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Singer-songwriter Alexa Ray Joel reveals another side of herself on \u201cRiverside Way\u201d \u2014\u00a0a sultry new single and video<\/a> that upends what she calls her \u201cgood girl\u201d persona \u2014 and, in an interview with Newsday, also reveals that\u00a0her\u00a0dad, Billy Joel, is “doing great” since being diagnosed with a brain disorder in May.<\/p>\n \u201cI’m very supportive and close with my parents,\u201d Joel, 39, said, referring to rock icon Billy Joel<\/a> and supermodel Christie Brinkley<\/a>. \u201cPeople see me as the good daughter, which is great. But I wanted to also assert: OK, well, I’m a woman unto myself, too, with my own imagination and fantasies and desires.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cRiverside Way,\u201d which was released Friday, is a bass-driven, R&B-tinged track that finds a breathy Joel singing such suggestive lines as \u201cYou\u2019ve got a one-track mind\u201d and \u201cGive me just a little bit \/ I need another hit.\u201d In the accompanying video, Joel and real-life fiance Ryan Gleason play a bored couple who spice things up by adopting daring new roles. The video was filmed at Joel\u2019s family home in Sag Harbor and incorporates a vintage red truck \u2014 a family heirloom of sorts, Joel says \u2014 that catches fire, albeit with the help of some post-production trickery.<\/p>\n \u201cMy mother would not be too pleased if that were a real development,\u201d Joel said of the cherished old truck. \u201cWe were able to have that done with special effects.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cRiverside Way\u201d is the first single from Joel\u2019s upcoming five-song EP, \u201cTales From a Winding Tower.\u201d All recording took place at the Sag Harbor property with producers Tony Bruno and Tommy Byrnes, her father\u2019s longtime guitarist. (Mixing was done at Applehead Recording in Saugerties.) The other songs, which Joel plans to release one by one, will be \u201cstylistically eclectic\u201d and \u201cexperimental,\u201d she said, with nods to psychedelia and The Beatles.<\/p>\n \u201cAlmost like my \u2018Nylon Curtain,\u2019\u201d<\/a> she added, referring to her father\u2019s ambitious album from 1982. \u201cNo two songs are alike.\u201d<\/p>\n Joel also offered an encouraging health update on her father, who in May canceled all concerts<\/a> following his diagnosis with normal pressure hydrocephalus, a rare brain disorder that can affect balance and hearing.<\/p>\n \u201cI’m happy to share my father is doing great,\u201d Joel said. Over dinner last weekend at the Italian restaurant Gioia in Oyster Bay, she recalled, The Piano Man opted for chicken over his usual steak and made sure to eat his vegetables. \u201cI said, \u2018Dad, you never normally eat eggplant. What’s going on?\u2019 He said, \u201cWell, I’m trying to be healthy.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n The 76-year-old rocker has also been doing physical therapy three times a week to improve his balance and overall strength<\/a>, according to his daughter.<\/p>\n \u201cHe\u2019s a fighter, you know?\u201d Joel said. \u201cAnd I’m really glad to see just how strong he’s been and how much he’s prioritizing his health. I’m very proud of him.\u201d<\/p>\n