Rebel Yell (album)

Rebel Yell is the second studio album by English rock singer Billy Idol, released on 10 November 1983 by Chrysalis Records. After the release of his 1982 eponymous debut album, Idol continued his collaboration with producer Keith Forsey and multi-instrumentalist Steve Stevens. The album was recorded at Electric Lady Studios in New York. Initially recording without a drummer, utilizing only the electronic drum machine LinnDrum, Forsey and Stevens later decided to hire Thommy Price to play drums on some of the songs. Musically, Rebel Yell is a rock album with a strong influence of new wave music. The cover sleeve and images were shot by Brian Griffin. Idol got the idea of the album's title after attending a party with The Rolling Stones and drinking the Rebel Yell whiskey.

Rebel Yell
Studio album by
Billy Idol
Released10 November 1983 (1983-11-10)
Recorded1983
Studio
Genre
Length38:10
LabelChrysalis
ProducerKeith Forsey
Billy Idol chronology
Billy Idol
(1982)		 Rebel Yell
(1983)		 Vital Idol
(1985)
Singles from Rebel Yell
  1. "Rebel Yell"
    Released: 24 October 1983
  2. "Eyes Without a Face"
    Released: 29 May 1984
  3. "Flesh for Fantasy"
    Released: 13 September 1984
  4. "Catch My Fall"
    Released: 7 November 1984

Background and recording

The album reunited the hit-making team of Billy Idol, Steve Stevens and Keith Forsey after their success with Idol's 1982 solo debut, Billy Idol. Idol got the idea to name the album "Rebel Yell" after attending a party with The Rolling Stones. He explained on VH1 Storytellers that people were drinking "Rebel Yell" bourbon and thought that would be a great title for an album.

The title track was recorded in only three days at the Electric Lady Studios in New York City.[2] Idol was battling Chrysalis Records over creative control, and decided to steal the master tapes. Keith Forsey stated in an interview with Mix magazine that Idol stole the wrong tapes. Idol battled the label and came back to the studio victorious. Forsey then informed him that he had taken the wrong tapes.

Working with Forsey were guitarist Steve Stevens, bassist Phil Feit and later Steve Webster, drummer Gregg Gerson, and keyboardists Judi Dozier and Jack Waldman.

In 1999, EMI Music re-issued the album as part of their "Expanded" series. The new version of the album included previously unreleased bonus tracks and expanded liner notes. In 2010, audiophile label Audio Fidelity re-issued a 24-karat CD remastered in HDCD by Steve Hoffman.

All of the singles, but particularly "Rebel Yell", "Eyes Without a Face" and "Flesh for Fantasy", were hit music videos on MTV. Idol's longtime girlfriend Perri Lister can be seen in the front row during the "Rebel Yell" video.

Release and reception
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[1]
Encyclopedia of Popular Music[3]
Rolling Stone[4]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide[5]
Spin Alternative Record Guide9/10[6]
The Village VoiceC[7]

Upon its release, Rebel Yell received positive reviews from critics and was a commercial success. In the United States, it peaked at number six on the Billboard 200 and also peaked into the top ten in other countries, such as Canada, Germany, and New Zealand. The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) certified it double platinum for shipment of two million copies across the United States. Four singles were released from the album. The accompanying music videos for all singles received heavy airplay on television channel MTV.

Track listing

All songs written and arranged by Billy Idol and Steve Stevens except where indicated.

No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Rebel Yell" 4:45
2."Daytime Drama" 4:02
3."Eyes Without a Face" 4:58
4."Blue Highway" 5:05
5."Flesh for Fantasy" 4:37
6."Catch My Fall"Billy Idol3:42
7."Crank Call" 3:56
8."(Do Not) Stand in the Shadows" 3:10
9."The Dead Next Door" 3:45
1999 expanded edition
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
10."Rebel Yell" (Session Take) 5:27
11."Motorbikin'" (Session Take)Christopher Spedding4:16
12."Catch My Fall" (Original Demo) 4:11
13."Flesh for Fantasy" (Session Take) 5:09
14."Blue Highway" (Original Demo) 5:00

