Since they first hooked up in 1994, Elton John and Billy Joel have always toured under the guise of equal partners.

But like anything else in life, there's no such thing as total equality: Mr. Joel may have turned in the more spirited set of the two Friday night at the sold-out American Airlines Center, but it was no match for Sir Elton's soulful singing, wicked piano work and storied songbook.

The two began the marathon show together, but Mr. John had the edge from the start. His elegant ballads "Don't Let The Sun Go Down On Me" and "Your Song" made Mr. Joel's "Just The Way You Are" seem schmaltzy by comparison.

After the "Piano Man" left, Mr. John and his well-oiled backing quintet had the stage to themselves for the next 75 minutes and fired up the classic-rock jukebox: Tight, driving rockers like "Funeral For A Friend/Love Lies Bleeding" and "Saturday Night's Alright (for Fighting)" gave a perfect balance to such gentler gems as "Tiny Dancer" and "Someone Saved My Life Tonight."

At times, Sir Elton and his crew seemed a bit too tight. "Take Me To The Pilot" was autopilot all the way.

Yet there were some thrilling curveballs as well, like the rollicking blues of "This Train Don't Stop There Anymore" (from 2001's "Songs From The West Coast") and a 10-minute overhaul of "Rocket Man" that featured the evening's wildest piano solos: After bridging the gap between Bach and Vince Guaraldi, he charged into some manic New Orleans bordello boogie.

After Mr. John left the stage, Mr. Joel came back and began rhapsodizing about vino in "Scenes From An Italian Restaurant" - an odd choice for a set starter, considering the singer's stint in alcohol rehab recently. Several other tunes in his set hadn't aged well, particularly "Prelude/Angry Young Man" and "Allentown."

But even if his repertoire didn't quite stack up with Mr. John's, the crowd seemed to be more into Mr. Joel. Thousands of fans actually got off their keisters during large stretches of his set, which you couldn't say about Mr. John's segment.

Chalk it up to the affability factor. Sir Elton rarely addressed the crowd and seemed a tad aloof. But his touring mate rocked the house with his mike-stand acrobatics (in "It's Still Rock and Roll To Me") and played the role of regular ol' joe – bantering between songs with a salty vocabulary, launching into "Deep In The Heart of Texas" and thanking fans for shelling out big bucks for even the nosebleed seats: "For the money you're paying us, we should be doing your windows."

On paper, the pairing of Elton John and Billy Joel is a meeting of equals, two of pop music's most famous and successful piano players.

But that wasn't how it worked out Friday night at American Airlines Center. Joel clearly stole the show right out from under his British counterpart.

Joel, wearing a dark, sober suit, and John, more flamboyant in a red, white and blue cowboy hat, met center stage and hugged shortly before 8pm.

They began with a duet on three songs - "Your Song," "Just The Way You Are" and "Don't Let The Sun Go Down On Me." And from the beginning, Joel's voice was richer and more expressive. John's vocals were somewhat flat and uninspired.

In a 75-minute set that followed, John was at best solid, but more than a few times, he was a notch or two less than that. He has apparently lost much of the upper register in his voice; on "Rocket Man," for example, he did not even attempt to hit the high notes in the chorus.

This is not to say that John's set was terrible. It wasn't. But much of the time, he seemed to be on auto-pilot.

There were some exceptions, such as the gospelish "Take Me To The Pilot." But overall, John's performance was only fair.

Joel's set, on the other hand, had a snap and a feistiness that reminded me of his concerts of 20 years ago.

He and his band took the stage just a few minutes after John's set ended. And from the opening number, "Scenes From An Italian Restaurant," his voice and his band were displaying far more punch than did John.

The sound was better and crisper. Also, Joel was simply more engaging, bantering with the crowd and throwing a snippet of "The Yellow Rose of Texas" into "The River of Dreams."

Other highlights of his set included "I Go To Extremes" and "Allentown."

Together again. "Face 2 Face." Piano to piano. Voice to voice.

The reviews are in and ticket sales are good. What worked wonders in 1994 when Rock and Roll Hall of Famers Billy Joel and Elton John first joined forces on the road is working wonderfully again.

The "Piano Man" and "Captain Fantastic" return on Tuesday to Conseco Fieldhouse, where they last teamed up on March 31st, 1995.

Joel is known for hits such as "It's Still Rock and Roll To Me," "New York State of Mind" and "Just The Way You Are." John has topped the charts with "Candle In The Wind," "Crocodile Rock" and "Philadelphia Freedom."

As on previous tours, Joel and John are singing a few duets and then breaking away to do their own solo sets, backed by stellar bands. Most of the shows are lasting more than three hours.

This will be the third appearance for both performers at Conseco. Joel performed there in December 1999 to a near sell-out at 15,900. John's most recent local appearance was in April 2000. Attendance was 14,500.

There were a few uptown girls who met composer and back-street guy Billy Joel Saturday night. After the Junior League Ball, many of the blue-blooded leaguers piled into the bar at The Mansion on Turtle Creek. Billy was still staying at the hotel following his Friday night crowd-pleaser at American Airlines Center with co-headliner Elton John .

Around midnight, Billy was in a never-met-a-stranger mood in the Mansion bar, where he happily chatted with various patrons and autographed a few napkins.

Billy's recent travails - last summer's voluntary stint in rehab followed by his January 25th, 2003 hospitalization after a one-car mauling of a tree in Sag Harbor, NY - have left him with fewer hairs on top of his head, but he more than compensates for it with his new Hans-and-Franz upper body. At the Mansion, he looked like a one-man wrecking crew in his jeans and black shirt that accentuated his truly massive biceps, triceps and pecs.

