Elton John and Billy Joel, individually, are two of the biggest concert draws in music today.

But when "Captain Fantastic" and the "Piano Man" throw their lot in together, as they will tonight and Saturday when their "Face 2 Face" Tour hits the Palace of Auburn Hills, it's an unmitigated blockbuster.

Jeff Corey, public relations director for Palace Sports & Recreation, told The News that Sir Elton and Mr. Joel are among the company's top 5 sell-out performers of the last 15 years, with John selling out 9 shows and Joel selling-out 7.

Billy Joel and Elton John are presumably musical partners on their latest cross-country jaunt - a power piano pairing that gives fans a double dose of the some of the modern era's biggest hits.

But if Friday night's show at a sold-out Palace of Auburn Hills was any sort of competition, Joel was the evening's hands-down winner.

Joel and John started doing these lucrative gigs nearly a decade ago after years of duking it out on the pop charts. Friday's rendition, before a crowd of 20,000, felt like a lopsided affair at times, with Joel displaying an energy and flash missing from the performance of the possibly ailing John.

With Joel's recent forays on Broadway and John's apparent lifetime deal with Disney, the time has long since passed for analyzing these two within the context of rock and roll. Friday's show was best received as a polished evening of pop standards.

The two took the stage together at facing grand pianos, eliciting the audience's roar as Joel handled the opening verse of John's ballad "Your Song." They swapped lines on another pair of tunes before Joel left the stage to John, who worked through an 80-minute set of his own material that matched big hits ("Philadelphia Freedom") with album cuts ("Funeral For A Friend/Love Lies Bleeding").

John apologized early for his hoarse voice, which affected his delivery. The bulk of the crowd remained seated until the upbeat closing of "Crocodile Rock."

Joel emerged minutes later for his own 10-song set, lively from the get-go. Playfully slipping into his Ray Charles voice, graciously whipping up renditions of Motor City chestnuts like "Stop! In the Name of Love," he showed a vigor conspicuously missing from John's set.

Billy Joel (May 9th, 1949) was born under the strict influence of the Virgo moon - an emotionally disciplined placement. With Virgo lunar vibes and three Taurus luminaries, musical precision comes naturally, and his success in the classical world is no surprise. Joel once said he would never return to pop music, but Mercury in Gemini is far too playful for a musical diet of Chopin and Beethoven. Joel could film a controversial music video this year, lambasting the media in a song reminiscent of Don Henley's "Dirty Laundry."

It was buzzin' at the Redhead Piano Bar on Sunday night when the "Piano Man," singer Billy Joel, tickled the ivories.

Sing 'em: Joel, who is using Chicago as his base while doing gigs in Detroit and St. Louis, was told about the bar by his driver, Diana Fairley. But it was a shocker when Joel decided to tackle the piano himself and played songs at customers' request for 45 minutes. Fairley finally had to pull him off the piano seat.

No Sing 'em: Decked out in black jeans and a black shirt, Joel was asked to play a repertoire of his famous songs, which included "Piano Man." But he eschewed playing "Uptown Girl," which was probably because he wrote it for his ex-wife, model Christie Brinkley. "I love Chicago," the singer kept saying. We love you too, Billy.

Rock icons Elton John and Billy Joel can no longer be counted on for best-selling CDs, and airplay is mostly relegated to classic hits radio. But bring them together under the same roof at any arena, and magic is bound to take place.

These Rock and Roll Hall of Famers still sell out houses on their own, but the excitement reaches a higher level when they do it together, as they did Monday night during a three-hour concert at a sold-out Savvis Center. This was the next-to-last night for this joint tour, a package they've been trotting out on and off over the past decade. (The show was rescheduled from an April date that was canceled when John became ill).

Of the two legendary performers, one still has the time of his life on stage; the other could inject more life into his presentation at times - guess which is which. But, together, these piano men make a hard-to-beat pair, nearly wearing the white off of the piano keys while performing a generous list of songs, among pop's most memorable, dating back to the '70s, as well as choice covers that were even older.

The show kicked off with a pair of black, baby grand pianos rising from beneath the stage, accompanied by a projected image of a joint flag uniting the United States and England. Joel, decked out in black, walked out first to the tune of "Yankee Doodle Dandy," followed by John, wearing the type of hot-pink suit one would expect.

John and Joel faced off on dueling pianos on John's "Your Song," Joel's "Just The Way You Are" and John's "Don't Let The Sun Go Down On Me," with the band coming aboard on the latter song. John and Joel took turns with the verses, and it was remarkable how comfortable each singer was with the other's lyrics, enough to make it sound as if he could have recorded the song himself and achieved the same success.

Both singers remain in fine voice, though John apologized for leftover huskiness in his throat from his earlier illness.

After three songs together, Joel retreated from the stage to give John space to show his stuff solo, beginning with an excessive yet forceful "Funeral For A Friend/Love Lies Bleeding." John earned standing ovations for each classic he polished off including "Someone Saved My Life Tonight," "Philadelphia Freedom" and "Rocket Man." But he went overboard milking the crowd for extra applause, standing up, bowing and posturing after every song, including on "Tiny Dancer" and "Crocodile Rock," which he stopped momentarily to listen to the crowd's "la la la la la."