Personnel
  • Billy Idol – guitar, vocals
  • Steve Stevens – lead guitar, bass guitar, guitar synthesizer, synthesizer, keyboards
  • Phil Feit - bass guitar on "Rebel Yell" (Session Take), "Motorbikin'" (Session Take), and "Flesh For Fantasy" (Session Take)
  • Sal Cuevas – bass guitar on "Eyes Without A Face"
  • Steve Webster – bass guitar
  • Judi Dozier – keyboards
  • Jack Waldman – additional keyboards
  • Thommy Price – drums
  • Gregg Gerson – drums on "(Do Not) Stand In The Shadows", "Rebel Yell" (Session Take), "Motorbikin'" (Session Take) & "Flesh For Fantasy" (Session Take)
  • Mars Williams – saxophone on "Catch My Fall"
  • Perri Lister – background vocals on "Eyes Without A Face"

Technical

  • Keith Forsey – producer
  • Michael Frondelli – engineer, mixing
  • Dave Wittman – engineer, mixing
  • Gary Hellman – engineer
  • Steve Rinkoff – engineer
  • Pete Thea – engineer
  • George Marino – mastering
  • Brian Griffin – photography
  • Michael McNeil – cover design
  • Kevin Flaherty – compilation
  • Stephanie Tudor – production co-ordination

Charts

Weekly charts
Chart (1983—84) Peak
position
Australian Albums (Kent Music Report)[8] 16
Canada Top Albums/CDs (RPM)[9] 8
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[10] 2
Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)[11] 31
New Zealand Albums (RMNZ)[12] 2
Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)[13] 16
UK Albums (OCC)[14] 36
US Billboard 200[15] 6

Certifications and sales
Region CertificationCertified units/sales
Canada (Music Canada)[16] 5× Platinum 500,000^
Germany (BVMI)[17] Gold 250,000^
New Zealand (RMNZ)[18] Platinum 15,000^
United Kingdom (BPI)[19] Silver 60,000^
United States (RIAA)[20] 2× Platinum 2,000,000^

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

References
  1. Huey, Steve. "Rebel Yell – Billy Idol". AllMusic. Retrieved 7 January 2012.
  2. Keith Forsey discusses the recording of Rebel Yell Archived 20 September 2006 at the Wayback Machine
  3. Larkin, Colin (2011). The Encyclopedia of Popular Music (5th concise ed.). Omnibus Press. ISBN 978-0-85712-595-8.
  4. Puterbaugh, Parke (19 January 1984). "Rebel Yell". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 7 January 2012.
  5. Sheffield, Rob (2004). "Billy Idol". In Brackett, Nathan; Hoard, Christian (eds.). The New Rolling Stone Album Guide (4th ed.). Simon & Schuster. p. 402. ISBN 0-7432-0169-8.
  6. Weisbard, Eric; Marks, Craig, eds. (1995). Spin Alternative Record Guide. New York: Vintage Books. ISBN 0-679-75574-8.
  7. Christgau, Robert (28 August 1984). "Christgau's Consumer Guide". The Village Voice. Retrieved 7 January 2012.
  8. Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 (Illustrated ed.). St. Ives, N.S.W.: Australian Chart Book. p. 306. ISBN 0-646-11917-6. N.B. the Kent Report chart was licensed by ARIA between mid 1983 and 19 June 1988.
  9. "Top RPM Albums: Issue 4471a". RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved 18 September 2020.
  10. "Longplay-Chartverfolgung at Musicline" (in German). Musicline.de. Phononet GmbH. Retrieved 11 April 2016.
  11. "Dutchcharts.nl – Billy Idol – Rebel Yell" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 11 April 2016.
  12. "Charts.nz – Billy Idol – Rebel Yell". Hung Medien. Retrieved 11 April 2016.
  13. "Swisscharts.com – Billy Idol – Rebel Yell". Hung Medien. Retrieved 11 April 2016.
  14. "Billy Idol | Artist | Official Charts". UK Albums Chart. Retrieved 11 April 2016.
  15. "Billy Idol Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved 11 April 2016.
  16. "Canadian album certifications – Billy Idol – Rebel Yell". Music Canada. Retrieved 11 April 2016.
  17. "Gold-/Platin-Datenbank (Billy Idol; 'Rebel Yell')" (in German). Bundesverband Musikindustrie. Retrieved 16 December 2019.
  18. "New Zealand album certifications – Billy Idol – Rebel Yell". Recorded Music NZ. Retrieved 20 November 2019.
  19. "British album certifications – Billy Idol – Rebel Yell". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 11 April 2016. Select albums in the Format field. Select Silver in the Certification field. Type Rebel Yell in the "Search BPI Awards" field and then press Enter.
  20. "American album certifications – Billy Idol – Rebel Yell". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved 11 April 2016. If necessary, click Advanced, then click Format, then select Album, then click SEARCH. 
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