ONE LOVECredit:Herald Sun
Date:Saturday October 12th, 2002
Site::HSBilly Idol tells Cameron Adams this time around he's concentrating on the music, not the rock lifestyle.
He may be a British rock icon living in L.A with teenage kids, but Billy Idol isn't planning to do an Osbournes.
"The one person in the world who could do that is Ozzy Osbourne," Idol says. "He's naturally funny. I hope I've still got a future making music."
It seems there are plenty who feel the same way. At 46, Idol is embarking on what's been described as one of the least embarrassing rock comebacks of recent times.
Firstly, he still looks like Billy Idol, albeit slightly shop-soiled.
"I haven't had surgery," he states proudly. "Haven't had that Botox. This is all real. Frightenly real."
The Billy Idol story has already been turned into a Behind The Music special on US channel VH1.
While his anthemic hits White Wedding, Hot In The City, Dancing With Myself, Flesh For Fantasy and To Be A Lover soundtracked the '80s, Idol teetered on the edge of becoming another rock casualty.
He had swiftly gone from being a broke, spotty punk in England to a millionaire solo star in the US.
There was plenty of alcohol and drugs, fast women and faster motorcycles and near-death experiences.
"There came a point when there were two or three (near-death experiences) a year, so I had to stop. It was getting too much," Idol recalls.
His string of hits dried up with the 1993 flop Cyberpunk. Considered career suicide at the time, ironically it's now seen as being ahead of its time.
Its mixture of industrial-strength electronics and rock would later propel multi-platinum albums by Nine Inch Nails and (Idol's favourites) The Prodigy. When the album stalled, Idol took the hint.
He'd just has a son, Willem Wolfe, with longtime girlfriend Perri Lister, then had a daughter, Bonnie Blue, reportedly with a fan.
Idol simply slipped off the musical radar for the rest of the decade. He also cleaned himself up.
"There was a side of me that missed the music, but there was a side of me that also wanted to take care of my children. And I'd got to a point where I needed to walk away or I wasn't going to be around to come back.
"Having kids made me realise I had to be responsible for someone elseo. Children don't want to see Mr Rock and Roll 24 hours a day, they want a dad."
In his absence, techno band Scooter had a hit with a dance version of Idol's Rebel Yell, while two punk acts - Blink 182 and Green Day - covered Dancing With Myself in their live sets.
His career was reignited be a cameo in The Wedding Singer and an appearance on the VH1 Storytellers series, and he has been on the road ever since.
Idol has a new album's worth of material ready and has met newfound respect in the industry.
He is happy to relive the old songs, giving some the facelift he's never had.
"If my energy and intent are the same there's no reason I can't sing Rebel Yell at 46," Idol says.
"If I were physically or drastically altered and there was no hint of what I once looked like, then maybe I shouldn't be doing it. But I've still got all my faculties."
Idol is no stranger to controversy. Long before he swore on The Panel and tipped water over Tom Gleisner, he disrupted the 1987 Countdown Awards.
A trashed Idol told Molly Meldrum he'd been having "heavy sex" since arriving in the country.
"Ive got fond memories of that visit," Idol says slyly.
These days he wants his music to be taken more seriously, but it still up for the female attention. "There's a big side of me that wants to showcase the music. We've got a great band now. But we can party afterwards."
(Billy Idol performs at the M-One concert at Telstra Dome tonight.)
