Turnstiles / The Ultimate Tribute to the music of Billy Joel

Billy Joel is just one on a long list that you've always wanted to see live, but can't afford it. That's why we all embrace tribute bands, especially the ones that are actually good. We're not talking cover bands in a bar. We mean guys and gals that put their heart into the artists' catalogs and build an act with the sole purpose of paying homage.

The Lake Worth Rocktober Brewfest is bringing in Eve 6 to town, but we've had enough '90s nostalgia to last another decade. The real perk, besides all the beer, is an almost true-to-life Billy Joel experience at a fraction of the wallet damage. Tony Monaco, a guy with a sales job during the day, morphs into the ultimate Joel replica at night, and he's torn through stages throughout Florida since 2011 as lead singer of the Turnstiles.

Before this Piano Man takes the stage at Brewfest, we chatted with Tony about his musical career, playing for drunk people, and what it really takes to emulate a great.

New Times: You are in Florida now but are you from here?
Tony Monaco: No, I actually grew up in Pittsburgh, PA. And then I moved to Long Island, NY, and spent about 20 years there. I actually went there interested in a music career. I was fairly successful, got a record contract and some touring. But then I got married and went back to a day job, so to speak, and in and out of the music business, mainly part-time.

Actually, that is why I moved down here. I had a Billy Joel tribute band up there before tribute bands were a thing. I played in a band called Storm Front. We did really well around there. And then my "regular job" transferred me down here to Florida.

Are you playing full time now?
No, I'm not but it is getting bigger. Just to give you an idea, we played our debut show April 8, 2011. For a while I was just fighting to get stage time once a month just so we could play in front of people and get tighter. People get what we do. Now we are at a point were I am booked, not solid, but I have a heck of 2014 already. Stuff is happening now, like I had Royal Caribbean get in touch about doing nine weeks on two different cruise ships. But I am not to the point where I can commit to that much work. It's kind of the chicken and the egg right now. We are certainly reaching a tipping point. We know it is a very marketable product. It is just a matter of when do we jump off.

Since you have played in bands throughout the country, how do you think the local Florida music scene stacks up?
Any music scene that I have ever been involved in, and I spent time in LA, New York, and Pittsburgh, and obviously some traveling, I think it is kind of the same in that if you are in a major metropolitan area or near one, there's work. Different areas are more saturated with musicians. I really wasn't aware of how much talent was here when I first moved here. There is a lot of good talent in South Florida. I don't think that there are enough really good venues, although it is changing. It could always be better, but I think for me, the reason the tribute band thing is doing as well as it is, just in general, is that audiences know what they are going to get.

Turnstiles is the name of a 1970s Billy Joel record. So is that your preferred era or are you just all Joel?
No, we definitely cover it all. I just thought Turnstiles was a good name for a band. And doing some research on it, it's Billy Joel's favorite album. We do a good bit of songs off that album but we do songs from lots of albums. Songs for hardcore Joel fans and things that everyone knows.

Have you ever seen the movie Step Brothers?
No I haven't.

At the end they go to a big event and there is a Billy Joel cover band.
Oh, yeah!

And they are called Uptown Girl and they only play '80s Joel.
It rings a bell now.

Do you ever experience something similar, like people complain about you not playing their favorite song?
I don't really think that I have ever gotten anything like that. I have gotten requests. I mean, I am a huge Billy Joel fan. And I did a lot of research to see "Hey, what does Billy play?"

Chances are pretty good at the Lake Worth Rocktoberfest, you will be playing for a bunch of drunk people. How does that make you feel?
Oh, I'm used to that. I've been doing it all my life so it doesn't phase me. When people see our band, we seem to strike a nerve. And the nerve that we strike is that they can see that we all really, really get along. That the band has a great relationship

You have a pretty big band -- seven people. So you keep it friendly on stage and behind the scenes?
Yeah, we are like a little family. I kind of hand-picked this band myself. I got some of the best players I know. We are really close.