The same reception failed to greet John after "I Want Love" and "The Wasteland," two time-killing songs from his 2001 release "Songs From The West Coast."

Joel, who recently had the dubious distinction of having his material performed by "American Idol" contestants, came out with an adrenaline rush missing from John's show, beginning with Joel's lengthy "Scenes From An Italian Restaurant."

Say what you will about Joel and those bouts with alcohol - his show still had a boundless, manic energy that surpassed John's on songs including "Movin' Out (Anthony's Song)," "Allentown," "I Go To Extremes" and "New York State of Mind."

He offered the crowd a choice of three songs at one point, "Summer, Highland Falls," "Prelude/Angry Young Man" and "Don't Ask Me Why," and let the crowd's applause determine which song would make the cut. "Don't Ask Me Why" triumphed, though "Prelude/Angry Young Man" would've been equally strong.

Well known in the Hamptons, once described as the personification of fin de siecle decadence, artist Carolyn Beegan had dog trouble. Her seven month-old pug, Isabella, a birthday gift from her former boyfriend and former Hamptonite Billy Joel, wriggled out of her collar last Saturday on Three Mile Harbor road (don't ask) and went AWOL for forty-eight hours. La Beegan canceled a planned jaunt to Belize and a general alarm was sent up for le chien perdue. Local radio stations repeatedly announced a $1,000 reward for Isabella's safe return (without mentioning the dog's celebrity provenance) and "Lost Dog" flyers were posted all over the area. Luckily, a kindly neighborhood lady found the dog and while Ms. Beegan and her friends were distraught that the dog would be gobbled by foxes or feral cats in the dark, the teeny pug spent the night sleeping comfortably in the bed of the woman who took her in. Isabella is presently residing back in her Sag Harbor home with people she knows.

Let's hear it for a great New Yorker: Billy Joel. He invited my 13 year-old son, John Connolly Jr., who is wheelchair-dependent with cerebral palsy, to his concert in Albany on April 26th, 2003. Billy was a terrific host, very friendly and funny. John Jr. and the rest of our family were thrilled to meet him, hang-out backstage and be introduced to Elton John, with whom Billy was performing that night. We'll surely be Billy Joel (and Elton John) fans for life. Thanks a million, Billy!

Your main worry before seeing two rock stars in their mid-50s perform is whether they can still bring it.

Thursday night, Elton John and Billy Joel showed they still can.

Some of their fans, though, might want to hang up their lighters.

While the two "Piano Men" played for a total of three hours and 45 minutes — and probably could still be playing, more than a few who packed the Allstate Arena in Rosemont seemed ready to be put out to pasture.

Never have I ever seen a concert crowd more concerned with making cell-phone calls, carrying on conversations wholly unrelated to the concert and vigilantly guarding their rights to sit on their butts (and yell at anyone who dared do otherwise).

Luckily for John and Joel, the past three decades must have left them a little nearsighted, for they attacked their pianos and their song catalogs with a fervor to match the enthusiastic throng near the stage.

The evening started with two baby grand pianos rising from under the stage, with John and Joel soon taking their places to face each other and trade off lines of John's classic "Your Song."

After the song, Joel lamented that the concert was the last night of the tour, which included three stops at the Allstate Arena.

The duo then played Joel's "Just The Way You Are" and John's "Don't Let The Sun Go Down on Me," before Joel retired backstage.

John and his band then tore through energetic versions of many of his classics, including "Someone Saved My Life," "Philadelphia Freedom," "Rocket Man" and "Tiny Dancer," with its oh so appropriate line: "'Piano Man', he makes his stand, in the auditorium."

John seemed like he might welcome the end of the tour, confessing to "sore pipes" and sounding a little hoarse at times. Ironically, Thursday's show was originally scheduled for April 10th, 2003 but was canceled because of "artist illness."

When John finished his set and Joel took the stage with his band, Joel said he was the cause of the cancellation.

...As wacky as it sounds, Billy Joel has rented a house in Sag Harbor directly across the street from his former flame, artist Carolyn Beegan. The two houses are so close that Mr. Joel and Ms. Beegan can see into each other's windows.

Mr. Joel has been playing the field since he and the titian-haired artist broke up four years ago, but friends think he's never really gotten over her. Ms. Beegan is otherwise romantically engaged with a ship's captain, but Mr. Joel never strays far away.

Now he's just across the narrow street.

The 1800s house Mr. Joel rented belongs to Ivana Lowell, whose mother, Lady Caroline Blackwood, was a writer and Guiness heiress who was married to the painter Lucian Freud and the poet Robert Lowell. Ms. Lowell was asking around $90,000 for the season for the handsome ship's captain's house.

Curioser and curioser, as Alice would say, many years ago the spacious house was also rented to Mr. Joel's ex-wife, Christie Brinkley. It was also once a funeral parlor, and the summer White House for President Chester A. Arthur.

