Billy Joelwas at a pivotal moment while recording his iconic albumThe Stranger, and it took the encouragement of a legendary '70s female rocker to include what would become one of the LP's most beloved songs.
In a 2008 interview withMassLive, Joel shared how the fate of "Just The Way You Are" hung in the balance until two famous female singers,Linda RonstadtandPhoebe Snow, gave the song their overwhelming stamp of approval. Their input convinced Joel the tune was worth taking a chance on.
"We just went in to make as good a record as we could. I didn't think at the time it was going to be a big commercial hit," Joel said ofThe Stranger. "Just The Way You Are" was written for his first wife, manager, and muse,Elizabeth Webber.
"I don't really know what's going to be a big commercial hit. We almost left 'Just The Way You Are' off the album because we really didn't like it that much. But some girls talked us into leaving it on."
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He explained that the "girls" were Snow and Ronstadt, who heard the track and said, "'You guys are crazy, you've gotta keep that on the album.' We said 'Yeah? Well, ok.'"
Joel added, "I guess girls like that song. It's a chick song."
"Before we went in to recordThe Stranger, I think I had 'Just The Way You Are,' but we did not have the right drum pattern for it. I think we had it as a cha-cha, which made us hate the song right off the bat."
Joel worried the song was too sentimental and feared it would stick out from the rest of the album. However, the LP's producerPhil Ramoneinsisted it was a must-have. To prove his point, he invited Ronstadt and Snow into the studio to listen to the song and sway Joel's opinion of the tune.
The Strangerwould go on to become Billy Joel's best-selling album. It was certified Diamond by the Recording Industry Association of America, with sales over 10M albums.
PerBillboard, the LP spawned four Top 40 hits: "Just the Way You Are" (No. 3), "Movin' Out" (No. 17), "She's Always a Woman" (No. 17), and "Only the Good Die Young" (No. 24).
This story was originally published byParadeon Feb 15, 2026, where it first appeared in theNewssection. Add Parade as aPreferred Source by clicking here.
