Customer Reviews

Billy Idol

5 star:		(11)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

New Wave may have been on the way in and punk may have been receding (for a bit) when Billy Idol released this, his solo debut album, but both gained new ground because of this album's release.

Those may sound like strong words for a solo album from someone that many either revile or revere. But that is exactly the case.

Billy Idol announced his presence with a snarl. He was no longer a pretty boy stuck in a punk band (Generation X), nor was he a pretty boy playing synthesizers ala Duran Duran (who would come later). Billy Idol carved a niche for himself.

Today, many people consider his music to be hard rock rather than either punk or new wave. And while that is probably a fair assessment, Billy Idol never rested on his laurels and gave us the same type of music for too long.

On this album, as I said before, his solo debut, Billy gives us the chart topper - White Wedding - and a song from his former group (Generation X): Dancing with Myself. These are only two of the great songs on this album, but they are the most easily recognizable by those not familiar with his music.

This album no doubt gained even more popular play and attention due to Billy's snarling good looks and the fact that it was released just as MTV was debuting, allowing the world to experience the visual experience of White Wedding.

Not all of this albums songs are "hits", but none of them is bad. Often gritty, and frequently obnoxious, "Billy Idol" is a music "must have" for anyone serious about ground breaking music.

The original album's cover has Billy in an '80s Oriental shirt, and the last song was "Congo Man". Bring those elements back, and I shall grant this album 5 stars. Until then, I don't care how many times you remaster it, it's still being used as a tool to sell "Dancing with Myself", which stains the beautiful vibe of this album. Is there any guitar work on this planet that can match "Shooting Stars"? Billy, there ARE actually fans of "Congo Man" out here, and I'll even go so far to say it's "part 1" of "The Dead Next Door". I'm WAY beyond fed-up with the "attention shoppers" attitude of Billy's marketing dept., mostly because it puts us true fans in the back seat.

A year after the dissolution of Generation X, its lead singer, William Michael Albert Broad, a.k.a. Billy Idol, embarked on a solo career and released his eponymous solo debut. Some of the harder tracks recalled the wild youth of the Gen X years, but the singles indicated a polishing of that style, meaning less punk guitar, but an emphasis on carefully synced bass and drums, airy synths, and glitzy production.

"White Wedding Part 1" encompasses the successful formula, pulsing bass, Steve Stevens fiery guitar, thudding techno drum beats, airy backup vocals, and Idol's menacing deeper voice which ratcheted to its old punk fury when he screams "start again!" Though cracking the Top 40, it's an Idol and essential 80's classic.

"Hot In The City," another single, with synths and soulful backup singers adding to the lounge-like ambience of the mid-paced song. Idol's crooning is a far cry from "Your Generation," to be sure. As for "Love Calling," it's a bit of punk with some Caribbean-style rhythms mixed in with horns and rock guitar, relying on a constant drum backbeat, which is the sole thing playing, giving this song a somewhat minimalist visage.

Of the non-singles, it's kind of a potluck. "Dead On Arrival" is a return to Gen X-style Idol with its pulsing drums and bass, sounding like a poppier cousin of the Pistol's "EMI" at parts. The mid-paced "Nobody's Business" veers more towards pop rather than punk, and with its Van Halen-like synths and catchy vocal hooks, would've been a decent single, as would have "Shooting Stars." Other tracks like "Come On Come On" makes one think what Gen X could've done with this stuff, and "Hole In The Wall" is pure filler.

"It's So Cruel" is a calm and quiet ballad, with the loungy sounds of the Stones' "Waiting On A Friend" coming through. It also serves as a nice prelude to the final track, which is a familiar one-none other than Billy Idol's song with Generation X, "Dancing With Myself." It's by far the hardest driving track on here, a replacement for "Congo Man" that was on the original. BTW, thanks to Eric Andrews for this bit of info.

The album marked Idol's collaboration with guitarist Steve Stevens, whose fiery and squealing guitar theatrics would prove invaluable on the hit Rebel Yell album, and producer Keith Forsey, who helmed Idol's albums through Charmed Life. Idol's image had a lot going for him, that platinum spiked hair and that sneer that became his trademark. But the music here, while uneven in consistency, showed promise, especially in the midnight hour.

This album, his first full solo effort (with the exception of "Dancing With Myself"), lays the groundwork for the hits that would come later from the "Rebel Yell" album, and is in no way a poor album, but it hasn't aged very well.

Chrysalis had released "Dancing With Myself" on the "Don't Stop" single, and it got tremendous club play, and rightfully so, because it's a killer dance tune, even to this very day. The rest of the album is fair-to-middling pop gruel, the stand-out tunes being "Shooting Stars", "Hot in the City" (with it's motown-derived feel), and "White Wedding" (which got more mileage out of it's video than the song itself).