Billy Joel has rented a house in Sag Harbor right across the street from his former flame Carolyn Beegan. "The two houses are so close that Mr. Joel and Ms. Beegan can see into each other's windows," iHamptons.com reports. The "Piano Man" split with the Titian-haired artist four years ago, but friends think he's never really gotten over her. Joel's spokeswoman said the proximity of his $90,000 rental is just a coincidence: "It's near where his daughter lives." Billy's landlady is Ivana Lowell, whose late mother, Lady Caroline Blackwood, was a Guinness heiress who married painter Lucian Freud and poet Robert Lowell.

Theatre people are starting to get nervous about this year's Tony telecast.

The show, which will be broadcast June 8th, 2003 from Radio City Music Hall, is still without a host and is low on celebrity presenters.

Catherine Zeta-Jones, the star of the movie "Chicago," turned down an offer to take part in the telecast. So did Renée Zellweger, who's said to be "Chicago"-ed out.

The producers of the telecast have three hours to fill on CBS this year (PBS dropped its one-hour slot), which may well be their undoing.

In the past, the Tonys have struggled to maintain viewer interest for two hours. Drag things out for three, and Broadway might lose countless Nielsen families to HBO reruns.

The only solution is to throw out the tired old Tony template of trying to squeeze in a scene from every nominated show (regardless of its chances, its appeal, its familiarity), and come up with original musical segments.

On that score, there is some good news to report: Billy Joel, whose "Movin' Out" was nominated for 10 Tonys, is likely to accept an offer to perform on the telecast.

I have no idea what the Tony producers want him to sing, but here's a thought: Why not a medley of his favorite songs from Broadway musicals?

I'd love to hear Joel's interpretations of Rodgers, Gershwin, Loesser, Porter, Berlin and Sondheim.

He could finish up with one of his hits from "Movin' Out," then pass the song off to "Movin' Out" "Piano Man" (and Tony nominee) Michael Cavanaugh and the rest of the cast for the "Movin' Out" segment.

The League of American Theatres and Producers is trying to bully those poor little Outer Critics Circle nominators into keeping their traps shut.

You may recall that some of those nominators were kind enough to tell me about how "Gypsy" director Sam Mendes met with them privately before a preview performance and tried to get them to cut his show some slack.

I had fun with that bit of gossip, but apparently no one was laughing about it over at the League.

In a letter to Circle president Marjorie Gunner, League president Jed Bernstein reprimanded her for the "rather cavalier way" her members dicussed the nominations in The Post.

He acknowledged that it's difficult to keep people from gossiping (in the theatre? You don't say!), but reminded her that her awards are "dependent on the cooperation of producers (for tickets and access), and the 'recognizability' of each award is very much related to how much various producers publicize it over time."

This strikes me as a rather grandiose way of saying, "Stop talking to Riedel or else we won't give you any more free tickets and we won't mention your piddly little awards in our New Yok Times ads."

But Bernstein insists that's the wrong interpretation.

For the first time in the 22-year history of the Theatre Development Fund's Astaire Awards - which celebrate the "best dance on Broadway" - all three top honors went to "Movin' Out," the musical based on Joel's songs. The awards, presented last night were for best choreographer (Twyla Tharp), best male dancer (John Selya) and best female dancer (Elizabeth Parkinson).

He's famous for "a bottle of white, a bottle of red," and pop-star Billy Joel is now singing that he's "an alcohol abuser" - but insists he's no alcoholic.

Billy Joel says he wants to set the record straight. It's part of a new chapter in his life - part two, you might say, of a great American success story. It's not that Billy Joel's been away, exactly. He still tours, but he stopped writing songs a decade ago. But now a Broadway musical based on his songs is a smash hit. Along with that new success has come new controversy - and hard questions - about his private life, and his drinking. He answers the questions in this exclusive interview with NBC's Katie Couric.

His songs scored the soundtrack for an entire generation. For three decades, his lyrics have spoken for lovers & loners, friends and veterans. They call him the "Piano Man".

Michael Cavanaugh sings, "There's a place in the world for the angry young man with his working class ties and his radical plans."
But wait a minute. Who's this guy singing? It's a scene from the hit Broadway musical, "Movin' Out," a shimmering stage celebration of Billy Joel songs.

Michael Cavanaugh: "My favorite songs. I grew up listening to Billy's music since the third grade. I used to camp out in the snow for his tickets, you know?"

This isn't your grandmother's Broadway musical. "Movin' Out" is a story told completely through dance - with Joel's lyrics providing the narrative, and the choreography, the dialogue.

Billy Joel: "To watch what they do, it's not - and I don't want to say just dance because as difficult as dance is, it's acting dancing. And dancing it but acting and dancing - I don't even know how to describe it. What do you call this?"

The critics have called it exhilarating, thrilling, and above all, original.

Katie Couric: "Why did this appeal to you, Billy?"
Billy Joel: "Just the fact it was unorthodox. It was untried. It was different. It was risky. It was daring. It was crazy. It was ludicrous. I said, 'This is fantastic. What a great idea.'"