Apparently charmed by Dallas - "Where else can I play with Elton John and make so much money?" he quipped at the Mansion - he was confused by one thing. During his show, he improvised a tune on the piano that no one seemed to recognize. "You don't know 'Big D'?" he asked the crowd incredulously before singing the chorus, "Big D, little A, double L, A, S."

After taking their road show to arenas for nine years, Billy Joel and Elton John on Sunday night finally brought their magic show to Oklahoma City.

Two pianos rose to the Ford Center stage, bringing the sold-out crowd of 18,000 to its feet in thundering anticipation of Joel and John.

The pair took the stage and launched into John's classic "Your Song."

Billy Joel and Elton John began their "Face 2 Face" Tour Friday February 21st, 2003 at the Birmingham Jefferson Civic Center.

With the BJCC nearly full, Joel and John held a battle of the pianos. Joel came onto the stage at 8pm, followed by John wearing a bright blue suit with matching blue shoes. They hugged and sat down at separate pianos facing one another. They began the evening with John's "Your Song" featured in "Moulin Rouge." Joel's "Just The Way You Are" was played by the two of them as well. Joel's piano lowered off the stage and left John to sing on his own. John performed a rendition of "Rocket Man," "Crocodile Rock" and "I Want Love."

"Some man came up and asked us if we wanted to sit on the second row," Carrie Tate and Amber Stanley said. "We were like 'sure.' He told us that each concert Elton John buys so many front row tickets and gives them to fans."

John did not say much between songs but there was interaction with the crowd. The first three rows rushed the stage when John began, and he would walk around slapping their hands between many of the songs. John sang "Tiny Dancer" as his last song and got the crowd excited for Joel’s entrance.

Joel came out starting with "The River of Dreams." Halfway through the song the band stopped and started Lynyrd Skynyrd's "Sweet Home Alabama."

With the crowd singing loud, the band jumped right back into "The River of Dreams." After the song Joel said he had not played in Birmingham in about 25 years.

Joel also sang "It's Still Rock and Roll To Me," "New York State of Mind," "Scenes From An Italian Restaurant," and many other great hits.

"Billy Joel's band was more entertaining and diverse than Elton John’s band," Buddy Brannon said. "They [Joel's band] had saxophones, symbols, and other interesting instruments," he added.

After their separate concerts, Joel and John returned to the stage to sing together. They sang John's "Bennie and The Jets." Joel said they couldn't get out of a piano concert without singing Jerry Lee Louis' "Great Balls of Fire" so they sang a portion of that and The Beatles' "A Hard Day’s Night."

They left the stage while the crowd cheered for five minutes waiting for their return. They came back after a standing ovation and just the two of them sang Joel's "Piano Man." During the last chorus, the "Piano Men" stopped and the crowd sang to them. The battle ended a stalemate because the two showed equal talent.

It's a monster of a match made for boomers reared on arena rock and weary of lame warm-up acts, long intermissions and indiscernible lyrics. This show, which played to a near sell-out audience of 16,500 Tuesday night at Conseco Fieldhouse, had none of that, plus three headliners - Joel, John and the two of them together.

Comparisons are inevitable; the tour's title - "Face 2 Face" - invites them. Ever since Joel and John joined forces in 1994, a trail of reviews comparing the two Rock and Roll Hall of Famers has followed. One sings better. One plays better. One is feisty and chatty (Joel). One is more proper and doesn't say much (John).

Who cares, really? Call it a draw with the real winners being those who bought tickets - even those $47 seats behind the stage, the ones Joel called "shit."

The producers declined to discuss the submission - campaigning for a Pulitzer in pubic is considered tacky and almost always backfires.

But Pulitzer sources say the script is impressive and that the selection committee is seriously considering the entry.

The "Movin' Out" "script" is unusual since the show is told through dance and Joel's lyrics. At one point, sources say, the producers considered submitting just the lyrics, but decided they needed something meatier.

So they came up with a booklet blending photographs, lyrics and plot synopsis.

The left-hand pages feature photos illustrating the ballet, scene by scene. The right-hand pages consist of Joel's lyrics, printed alongside a plot synopsis written by Tharp.

How do you like your piano man? Friday night at the Mellon Arena, uptown, you'll have your choice.

In one corner, England's Elton John, nee Reg Dwight, 55, known for flamboyant outfits and fancy eyeglasses, and some pretty good pop music. Some career highlights: "Your Song," "Rocket Man" and "Candle In The Wind," through some surprisingly good tunes the past few years, notably "I Want Love" and "This Train Don't Stop There No More."

At the other "Baby Grand," (William) Billy Joel, born on Long Island in 1949. His musical accomplishments are many - although average-looking guys everywhere still laud him for successfully wooing supermodel Christie Brinkley. There's "Piano Man," "It's Still Rock and Roll To Me" and "We Didn't Start The Fire," the latter his last certifiable blockbuster hit single.

If you're a fan of either man, you probably already have tickets. Good thing, because the 7:30pm show is sold-out.

The lights go down on the capacity crowd inside Broadway's Richard Rodgers Theatre.

Spotlights reveal a 10-piece band poised on a large platform surrounded by what looks like a chain-link fence. Suddenly, the platform begins to rise toward the lighting rig high above the stage, and the band kicks into a loud, clinical and precise version of Billy Joel's "It's Still Rock and Roll To Me." An entire company of dancers takes the stage, offering a balletic interpretation of the '50s-like rock anthem.

