If you watch Sex Pistols doc The Filth and the Fury, you can spy a young Billy Idol in his best scene duds right around the time he formed punk pioneers Generation X. Most people forget that Idol is old-school punk elite, with his poppier latter-period hits overshadowing his work with the Xers. Idol’s mid-’80s run of singles was the stuff of radio magic, though, with most every track he released becoming a prom or party anthem. It’s still pretty rad driving with the windows down and listening to “Rebel Yell” any time of day, we defy you to find a more jolly pro-onanism jam than “Dancing with Myself” and “White Wedding” is every wedding DJ’s go-to crowd-pleaser. As Idol has aged, he’s only gotten surlier and more slithery at his live shows, and still has original guitarist Steve Stevens on board as well.
This article appears in Aug 19-25, 2010.