Billy Joel says doctors barred him from driving and require tests before he performs again while he battles a brain condition affecting balance and memory.
The Piano Man told Daily Mail readers through a Hollywood Reporter interview that his medical team has cut back what he can do as he deals with normal pressure hydrocephalus, a disorder once called water on the brain.
Joel, now in his 70s, was blunt about the biggest day-to-day limit.
He said he is under orders to stay out of the driver’s seat for now.
"I can't drive right now. I’m not allowed to drive."
He also said he must clear a series of tests before he can perform in public again. His neurologist framed each concert as a real physical hit, not just a long night of work.
"What the neurologist told me, every time you do a show, it’s like you’re getting a concussion."
Joel described the condition in plain terms and tried to calm fans at the same time. He said it touches balance, memory, vision, and hearing, but insisted he is still in decent shape overall.
"I have this thing called hydrocephalus. It used to be called water on the brain, so it affects your balance, it affects your memory, it affects your vision, your hearing. But I’m OK."
He called it a brain disorder that is “not that serious” and said the main problem is balance. That is the kind of clear-eyed update older audiences want from a star who has spent decades on loud stages under heavy lights, with the stress and energy that come with live shows.
Daily Mail reported that it reached out to Joel’s representatives for more comment. The core public account remains the one he gave in the interview: doctors have curtailed his activities, driving is off-limits, and a return to the stage depends on testing first.
The same conversation turned to his motorcycle collection. Joel said he built a stash of more than a hundred bikes and finally faced a simple truth of age and physics: you can only ride one at a time.
About 70 of those motorcycles are headed to auction next month. Gooding Christie’s is set to offer them at the Rétromobile New York sale at the Javits Center on November 20 and 21.
Joel did not dress up the reason. He is into his 70s, he cannot ride the way he used to, and he does not want a bad ending on the road.
"I don’t want to die like a bug on a windshield. So I thought I’d put a lot of them on auction."
He still talks about the machines with affection. Japanese, Italian, English, American, Asian, he said he likes them all. He named his crown jewel as a Moto Guzzi California Vintage 1100.
For him, riding was never about being recognized. Helmet on, goggles on, and you are “just another schmuck on a motorcycle.” That is a working man’s kind of freedom, and it is the same freedom his doctors are telling him to handle with care.
Knowing your limits is not weakness. It is how grown adults keep living long enough to enjoy the life they built.