For the next two hours, theatre-goers are treated to a two-act, dance-based interpretation of songs from Joel's 30-year canon. A plot emerges, based on the characters Joel created in his 1977 song suite, "Scenes From An Italian Restaurant," culled from "The Stranger" album.

Conceived, choreographed and directed by Twyla Tharp, "Movin' Out" is an exuberant tour de force of what might well be called "rock ballet." Tharp, well-known for her choreography collaborations with everyone from Mikhail Baryshnikov to Philip Glass, brings the poetry of motion to Joel's music. Making the play was a risky endeavor. But it works.

That's right. Billy Joel has gone Broadway.

Not Fade Away

Billboard magazine recently noted that Billy Joel and Elton John's "Face 2 Face" Tour, which comes Sunday to HSBC Arena and has found the pair performing around the world over the past several years, is one of the biggest-grossing concert tours in history.

What makes this particularly noteworthy is the fact that both musicians have officially "retired" from the rock business - Joel to concentrate on classical compositions for piano; John to write for the stage and screen and to concentrate his energies on his work with AIDS charities.

Yet there they'll be Sunday evening, poised with pianos facing each other, before what is sure to be a huge and enthusiastic crowd, performing a selection of hits from throughout their combined 60 years as two of pop music's greatest and most beloved songwriters.

So how have these two managed to survive for all these years in a music business dedicated to a constant turnover of "next big things"?

You Can't Fire Me - I Quit

John released his last studio album, "Songs From The West Coast," some two years ago. The critical buzz defined it as the best thing he'd done in decades. It sold rather poorly, however, and soon, John would publicly claim that he'd never release another album, due to his "disgust with the music business."

Joel released his "Fantasies & Delusions" on the Sony Classical label in 2001.

Beginning in 1996, Joel dropped several hints during interviews that he was finished with pop-music and would concentrate on classical works from that point forward. Joel's last rock album came in the form of "River of Dreams," released in 1993.

The Faces of "The Stranger"

Joel has been having a rough go of it of late. It seems one can't open the paper without reading of his personal problems.

In January, he wrapped his Mercedes-Benz around a tree on Long Island while driving home from a dinner where the New York Post says companions saw him drinking. He suffered minor injuries and no charges were filed.

Last June, Joel checked himself into a Connecticut rehabilitation center to deal with what his handlers called a "personal problem." Earlier that year, he'd crashed his car into a fire wall. Again, his injuries were minor.

A short while later, he was quoted in a New York paper as being "lonely and looking for someone to share my life with," in what seemed to amount to a high-level personal ad. The tabloids had a field day with that one.

Prior to all of this, in the mid-'90s, Joel endured a very public divorce from wife Christie Brinkley and sued his former manager, who had reportedly swindled millions out of the singer. (Joel outlined this situation with venomous power on the brilliant "Great Wall of China" from "River of Dreams.")

Sue Me, Sue You Blues

Near the end of the '90s, Elton John sued the company run by his former manager and lover John Reid over touring expenses and financial mismanagement.

The case dragged on for several months in London's courts, but John ultimately lost the lawsuit.

Like Joel, John has also entered the world of theatrical music, although more directly. He collaborated with Tim Rice on an updating of "Aida," which he described at the time as "very camp." John has also written for the screen, most notably Disney's "The Lion King."

His charity work for AIDS garnered him the title "Sir Elton." (Proceeds from his single "Candle In The Wind," dedicated to the then recently deceased Princess Diana, went to AIDS organizations.) The song was originally written for Marilyn Monroe; its "updating" led Rolling Stone Keith Richards to proclaim that John did nothing but "write songs for dead blond birds."

Assessing The Legacies

Even a cursory look back on the careers of these two songwriters clearly posits Joel as the superior artist.

John's output in the 1980s and '90s was disappointingly bland and overtly directionless.

Though "Songs From The West Coast" represented a high point for John, prior to its release, the "Honky Cat" hadn't offered us a truly remarkable album in decades. The cornerstone of his recording career remains the remarkable "Goodbye Yellow Brick Road," an album recorded some 30 years ago.

Joel, on the other hand, has never made a bad record.

As a songwriter, he is in the upper echelons of the post-Beatles rock world. His ability to blend the Tin Pan Alley leanings of Paul McCartney with the biting wit and inventive compositional ethic of Lennon produced a remarkable string of diverse hits: the folk-centered music hall of "Piano Man," the pop of "Allentown," the doo-wop-based grandeur of "River of Dreams," the classical-tinged "Lullabye (Goodnight, My Angel)," the elegant, jazz-informed beauty of "New York State of Mind," the skewered genius of "The Stranger."

But Joel certainly has his critics. He told the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette in 1998 that he has always confounded critics because of his desire to delve into various genres, based on the fact that "I like all kinds of music, and therefore, I write all kinds of music." But aside from the decidedly weak and often misguided production approaches of his records, he is difficult to criticize.

Of course, when it comes down to it, Joel and John are playing to audiences more than likely are completely satisfied to hear them act as living and breathing jukeboxes. There are certainly enough hit songs for the pair to choose from.

The Joel Show

Since opening last year, "Movin' Out" has played to full houses and received favorable reviews.

Surprisingly, Joel had little to do with the show, aside from penning the songs that comprise its thematic flow. The legend among Broadway scenesters has it that Twyla Tharp conceived and developed the show before ever contacting Joel. "Movin' Out" was complete, but Tharp knew that without Joel's cooperation, she wouldn't get the necessary funding.

He attended a dress rehearsal, was supposedly blown away by it and gave Tharp his full blessing.

