BILLY IDOL
Inspired into action upon witnessing the Sex Pistols, English-degree student William Broad entered the embryonic 1970s punk scene as guitarist with the band Chelsea, before swapping specs for contacts, bleaching his hair and recasting himself as Billy Idol: smouldering, Smash Hits-friendly frontman with Generation X. After sneering his way into the nation’s hearts and charts via Top Of The Pops, Idol enjoyed significant success with Gen X, before decamping to New York and reinventing himself as a solo artist for the MTV generation, with the assistance of producer Keith Forsey and guitarist Steve Stevens.
Hitting on a perfect blend of punk attitude, rock sonics and 1980s dance, Idol enjoyed a string of hits – including White Wedding, Rebel Yell, Eyes Without A Face and Flesh For Fantasy – that established him as a major star on both sides of the Atlantic, scoring Top 10 hits in both the UK and USA.
Following a serious motorcycle accident and an extended flirtation with chemicals, Idol is back at the peak of his powers with last year’s The Roadside EP – his first solo studio release since 2014’s Kings & Queens Of The Underground – and begins a UK tour in June.
“The first thing I did in front of an audience was read from The Bible in church.”
I don’t remember being in England before going to America, but I was certainly aware that I was English, because I’d never pledge allegiance to the flag at school. I did come back to England with an American accent. At school it was all: ‘Give the football to the American kid so we can hack him down.’ I had a crew cut, ‘plimsoles’ were ‘sneakers’. But obviously I got my English accent back, and I try to hold on to
