Born on November 30: Billy Idol, the (kind) rebel of Generation X

Before being named Idol, it was under the name William Broad that he was born in Stanmore in Middlesex, England, in 1955.

The grimoires of the history of punk in the United Kingdom mention a very brief stint in Siouxsie's Banshees. While most struggle to find conclusive evidence, the great gothic priestess remembers this 18-year-old kid. "He was already called Idol and had a pretty high opinion of himself," she recalls.

Without being devoid of talent, far from it, Billy considers music not only as a social elevator but also as the ideal path to glory. He will therefore do whatever he thinks is necessary to achieve his goals.

First hired as a guitarist by Generation X (which the supposed real punks always found too pop), he didn't need to be asked twice to grab the microphone following the departure of singer Gene October and thus occupy the place he always wanted to be his: the first! It was also he who composed "Dancing With Myself", the only real piece of bravery by Gen X in 1980. We can already hear the shearing guitars that would become his trademark and this strange cocktail of bad boy glamour of which "Rebel Yell" in November 1983 would become the emblem. 

The English singer considers Gen X as a simple stepping stone. When they separated, he returned to the United States where he had already spent four years of his childhood. He took advantage of the emergence of music channel MTV by offering polished clips often crossed by languorous creatures. In 1990, with "Cradle Of Love", we can safely say that Betsey Lynn George stole the show. He has recorded about ten albums in four decades (the last attempt in 2022 is an EP "The Cage"). It's his first album in 1981 and especially "Rebell Yell" in 1983 that established his notoriety. It's also "White Wedding" and "Hot In The City" from the first album as well as "Rebel Yell", "Eyes Without A Face" and "Flesh For Fantasy" on the second that we systematically find on compilations that he inundates us with. The aptly named "Greatest Hits" in 2001 thus paints a panorama of his time at the top of the charts.

His peroxided punk glamour look has certainly lost some of its splendor with the emergence of first wrinkles and the appearance of white hair, the Idol of the (not so) young retains his troubled charm. Even if he has not, for ages, reached the heights that always made him dream, Billy remains Idol!

(Stéphane Soupart - Transl.: MH - Photo: © Etienne Tordoir)
Photo: Billy Idol on the stage of Forest-National in Brussels (Belgium) on November 34, 1990