Tharp was able to successfully create a story line based on 23 of Joel's songs. It's a bittersweet affair offering commentary on the deep effect the Vietnam War had on a generation.

The tale begins with the adolescence of three high school buddies, Eddie (John Selya), Tony (Keith Roberts) and James (Benjamin G. Bowman). In summer 1965, these three are concerned only with the thrills of teen life, most notably, their desire to hook up with Brenda (Elizabeth Parkinson) and Judy (Ashley Tuttle). Things become a bit more complex when they enlist and are immediately shuttled to the front lines. One friend dies. The other two are left to return home and attempt to reconstruct their shattered American dream.

Billy Joel and Elton John probably won't be releasing new studio albums anytime soon. In the meantime, here's my recommendations for essential listening from both artists.

Joel
"The Stranger," 1977 (Columbia). This remains Billy Joel's masterpiece, an album of remarkably varied, timeless pop-music.

What was touching about the album is that Joel cast back, way back, into history for his cues. "Waltz No. 1" sounded like the 19th Century composer Louis Moreau Gottschalk. Other brief compositions could remind a listener of, in turn, Chopin, Bach and Schumann. It seemed Joel was thinking of music for a small, intimate setting - quite a change for a man used to playing big, heavily amplified arenas.

The extent of Joel's aptitude in classical composition remains something of a mystery. The cruelly brief liner notes to "Fantasies & Delusions" credited different people for "music preparation" and "additional arrangements." It was, however, interesting at the time to note where his heart was.

Anyone who doubts Joel's regard for the old masters need only listen to "Fantasies & Delusions"; Joel's sincerity is evident. The pop pianist has said that he had an epiphany while listening to Beethoven symphonies. "I let these symphonies pound over me," he explained. "Last time I felt like this was the first time I listened to Led Zeppelin. I felt puny. I am nothing, I am insignificant."

Billy Joel rocked.

Those are three words that haven't gone together in a long time - if ever - but they applied last night at the Mellon Arena where the "Piano Man" met the "Rocket Man" and soared past him.

Not that we need to compare them, because, of course, Billy Joel and Elton John have both earned their spots in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

They stopped by on another "Face 2 Face" Tour with a break-free show that went on longer than "Gone With The Wind."

It began with two pianos rising out of the floor and then the gimmicks stopped there. John was the one in the black and purple sequined suit with the hairpiece. Joel was in the stark black suit and bare head. They traded verses on a beautiful version of "Your Song," each sounding almost like the other on the vocals.

Joel introduced "Just The Way You Are" as "a song I wrote for my first ex-wife," then let John do the opening verse. John, in turn, introduced "Don't Let The Sun Go Down On Me" as "a song I wrote for my second ex-husband," and part way into it, Elton's band kicked in, setting the stage for his part of the show.

They quickly raised the ghost of '70s album-rock with "Funeral For A Friend/Love Lies Bleeding," an orchestral-sized suite played to perfection. If every searing guitar note was in place that's because the guy playing those licks, Davey Johnstone, played them on the original record.

John, who has the richer catalogue (go ahead, argue amongst yourselves), was in fine voice on a 12-song set that included greats like "Someone Saved My Life Tonight," "Tiny Dancer" and "Take Me To The Pilot." There was, however, a studied formality to his set, with the exception of an extended "Rocket Man." Despite the sequins, John seemed somewhat more withdrawn than in his heyday.

With the arrival of Joel and company playing "Scenes From An Italian Restaurant," it was like we were transported to an R&B club in New York City. Unlike the precise British band before it, Joel's outfit was more concerned with spontaneity and swing.

There was a live, freewheelin' feel to "Movin' Out (Anthony's Song)"; "An Innocent Man" became a soul shakedown with Crystal Taliefero; and "New York State of Mind" was thick with drama. The more animated Joel puts a lot of jazz and flash in his playing and occasionally dazzles with speed as on "Prelude/Angry Young Man."

At one point, Joel referred to opening for the Doobie Brothers at the Syria Mosque, inspiring his band to launch part way into a version of "Listen To The Music." Later, Joel took his corniest song, "It's Still Rock and Roll To Me," and made it hilarious.

By the time John and his band returned, the party was in full swing.

Those waiting for the big piano duel finally got it on, of all things, "Bennie and The Jets," where the two players squared off, both pounding on and dancing across the keys.

When they gave a nod to their roots with "A Hard Day's Night," well, we had one ecstatic crowd of baby boomers under the dome.

Jointly, they have scored more than 60 Top 40 hits, sold nearly 140 million records worldwide and received 11 Grammy Awards.

Such achievements have translated into some mighty rock and roll commerce. Their annual "Face 2 Face" Tour, introduced in 1994, grossed $50 million with only 31 shows in 2001. Last year, the gross topped $66 million.

The downside of such stats is that fans are left to pick up the tab. The top ticket price when the John and Joel express hits town Wednesday is $186, making it the most expensive Rupp Arena show to date.

But if it's any consolation, they've been serving up performances lasting nearly four hours. They begin and end their concerts with duets, while performing full sets in between with their respective bands.

So how did it all come to this? How did these two artists become bankable enough to command one of the biggest roadshow paychecks of the year?

