Billy Idol’s Rebel Hell on a Harley-Davidson

By Ed Tahaney - June 17, 2015

“I heard the crash. Bikers say that if you don’t hear that crash, you’re already dead. I open my eyes. Bright sunlight floods in. I’m staring at the curb, my forehead resting just an inch from the sidewalk’s edge. I’m lying in a bloody heap in the street, my Harley not too far away.” – Billy Idol, Dancing with Myself (Simon & Schuster).

On February 6, 1990, rocker Billy Idol crushed his right leg after being broadsided by a car while riding his Harley-Davidson in Los Angeles, California near the intersection of Fountain Ave. and Gordon St.

According to his recent autobiography, after recording his Charmed Life album, Idol rode his Harley from his Hollywood Hills home to the studio to clear his head. The rock star was at an all time high in his life and career.

“Two years of never-ending booze, broads, and bikes, plus a steady diet of pot, cocaine, ecstasy, smack, opium, Quaaludes, and reds,” the drunk rocker admits in the autobiography.

And if that’s not enough, he was also taking GHB, a steroid for fatigue at the time. Here’s an excerpt from Dancing with Myself leading up to his brutal accident and brush with death:

“The L.A. traffic is thick and the warmth of the sun is fresh on my face, its glow spreading over my bare head. California has yet to pass legislation making the wearing of helmets compulsory, and I’ve always liked the feeling of wind in my hair. My bike clears it throat with a deep purring growl. The gleaming black tank and chrome fixture flash in the sharp, sacrosanct daylight. I’ve opted for all denim to match the blue-sky high.
The Harley’s firm hold on the road this morning is comforting, and I begin to relax; its curves perfectly match the contours of the pavement below. I try to outrun the demons. The sweet, jasmine-honeyed air intoxicates my spinning mind, I rev the bike, which reacts easily to my commands as I sail breezily along the winding canyon road towards Sunset Boulevard. The lush greenery and trees lining the road refresh my thoughts, and my concentration wanders. My mind is filled with images of Peter O’Toole as Lawrence of Arabia speeding through the English countryside, testing his bike, pushing it to the limit, when –
WHAM!!!
An almighty explosion interrupts my silent reverie. I feel my body violently tumbling through the air, floating into a pure void. I black out before landing.”

The autobiography is a pulverizing read and is now available for download if you are looking for a juicy summer read.

The first time I saw Billy Idol in person was around 1988. Actually, I heard him first. Not on the radio or in concert but roaring down Sunset Boulevard on his black, 1984 Harley-Davidson Wide Glide.

It was like a scene out of a music video. There was bumper to bumper traffic outside of the Comedy Store and I heard the rumble of his motorcycle.

From my seat, all I could see was a tuff of spiked, blonde hair, a curled lip and ape hangers splitting lanes and disappearing down the street. It was a pretty epic Hollywood moment for me.

Years later, I snagged an exclusive interview with the rocker for the New York Daily News. Despite the tabloid prematurely reporting his early demise in the mid-80s, William Broad aka Billy Idol and his posse picked me up at the News in a big, blacked-out Ford SUV.

It was winter in 2005 and Idol was wearing a camouflage jacket, black scarf, blue shirt, jeans, trademark spiky, blonde peroxide hair and a silver earring. He looked like a pirate and my co-workers were in awe.

We talked about motorcycles naturally, his new Devil’s Playground album and lots of stuff we couldn’t print in the paper.

“Actually, personally I hated the helmet law but after a while we went on these long runs and then with the sun beating down on your head and shit coming off the road and then it was much better for me because no knows it’s me. Which means no one’s trying to knock me off either,” Idol told me as we drove through Hell’s Kitchen.

“Now I’m more anonymous and that was good for a while but I got left alone a bit because rock and roll is about observations and you can’t observe if you are always being watched,” he told me back then as we neared 57th St.

“I think Lou Reed said that, I know what you mean mate, I’ve been through it. You know, how can you write a song when everyone is up your asshole? It’s like fucking hell,” Idol explained.

After the interview I tagged along as Idol crashed Howard Stern’s K-Rock Holiday Party at the Hard Rock Cafe. It was insane as you can see in the photos from the News‘ cheeky, Sunday 25Hours Magazine.

Idol couldn’t resist the partying crowd and even sang White Wedding and Dancing with Myself along with the rocking jukebox.

These days the original Cyber Punk is still rocking, riding and touring the world. Read his book, follow him online and get more info at BillyIdol.net.