"Christiano's", long debated to have been the inspiration to the BILLY JOEL song "Scenes from an Italian Restaurant", has closed after 56 years in business. "Christiano's", a Syosset, Long Island staple since 1958, was always a well known restaurant, but not outside the north shore of Long Island, New York. That is, not until he gave it a shout-out in 1977 at his concert in (The Dome) of Long Islands' C.W. Post College. When BILLY JOEL debuted "Scenes from an Italian Restaurant" at the show, ( FIRST time this song was played in public) he dedicated the song to "Christiano's" hinting that the eatery was his inspiration. But oddly in 2012, BILLY JOEL said, retracting that 1977 statement, that "It was like saying 'Yankees' when you're playing in New York"., and the actual "Italian Restaurant" is in New York City. What ??? But people that grew up in Syosset, Long Island where "Christiano's" is located, know this is just not true ! We can only speculate why BILLY JOEL retracted that 1977 statement, the year "The Stranger" album was released. Instead of "plug", he "snubed" the restaurant for whatever reason. BILLY JOEL is the only person to know the reason why he said what he said. How did he become inspired from an Italian restaurant in New York City when he spent the years in question in Los Angeles and Long Island, N.Y. ? These are the facts... from 1971 to 1976, BILLY JOEL was in Los Angeles, California, playing briefly at "The Executive Room" where he became, "The Piano Man", fleeing Long Island, N.Y. during a contract dispute involving his first solo album, "Cold Spring Harbor", released in 1971. (Billy Joel signed away all his rights, publishing, copyright, etc) so he wasn't in New York during that time. Before that, in the late 1960's, as a teenager, BILLY JOELwas bullied out of his hometown of Hicksville, Long Island, (that's why he took up boxing) and started to hang-out in Syosset, Long Island, (northeast of Hicksville) and was invited to join a band from Syosset, Long Island in the late 1960's (most of the band members were from this town) named... "The Hassles". Also, BILLY JOEL's first wife, Elizabeth (Weber) Small, is from Syosset, Long Island. And, BILLY JOEL was often seen around the town of Syosset, Long Island back in the day, with dozens of sightings through the years at "Christiano's", where a BILLY JOEL 8x10 autographed glass framed photo was on display, behind the bar, for decades ! See photos, details and facts on this website, (Photo Album 3) about BILLY JOEL'S "Itailan Restaurant" !
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