Billy Joel : One Night Only In Australia (Review)

It all started on Monday 4 July 2022, when Billy Joel concert tickets, for his one and only show in Australia, was due to go on sale.

Tickets for his show to be held in Melbourne, 1,775.5 kilometres away from where I lived in Brisbane Australia. Tickets I’d die for!

I was determined to get one of those tickets regardless of the cost. One ticket was all I needed.

This was going to be a concert of a lifetime!

I was ready. I had my computer primed to access Ticketek’s website. Knowing it wasn’t going to be that easy, I also had my iPad primed and my iPhone too.

The hour hit and I had all three devices trying to access the site. Message after message flashed across each screen, telling me I couldn’t gain access. Each device telling me it would try again in ten seconds. Over and over again I received this message and I was beginning to panic. I wasn’t going to get a ticket!

Half an hour later, same message on my iPhone, my iPad and my computer. Try again.

Until finally my iPad connected. Yes!!!

I booked my ticket and $800 later, confirmation received that I was successful.

Yes, I was going to get to see Billy Joel live in concert!

Cinderella had her ticket for the ball!

I immediately booked my airfares and accommodation before everything booked out. I knew I wasn’t the only one that was going to be flying into Melbourne for this monumental date!

All booked and now all I could do was wait.

Living on tenterhooks every time I received an email from Qantas, telling me my flights had changed or even worse, one flight was cancelled but they did book me on another flight.

Then suddenly the day arrived. Saturday 10 December 2022.

My youngest son dropped me off at the airport and I was ready to board my plane.

As I still had a few minutes to wait, I decided to check Melbourne’s weather and was horrified to discover that it was going to hit a low of 7 degrees that night. I had not catered for this as it was summer in Australia.

A mad scouting of the airport and I finally found a black knit cardigan that would suit the cold weather. Astronomical pricing but better that than being cold. I don’t cope with cold weather all that well.

Finally, it was time to board, only to find that we were missing a passenger. Loud speakers were paging, both on the plane and in the airport, but this passenger was nowhere to be found. Unfortunately, as this passenger had already checked in their baggage and it had been loaded onto the plane, baggage handlers had to dig through the bowels of the plane to find and remove his bag.

This resulted in the entire plane being held up for 20 minutes but finally we were on the way and two hours ten minutes later, we landed in Melbourne Australia.

Hello Melbourne, Cinderella had arrived.

A taxi to my accommodation only to find my room wasn’t ready as yet. I decided to go for wander and explore this unknown city. The Hilton Melbourne on Little Queen (my hotel) was kind enough to hold my luggage and off I trekked.

What an exciting multicultural diverse city. I’m in the city centre and was tickled pink at the little roads, one way as they were only wide enough for single vehicles to travel through; the laneways where no vehicles were allowed, filled with tables and chairs outside restaurant after restaurant; every type of food catered for; people happily eating, chatting and just enjoying the Saturday afternoon.

The weather was a glorious 26 degrees Celsius. Perfect after the heat wave, 34 to 38 degrees Celsius, experienced in Brisbane over the last few days.

As I wandered along, I discovered a tiny Thai hairdresser, and on the spur of the moment, ducked in and asked if I could get my hair washed and blow dried.

Cinderella wanted to look her best for her ball!

Nothing was too much trouble and 30 minutes later I wandered out, happy with my hair, and trekked back to the hotel, where I checked in and headed up to my room.

And what a room!

The view out the window was nothing to write home about, but the room itself was sheer luxury. Right down to the terry towelling dressing gown and slippers supplied.

After unpacking, enjoying a luxury cup of coffee made in the Nespresso machine, and a shower, Cinderella donned her ball gown. In this instance, it was a pair of long pants, a sleeveless black silk shirt and my extravagantly priced cardigan.

Cinderella was finally ready to call up her stagecoach.

I headed downstairs, out the front door, and ordered an Uber ride.

This was my first time using Uber and my son had set up the app before I left home. That being said, I was nervous. I didn’t want any hiccups as tonight was extremely important to me.

As it turned out, ten minutes later, my Uber ride pulled up and we were on the way. I had the nicest driver, who gave me the rundown and tips on how to get home again after the concert. His best tip was to walk at least 500 metres from the venue prior to ordering an Uber home. This was so the Uber driver would be able to find me and it would be cheaper.

Okay got it. I’m all set and I’m dropped off one block away from the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG).

Wow, I was not prepared for the size of the venue. It was ginormous!