Let's scan their now-and-then histories for clues.At his best as team player

Born: Reginald Kenneth Dwight on March 25th, 1947, in Middlesex, England

First Band: Bluesology, 1961

First Album: "Empty Sky," 1969

First Hit: "Your Song," 1970

First #1 Album: "Honky Chateau," 1972

Biggest Hit: "Candle In The Wind '97," 1997 (32 Million Copies)

Best-Selling Album: "Greatest Hits," 1974 (15 Million Copies)

Most Recent Album of Pop Songs: "Songs From The West Coast," 2001

Grammy Awards To Date: 5

First Musical Scored For Broadway: "Aida," 1999

Year Inducted Into Rock and Roll Hall of Fame: 1994

Last Rupp Performance: April 30th, 1993

That's Sir Elton, to you and me. Knighted in 1998, John remains one of pop music's most enduring institutions, even though the bulk of his success stems from a five-year run of hits that began in late 1970.

During that time, John was an artist who had it all. He was a commanding instrumentalist and stage performer armed with a lean, explosive band. Two members of his early '70s group, guitarist Davey Johnstone and drummer Nigel Olssen, still touring with him. Off-stage, John's records were highly collaborative efforts between the pianist, lyricist Bernie Taupin and producer Gus Dudgeon, who died last year. When that team began to break, so did John's previously untouchable popularity.

Proving how strong - and, ultimately, adaptable - the commercial pull of that era was, John's 1973 ode to Marilyn Monroe, "Candle In The Wind," became a hit twice in the two decades to come. A 1986 concert version of the tune became a staple of the airwaves at a time when radio largely ignored John's newer recordings. Then in 1997, Taupin rewrote the lyrics as a eulogy to Princess Diana. The revised version quickly overtook Bing Crosby's "White Christmas" as the best selling single of all-time.

John's biggest visibility of late has stemmed from soundtracks for film (The Lion King) and stage (Aida), both with lyricist Tim Rice. Sales of his most critically lauded collaboration with Taupin in years, 2001's "Song From The West Coast," were so disappointing John hinted he was quitting his recording career entirely.

Still Rock and Roll Part of The Time

Born: William Martin Joel on May 9th, 1949, in Bronx, NY

First Band: The Echoes, 1963

First Album: "Cold Spring Harbor," 1971

First Hit: "Piano Man," 1974

First #1 Album: "52nd Street," 1978

Biggest Hit: "It's Still Rock and Roll To Me," 1980

Best-Selling Album: "Greatest Hits Volume I and II" (20 Million Copies)

Most Recent Album of Pop Songs: "River of Dreams," 1993

Grammy Awards To Date: 6

First Musical Scored for Broadway: "Movin' Out," 2002

Year Inducted Into Rock and Roll Hall of Fame: 1999

Last Rupp Performance: February 16th, 1990

While Manhattan's edgier artistic communities might scoff at the streetwise references of Joel's music, there is no denying the affection that the singer's best and best-known songs show for his native New York. In recent years, Joel's homeland has generously recognized and embraced that spirit, even as Joel himself has largely abandoned life as a pop composer.

At "The Concert For New York City," the Madison Square Garden benefit concert after September 11th, 2001, no performer hit a more honestly familiar chord, especially with the firefighters and police officers in the audience, than Joel as he unfurled his 1976 picture-postcard anthem "New York State of Mind." Not one to bask in sentimentalism too long, he played the tune side by side with "Miami 2017 (Seen The Lights Go Out On Broadway)," written 25 years earlier as a futuristic fantasy of Manhattan in flames.

Joel's street-corner serenades and troubled love songs were also a hit with famed choreographer Twyla Tharp. She assembled 26 of his songs for the dance musical "Movin' Out," which opened on Broadway last fall.

Today Joel largely works as his own oldies act. Although "Fantasies & Delusions," a collection of his classical works for solo piano performed by pianist Richard Joo, was released two years ago, he hasn't released a recording of new pop songs in a decade.

Last evening's Billy Joel and Elton John "Face 2 Face" performance smacked of the sort of politeness that, according to many of rock's finest critics, signified the death of rock and roll in the mid to late '70s.

A cynic might have had a field day.

Limos parked all up and down every available street surrounding HSBC Arena. The Pearl Street Brewery full of folks who haven't come downtown for a rock show since...well, whatever.

Yes, two of the "crown princes" of rock and roll rolled into town last night, to perform yet another show in their "Face 2 Face" tour.

The show was sold-out. The audience was way too forgiving. But still, there were moments of transcendent beauty during the more than two hours of performance.

Sadly, only a few of them came courtesy of Elton John.

Here's the deal.

Elton stunk pretty bad.

Billy stole the show in such a blatant fashion that, at several times throughout the performance, one actually felt sorry for the wig-wearing, strangely scat-singing John.

It was actually that bad.

The show opened on a positive - no, sublime - note.

Twin pianos rose from beneath the stage, as spotlights swerved and swayed about. The crowd went nuts. John and Joel strolled nonchalantly onto the stage, and sat down at their respective pianos. Yes, "Your Song" was the obvious first choice, and we got it. Joel took the first verse, and made John sound like a throaty troll.

This set the stage for the rest of the first set. "Just The Way Your Are" and "Don't Let The Sun Go Down On Me" sounded great, while Joel was singing them, and frankly lame while John manned the mike.

It got worse.

Joel - animated, humorous, seemingly at ease - left the stage, and John and his band offered a set of the man's "greatest hits."

If I could have left, I would have.

John now sings in some strange sort of scat-slur - "I think I'm Bob Dylan" style, and every single song in his "solo" set suffered from his approach. Yes, it's true, Elton can't hit the high notes any more; but Lord, did he have to offer this faux-soul improv in the place of the melodies his songs once boasted?