The rest of the album contains some amusing soul-posturing; the production levels aren't what they will become in later albums, and Steve Stevens isn't given much room to rip his enviable riffs out, but that changes when Rebel Yell gets released, and the world is much better for it.

Billy Idol's debut LP is a classic 80s nugget full of punk/new wave/dance hits, but this remastered CD is NOT the original LP - it's missing the final key track, "Congo Man," which itelf is a kind of cool dub mix coda to "Love Calling" - we all know it was later replaced with the single "Dancing with Myself" on later versions, but on this deluxe CD reissue, why not reinstate "Congo Man?" The LP was short to begin with (just over 30 mins), so it could have easily fit - and while they were at it, why couldn't they add on "bonus" cuts from Billy's U.S.-only debut EP "Don't Stop" including "Untouchables" "Baby Baby" and more - also they could have added in 12" mixes/dubes of "White Wedding," "Hot in the City," "Dancing with Myself" and "Love Calling" originally on 12" - now THAT would have been a truly complete deluxe CD to do this classic 80s LP justice! Note: they should also replace the cover with the true original LP cover showing Billy with a Japanese print shirt knotted by to expose his abs - I think the U.S. label feared the original cover photo was too "femme/gay" so they replaced it with his later "Dancing with Myself" vest/tattoo shot - again, this only botches the original packaging/content for true Idol fans! Cmon guys - do it right, maybe in 2011?

After your band dissolves, like Billy Idol's old band, Generation X did, you can do one of two things: 1) make a solo record that sets you up for a solo career; 2) make a solo record that goes nowhere. Idol managed to make it into the former category, although just barely (MTV helped him out a lot). That said, this is a strong debut for an artist just starting out on a career. It includes "Dancing With Myself" and "White Wedding"--two of his biggest hits, but the rest of the album holds its own. And already Idol was willing to take some chances: a church organ-esque intro to "Nobody's Business," the bouncey, jungley vibe of "Love Calling," the horrible picture of him on the back cover. This re-release of the original album does not include any nifty bonus songs that have become a staple of re-releases; however, the album liner notes now include the Billboard chart positions of his songs for those that are into that type stuff. Idol became a huge star with his subsequent album, but if you want to hear him at one of his best moments--when he's trying to prove his chops--this is the album to pick up.

Billy Idol's 1982 debut broke the singer into America but it took a while for the music industry to notice Idol's exceptional talents. In 1981 Idol left his punk rock band Generation X, frustrated with the limitations of punk rock. In October he released an EP called DON'T STOP. The EP was a chart failure but did exceptionally well in the dance club circuit with just hits as MONY MONY and DANCING WITH MYSELF. In July of 1982 Idol released his self titled debut LP. The record made little impact on the charts all it did was produce a minor Top 40 hit HOT IN THE CITY. The album was considered a failure until MTV saved the day when they aired an eye popping music video of WHITE WEDDING. The album was rereleased a year later with a new front cover and the final track CONGO MAN being replaced by a short inferior version of DANCING WITH MYSELF to boost the record's status. The rest was history...

The music itself still stands strong today and even though many critics say it hasn't aged well, the album actually has (especially for 80's music). This album has always been vastly underrated and overshadowed by 'Rebel Yell' but on it's own it's a great album. Although WHITE WEDDING (PART 1), HOT IN THE CITY and DANCING WITH MYSELF are the record's highlights, some of the other tracks are equally as strong. Particularily the killer opener COME ON COME ON, the jazzy SHOOTING STARS and the rockers HOLE IN THE WALL and DEAD ON ARRIVAL. The other songs are great as well. NOBODY'S BUISNESS has a killer guitar solo by the brilliant Steve Stevens (who deserves just a much credit as Idol for his career). LOVE CALLING is an interesting expirementation of Tribal beats with Rock music. IT'S SO CRUEL is a dreamy ballad that proved Idol could do more than just 'rock'.

The cd is nicely remastered with some good liner notes but the only problem is that the record company neglected to include any bonus tracks on this reissue as they had with the `Rebel Yell' remaster. There were a few songs left in the can, particularily the original release's final track CONGO MAN (which has yet to appear on cd) as well as the DON'T STOP EP tracks MONY MONY, UNTOUCHABLES, BABY TALK and a longer version of DANCING WITH MYSELF. Otherwise this is a nice little album that is a great addition to anyone's music collection particularily Idol fans. This is afterall Vital Idol! Highly recommended!

Although Rebel Yell is more popular, I must say that Billy Idol's debut is a personal favourite of mine. A lot of people don't give this album enough credit. Sure it didn't have "Eyes Without A Face", "Rebel Yell" or "Flesh For Fantasy" but it had some great songs. As a matter of fact I feel this album holds up better cause the filler is all pretty good whereas on Rebel Yell some of it is dreadful.

Highlights on this album are the singles "Hot In The City", "White Wedding" and "Dancing With Myself"(which replaced "Congo Man" in 1983). However the other great tracks here are "Come On Come On", "Shooting Stars", "Hole In The Wall", "Dead On Arrival" and "Nobody's Buisness". "Love Calling" is a tad strange but "It's So Cruel" is nice also.

