Kiss Me Deadly by Generation X

Kiss Me Deadly, the third album from Generation X (by now trimmed to Gen X), came out on Chrysalis in the UK on 23 January 1981, with Keith Forsey producing. By this point the London punks had been rebuilt around Billy Idol and bassist Tony James, with James Stevenson on guitar and Terry Chimes on drums.

The spit and safety pins have given way to something slicker and more stylish, with glossy guitars and a sneer aimed at the dancefloor. "Dancing With Myself" is the one that stuck, a jittery, strutting stomp that sounds like the future Idol was already heading for. The public didn't bite at the time: the album failed to make the UK chart at all, and the band broke up in its wake, aside from a brief reunion in 1993. It's the last word from the group that launched Idol's career.

Written with AI assistance from RockLists chart data, MusicBrainz and Wikipedia.