Claim: Billy Joel is a singer.

William Martin Joel -LRB- born May 9 , 1949 -RRB- is an American singer-songwriter and pianist . Since releasing his first hit song , `` Piano Man '' , in 1973 , Joel has become the sixth best-selling recording artist and the third best-selling solo artist in the United States . His compilation album Greatest Hits Vol . 1 & 2 is one of the best-selling albums in the US .   Joel had Top 40 hits in the 1970s , 1980s , and 1990s , achieving 33 Top 40 hits in the US , all of which he wrote himself . He is also a six-time Grammy Award winner who has been nominated for 23 Grammy Awards . He has sold more than 150 million records worldwide , making him one of the best-selling artists of all time .   Joel was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame -LRB- 1992 -RRB- , the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame -LRB- 1999 -RRB- , and the Long Island Music Hall of Fame -LRB- 2006 -RRB- . In 2001 , Joel received the Johnny Mercer Award from the Songwriters Hall of Fame . In 2013 , Joel received the Kennedy Center Honors , the nation 's highest honor for influencing American culture through the arts . With the exception of the 2007 songs `` All My Life '' and `` Christmas in Fallujah '' , Joel stopped writing and releasing pop/rock material after 1993 's River of Dreams . However , he continues to tour , and he plays songs from all eras of his solo career .