The Story Behind the Non-Hit That Became Billy Idol’s Signature Song

Some songs have achieved the staying power of a hit single, even though they never reached that status upon their original release. “White Wedding” stands out in that category, an iconic 80s track that didn’t actually do much damage on the US charts. Nonetheless, the song, along with its memorable video, helped to define the artistic identity of Billy Idol at the beginning of his solo career. Which is a bit ironic, because he actually first recorded it with a group.

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Idol Thinking

“Dancing With Myself” was a song that Billy Idol kept after for several years in an attempt to make it big. He first wrote it in 1978 with Tony James while he was fronting the punk band Generation X. It wouldn’t be until 1983 that the song finally started to make inroads with the wider world, by which time Idol had established himself as a solo act.

Idol was inspired to write the song by some kids he saw while touring in Japan. They were out at a club and were out on the dance floor. But instead of interacting with each other, they seemed to each inhabit their own little world, watching themselves in the mirrors placed all around.

Many people over the years have interpreted “Dancing With Myself” as a song about masturbation. While Idol wasn’t thinking specifically about that when he wrote it, he also hasn’t shied away from that take on it. After all, for a provocateur like him, such a reading of the song could only bolster his reputation.

Delivering “Dancing”

Billy Idol first released the song as a single in 1980 with Gen X. (They had shortened the name after a lineup change.) It was a time period where punk was starting to fall out of favor, with danceable grooves starting to become the rage in the UK. The recording of “Dancing With Myself” hints at that transformation with its thundering drums and ringing guitars.

The Gen X version of the single did little on the charts. When Idol went solo in 1981, he released it again as his debut single. For this version, he had producer Keith Forsey remix the track to put a bit more emphasis on the rhythm and his vocals. But it again went nowhere.

“Dancing Myself” only reached its maximum exposure when Idol had broken out with a few other hit singles. That’s when the video for the song appeared, featuring Idol in fist-pumping, sneering glory. This re-release of the song didn’t dent the charts either, but it did give Idol a firm footing on MTV.

Behind the Lyrics of “Dancing With Myself” by Billy Idol

Billy Idol makes several direct references to the song’s inspiration in the opening verse, including a mention of Tokyo. These lines also call the incident to mind: “A-with the record selection and the mirror’s reflection/I’m a-dancing with myself.” “Dancing With Myself” builds from that into a reflection on the general struggle to connect with others.

Phrases like “crowded lonely night” speak to this conundrum. Even when the narrator sees someone he likes, he can’t get on her wavelength: “But your empty eyes seem to pass me by.” Still, he persists in casting a wide net to get his “love vibration”: “If I had the chance, I’d ask the world to dance.”

Maybe “Dancing With Myself” didn’t scorch the charts. But it stands as one of the first songs most people think about when considering the catalog of Billy Idol, which just keeps growing. We’d even go so far as to say it’s one of the few non-hits that helped to define a decade’s worth of music.

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