It seems odd to reference the Liverpool Football Club legend Bill Shankly while reviewing a music documentary but here we go.
However one of Shankly's best known quotes is his observation that in football "form is temporary, class is permanent".
The quote needs amended slightly for the music industry where trends are temporary but class is permanent.
That's unquestionably the point of Susan Lacy and Jessica Levin's epic two part HBO documentary 'Billy Joel: And So It Goes'.
The New Yorker has for decades been one of the most accomplished singer songwriters to grace American rock, folk and pop.
He's enjoyed phenomenal success - selling over 160 million records, winning six Grammy Awards and numerous other accolades, earning acclaim as a live artist with a groundbreaking and record breaking monthly residency in New York's Madison Square Garden.
Yet for much of his fame, he was looked down upon and derided by music critics - only for a reappraisal of his songwriting achievements to take place during the autumn of his career.
Lacy and Levin's documentary miniseries charts Joel's rise from a struggling keyboard player with pop ambitions from a broken home in Long Island to a global superstar who regularly hit the top of the charts.
In some respects, Joel's life follows typical rock n'roll documentary story arcs of raw talent, hard earned success, discomfort with his fame, tortured genius, problems with substance abuse, a string of failed relationships and ultimately survival.
But Joel's reflections on his own career in the HBO miniseries and the observations of friends, lovers, bandmates and associates show he is anything but typical.
The son of an accomplished amateur classical pianist dad and a flamboyant mum who met performing Gilbert and Sullivan in an amateur opera society, he had a natural flair for the keyboards from an early age and a musical versatility - moulding classical riffs with folk, rock n'roll, jazz and blues.
His chameleon like ability to switch musical styles and create catchy songs was an asset but it was used against him by critics who decided he wasn't cool enough.
With five hours of material spread over two episodes, 'Billy Joel: And So It Goes' sets out to right that wrong.
There's a lot of nuggets for the viewer to digest from his early days in various bands, his romantic betrayal of a good friend that led to a mental breakdown, the exploitation of his talent by several music producers and details of the partying that ultimately wrecked his second marriage to the model Christie Brinkley.
We also learn about his family history which saw the Joels flee persecution in Nazi Germany for the United States and abandon a once thriving garment business that ended up manufacturing the striped clothes Jews were forced to don in the concentration camps.
HBO's documentary dives into his strained relationship with his father Howard and his devotion to his tempestuous mother Rosalind who he used to compose classical music rip-offs for at the piano, pretending they were written by Bach and Mozart.
Interviews with his adopted cousin Judy Molinari and English half-brother Alexander, who is a classical conductor, reveal a sad tale of a distant father who was unwilling to acknowledge Billy's huge success after they reconciled in Vienna and articulate any sense of pride.
Joel's ex wives Elizabeth Weber and Christie Brinkley speak fondly of their former husband, while being candid about the failings that ended their marriages.
So does Weber's first husband Jon Small who managed to forgive Joel for the affair that ended his marriage after seeing him mentally crumble out of guilt.
What is also striking is the huge respect Joel commands among music legends like Paul McCartney, Bruce Springsteen, Sting, Jackson Browne, Pink, Nas, Don Henley and Garth Brooks who marvel not just at individual songs but his songwriting craft and musicianship.
What also really helps the show is Joel's affable and honest narration.
There are no airs and graces.
Joel is self-deprecating, proud of his Long Island roots and unflinchingly honest as he reflects on his triumphs, his failings, his self destructive behaviour.
A public spat with his friend Elton John over his drinking was, he admits, a low point.
An ungrateful song 'Stiletto' written about his first wife, he admits, was petulant and nasty.
A bitter fallout with his long time drummer Liberty de Vito was regrettable but ultimately resolved.
Amid those tales of regret, the docuseries reminds us of the high quality of his music.
Close friend Bruce Springsteen speaks glowingly about Joel's ability to meld sophisticated melody with blue collar sensibility.
Describing each other as "bridge and tunnel" artists, the Boss, who has always enjoyed more critical success, observes: "I'm obviously more identified with New Jersey, so I came more out of a folk rock n'roll background.
"Billy is still more identified with New York - he had all that Broadway and Tin Pan Alley, which is why his melodies are better than mine."
And there'a no doubt there's something deeply satisfying about watching Joel eventually get the credit he deserves as a live artist for a canon of work that has much more musical and lyrical depth than critics at the time were willing to admit.
'Piano Man' is a rare narrative song informed by his observations working as a lounge bar pianist in LA during a dispute with his record company.
'Movin' Out (Anthony's Song)' and 'Scenes From An Italian Restaurant' are as blue collar, earthy and nostalgic as any Springsteen song.
'Allentown' is an anthem for the disaffected Rust Belt workers whose industries went into decline in the Reagan years.
'Everybody Loves You Now' and 'Vienna' are examples of autobiographical songwriting at its best.
'Goodnight Saigon' is the musical equivalent of Oliver Stone's 'Platoon' - documenting the experiences of friends who were dispatched to Vietnam.
'New York State of Mind' is without a doubt one of the greatest songs written about the Big Apple, while 'And So It Goes' is a devastating lament for unrequited love.
Recent health woes this year saw Joel abandon plans to continue touring that would have seen him play Anfield, the home of Liverpool FC.
Here's hoping he gets to fulfil that dream of playing the home city of one of his biggest musical inspirations, Paul McCartney and The Beatles.
And if he does make it back, maybe he'll also get that Glastonbury legends slot his career so clearly deserves.
('Billy Joel: And So It Goes' was broadcast on Sky Documentaries in the UK and Ireland on August 2 & 3, 2025 and was available for streaming on Now TV and other Sky services)
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