Did you see that Billy's daughter, Alexa Ray Joel, just came out with a cover of "Just The Way You Are?" for a Gap commercial. What did you think about it?
I only heard a little piece of it. I was actually disappointed because it was hard to find online and it was only a 20 second clip, but I found it interesting. She's talented, I don't think she's her father, but I give her credit. It's a tall order for anybody to take a Billy Joel song and try to redo it. - New Times Broward / Palm Beach

Popular Billy Joel tribute band, Turnstiles, will sing the songs of the “Piano Man” at the Mizner Park Amphitheater, 590 Plaza Real, on Friday, August 8 at 7:30 p.m. The event is FREE and open to the public.

Turnstiles is comprised of seven musicians, passionately and energetically paying tribute to Billy Joel. Since playing their debut show on April 8, 2011 they have performed before tens of thousands of enthusiastic Billy Joel fans all over the US and are being met with rave reviews. Faithfully recreating Billy’s music with a seven piece live band clearly sets them apart from the pack.

Turnstiles’ show is very energetic show that involves the audience and appeals to a large age group. These seven musicians re-create Billy’s classic songs in such a faithful way that will certainly move the casual listener as well as the hard core “Joel fan” to their feet and singing along with all the classics. - Pineapple Newspaper

Popular Billy Joel tribute band, Turnstiles, will sing the songs of the “Piano Man” at the Mizner Park Amphitheater, 590 Plaza Real, on Friday, August 8 at 7:30 p.m. The event is FREE and open to the public.

Turnstiles is comprised of seven musicians, passionately and energetically paying tribute to Billy Joel. Since playing their debut show on April 8, 2011 they have performed before tens of thousands of enthusiastic Billy Joel fans all over the US and are being met with rave reviews. Faithfully recreating Billy’s music with a seven piece live band clearly sets them apart from the pack.

Turnstiles’ show is very energetic show that involves the audience and appeals to a large age group. These seven musicians re-create Billy’s classic songs in such a faithful way that will certainly move the casual listener as well as the hard core “Joel fan” to their feet and singing along with all the classics.

Blankets and chairs are welcome, but for convenience, chairs will also be available to rent for $5.00.

Series sponsor, Sweetwater Brewery, will welcome guests 21 and over to sample three featured craft brews in the beer garden area, located on the east side of the venue.

Attendees are encouraged to walk, bike, car pool and use free parking at City Hall and the Boca Raton Library.

No coolers, soft coolers or outside food and beverages are permitted. Food and beverages will be available to purchase inside the venue. All shows are rain or shine.

Sponsored by Alpine Jaguar, Sweetwater Brewery and ArtHive Magazine, the City of Boca Raton’s Summer Concert Series will conclude on Sunday, August 17 with The Symphonia Boca Raton. - Boca Raton Tribune

A Billy Joel tribute band will perform as part of the Friends of the Bandshell’s Star Spangled Summer Concert Series.

Turnstiles, featuring singer-pianist Tony Monaco, will perform at 7:15 p.m. Saturday July 12 at the Bandshell, behind the Ocean Walk Shoppes, 250 N. Atlantic Ave., Daytona Beach.

A fireworks display over the ocean will follow the concert at 9:45 p.m.

Admission is free. For more information, call 386-947-8007 or go online at daytonabandshell.com.

Monaco founded his Billy Joel tribute in 1993 and played throughout the New York City area. After moving to South Florida, the singer-pianist played in pop and blues bands before reviving his Joel tribute.

Turnstiles’ repertoire includes “Allentown,” “Big Shot,” “Don’t Ask Me Why,” “It’s Still Rock and Roll to Me,” “My Life,” “New York State of Mind,’’ “Only the Good Die Young,” “Piano Man,” “Pressure,” “Scenes From an Italian Restaurant,” “Uptown Girl,” “We Didn’t Start the Fire” and many other Joel songs.

Food, beer and beverages will be available for purchase at the concert. No coolers will be allowed. Chairs will be available to rent. Paid parking is available at the nearby Ocean Center garage and surface lots. - News Journal