The Toy Box: Billy Idol

Showing posts with label Billy Idol. Show all posts

Retro Spins: Billy Idol - Whiplash Smile

Skipping over Billy Idol's 1985 remix album, Vitol Idol, we come to his third studio album, 1986's Whiplash Smile. Commercially, it performed better internationally than his prior record, Rebel Yell. However, sales declined in the USA and UK. It would also be the beginning of a steady decline in his popularity.

As I played through it, I admittedly found myself less interested than I had been for his prior self titled debut, and follow up, the aforementioned Rebel Yell. Lyrically, it just wasn't resonating.

On the opposite side, the instrumentation was top notch. I was really digging the guitar and synth work. These work working in unison to provide an overall pleasant sound. I dare say that this would have worked fantastically for as an instrumental soundtrack. Specifically, over some type of futuristic sci-fi movie.

To Be A Lover was the standout track from the bunch, and would also be a top ten Billboard hit for him, reaching number 6. Don't Need A Gun would also chart and peek at 37, with Sweet Sixteen peeking at 20. However, neither of these two songs really resonated with me personally.

Overall, it was decent background noise. I wouldn't say I heard anything terrible. I've just heard better from him. I can also understand the sudden downtick of his popularity at this point. I remember he kind of just disappeared around the mid to late 80's, specifically on MTV.

In 1990, Idol was involved in a serious motorcycle accident which not only almost cost him his leg, but resulted in him being unable to appear in the film The Doors, as Jim Morrison's drinking buddy. Additionally, this prevented him from appearing in his own music video for Cradle of Love, the singer's last Billboard hit from that year's Charmed Life album.

The experimental album, Cyberpunk, was released in 1993. It was noteworthy for being created in a home studio using a Macintosh computer, utilizing Studiovision and Pro Tools to record the album. However, the sheer length of the time it took to produce, and overall lackluster performance, ushered in further decline for Idol.

While he would continue to work sporadically in the industry, appearing in films like The Wedding Singer, reuniting with Generation X, and providing vocals on Tony Iommi's debut solo album, he wouldn't return to the studio until 2005's Devil's Playground. This was followed by a 2006 Christmas album, of all things, entitled, Happy Holidays. As of this writing, his last studio album was 2014's Kings & Queens Of The Underground.

Though he's been unable to rekindle the glory days of the 80's, he was honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2023. A new album was announced to be in the works as of May 2024. However, with this post being written in November of 2024, this may or may not have come to fruition.

Click "HERE" to go back to the home page. For more posts related to this one, please click the labels below.

Disclaimer: They Toy Box does not endorse or contribute to piracy. Retro Spins posts are intended for educational and entertainment purposes only. None of the music discussed here is available for sale, downloading or distribution.

THIS WEEK ON THE CHARTS
June 15, 1985

Retro Spins: Billy Idol - Rebel Yell

We continue the journey through the legacy of Billy Idol with his 1983 sophomore album, Rebel Yell. The record would solidify Idol's status in America as a star, aided once again through repeated appearances and airplay on MTV.

However, it wouldn't be Billy Idol without some kind of drama, and drama there was. Specifically, with his record label. One of the stories surrounding its release was that Billy wasn't happy with the photograph chosen by Chrysalis, and insisted it be changed. The label initially refused, prompting the singer to steel the master tapes, and give them to his drug dealer. The plan was to blackmail the label, informing them that his dealer would have bootlegs on the street in days if they didn't acquiesce to his request.

The problem was that Billy actually stole the wrong tapes, and producer Keith Forsey, had them safely in his hands. Forsey would later recount in interviews, "I let him think he had the masters ... He did whatever he had to do with the label. Everything was squared away, and then he came back and I said, 'By the way, Bill, I've got the real masters.'"

The album title was derived from the recording sessions where Billy noted, "people were drinking Rebel Yell bourbon whiskey and he thought that would be a great title for an album." This was followed by the song itself, which was recorded in three days.

Upon its release, Rebel Yell was a commercial success, spawning multiple hits, and being critically praised for its material. Despite this, only Eyes Without A Face would crack the billboard top ten, peeking at number 4. Rebel Yell, the song, would peek at 46, Flesh For Fantasy at 29, and Catch My Fall at 50. Despite these numbers, the album would ultimately become Idol's best selling album of all time, going 5X platinum.

Having high expectations from his prior album, and EP before that, I dove straight in, being greeted by the title track. This set the bar high, and I'm glad to say that the end result wasn't disappointing.

What I will note is that, in general, Rebel Yell, the album, felt longer. Which is odd, because time wise, it's actually a couple minutes shorter than his debut. I don't know what it was. The songs themselves just felt longer. Mind you, that's not a bad thing, rather, just an observation.

Overall, I enjoyed my listening session. There were of course the hits, but then hidden treasures like Daytime Drama, and Blue Highway. Everything else was just okay, but not what I would call bad. It was worth hearing, but not necessarily memorable from front to back in the long run. I mean, it's no Purple Rain or Hysteria, but it was good.