Cinderella had arrived!

Being a VIP ticket holder, I found the tent that was holding my Billy Joel merchandise included in my ticket price. I had no idea what that merchandise would be but soon discovered a beautiful carry bag, featuring the man himself on the front, holding a gorgeous commemorative book full of photos and information, a lanyard with my VIP badge I placed around my neck and other glorious goodies.

Now to find the right gate and my seat in this massive venue.

People everywhere, it was sheer chaos but I finally found Gate 2, cattle corralled inside, purchased a couple bottles of water, and headed down onto the stadium floor to find my seat.

Holy Shit……excuse my French. My seat, my awesome seat, was right in front of the stage and eight rows back. Wow what a view!

Within 15 minutes the support act walked out onto the stage and imagine my surprise to discover it was none other than Tina Arena.

Wow……I remember watching Tina on Young Talent Time, a weekly television show, that discovered awesome Australian talented children……….fifty years ago!

For the next hour, Tina wowed the audience. She has always been a very talented lady.

At 8pm, Tina thanked the audience and sang her last song, before vacating the stage.

Now the wait for the main event, the man himself, Billy Joel.

A quick changeover of musical equipment on the stage and suddenly the lights dimmed as we held our breath.

Then to much cheering and screaming from the 71,500 people in the audience, Billy Joel graced us with his presence and the sound of his voice echoed throughout the entire stadium.

Billy Joel had arrived!

For the next 2.5 hours, this phenomenally talented human being, sang his greatest hits and his ‘album tracks’ as he called the songs that never became hits in his eyes.

Billy’s sense of humour tinted the stories he told between songs and as he explained it to us, ‘Album tracks’ to him are those songs that disappointedly didn’t jump the music charts.

Funnily enough though, to the audience, who knew every word of those songs, they were hits and much loved ‘album tracks’.

For a man of 73 years young, he is still an epic entertainer, and his voice had those 71,500 people clapping, cheering, screaming and singing along.

He is still ‘The Entertainer’ that we have loved for over fifty years.

The 26 songs that we heard that night, were all our old favourites, those songs that carried the heart and soul of one of the greatest entertainers of all times.

Songs such as; Piano Man, Movin’ Out, Only The Good Die Young, She’s Always a Woman, It’s Still Rock and Roll To Me, You May Be Right, Don’t Ask Me Why, The Longest Time, River of Dreams, Sometimes a Fantasy, and my all time favourite; Uptown Girl……just to name a few.

What a night!!!

71,500 people — 42% like me, flying in from other Australian states and I don’t believe there was a quiet voice in the house. The crowd roared, danced, sang and some even cried.

It was a night we will never, ever, forget!

And after 2.5 hours, Billy Joel, totally exhausted, left the stage and the magical night was over.

Now it was time to head out and with that many people in the arena, it was chaos.

As tipped by my Uber driver on the ride there, I walked for 20 minutes before attempting to book an Uber ride back to the hotel. With that many people in the area, I expected it to be busy but what I didn’t expect was the dishevel of Uber and their terrible service!

I booked an Uber, a driver accepted the booking and then after waiting for ten minutes, the driver cancelled my booking.

WTF!!!

I booked another Uber, again it was accepted, the driver 540 metres away and then suddenly the driver cancelled.

Not having used Uber before that night, I was confused. I didn’t understand. Why would a driver accept the booking, make a person wait, and then cancel it?

That shouldn’t be allowed and in fact the driver should be penalised in my eyes. Morally it should be wrong!!!

Again I booked a driver, again it was accepted, I was made to wait 15 minutes and then again it was cancelled.

In the end, after the tenth Uber driver accepted, made me wait, and then cancelled, I gave up, totally disgusted in the service of Uber and its drivers!!!

I then walked the 3.2 kilometres back to my hotel. 3.2 kilometres of uphill, dark laneways, where I come across some scary individuals skulking in the shadows, to finally arrive at my hotel.

I headed up to my room, exhausted, only to find that I had no power in my room. After much ado, the hotel staff reconnected my room to the power and I climbed into bed.

Even with the terrible Uber service, the power hiccup to my room, I still climbed into bed one happy princess, who’d had the time of her life, watching an iconically fantastic entertainer wow Australia, in one of the best performances I’ve ever had the luck to attend.

Billy Joel ……… you rock!!!

And with that, Cinderella slept the night of the dead. Happy, exhausted and ecstatic at her glorious night at the metaphorical ball.

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Originally posted on Medium