Songoftheday 8/21/13 - I'm all out of hope one more bad dream could bring a fall...

Billy Idol - "Eyes Without A Face"
from the album Rebel Yell (1983)
Billboard Hot 100 peak: #4 (two weeks)
Weeks in the Top-40: 14

Today's song of the day is by that lovable punk-rocker Billy Idol, who's "slow-burn" debut album eventually caught him a pop radio audience and gave him two top-40 singles with "Hot In The City" and "White Wedding". With these hits in hand Billy released his second full-length album Rebel Yell in 1983, but the first single, the raucous title track, missed the top-40. For its follow-up he went a completely different route, and ended up with his first huge pop hit, "Eyes Without A Face". A song inspired by a French horror movie (the backup vocal says the name Les Yeux Sans Visage), it starts out all sweet and ballad-like until Steve Stevens' guitar rips in and all bets are off...

"Eyes Without A Face" was Idol's first top-10 single in July of 1984, while also topping out at #5 on the rock radio chart (his third top tenner). In his native Britain the single was his first to reach the top-40 (at #18), and also made the top-10 in Germany. It would solidify his standing as the punk guy that mainstream radio can play, and was the first punk song most moms would know.

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Here's Billy performing "Eyes Without A Face" in 1984 (I think this is the Vital Idol "live" not really live version)...

...and a more recent version from 2009...

Up tomorrow: Soooo close to heaven, says a heart-less Loverboy.