Glen Cove School District

File it under, you never know unless you ask.

After a Long Island elementary school invited singer Billy Joel to watch students perform a tribute concert, the "Piano Man" himself surprised them by showing up.

Five minutes before Wednesday's "River of Dreams" concert began, Joel pulled up to Deasy Elementary School in Glen Cove, N.Y., and took a seat in the audience as students in kindergarten through second grade performed 15 songs from throughout Joel's career, according to a report in Newsday.

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"I asked him if he wanted to sit in front, but he said he would rather stay in the back so he wouldn't make the kids nervous," principal Nomi Rosen told the newspaper.

Parents and staff members extended the invitation to Joel through letters and Facebook messages.

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According to the paper, the 64-year-old musician traveled by motorcycle from his Centre Island home 10 minutes away.

"We invited Billy Joel on a lark, but we didn't expect him to come. It was totally thrilling," Rosen told the newspaper. "We were all beside ourselves."