A published report says Billy Joel was drinking champagne shortly before his January car crash on his native Long Island. The East Hampton Star reports that Joel told police he had had "a glass of champagne" while having dinner with two friends at the American Hotel in Sag Harbor on January 25th, 2003, although he now claims not to remember the conversation.

At 10:30pm [ET] that night, Joel crashed his $100,000 Mercedes-Benz into a tree in the town, after which he spent the night in a local hospital before being discharged the following morning. Alcohol was quickly ruled out as a cause, with Joel denying it played a role in the accident. Sag Harbor Police Chief Thomas Fabiano said his officers didn't give Joel preferential treatment.

Fabiano was unavailable for comment.

The newspaper also says the official police report quotes one witness as saying Joel had wine with his dinner, while another witness says he was driving fast just before the crash. Joel's spokesperson dismissed those claims as "gossip" by "somebody who was not at the scene." The representative added that Joel was taking an unnamed prescription medication in the week before the crash, which followed nasal surgery.

The car accident was Joel's second in the area in little more than seven months. On June 12th, 2002, his car skidded in the rain and crashed, and he wound up with scratches and bruises, and one side of his face was swollen, causing him to bow out of presenting an award to Stevie Wonder at the annual Songwriters Hall of Fame induction ceremony the following night. There was no indication that alcohol was involved in that accident, which was chalked up to road conditions. However, Joel soon checked himself into the Silver Hill Hospital in New Canaan, Connecticut, "for a planned 10-day stay to deal with a specific and personal problem that had recently developed."

The facility is a substance-abuse and psychiatric hospital, and Joel reportedly went there for depression and alcohol-related issues.

Joel inducted the Righteous Brothers into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame on Monday (March 10th, 2003), but before he did the honors, he joked about the two car accidents he's had in the past year.

It was all crisply and, at times, profoundly performed. It displayed a pop-music legacy that has remained radiant through the decades. It came with a price tag of more than 185 bucks.

Yes, sir. Nostalgia was on grand display last night at Rupp Arena as Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductees Elton John and Billy Joel made their first joint appearance at Rupp Arena. But despite the highest ticket price of any concert performance so far at the arena, a hearty crowd of 15,000 went reeling through the years as though the hefty admission booked them first-class passage back to a more innocent pop era.

The duo took to the stage for largely unaccompanied duets of two trademark hits: John's "Your Song" and Joel's "Just The Way You Are" - curiously with the respective composer allowing the other to sing the initial verses. When they broke off into their own sets, the "Piano Men" threw their mightiest cards on the table. John opened with the muscular 1973 medley of "Funeral For A Friend/Love Lies Bleeding," which still kicked up a hearty fuss thanks to the cranky melodic drive of longtime guitarist Davey Johnstone and John's own beefy piano runs. Ever the New Yorker, Joel opened his hour-long segment with "Scenes From An Italian Restaurant," a tune that professed love for an even more-distant pop age when it was recorded more than 25 years ago.

Ultimately, John's set was a safer bet, but Joel's was vastly more fun. The former, aside from two nods to 2001's "Songs From The West Coast" album and a stoic version of 1983's "I Guess That's Why They Call It The Blues," stuck squarely to his glory days of the early '70s, with a light and limber "Tiny Dancer" proving a highlight.

Joel, who hasn't recorded a new pop album in 10 years, had a ball by leapfrogging through the ages - from 1976's proudly pensive "Prelude/Angry Young Man" to the loose gospel groove of 1993's "The River of Dreams." A clear stand-out: the luxurious, jazzy stride of "New York State of Mind."

More duets concluded with this EJ/BJ extravaganza as a sense of merry and orderly rowdiness grabbed hold of "My Life," "You May Be Right" and "Bennie and The Jets."

But putting a top ticket price of $185 on such nostalgia just plain stinks. Hey, the show was fun, but it wasn't that fun. Granted, this is the first seriously obscene ticket price a Rupp show has had to bear. But when one is accepted, the days are numbered before such commercial gluttony becomes the norm.

There was an encouraging footnote, though. At the back of the Rupp floor was an unanticipated and, sadly, almost welcome sight: five solid rows of prime, unsold seats.

Billy Joel, 53, is a native of Hicksville, NY.

Elton John (Reginald Kenneth Dwight), 55, was born in a small English town called Pinner.

Although they followed extraordinarily different paths, they both arrived at the top of the pop charts in the early '70s by playing dynamic pop-rock songs from behind a grand piano. Not since Jerry Lee Lewis and Fats Domino pounded the 88s had the piano played such a major role in the world of guitar-driven music.

Tonight at the Carolina Center, Joel and John will face-off from behind grand pianos to take pop fans on a trip through the years of two singular but equally influential careers.

Here's a chronological, "Face 2 Face" look at a few significant moments along the way, courtesy of the VH1 Rock Stars Encyclopedia:

1967: Joel joins a Long Island group called The Hassles as keyboard player. John fails an audition in London but is given some lyrics by a writer named Bernie Taupin.

1969: The Hassles break up, and Joel plays music for some TV commercials, including a pretzels ad featuring Chubby Checker. John releases his debut album, "Empty Sky," featuring all songs written by himself and Taupin.

1970: Joel suffers acute depression from a romantic break-up and checks into a hospital. John releases a self-titled album in the United States and "Border Song" cracks the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart.

1972: Joel moves from New York to Los Angeles, where he plays piano in a bar called the Executive Room on Wilshire Boulevard. John charges full speed ahead with hit songs such as "Tiny Dancer," "Honky Cat" and "Crocodile Rock."

