A distraught Billy Joel battled severe depression and attempted suicide–by drinking furniture polish.  That’s just one of the startling claims in a blockbuster new biography of the hugely successful singer/songwriter.  Celebrity author MARK BEGO delves deep into the dark side of the Piano Man, 57, and further alleges: 

● Billy had an affair with his best friend’s wife, married her–and lost half his fortune when  he got divorced. 

● His second marriage to supermodel Christie Brinkley crumbled because he couldn’t keep  his hands off groupies. 

● The piano genius once had his wallet stolen in Boston by a woman who was performing a  sex act on him under a piano. 

● Despondent and in debt after being fired from Joel’s band, bassist Doug Stegmeyer blew  his head off with a shotgun...after being turned down by Billy for a loan. 
“Billy has suffered from deep bouts of depression going back to when he was a young man,” devulged Bego, who has written best-selling bios of Cher and other stars. 
Despite his enormous talent, he tried to kill himself when he was 21, according to the book. 
“He had a band called Attila that put out one album in 1970, which was a bomb,” reveled the author.  “Billy was so distraught he tried to commit suicide by swallowing furniture polish” 
“Later on, he joked that he ended up ‘farting Lemon Pledge for a week.’” 
But his torment was no laughing matter.  The author writes that Billy was placed in a psychiatric ward–and later turned to heavy drinking to numb his pain. 
During his brief stint with Attila, Joel became involved with Elizabeth Small, the wife of his drummer.  They later married.  By 1982, his marriage to Elizabeth had come apart. 
“She ended up with half of Billy’s assets...including the rights to one of his biggest hits, ‘Just the Way You Are,’ which he wrote for her,” says Bego. 
His second marriage to Christie Brinkley hit the skids when she decided to stay home and raise their daughter Alexa, says the author. 
“Billy turned to groupies and other women he’d meet on tour. 
“He remained a very troubled man.”