Billy Joel's former bandmate and longtime best friend Jon Small has died, the musician confirmed Monday.
Joel, 77, announced Small's death on social media with a simple post: "RIP Jon Small."
According to TMZ, Small was in his late 70s, and an official cause of death has not yet been released.
Small and Joel's relationship began in the early 1960s when they were both part of the rock band The Hassles. They later formed a hard rock duo called Attila. Their partnership dissolved when Joel had an affair with Small's wife, Elizabeth Weber, while they were all living together.
In a 2025 HBO documentary, Joel recounted the intense guilt he felt over the affair, stating, "I felt very, very guilty about it. They had a child. I felt like a homewrecker." He also described the physical altercation that followed, saying, "I was just in love with a woman and I got punched in the nose—which I deserved. Jon was very upset. I was very upset."
The fallout from the affair not only ended Attila but also shattered Joel's friendship with Small and left Joel in a state of despair. After Weber left, Joel found himself homeless and contemplating suicide.
"I had no place to live. I was sleeping in laundromats and I was depressed, I think to the point of almost being psychotic," Joel said in the documentary. "So I figured, 'That’s it. I don’t want to live anymore.' I was just in a lot of pain."
At the lowest point of his mental health crisis, Joel attempted to take his own life. His sister, Judy Molinari, who was a medical assistant, gave him sleeping pills. "But Billy decided that he was going to take all of them… he was in a coma for days and days and days," Molinari recalled.
Joel's second suicide attempt involved drinking furniture polish. Despite their fractured friendship, it was Small who rushed Joel to the hospital. "Even though our friendship was blowing up, Jon saved my life," Joel stated.
Small later reflected on the depth of their bond, suggesting Joel's reaction to the betrayal stemmed from the strength of his feelings for Small. "He never really said anything to me. The only practical answer I can give as to why Billy took it so hard was because he loved me that much and that it killed him to hurt me that much. Eventually I forgave him," Small said.
Following their reconciliation, Small worked with Joel for many years, directing and producing numerous music videos and concert films. He also directed the video for Joel's 1986 song "Baby Grand."
Joel and Weber married in 1973 and divorced in 1982. In a 2025 interview, Weber defended Joel, telling Us Weekly that she did not consider him a "homewrecker," stating that her marriage to Small lacked a deep connection and that her life truly began with the birth of their son, Sean.