Drumming News :
Billy Joel is mourning the death of his longtime friend and former bandmate Jon Small, who died Sept. 4. Small was in his late 70s. A cause of death has not been disclosed.
“RIP Jon Small,” Joel wrote on social media Monday, sharing a photo of the two together.
Joel and Small grew up on Long Island and began their musical journey together in the 1960s. They performed in the rock group The Hassles before forming Attila, a hard-rock duo featuring Small on drums and Joel on keyboards and vocals. The band released a self-titled album in 1970 before breaking up later that year.
Their friendship was strained after Joel became romantically involved with Small’s wife, Elizabeth Weber, whom Joel married in 1973. Joel later reflected on the painful episode in the documentary Billy Joel: And So It Goes, acknowledging that Small punched him in the nose over the betrayal.
Despite the turmoil, the two eventually reconciled. Small even helped Joel during a serious personal crisis, driving him to a hospital after Joel attempted suicide amid the emotional fallout. Small later said he forgave his friend.
The pair also renewed their creative partnership. Small went on to become a respected music video director and producer, working with Joel on projects including “Tell Her About It,” “Piano Man” and “Baby Grand,” as well as several concert films.
Beyond Joel, Small worked with some of the biggest names in music, including Whitney Houston, Sting, Garth Brooks, Reba McEntire, Run-DMC and Aerosmith. He directed the iconic video for Run-DMC and Aerosmith’s “Walk This Way,” one of the landmark collaborations of the 1980s.
Small and The Hassles were inducted into the Long Island Music and Entertainment Hall of Fame in June 2025. During a podcast appearance around the honor, Small recalled working with Garth Brooks and said the country star helped him become a calmer and more “normal” person.
Small is survived by a legacy that spans decades of rock and pop music, from his early days playing alongside Joel to his later career behind the camera.
A funeral service is scheduled for Sept. 9 at noon in Great Neck, New York. He will be buried at New Montefiore Cemetery in West Babylon.
