Local government officials plan to give longtime entertainer and musician Billy Joel perhaps more than he bargained for in return for his first-ever Des Moines performance this week.

Prior to Joel's performance Tuesday evening at Wells Fargo Arena, Polk County officials and Des Moines Mayor Frank Cownie will officially proclaim Tuesday as "Billy Joel Day" and present Joel with a key to the city.

Cownie said a key to the city is occasionally given out to residents of Des Moines, as well as performers and musicians who visit the area.

Instead of "Piano Man," how about "Beetle Billy?"

Billy Joel now is the proud owner of a classic Volkswagen Bug.

In town for a concert this week, Joel took a look around American Dream Machines, a downtown Des Moines business that specializes in vintage sports and muscle cars.

Owner Doug Klein said Joel spotted a burgundy 1973 VW Beetle.

Columbia/Legacy will celebrate the 30th anniversary of Billy Joel's "The Stranger" with two special edition releases this summer. Due July 8th, 2008, the album will be available as a 2-CD set and a 2-CD/1-DVD package.

Both incarnations include the previously unreleased concert disc "Live at Carnegie Hall (1977)." The set was recorded June 3rd, 1977, at the famed New York venue, a month before Joel hit the studio to record "The Stranger."

The DVD on the three-disc set rounds up promo videos and a 60-minute 1978 appearance on the BBC's "The Old Grey Whistle Test," which Columbia says only aired once.

Joel and a hot seven-person band performed many of his biggest hits, along with a few fine album tracks. One listener said upon leaving, "'Summer, Highland Falls' is one of my all-time favorite songs. I never thought he'd do that." Joel did, prefacing the song by saying, "Don't take a pee break. I'll tell you when." That honor was reserved for "An Innocent Man." Why? Because he was embarrassed he wouldn't be able to hit the high notes, but he did. Joel's voice was good, possibly aided by squirts from a throat spray.

Other than blinding lights and a piano that rotated and disappeared from the stage, Joel's show was blessedly free of special effects. The 58 year-old opened with Prelude/Angry Young Man, and the arena's video screen showed his fingers flying on the piano. One of our spies told us that the only thing faster than Joel's fingers was the sign-language interpreter who had to sign for "We Didn't Start The Fire."

This was the second time this reviewer has seen Joel live. The first was 1994's "Face 2 Face" Tour with Elton John in Ohio Stadium. While that was a fun spectacle, it was equally good to hear Joel play a full concert without sharing stage time.

Throughout his career, Joel has been slammed by hipper-than-thou critics who champion poets that can't sing, singers that aren't showmen and eccentrics that can't crack the charts. Even on this tour, the caveat was that Joel has written only two songs in 15 years (not counting his classical-music foray).

But if you have 20 years of pop hits and can bring people to their feet to sing every word of songs like "You May Be Right," maybe those critics don't know what they're writing about.