Review of The 100th: Billy Joel at Madison Square Garden - The Greatest Arena Run of All Time

No other reviews here for this televised special? That seems surprising, although this was filmed just two weeks ago as I write this. Billy Joel's performance at Madison Square Garden was captured in this, his one hundredth appearance at the fabled arena in a residency that has spanned eight years and counting. The concert was done in the round, and I have to say, as Joel begins his first song in a darkened arena and the bright lights of the Garden illuminate the entire place, the feeling was electric sitting at home and catching it on the Paramount Plus platform. The show is interspersed with comments from Joel and some of the musicians performing with him, along with celebrity guest appearances by Jerry Seinfeld and Sting, who belts out 'Big Man on Mulbery Street' in what looked like a Frank Sinatra tribute. I never made the connection before, but many of Billy Joel's big hits have something to do with New York, Long Island, and the places he grew up, and it's more than palpable as he works through the song list. The effect of seeing this performance made me want to get up and buy a ticket to one of his next shows, but I have to say, even the nosebleeds behind the stage go for hundreds, making me wonder how the average person gets to see Joel in person without breaking open the piggy bank.