Billy is a boy born to entertain, but bad fortune and hard luck stop his every move. He plods on, singing here, playing there- does a stint in the army, but never does he accomplish what he wants. A bad accident happens, and from there he moves up. Money comes in- he marries his love, and off in another direction, makes his mark.

The all-access biography and unprecedented look at the life, career, and legacy of a pint-sized kid from Long Island who became a music legend. “A funny, revealing, and poignant look at [Billy] Joel’s long career.”—Boston Globe Exhibiting unparalleled intimate knowledge, Schruers chronicles Joel’s rise to the top of the charts, from his working-class origins in Levittown and early days spent in boxing rings and sweaty clubs to his monumental success in the seventies and eighties. He also explores Joel’s creative transformation in the nineties, his dream performance with Paul McCartney at Shea Stadium in 2008, and beyond. Along the way, Schruers reveals the stories behind all the key events and relationships—including Joel’s high-profile marriages and legal battles—that defined his path to stardom and inspired his signature songs, such as “Piano Man,” “Scenes from an Italian Restaurant,” “New York State of Mind,” and “She’s Always a Woman.” Throughout, he captures the spirit of a restless artist determined to break through by sharing, in his deeply personal lyrics, the dreams and heartbreaks of suburban American life. Comprehensive, vibrantly written, and filled with Joel’s memories and reflections—as well as those of the family, friends, and band members who have formed his inner circle, including Christie Brinkley, Alexa Ray Joel, Jon Small, and Steve Cohen—this is the definitive account of a beloved rock star’s epic American journey.

How big media uses technology and the law to lock down culture and control creativity. ""Free Culture is an entertaining and important look at the past and future of the cold war between the media industry and new technologies."" - Marc Andreessen, cofounder of Netscape. ""Free Culture goes beyond illuminating the catastrophe to our culture of increasing regulation to show examples of how we can make a different future. These new-style heroes and examples are rooted in the traditions of the founding fathers in ways that seem obvious after reading this book. Recommended reading to those trying to unravel the shrill hype around 'intellectual property.'"" - Brewster Kahle, founder of the Internet Archive. The web site for the book is http: //free-culture.cc/.

Two days are never the same in the life of Billy Cole, a music instrument repairman. Plans of scheduled clarinet overhaul are shuffled aside as a renowned artist walks through the door for an adjustment, a chat and tickets to that night's concert. Over the years, Billy has become a personal friend some of the top musicians in the industry.

Miscellaneous Percussion Music - Mixed Levels

IF YOU HAVE A UNITED STATES DELIVERY ADDRESS, and would like this book in hardcover (currently on sale in the US for only $9.44), visit: www.BillyShears.com/1.htm.Billy's Back shows how William Shepherd ("Billy Shears") replaced Paul McCartney in The Beatles, going from "Billy Pepper" of Billy Pepper and the Pepper Pots to "Sgt. Pepper" of Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band.Replacing Paul saved the Beatles, but plagued each band member. Now you will know the secret messages and see how to verify the proven facts. Besides many song and album clues that the experts have missed, you will also learn the hard physical evidence. Here are a few examples:Chapter 4 reveals how and why it was proven in court, in Germany, that Sir Paul does not have the same DNA as the earlier Paul McCartney.Chapter 34 identifies the professor in Florida who published the fact that the new and old Pauls have different voiceprints, proving that they are not the same person (since voiceprints are as unique as fingerprints).Chapter 59 recounts the trouble that Sir Paul got into in Japan when his fingerprints did not match those of the original Paul McCartney. Throughout the book, you will learn to easily recognize their distinct physical differences, their personality differences, and the differences in their singing and musical skills. You will also come to know the current Paul's inner-workings about how, even now, he deals with the identity-switch, and how he continues to work to please the Paul who has crossed over. The "Paul is Dead" story has been told before, but never so authoritatively, or with such details of how and why Paul prepared for it, how they made the switch, how and why William took over the band and the McCartney estate, and how the switch in the band improved The Beatles, but tormented them all, especially John and "Paul."When you know what really happened and why, you will never again doubt Paul's death and replacement by William. In addition, as you learn the background of the songs cited, you will never again hear those songs the same way. This book will forever change your perceptions of those songs and of Paul McCartney, John Lennon, The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, The Bonzo Dog Doo-Dah Band, Donovan, The Who, and Elton John--all of whom made songs about Paul's replacement.Billy's Back includes much of the material from The Memoirs of Billy Shears that the public most wants to know of Paul's death and replacement, along with many other fascinating details from The Memoirs, without the loftiest Beatles philosophical attainments (See Beatles Enlightenment www.BillyShears.com/2.htm), and without their darker aspects, such as their Paulism (only available in the unabridged Memoirs www.BillyShears.com/5.htm).Among the world and regional records set by The Memoirs, it includes the world's longest acrostic. You can read more about the hidden acrostical messages at www.billyshears.com/3.htmlThe Memoirs of Billy Shears, the first fully encoded full-length book, is also the first to create messages by word-stacking. On every page of the narrative, with over a thousand instances in all, words are arranged on separate lines to add extra meaning to that chapter. Word-stacking examples can be seen at www.billyshears.com/ws.htm.Along with the same formatting as in the Memoirs, those parts selected for inclusion in Billy's Back have the same encoding--including the same acrostical messages, word-stacking, and also the more subtle encoding. As you read how social engineers promoted The Beatles, and used them to alter world perceptions, Billy's Back will forever change your view, not only of Paul McCartney and The Beatles, but of the world.