Overall a great album one of my personal faves. The only problem with this remastered version is the lack of bonus material. I was hoping the songs from his 1981 EP "DON'T STOP" would have been added (Mony Mony, Baby Talk, Untouchables?) or the deleted track, that gave way for "Dancing With Myself", "Congo Man". Unfortunetly they only left us with ten tracks. Still this cd is wonderfully remastered and the liner notes are a good read too!

In 1981, after making a name for himself fronting the British punk band Generation X, Billy Idol relocated to New York City to make it on his own. While Generation X never broke though the mainstream to achieve massive success, and while the band was generally snubbed by many punk purists as being overtly commercial, Billy Idol was born to be a star. His charisma, photogenic good looks, and ultra-cocky persona were destined to make him an icon in the flashy, glitzy 80s. After three albums with Generation X, "Generation X," (1978) "Valley of the Dolls," (1979) and "Kiss Me Deadly" (1981) Idol unleashed his solo debut, the self-titled "Billy Idol" (1982).

For his new band, Idol hooked up with guitar virtuoso Steve Stevens, bassist Phil Feit, and drummer Steve Missal. While the album title says "Billy Idol," it should be emphasized that the greatness of Idol's early solo works rests on the fact that Idol had a killer, killer guitar player with Stevens and an excellent producer and collaborator with Keith Forsey.

There are a lot of Shredders and guitar virtuosos out there, but Stevens is one of the best and certainly most underrated. His playing is flashy, but also has soul, and is always fully captivating. The Idol/Stevens/Forsey combo produced some of the best, most memorable singles of the decade.

While Idol's sophomore classic "Rebel Yell" (1983) is his best album, the self-titled debut is almost as good. "Billy Idol" possesses the same radio-friendly pop-punk elements as Generation X, but Idol's solo debut is a far superior offering. For one thing, the songs are better written, with tighter, catchier hooks and unbelievable guitar work. "Billy Idol," with its ferocious riffs, strong melodies, cool synths, and stellar guitar work is equal parts punk, pop, and hard-rock. "Billy Idol" is probably Idol's most organic album, as the synths aren't a focal point and the album is generally more of a meat-and-potatoes affair compared to the more ambitious follow-ups.

While "Billy Idol" is generally given good reviews, it's still an underrated album. A common claim by both fans and critics is that the album has a few strong singles and a lot of filler. I would strongly refute this claim. While some songs are better than others, the entire album is quite strong. A lot of Idol's most memorable work can be found on this release.

"Billy Idol" opens up strong with the hard-rocking "Come On, Come On." Idol's sneering; cocky delivery over the brutal assault of Steve Stevens makes this one of the album's strongest tracks. The MTV staple and 80s classic "White Wedding" follows next. Its eerie background sighs, tension filled verse, and contrasting dark imagery and pop-sensibility make "White Wedding" a triumph. The album takes a left turn with the popish, stylish, seductive ode to New York City with "Hot in the City." "Dead on Arrival" is a good-but-not-great middle of the road rocker. "Nobodies Business" is perhaps Idol's most underrated song. Its infectious sing-along harmonies, light-as-a-feather but strong melodies and crunching solos make it pure ear-candy. The off-beat "Love Calling" is another strong, underrated song. With its jungle beats, what sounds like Asian back-up singers, and horns, "Love Calling" comes out of left field, but it works. While its lyrics are completely nonsensical ("if you wanna rub-a-dub-dub-dub') and Idol's overtly sexual overtones are beyond dated and cheesy, it only adds to its charm. "Hole in the Wall" is a solid, memorable, somewhat dark atmospheric rocker. "Shooting Stars," a tale of innocence lost to drugs and indulgence, is both sympathetic and cautionary. The album's most relaxed, calmest moment comes with "It's so Cruel," a song of longing that also manages to be cocky (leave it to Idol). "Billy Idol" closes with the Generation X staple, the up-beat, catchy ode to masturbation "Dancing with myself."

If cool is defined as timeless, and hip as trendy, "Billy Idol," much like Miami Vice, is equal parts cool and hip. This album is dated, very dated, and while Idol's persona is cheesy and Idol is a relic of a bygone era, he's still cool as sh.t. Dated as it may be "Billy Idol" is very well-written, with killer hooks and grooves, and outstanding guitar work. If you are a fan of punk, new-wave, hard-rock, pop, or anything 80s, this album is sure to please.

Although there aren't as many good tracks as on "rebel yell" this is a great album. "White Wedding" and "dancing with myself" are classics, and "Hole in the wall", "Nobody's Business" and "Love calling" are also excellent songs. "Hot in the city", "dead on arrival", and "Come On Come On" aren't too inspired, but they aren't bad. Highly reccommended.