I'm still excited to continue my journey through Billy Idol. No fatigue just yet. As such, I'm diving headlong into 1986's Whiplash Smile. However, as I've said time and time again, that's a post for tomorrow.

Click "HERE" to go back to the home page. For more posts related to this one, please click the labels below.

THIS WEEK ON THE CHARTS
June 14, 1980

THIS WEEK ON THE CHARTS
June 14, 1986

Retro Spins: Billy Idol - Billy Idol

Many moons ago I fired up Billy Idol's 1981 EP, Don't Stop. While I praised it for being a great album, I never really got around to any further material from him, despite owning it all way back in 2019. Well, it's time to wipe all that dust off of them, and finally dig deep into the 1980's work of rock's rebel, Mr. William Michael Albert Broad.

Broad would come up with his stage name back in high school, when his chemistry teacher made a note on his report card of being, "idle". In the words of Billy, it was, "a bit of a goof, but part of the old English school of rock. It was a 'double thing', not just a poke at the superstar-like people... It was fun, you know?"

In 1976, he would join the band Chelsea, as their guitarist. It was under the guidance of singer, Gene October, that he would replace his glasses with contact lenses, dye his hair blond, and get a crew cut. After performing just a few weeks, he and bassist Tony James would leave, and co-found Generation X.

The band would release three albums before disbanding, their 1978 self titled debut, 1979's Valley Of The Dolls, and 1981's Kiss Me Deadly. The latter would be noteworthy for including the first iteration of Dancing With Myself. Though a fourth album would be released in 1998 (Sweet Revenge), it was completed utilizing recorded, but abandoned demos when the band first broke up. Chronologically, it would have been the group's third album, had they stayed together.

Idol would move to New York, and begin working on a solo career, which encompassed recording the aforementioned EP. His popularity was boosted with the aid of MTV who were ushering in the second British invasion. This era of music included the likes of Culture Club, Duran Duran, The Police, and more.

His videos would see steady rotation on the channel. Coupled with his inability to stay out of trouble, which kept him on the news, Billy would become the poster child of 80's punk and rebellion, which was ironic because he's typically always been branded as a rock / new wave artist.

Upon release of his self titled debut, it spawned the hits, Hot In The City, and White Wedding (Pt. 1). However, neither would crack the top ten. In fact, in his storied career, he's only had one number one (Mony Mony), and four top tens, Mony Mony (1), Cradle Of Love (2), Eyes Without A Face (4), and To Be A Lover (6). Hot In The City would peek at 23, and White Wedding at 36.

Undeterred by numbers, I dove headlong into his debut. What I got out of it was a solid rock album, with a lot of hidden gems. I wouldn't say every song was perfect, but what I will note is that, as a whole, it seems crafted with an intension and purpose. Meaning, nothing was designed to be filler. Every song is there for a purpose.

When selecting the version of the album I was after, I honed in specifically on the first pressings of the CD. Later pressings removed the short Congo Man, and replaced it with Dancing With Myself. For me, this was a song I already had on the EP, and further, I simply wanted to have the album as it was initially intended to be heard. Now, with that said, Congo Man is no hit by any means. In fact, it's not even really a song. So if you're after quality, you may prefer latter releases with Dancing.

Overall, I enjoyed hearing this record, and I'm really looking forward to jumping into 1983's Rebel Yell, and 1986's Whiplash Smile. I also may end up tracking down Generation X's 1981 album, just to add it to ye old collection. We'll see. It's kind of expensive.

Click "HERE" to go back to the home page. For more posts related to this one, please click the labels below.

THIS WEEK ON THE CHARTS
June 13, 1981

THIS WEEK ON THE CHARTS
June 13, 1987

Retro Spins: Billy Idol - Don't Stop

Billy Idol
Don't Stop
1981

If last week's album was too long, Billy Idol's Don't Stop qualifies as too short. Then again, the album is actually the singer's debut EP. As most of you know, EP's aren't exactly supposed to be chalk full of tracks.

The EP features four songs; Mony Mony, Baby Talk, Untouchables and Dancing with Myself and an MTV interview. Fans of Idol will want this album strictly for being the only studio release with Mony Mony and technically the only one with Dancing with Myself until the 1983 reissue of his self titled album. Sure, you can get them both on compilations...But it's not the same thing!

Though brief, the album is a great introduction to what the world would soon expect from Billy Idol. It was commercial punk at its best. More importantly it's fun. Each track hits hard and leaves you wanting more. The twelve minute interview with Martha Quinn at the end of the album is a great flashback to the heydays of MTV and also a usual look into the life of Idol from those days and how it all began for him.

Oddly, for as popular as Mony Mony and Dancing with Myself were, the tracks never made their way to the charts.

Overall, great EP! A handful of perfect songs from Idol. The LP version is readily available on secondary markets, but these days the CD version is getting harder and harder to find. The cheap end is still going to cost you roughly $20.00 - Which isn't terrible I suppose.

Click "HERE" to go back to the home page. For more posts related to this one, please click the labels below.