English rock musician William Michael Albert Broad, mostly known as Billy Idol was born in 1955. He started his professional career in 1976 by joining the punk rock band,
Siouxsie and the Banshees and then quit in 1977 when he joined the band
Chelsea as a guitarist. Soon after, he co-founded the punk band,
Generation X and became its lead singer. The band released three albums before disbanding and was one of the first punk bands to appear on BBC TV’s
Top of the Pops. Idol’s solo career began in 1981 from New York. Together with Steve Stevens, his partner on guitar, he recorded an Extended Play titled
Don’t Stop and released it in 1981. It also included a
Generation X’s song
Dancing with Myself. Idol released his debut solo album,
Billy Idol in 1982. He released
Rebel Yell in 1983 which featured major hits like
Eyes Without a Face, Flesh For Fantasy and
Rebel Yell. The album sold many copies internationally and appeared in top charts in Germany, Switzerland and Italy and established him as a successful rock musician in both UK as well as the United States.
White Wedding in 1985 became a major club hit peaking at no. 6 in the UK and reaching top 5 in the US. He released his album
Whiplash Smile in 1986 which included
To Be a Lover, Sweet Sixteen and
Don’t Need a Gun. He also contributed for the soundtrack of
Top Gun which eventually became Grammy winning instrumental.
In 1987, Idol released his remix album
Vital Idol, the single
Mony Mony topped US Billboard charts and peaked at number 7 in the UK.
Vital Idol was certified Platinum. In 1990, he released
Charmed Life which featured a song
Cradle of Love that earned Billy Idol third nomination at Grammy Awards for Best Male Rock Vocal Performance. He also performed at Roger Waters’ concert
The Wall – Live in Berlin, the same year.
In 1993, Idol released
Cyberpunk, recorded in a home studio using a Macintosh. In 1994, he collaborated with Stevens to produce soundtrack of the movie
Speed. They both re-united later and released
Devil’s Playground in 2005 and
Happy Holidays in 2006. Idol’s current band consists of Stephen McGrath on bass and guitar, Derek Sherinian on Keyboards, Billy Morrison for backing vocals and guitar and drummer Erik Eldenius.
Idol tours extensively and enjoys huge fan following all around the world. He has performed at several festivals including Malmo Sweden Rock Festival, Download Festival and has appeared for concerts in Switzerland, Germany, Serbia, Czech Republic and many other places. Besides three Grammy nominations, he has been nominated for nine MTV Video music awards winning one from the category of "Best Video From a Film". He also won BRIT Award for "Best British Video" in 1991.
Billy Idol has remained crucial to rock ‘n’ roll music since the beginning of his career with his charismatic and charming personality. He is honored worldwide as original punk rock musician who took punk attitude into pop and rock mainstream and produced impressive and mesmerizing music. His songs have lasted a lifetime making him an inspirational artist. Billy Idol is all set to hit the roads again with better-than-ever shows. Buy
Billy Idol tickets and enjoy the music of the singer who transformed the music and gave it a new spirit with his punk rock attitude.
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