It 's Still Rock and Roll to Me - wikipedia It 's Still Rock and Roll to Me `` It 's Still Rock and Roll to Me '' Single by Billy Joel from the album Glass Houses B - side `` Through the Long Night '' Released May 12, 1980 Format 7 '' vinyl Recorded 1979 Genre New wave rock Length 2 : 57 Label Columbia Songwriter ( s ) Billy Joel Producer ( s ) Phil Ramone Billy Joel singles chronology `` You May Be Right '' ( 1980 ) `` It 's Still Rock and Roll to Me '' ( 1980 ) `` Do n't Ask Me Why '' ( 1980 ) `` You May Be Right '' ( 1980 ) `` It 's Still Rock and Roll to Me '' ( 1980 ) `` Do n't Ask Me Why '' ( 1980 ) `` It 's Still Rock and Roll to Me '' is a hit 1980 song performed by Billy Joel, from the hit album Glass Houses. The song was number 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 charts for two weeks, from July 19 through August 1, 1980. The song spent 11 weeks in the top 10 of the Billboard Hot 100 and was the 7th biggest hit of 1980 according to American Top 40. The song is an examination of the themes of a musician 's degrading fame and public tastes that were expressed in his 1975 hit `` The Entertainer ''. The single eventually reached Platinum status from the RIAA for sales of over 1 million copies in the United States. Contents 1 Versions 2 Content 3 Music video 4 Personnel 5 Soundtrack appearances 6 Cover 7 Charts 7.1 Weekly charts 7.2 Year - end charts 8 See also 9 References 10 External links Versions The video version differs from the album version. Content The song is a cynical look at the music industry as a publicist / manager begs the protagonist to remain hip for the younger crowd ( `` What 's the matter with the car I 'm driving ? '' / `` Ca n't you tell that it 's out of style ? '' ), and the protagonist 's refusal to change, claiming his music will remain relevant regardless of his appearance. The song was a reaction by Joel at the new music genres that were around in the late 1970s ( punk, funk, new wave ). It was inspired by Joel reading a review about a particular ( unnamed ) band, and realizing that he had no idea what their music sounded like. The song also includes the line `` Alright Rico ! '' to kick off the saxophone solo performed by Richie Cannata. Music video The music video for the song depicted Joel mixing elements of new wave, punk, and funk as he records a music video. Personnel Billy Joel - vocals, piano and electric piano Dave Brown - electric guitar Richie Cannata - saxophone solo Liberty DeVitto - drums and percussion Russell Javors - electric guitar Doug Stegmeyer - bass guitar Soundtrack appearances The song appears on the game Karaoke Revolution Presents : American Idol Encore. Cover Pop rock musician Drake Bell covered the song in 2014 on his rockabilly album Ready Steady Go !. Kid Rock covered it as a demo in 1992 but rewrote the lyrics and changed title to `` It 's Still East Detroit To Me '', it 's a hardcore punk song. `` Weird Al '' Yankovic recorded a parody of the song called `` It 's Still Billy Joel to Me ''. Charts Weekly charts Chart ( 1980 ) Peak position Australian Singles Chart 10 Canadian Singles Chart French Singles Chart 61 Ireland ( IRMA ) 11 New Zealand Singles Chart 21 UK Singles Chart 14 U.S. Billboard Hot 100 U.S. Billboard Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks 45 Year - end charts Chart ( 1980 ) Position Canada 6 US Billboard Hot 100 9 See also List of Billboard Hot 100 number - one singles of 1980 References Jump up ^ Thomas, Stephen. `` Glass Houses - Billy Joel ''. AllMusic. Retrieved 2011 - 08 - 25. Jump up ^ Brusie, David ( October 28, 2014 ). `` With Glass Houses, Billy Joel attempted to overhaul his image ''. The A.V. Club. Retrieved November 7, 2015. Jump up ^ `` Gold & Platinum - RIAA ''. RIAA. Jump up ^ Allgame - Karaoke Revolution Presents : American Idol Encore - Credits Retrieved March 19, 2011. Jump up ^ Collar, Matt. `` Drake Bell - Ready Steady Go ! Review ''. Allmusic. Retrieved March 8, 2015. Jump up ^ InfoDisc, Daniel Lesueur, Dominic Durand, Lesueur. `` InfoDisc : Bilan des Ventes par Artiste ''. Infodisc.fr. Archived from the original on 2012 - 06 - 14. Retrieved 2016 - 10 - 16. CS1 maint : Multiple names : authors list ( link ) Jump up ^ `` The Irish Charts -- Search Results -- It 's Still Rock and Roll to Me ''. Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved June 22, 2017. Jump up ^ `` Canadian 1980 Top 100 Singles ''. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved 24 January 2014. Jump up ^ `` Top 100 Hits of 1980 / Top 100 Songs of 1980 ''. Musicoutfitters.com. Retrieved 2016 - 10 - 17. External links Song Facts on It 's Still Rock and Roll to Me. `` It 's Still Rock & Roll to Me '' Music Video on YouTube / (c) 1980 Sony BMG channel Lyrics of this song at MetroLyrics Preceded by `` Coming Up '' by Paul McCartney Billboard Hot 100 number one single July 19, 1980 -- July 26, 1980 ( 2 weeks ) Succeeded by `` Magic '' by Olivia Newton - John Preceded by `` Little Jeannie '' by Elton John Canadian RPM number - one single July 26, 1980 -- August 9, 1980 ( 3 weeks ) Succeeded by `` Misunderstanding '' by Genesis Billy Joel Studio albums Cold Spring Harbor Piano Man Streetlife Serenade Turnstiles The Stranger 52nd Street Glass Houses The Nylon Curtain An Innocent Man The Bridge Storm Front River of Dreams Fantasies & Delusions Live albums Songs in the Attic KOHЦEPT 2000 Years : The Millennium Concert 12 Gardens Live Live at Shea Stadium : The Concert Compilations Greatest Hits, Vol. 1 -- 3 Souvenir : The Ultimate Collection The Ultimate Collection The Essential Billy Joel Piano Man : The Very Best of Billy Joel My Lives The Hits Singles `` She 's Got a Way '' `` Piano Man '' `` You 're My Home '' `` Worse Comes to Worst '' `` Travelin ' Prayer '' `` The Ballad of Billy the Kid '' `` The Entertainer '' `` Just the Way You Are '' `` Movin ' Out ( Anthony 's Song ) '' `` Only the Good Die Young '' `` She 's Always a Woman '' `` Vienna '' `` The Stranger '' `` My Life '' `` Big Shot '' `` Honesty '' `` Until the Night '' `` All for Leyna '' `` You May Be Right '' `` It 's Still Rock and Roll to Me '' `` Do n't Ask Me Why '' `` Sometimes a Fantasy '' `` Say Goodbye to Hollywood '' ( Live ) `` She 's Got a Way '' ( Live ) `` Pressure '' `` Allentown '' `` Goodnight Saigon '' `` Tell Her About It '' `` Uptown Girl '' `` An Innocent Man '' `` The Longest Time '' `` Leave a Tender Moment Alone '' `` This Night '' `` Keeping the Faith '' `` You 're Only Human ( Second Wind ) '' `` The Night Is Still Young '' `` Modern Woman '' `` A Matter of Trust '' `` This Is the Time '' `` Baby Grand '' `` Back in the U.S.S.R. '' ( Live ) `` We Did n't Start the Fire '' `` Leningrad '' `` I Go to Extremes '' `` The Downeaster ' Alexa ' '' `` That 's Not Her Style '' `` And So It Goes '' `` Shameless '' `` All Shook Up '' `` The River of Dreams '' `` All About Soul '' `` No Man 's Land '' `` Lullabye ( Goodnight, My Angel ) '' `` To Make You Feel My Love '' `` Hey Girl '' `` All My Life '' `` Christmas in Fallujah '' Other songs `` Everybody Loves You Now '' `` Captain Jack '' `` Los Angelenos '' `` Root Beer Rag '' `` New York State of Mind '' `` Prelude / Angry Young Man '' `` Miami 2017 ( Seen the Lights Go Out on Broadway ) '' `` Scenes from an Italian Restaurant '' `` Zanzibar '' `` Laura '' `` Scandinavian Skies '' `` Big Man on Mulberry Street '' Tours An Innocent Man Tour Face to Face 1994 Face to Face 1995 Face to Face 1998 Face to Face 2001 Face to Face 2003 Face to Face 2009 Face to Face 2010 Billy Joel in Concert Film Oliver & Company The Last Play at Shea See also Discography Movin ' Out Billy Joel Band The Hassles Attila Alexa Ray Joel Christie Brinkley Katie Lee `` Movin ' Out '' ( Glee episode ) Book Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=It%27s_Still_Rock_and_Roll_to_Me&oldid=801691562 '' Categories : Billy Joel songs 1980 songs 1980 singles Billboard Hot 100 number - one singles Songs written by Billy Joel Song recordings produced by Phil Ramone Columbia Records singles Songs about music Hidden categories : CS1 maint : Multiple names : authors list Articles with hAudio microformats All articles with unsourced statements Articles with unsourced statements from March 2015 Singlechart usages for Ireland2 Singlechart called without artist Talk Contents About Wikipedia 日本 語 Norsk nynorsk Edit links This page was last edited on 21 September 2017, at 06 : 51. 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Question: who played sax on it still rock and roll to me
Answer: Richie Cannata