Old Enough to Forget

Ah Steve Stevens. Back in '89 by buddy Bruce had this and said I absolutely had to hear Steve's cover of "Action." I've always liked that song, and it was indeed a killer cover. I would go out an buy the album based on that one song. I played it a couple of times looking for shiny songs to add to mix tapes. I found two: "Atomic Playboys" and "Action" and then more or less shelved it after passing judgment. It was a decent album with a fantastic cover, but it wasn't anything special. The CD is on a shelf in the studio where it's been sitting for a long time, and it never occurred to me that this was ever released on vinyl. Well it was, and I found a copy ... a rather juicy mint copy at that and it was cheap. The cover by H.R. Giger is as awesome as ever. Yes, he's the guy that designed the original Alien. I bought it. I'm a sucker. I have no regrets ... more on that as I go along. It's been a while since I've sat and real...

After a few punk albums with Generation X, Billy Idol stepped out (or sold out  according to the stalwart punk rockers who felt betrayed by his change in direction) and launched his solo career. Billy teamed up with guitarist Steve Stevens and the two of them created a hybrid punk bubble gum genre that was equal parts sneer, attitude and catchy hooks. Billy was one of the cornerstones of the '80s and here in Canada he was a pretty big deal proportionately outselling our neighbours to the south. I always liked the songs on the radio, but aside from hearing one of his later (at the time) albums  Whiplash Smile once at a friends (a cursory listen didn't do much to solidify Mr. Idol as anything warranting a purchase) I never bothered to buy anything. Billy Idol was released in '82 and the song I really remember is "White Wedding (part 1)" a song that still gives me a big grin. The album would go gold in the US and move 100,000 copies here in the Great White North, eh...

Although released in 1986 I didn't get it until I found this on sale back in '87. This was when CDs were having a bit of a packaging issue and because most record stores weren't configured for them, somewhere some smartass must have figured that creating a full reproduction of the artwork in a disposable long box was a good idea.  Yeah, it last about as long as you think it would last - not long.  Regardless, I found myself in the possession of This Side of Paradise and I did remember hearing "Emotion in Motion" which was a cool track, and even knew that Roland Orzabal from Tears for Fears provided the guitar. It was a pretty decent song, and oddly not the best song on the album. I always found it cool when a guy did a solo album and then brought along the guys from the band to play on some of the tracks. Ric brought everyone from The Cars except David Robinson to guest on at least one track. Poor David, everyone forgets about the drummer. "True to You"...