After the release of the single Rebel Yell, the first single from the 1983 album of the same name, Billy Idol released a second song, Eyes Without a Face.
I talked about Rebel Yell a few months ago in this post: Billy Idol and his Rebel Yell.
As for Eyes Without a Face, here's some information.
It's the album's second single and was released in the spring of 1984, accompanied by a video that enjoyed excellent rotation on music TV.
In Dancing with Myself, his book from last year, Billy Idol explained that he loves old black and white horror films.
Among these is Les Yeux Sans Visage, which in English becomes Eyes Without a Face.
The film, dated 1960, is by the French director Georges Franju and there is a bit of Italy in it since the protagonist is the Italian actress Alida Valli (forgive a pinch of pride to a poor Italian blogger 😉).
But enough boasting, and let's get back to Idol.
The title of the film inspired him and the whole film made him reflect on the path that his life as a rock star was taking. That's how the lyrics of Eyes Without a Face were born.
During the chorus of the song, you can hear "Les Yeux Sans Visage" repeated by a female voice.
Well, it's not a randomly chosen backing singer, but Perri Lister, Billy Idol's girlfriend at the time.
Perri also appeared in the video for Foolin' by Def Leppard, released in late summer 1983, as I wrote in this post: Def Leppard Are Not Foolin' (there's also a curiosity about Lister and Idol).
Eyes Without a Face sold well in Europe, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, and the United States. It achieved its highest chart position in the United States and New Zealand, where the song peaked at number four.
A great result, which also contributed to the success of the album.
Isn't that why singles are released?
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