ALL ACCESS: Billy Idol

Book Review: Billy Idol – Dancing With Myself
Touchstone
All Access Rating: A-

Billy Idol - Dancing With Myself 2014

Wearing their political idealism on their sleeves, the Clash had righteousness on their side. For the Sex Pistols, shock and savage nihilism made them the scourge of Old Blighty before burning out.

Knowing full well that both bands had the market cornered on railing against injustice with all the filth and fury they could muster, Billy Idol wanted to be different.

A lascivious sneer, chiseled features and spiky, dyed blonde hair would only get him so far, so Idol made a conscious decision to emphasize punk's life-affirming power, its positivity and what a blast it was to be nonconformist, to be part of a scene that rejected most societal norms. And Idol certainly had his fun, indulging in the "sex, drugs and rock 'n' roll" ethos with reckless abandon and documenting it all in his engrossing and disarmingly candid autobiography "Dancing With Myself," out via the Simon & Schuster imprint Touchstone.

It reads as fast as Idol has lived, "Dancing With Myself" being a high-octane narrative that's surprisingly literate, recounting – often in graphic detail, including a rather amusing adventure in "fisting" that left Idol with a swollen hand – the all-night heroin and sex binges, tense and often violent confrontations in the nascent U.K. punk scene with conservative Teddy Boys or fascist skinheads, and close brushes with death. It all starts with a depiction of the gruesome 1990 motorcycle accident Idol miraculously survived, jeopardizing his life and career.

Unexpectedly vulnerable at times, especially when talking openly about his addictions, family relations and his love for girlfriend Perri Lister, Idol is a study in contradiction, wholly engaged in musical experimentation with Generation X and later a solo career that made him a global dance-rock icon while satisfying his more lurid appetites for mind-altering chemicals and sexual adventure. "Dancing With Myself" throws the reader back into the maelstrom of the early U.K. punk scene, not only detailing Idol's transition from the band Chelsea to Generation X and his move to America to go off on his own, but also painting a revolting picture of clubs and bathrooms covered in all sorts of bodily fluids while fully capturing the zeitgeist of youth culture and rebellion in late '70s Britain. His fraternizations with Steve Jones, Siouxsie Sioux and Mick Jones, among other architects of punk rock, certainly make for entertaining passages.

While regaling his audience with tales of utter depravity and uplifting recovery, Idol provides a full accounting of the creative process that birthed such smash hits as "White Wedding," "Dancing With Myself" and "Mony Mony" and behind-the-scenes music industry machinations. It's a wild ride, but one that also has a great deal of heart, romance and self-reflection. Let's dance.
– Peter Lindblad

CD Review: Dust – Hard Attack/Dust

Kama Sutra/Legacy

All Access Review: A-

The cult following that’s grown up around Dust is about to get bigger. That’s because Sony Legacy has seen fit to reissue the proto-metal legends’ only two albums, 1971’s Dust and 1972’s Hard Attack, two highly influential documents of heavy blues-driven rock that had been out of print for eons. Time and neglect haven’t eroded their extraordinary power one bit.

Dust was, quite possibly, a bit too hasty in calling it quits so soon after the release of Hard Attack, but they all moved on in impressive fashion, hardly taking a moment to reflect on their brief existence. They were only teenagers when they formed, but the precocious threesome of Richie Wise, Marc Bell and Kenny Aaronson – plus Kenny Kerner, who helped out with production and songwriting – had a loud, fully-realized sonic vision in mind for Dust, but it wasn’t getting them anywhere. So, they parted, and Dust was history. Wise, the band’s guitarist, singer and main songwriter, went on to produce the first two KISS records with Kerner, his partner.

Aaronson did session work for Dust’s label, Kama Sutra, and toured with just about everybody who was anybody in the ‘70s, ‘80s and ‘90s, including Bob Dylan, Edgar Winter, Billy Idol and Billy Squier, to name but a few. He also played with both the New York band Stories, who struck gold with the chart-topping single “Brother Louie,” and the short-lived super group HSAS, which stood for Hagar, Schon, Aaronson and Schrieve. And as for Bell, the drummer, he joined The Ramones in 1978. You might know him better as Marky Ramone.

Had the world known what they'd accomplish post-Dust, perhaps those records released in the dark ages of American heavy metal wouldn’t have fallen on deaf ears. And maybe, just maybe, Dust would have lived a little longer, changing the course of rock history forever. Alas, it was not to be, and with serious concerns about their management, their label and their future, Dust called it a day and everybody scattered to the four winds. And Dust and Hard Attack, they just sat on a shelf gathering … well, dust.

Remastered for maximum impact, the sound of these lost treasures – both the product of good, solid songwriting – has been cleaned spotless and is fuller and richer than the original recordings. Hard Attack, in particular, comes on like a hurricane, with the untamed energy of “Ivory” – a rolling tank of an instrumental – and “All in All” whipping around as violently and furiously as any of the wild storms brewed up by The Who or Cream. Heavy weather is experienced on “Learning to Die” and “Full Away/So Many Times,” as well, with Aaronson’s muscular bass and Bell’s galloping drums racing with the wind. And the Sabbath-like “Suicide” swings a big hammer, one that could drive spikes through railroad ties.

Variety spices up Hard Attack, however, as the exquisitely arranged ballad “Thusly Spoken” – blanketed in gorgeous strings and twinkling piano – might be the most sophisticated pop music Burt Bacharach never wrote. Golden flecks of bent steel pedal sparkle in the quiet acoustic country rumination “I Been Thinkin’” and its kissing cousin “How Many Horses,” giving Hard Attack some tasty twang.

Dust is the black sheep of the family, as “Love Me Hard,” “Chasin’ Ladies” and “Stone Woman” – all cut up by gliding, shooting stars of slide guitar – ramble on like Zeppelin in their prime. Nothing on either album, though, compares to the heavy, 9:53 psychedelic trip “From a Dry Camel” on Dust, a blustery, hallucinogenic dreamscape of alien shapes and a searing, extended guitar solo that goes deep into the recesses of the brain.

Handling dynamic shifts in tempo and mood with deft chops and synchronized charges into the breach, as a band, Dust was bold, adventurous and exceedingly confident of their abilities. Few would appreciate their talents when they were around. That’s what often happens with artists who are ahead of their time. But, eventually, the world catches up, and with this reissue, augmented by a fantastic selection of vintage memorabilia and photos, along with concise, but revealing, liner notes comprised of passionate remembrances by band members, it seems the time is right to reassess the impact Dust had on heavy metal. Get to your independent record store early on April 20 for a lush Record Store Day exclusive vinyl version of this archival treasure.

– Peter Lindblad