1974: Joel releases his debut album for Columbia Records called "Piano Man." It's a hit and he goes on tour opening for people like the Doobie Brothers and the J. Geils Band. John embarks on a sold-out North American tour that features his increasingly outrageous stage costumes. He duets with John Lennon on the #1 hit "Whatever Gets You Through The Night."

1977: Joel plays a new song called "Just The Way You Are" on "Saturday Night Live." His album "The Stranger" soars to #2. John becomes the first rock and roll artist to be named to Madison Square Garden's Hall of Fame. After collapsing during two 1977 concert performances, he retires from the stage, only to return 15 months later.

1980: Joel wins best pop vocal performance and album of the year for "52nd Street" at the 22nd Grammy Awards. John signs with Geffen Records in the United States.

1983: Joel tops the charts with the single "Uptown Girl," whose video features his future wife, model Christie Brinkley. John scores a big hit with the song "I'm Still Standing."

1988: Joel is cleared of defamation charges after he called musician John Powers a "creep" in a Playboy magazine interview. After four years of marriage, John and wife Renate finalize an "amicable" divorce.

1991: Joel's song "Shameless" is recorded by Garth Brooks and goes straight to the top of the country charts. John crashes a Rod Stewart concert in Wembley Stadium dressed like Stewart's new bride Rachel Hunter and duets on "You're In My Heart."

1997: Joel attends John's 50th birthday party dressed in a US Army uniform. In one of his most moving performances, John sings "Candle In The Wind" at the funeral of Princess Diana at Westminster Abbey.

1999: Joel is inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame by Ray Charles. John is named all-time favorite musical performer at the People's Choice Awards in Pasadena.

Despite Billy Joel's earlier claims that he had not been drinking prior to his recent Hamptons car crash, the singer admitted to police that he had "a glass of champagne" before slamming his Mercedes-Benz into a tree, according to this accident report. When questioned by a Sag Harbor Police Department detective, the 53 year-old "Piano Man" said that "the last thing he remembers is drifting off the roadway and striking a tree," according to the below report. Following the January 25th, 2003 accident, Joel's spokesperson, Claire Mercuri, denied that the entertainer - who left an alcohol rehab facility last June - was imbibing prior to the crash. "I'm sure his other dinner companions were drinking, but he was not," Mercuri told reporters. "He abstained."

Call it dueling pianos. Dueling not-yet-over-the-hill pop-stars. Or dueling hit makers.

Whatever you call it, the concert by Elton John and Billy Joel on Friday night at the Carolina Center was one slick, sophisticated sing-along. Song after song resonated with the crowd of almost 16,000, who hung on every piano chord and joined in on every chorus.

Billed as a "Face 2 Face" concert, the show was more a celebration than a showdown. These two song stylists, both in their 50s, haven't ruled the charts for some time, but when they did - primarily during the 1970s - they were always on top.

The "Rocket Man" and the "Piano Man" casually strolled on stage at 7:45pm after two grand pianos had risen through huge trap-doors to center stage. The format of the show was arranged so the two could play a few songs together. Then John ruled the stage for an hour-long set, Joel followed with his set, and the two got back together for the grand finale.

After a quick hug and several bows to the roaring crowd, John and Joel kicked things off with "Your Song," which was followed by "Just The Way You Are" and "Don't Let The Sun Go Down On Me." That's about as impressive a three-song opening as you're likely to hear in contemporary pop.

Joel sang the first verse on the John/Bernie Taupin composition "Your Song," and John returned the favor by singing the opening stanza on Joel's "Just The Way You Are." That kind of respect for each other's work was evident throughout the night, and the crowd fed off the mutual admiration.

After "Don't Let The Sun Go Down On Me," John opened his set with a rousing take on "Funeral For A Friend/Love Lies Bleeding" from his 1973 "Goodbye Yellow Brick Road" album. Dressed in an electric blue suit with embroidered sleeves, he ripped through "Someone Saved My Life Tonight," "Philadelphia Freedom," "The Wasteland" and "I Want Love," before earning a tremendous ovation for an extended, jamming version of "Rocket Man."

John's band featured two musicians who have played with him for three decades. Drummer Nigel Olsson and guitarist Davey Johnstone shone on tunes such as "Tiny Dancer," "Crocodile Rock" and, most especially, "Take Me To The Pilot," a song from 1970.

For his part, Joel was much more animated and mobile than John, who hardly ever left his piano during songs.

Joel was all over the place. He joked with the crowd, twirled on his stool and even raced across the stage at one point spinning a microphone stand.

The "Piano Man" - who totaled two Mercedes-Benzes in the last year and did a stint in rehab after one of the crashes - was spotted Monday downing red wine at lunch.

The singer was at the Manhattan restaurant Serafina Sandro, drinking what a staffer confirmed to "The Scoop" was Villa Antonini Rossi.

The imbibing episode raised eyebrows because Joel's alleged drinking has become such an issue lately; ex-wife Christie Brinkley reportedly is nervous about their daughter traveling with him.

But Joel's spokesman told "The Scoop" that the singer's decision to check himself into rehab was to end a "prolonged period of overindulgence" and that the "Piano Man" "has never made a statement that he was giving up drinking entirely."

The national tour for "Movin' Out," the new Broadway musical collaboration between pop legend Billy Joel and choreographer Twyla Tharp will launch from Detroit's Fisher Theatre, January 27th, 2004. The premiere will play through February 15th, 2004 at the Motor City Nederlander house.

