Joel threatened that his most recent arena tour would be his last, and that he would now spend his time writing only classical music. But not without a big blowout first.

In this case, a concert at Madison Square Garden on Dec. 31, 1999, which incidentally opens with the fanfare of Beethoven's Ninth Symphony and includes the requisite Auld Lang Syne. Otherwise, the two-CD, 25-song set features Joel at his scrappy best on tunes such as Big Shot, Movin' Out (Anthony's Song), My Life, Only The Good Die Young and You May Be Right.

Less successful are over-the-top renditions, both vocally and instrumentally, of New York State Of Mind, Prelude/Angry Young Man, We Didn't Start The Fire, River Of Dreams and It's Still Rock And Roll To Me.

Joel tones it down nicely for Summer Highland Falls, Don't Ask Me Why, I've Loved These Days, Allentown, I Go To Extremes, Goodnight Saigon and Scenes From An Italian Restaurant -- until the crowd joins him for the uptempo second half on the latter song.

I'm not sure about his straight-ahead covers of Sly And The Family Stone's Dance To The Music and the Rolling Stones' Honky Tonk Women, although the audience certainly sounds like it enjoyed itself.

This collection is for hard-core Joel fans only.

Track Listing Disc1
01. Beethoven's Ninth Symphony
02. Big Shot
03. Movin' Out (Anthony's Song)
04. Summer Highland Falls
05. Ballad Of Billy The Kid
06. Don't Ask Me Why
07. New York State Of Mind
08. I've Loved These Days
09. My Life
10. Allentown
11. Angry Young Man
12. Only The Good Die Young

Disc2
01. I Go To Extremes
02. Goodnight Saigon
03. We Didn't Start the Fire
04. Big Man On Mulberry Street
05. 2000 Years
06. Auld Lang Syne
07. River Of Dreams
08. Scenes From An Italian Restaurant
09. Dance To The Music
10. Honky Tonk Woman
11. It's Still Rock And Roll To Me
12. You May Be Right
13. This Night