Song · Billy Idol
“Hot in the City” by Billy Idol
From the album Billy Idol (1982)
“Hot in the City” by Billy Idol appears on 11 radio countdowns from 6 stations between 1982 and 2024. It was first released in 1982 on the album Billy Idol. Its best result is #106 on the KROQ Top 106.7 Songs of 1982. In the combined RockLists rankings it is the #151 alternative song of 1982 and #3,157 alternative song of all time.
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Billy Idol launched his self-titled 1982 debut album into the world with "Hot in the City", a song the English rocker wrote alone and arranged with guitarist Steve Stevens. Keith Forsey produced it, and it's pure summer-night strut: Stevens' guitar all chrome and sparks, Phil Feit's bass and Steve Missal's drums pumping like a nightclub on overload, Idol sneering over the top. It reached number 23 in the US and 58 in the UK.
Then it got a second life. The Exterminator Mix, first heard on the 1985 remix set Vital Idol, went out as a UK single at the end of 1987 and got to number 13. Its video, with Idol's girlfriend Perri Lister bound to a cross, was banned by MTV; the original had cut New York City scenes against stock footage of nuclear bomb tests.
Written with AI assistance from RockLists chart data, MusicBrainz and Wikipedia.
RockLists rankings
Alternative & Modern Rock
Indie & Adult Alternative
Classic Rock
All Rock Formats
Year-end countdowns
| Year | # | Station | Countdown | of |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1982 | 106 | KROQ Los Angeles, CA | KROQ Top 106.7 Songs of 1982 | 107 |
All-time and decade countdowns
| Year | # | Station | Countdown | of |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1988 | 250 | KROQ | KROQ Flashback 500 (Memorial Day 1988) | 496 |
| 1989 | 178 | 91X | 91X Top 191 Songs of the 1980s (1989) | 191 |
| 1989 | 468 | KROQ | KROQ Flashback 500 (Memorial Day 1989) | 495 |
| 1996 | 398 | KROQ | KROQ Flashback 500 (Memorial Day 1996) | 500 |
| 1996 | 358 | Q101 | Q101 Top 500 Songs of All-Time (1996) | 500 |
| 1999 | 678 | Q101 | Q101 Top 1,011 Songs of All-Time (December 1999) | 1017 |
| 2002 | 1576 | Fred (XM 44) | Fred XM Top 2002 Songs of All-Time (July 2002) | 2002 |
| 2003 | 1271 | Fred (XM 44) | Fred XM Top 2044 Songs of All-Time (July 2003) | 2044 |
| 2021 | 602 | 90.9 The Bridge | 90.9 The Bridge Top 909 Songs of the '80s | 909 |
| 2024 | 480 | KQRS | KQRS KQ 500 (2024) | 499 |
Also listed as: Hot In The City.
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