If you remember a couple months back, I bought about 21 7″ Singles and in that were a couple of Billy Idol Singles. The first one is for the single, “Cradle of Love”, which was the first single off his 1990 album, ‘Charmed Life’. The single was released on April 17, 1990 and the album came out 2 weeks later on May 1, 1990. This was the first time Billy had released a song, or an album, without Steve Stevens on guitar (except for his debut E.P.). The song is the highest charting Billy Idol song going all the way to #2 in the U.S. and it went #1 on the Mainstream Rock Chart which is the one and only time he has done that as well. What was the song that kept him from the #1 slot…well, it was Mariah Carey’s “Vision of Love” which was her debut and we know what happened to her.

The A-Side, “Cradle of Love”, was for the Andrew Dice Clay movie, ‘The Adventures of Ford Fairlane’. The song is about a whole slew of cradle-robbing rockers like Jerry Lee Lewis.  It is a classic Billy Idol song and has everything you know and love about his sound. It showed he could do it without Steve Stevens. The song was written by Billy Idol and David Werner and the song on this single is actually the album version of the song and not a remix which is okay because the B-Side is the treasure here and we will get to that shortly.

First, the video for the song was spectacular.  It won an MTV award for best video for a film.  It was directed by David Fincher and poor Billy didn’t appear a whole lot and could only be viewed from the waist up due to his injury from the motorcycle accident prior to recording the album. The video is about a young teenager seducing a business man and it was quite entertaining to say the least. Take a look…

The B-Side on the single is what you are after here. Why? Because it is an unreleased track and isn’t included on the album. I like those type of tracks. It makes buying a single for a song you already have worth it when the B-Side is one you don’t. The song was written by Billy Idol and Mark Younger-Smith. What is a 311 Man? 311 is police code for indecent exposure so that should give you an idea. Sounds pretty dirty to me. The song is a slow chugger filled with some funky bass and a horn section. It is more mid-tempo and doesn’t really go anywhere. I can see why it was left off the album, but still cool to have as I love this kind of stuff.

And there you have it. Simple and sweet. Nice to have an unreleased track and cool to have either way. The more I can add to the Billy Idol collection, the happier I will be. Thanks for stopping by and see you next time.

Now, if you want to check out the full reviews and the entire Billy Idol Series, click on any and all of the links below…

1. Generation X – ‘Generation X’
2. Generation X – ‘Valley of the Dolls’
3. Gen X – ‘Kiss Me Deadly’
4. Gen X – “Dancing With Myself” 12″ Single (Bonus Edition)
5. Generation X – ‘The BBC Transcription Disc Series No. 126 1978’ (Bootleg)
6. Billy Idol – Don’t Stop E.P.
7. Billy Idol – Billy Idol
8. Billy Idol – Rebel Yell
9. Billy Idol – “Eyes Without A Face” – 12″ Picture Disc (Bonus Edition)
10. Billy Idol – Whiplash Smile
11. Billy Idol – “Sweet Sixteen” – 7″ Single (Bonus Edition)
12. Billy Idol – To Be A Lover – Single Review
13. Billy Idol – Vital Idol
14. Billy Idol – “Hot In the City” – 7″ Single (Bonus Edition)
15. Billy Idol – Charmed Life
16. Billy Idol – “Cradle of Love” – 7″ Single (Bonus Edition)
17. Billy Idol – Cyberpunk
18. Billy Idol – “Speed” (song from the Speed Soundtrack)
19. Generation X – K.M.D. Sweet Revenge
20. Billy Idol – VH1 Storytellers (Live)
21. Billy Idol – Devil’s Playground
22. Billy Idol – Happy Holidays
23. Billy Idol – The Very Best of Billy Idol: Idolize Yourself
24. Billy Idol – Kings & Queens of the Underground
25. Billy Idol – BFI Live (#RSD 2019)
26. Billy Idol – Revitalized
27. Generation X – Your Generation (7″ Record Store Day Release)
28. Generation X – Generation X Deluxe Edition
29. Billy Idol – Rebel Waltz: Live (Bootleg)
30. Billy Idol – Rebel Calling: Live (Bootleg)
31. Billy Idol – The Albums Ranked From Worst to First