CBS is under fire after cutting short the broadcast of Billy Joel’s 100th headlining show at Madison Square Garden.
The special, which was taped March 28 and aired on Sunday evening, was the victim of schedule changes, Rolling Stone reported.
The evening started with the special starting later than the 9 p.m. EST scheduled time when the network had extended coverage of the Masters Tournament. Then, things only got worse when the show abruptly ended while Joel was singing “Piano Man” — this best known song — and was replaced with the local news.
“On the original setlist, the ‘Piano Man’ singalong marked the last song before the hit-filled encore featuring ‘We Didn’t Start the Fire,’ ‘Uptown Girl,’ ‘It’s Still Rock and Roll to Me,’ and ‘Big Shot,’” Rolling Stone reported. “In the broadcast, the order was shifted around to close with ‘Piano Man,’ and only ‘It’s Still Rock and Roll to Me’ made the final cut.”
In the end, people were not feeling all right after waiting for Joel’s first-ever television concert special.
A litany of fans went on X, formerly Twitter, scratching their heads at CBS’ faux pas.
— Todd Chappelle (@ToddChappelle) April 15, 2024
Sing us a half-song, you’re the Piano Man
Sing us a half-song tonight
Cause we all heard a part of a melody
And CBS producers aren’t bright
I'm all singing Piano Man loud in bed, watching the show… AND THEY CUT THE SONG OFF TO START THE NEWS. NEWSFLASH…BILLY JOEL IS SINGING.
— SunnyAnderson (Taylor's Version) (@SunnyAnderson) April 15, 2024
