Ah yes… Attila. The name alone conjures images of flaming skulls, shredded leather, and maybe an angry yak with a Hammond organ. But believe it or not, before Billy Joel was crooning about Italian restaurants and uptown girls, he briefly went full metal. And to this day, he seems equally amused and mildly horrified by the whole affair. 😅
🎤 From Piano Man to Metal Madman?
Back in 1969, Billy Joel and his drummer mate Jon Small had just ditched their psych-pop band The Hassles—a group that never quite cracked it despite landing a record deal. Frustrated with their soft rock fate, the two decided to go HARD. Like… riff your face off hard.
Inspired by Led Zeppelin’s bone-crushing debut, Joel recalls in the new HBO documentary Billy Joel: And So It Goes:
“It just pulverized me when I heard it,” he says of Zeppelin’s influence.
“It was like hearing Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony for the first time.”
So, naturally, he and Small said, “Let’s make something loud, angry, and totally bonkers.” And just like that, Attila was born.
🎹 No Guitars? No Problem… Right?
Here’s the kicker: Attila didn’t have a guitarist. Why? Because Billy Joel is, well, Billy Joel—a piano wizard, not a six-string slinger.
So, what did he do? He plugged his Hammond B-3 organ into a stack of Marshall amps, ran it through distortion pedals, and tried to make it sound like a thunderstorm riding a Harley Davidson. Absolute chaos. 🤯
“I wanted to be in a heavy metal band, but I’m not a guitar player,” Joel admits in the doc.
“So I had to try to figure out how to wire an organ through amplifiers.”
The result? A bizarre, roaring slab of proto-metal weirdness that sounded like Black Sabbath got locked in a cathedral during an acid trip.
💥 The Album… and the Implosion
Attila’s self-titled album dropped in 1970. It featured tracks like “Brain Invasion” and “Revenge is Sweet”, and the album art? Oh, you bet it was mad. Joel and Small posed next to sides of beef in a meat locker wearing Viking helmets. 🤘🪓
Critics hated it. Fans ignored it. And even Billy Joel himself has since called it:
“The worst album in the history of recorded music.”
Proper job, butt. 😂
💔 The Fallout Was Even Wilder
The band split not long after, not because of musical differences, but because Billy Joel had an affair with Jon Small’s wife. Oof. 🫣 Despite this explosive fallout, Small would go on to direct many of Joel’s concert videos years later, proving that even metal-fueled betrayal can be forgiven… eventually.
🎶 So… How Does Billy Feel About It All Now?
Billy Joel looks back on Attila with a mix of nostalgia, embarrassment, and humour. He doesn’t try to hide it, and honestly, he shouldn’t. In a weird way, it’s part of what makes his story so human.
Before the stadium anthems, before Madison Square Garden residencies, and before becoming the bard of the Bronx… he was a Viking organist in a meat locker. 🤷♂️
And we wouldn’t have it any other way.
🤘THE RIFF VERDICT:
Billy Joel’s metal misadventure is one of the greatest “what the hell were they thinking?” detours in rock history. But fair play to him — he gave it a go. It was loud, it was ridiculous, and it nearly melted his Hammond. Tidy!
Whether you’re a Piano Man purist or a metalhead in denial, Attila remains a glorious footnote that proves every rock legend has their wild phase. Even if it includes sideburns, betrayal, and beef carcasses.
Diolch, Billy. Never change. 🥂🎹🔥
Want to hear what it actually sounded like? 🎧 Go on… we dare you: Attila – Full Album Stream (if you’re brave)
Would you want Billy Joel to try metal again? 🤔 Let us know in the comments over at The Riff Report Blog or tag us @theriffreportuk and scream “WE WANT BEEF METAL” in all caps. 😎
