Billy Joel announces first new song in decades, ‘Turn the Lights Back On’

Billy Joel has announced the forthcoming release of his first single in decades, “Turn the Lights Back On”.

The Grammy-winning musician, 74, will release the song on Thursday 1 February to all major streaming platforms, as well as on a limited edition 7” vinyl.

The track, which was produced by Freddy Wexler and written by him, Joel, Arthur Bacon and Wayne Hector, will also be accompanied by a lyric video shared to the “Piano Man” star’s official YouTube channel.

Joel, who was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1999, first hinted that he was planning on releasing new music on TikTok, after making his debut on the social media platform.

In a press release from his label, Columbia Records, the song is said to contain the “hallmarks of his signature sound”, with lyrics including the question: “Did I wait to long… to turn the lights back on?”

Joel is one of the biggest-selling artists of all time, but has not released any new music since 2007, when he shared original song “All My Life”. He also wrote “Christmas in Fallujah”, which was recorded by singer-songwriter Cass Dillon.

His last album, 1993’s River of Dreams, marked its 30th anniversary last year.

However, he has continued to perform live, and is due to play shows including New York’s Madison Square Garden over the coming months. He was one of the headliners at British Summer Time festival 2023 at Hyde Park in London.

He has also been spotted at performances by his fellow artists, including Taylor Swift’s record-breaking Eras tour.

Joel told People that he attended the show along with his wife, Alexis Roderick, and their two daughters, Della Rose, eight, and Remy Anne, six.

“Oh, she’s great. She’s really very good,” Joel told the publication during the Long Island Music and Entertainment Hall of Fame in November. “We’re going to probably go see her again.”

Joel also shared photos of him and his family at Swift’s concert in Tampa, Florida, to his Instagram page, which showed the girls dressed in Swift-inspired outfits, and dancing along to her performance of “Are You Ready For It”. They later got to meet Swift backstage after the gig.

“Rockin’ into our new ‘era’ thank you @Taylorswift we loved the show! #swifties #taylorswift #theerastour,” Joel captioned the images.