Ohio's Broadway in Cincinnati has booked the show (March 30th, 2004 - April 11th, 2004) as San Francisco's Best of Broadway has lined up a stop for the summer of 2004. Dates and its extensive list of tour stops will be announced shortly. The tour is expected to hit major cities across the country. Open auditions for the tour were held in New York, Los Angeles, Las Vegas and San Francisco.

Producers of the Broadway run - James L. Nederlander, Hal Luftig, Scott E. Nederlander, Terry Allen Kramer, Clear Channel Entertainment and Emanuel Azenberg - will also present the tour.

The bookless show, currently residing at Broadway's Richard Rodgers Theatre, uses Joel's song lyrics and Tharp's choreography to tell the story of five friends and lovers across three decades through love, war and loss. There is no dialogue and all songs are performed by pianist-singer Michael Cavanaugh, who sings non-stop and heads an on-stage band during the show.

Following a tryout at Chicago's Shubert Theatre, the show officially opened on the Great White Way October 24th, 2002, following previews since September 30th, 2002. Recently dubbed a new musical (by the Tony Awards Administration Committee), the production that topped many end-of-the-year lists will vie for the top Tony prize for Best Musical.

The song-list includes many of Joel's hit songs and even interpolates some of his classical work. "It's Still Rock and Roll To Me" functions as a sort of overture, introducing the characters. The story kicks off with "Scenes From An Italian Restaurant" and moves through other songs as the popular "We Didn't Start The Fire," "Big Shot," "Uptown Girl" and "Captain Jack," as well as more obscure early work like "James," "Summer, Highland Falls," and "Prelude/Angry Young Man." As a final curtain coda, Cavanaugh belts out the apropos "New York State of Mind."

The music legends will be coming back to Ames to fill Hilton Coliseum with their musical hits. The duo's famed tour last visited Jack Trice Stadium in August 1994.

Sir Elton John is more than a rock star. His legend is as much rooted in his individuality as in his music. The flamboyant singer/songwriter and performer from England is one of the top-selling solo artists of all-time.

Album rock's odd couple are back at it.

For the fifth time since 1994, singer/songwriter/pianists Billy Joel and Elton John are on the road together, sharing the stage as co-headliners for their latest "Face 2 Face" Tour.

The duo stops in Las Vegas for a pair of 8pm shows tonight and Saturday at the MGM Grand Garden Arena.

Last year the two men were forced to postpone a series of live dates when Joel checked into a Connecticut rehabilitation center, reportedly to recover from alcohol abuse. The shows were eventually made up last fall.

In January Joel made headlines again when he was hospitalized after driving his Mercedes into a tree in Long Island, NY. He suffered minor injuries and no charges were filed, though police reports indicated Joel had been drinking before the accident.

Joel has not released a rock album since 1993's "River of Dreams," instead opting to concentrate on touring and composing classical music. In 2001 he released "Fantasies & Delusions," a collection of Joel-penned piano pieces performed by Richard Joo.

John released his latest album, "Songs From The West Coast," in 2001. Despite the disc's widespread positive acclaim, John has indicated a desire to retire from songwriting.

Even though the Elton John and Billy Joel tour has been going for two years, it was still a small shock to see the two take the stage together for their return visit to the MGM. At best, the Long Island "Piano Man" and the British singer make an odd couple. Elton John, a natural showman, shares a campy nod and a wink with his audience. Joel is more of an introvert. John wore a flamboyant pink suit, Joel a more traditional black and gray one. John gave Vegas a big shout-out, while Joel formally noted his pleasure at being back in "Las Vegas, Nevada."

But what has made the tour such a success is that what the two have in common far outweighs their differences: They both have lots of hits. This point was made clear by the sold-out audience for more than three hours, as nearly every song turned into a sing-along.

John and Joel opened, as the tour's title indicates, "Face 2 Face," trading lines on piano and vocals for three numbers: "Your Song," "Just The Way You Are" and "Don't Let The Sun Go Down On Me." Their voices mix well, though you wouldn't exactly say they have any chemistry together.

Then John performed his solo set, playfully singing his staples - such as "Tiny Dancer," "Philadelphia Freedom" and "Someone Saved My Life Tonight" - with a this-little-piggy-went-to-market smile. Squeezed among the hits were two songs from John's last disc, Songs From The West Coast, whose commercial failure caused him to threaten from the stage-earlier in the tour - to quit recording albums. Here, though, he was genial about the audience showing less enthusiasm for the new tracks than for his classics. He closed his set out with "Crocodile Rock." As he left the stage, John worked the audience, slapping hands and holding out his microphone for fans gathered up front to sing "la, la, la."

Bowing to the applause as he came out, Joel opened with a strong take on "Scenes From An Italian Restaurant." But mostly, Joel's solo set was lethargic and his performance spotty. He was embarrassingly flat on "Allentown." He also seemed to have trouble staying focused, throwing out partial versions of everything from "Mack The Knife" to "Viva Las Vegas." In the night's oddest moment, Joel brought a man on stage—whom he introduced as his dentist - to sing "The Lady Is A Tramp." The end of his set was a relief.

During the encore, after being joined again by John, Joel did relax and rock out a bit for "My Life." But that was too little too late, and nothing he did compared to John heaving himself up on the piano and posing his pudgy body like a beefcake model during "The Bitch Is Back." Joel was left to look on, bemused.

Though John never tried to upstage him, mostly on this night Billy Joel seemed like an opening act.

Midway through his set at MGM Grand Garden Arena on Saturday night, Billy Joel invited a rather unexpected guest onto the stage: his dentist.

Joel didn't need emergency oral surgery. Rather, he was simply fulfilling a promise made with a less than a clear head.