Which jazz saxophonist played the solo on Just the Way You Are?

Phil Woods played the jazz saxophone solo on Billy Joel's “Just the Way You Are.” His alto saxophone break helped give the 1977 ballad its distinctive jazz-pop character and introduced Woods to a much wider rock audience.

The song was recorded in 1976 and released on Joel's album The Stranger in 1977. Phil Ramone produced the track, whose personnel also included guitarist Hugh McCracken, drummer Liberty DeVitto, percussionist Ralph MacDonald, and orchestral arranger Patrick Williams. Woods's instrument was alto saxophone, not tenor saxophone.

“Just the Way You Are” became Joel's first U.S. Top 10 single, reaching No. 3, and won Grammy Awards for Record of the Year and Song of the Year in 1979. The song was written for Joel's first wife, Elizabeth Weber, and its single edit was shortened by more than a minute. Wayne Shorter, David Sanborn, and Stan Getz were major saxophonists, but Woods is the credited soloist here.