No. 7, July 19, 1986
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“This Is the Time”
Adult Contemporary peak: No. 1 (three weeks), Jan. 10, 1987
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“Baby Grand,” feat. Ray Charles
Adult Contemporary peak: No. 3, May 9, 1987
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“We Didn’t Start the Fire”
Adult Contemporary peak: No. 5, Dec. 9, 1989
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“I Go to Extremes”
Adult Contemporary peak: No. 4, March 17, 1990
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“And So It Goes”
Adult Contemporary peak: No. 5, Sept. 8, 1990
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“The River of Dreams”
Adult Contemporary peak: No. 1 (12 weeks), Sept. 11, 1993
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“All About Soul”
Adult Contemporary peak: No. 6, Jan. 1, 1994
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“To Make You Feel My Love”
Adult Contemporary peak: No. 9, Aug. 30, 1997
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“Turn the Lights Back On”
Adult Contemporary peak: No. 10 (to date), Feb. 24, 2024