| "Can't Break Me Down" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Single by Billy Idol | ||||
| from the album Kings & Queens of the Underground | ||||
| Released | 26 August 2014 | |||
| Length | 3:42 | |||
| Label | BFI | |||
| Songwriter(s) |
| |||
| Producer(s) | Greg Kurstin | |||
| Billy Idol singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Music video | ||||
| "Can't Break Me Down" on YouTube | ||||
"Can't Break Me Down" is a song by English singer Billy Idol, which was released in 2014 as the lead single from his eighth studio album Kings & Queens of the Underground .
"Can't Break Me Down" was recorded at Greg Kurstins' home studio, Echo Studios, in Los Angeles. In a 2014 update for his official website, Idol said it was "a fun song to record". [1] The song was released as the lead single from Kings & Queens of the Underground and was made available as an instant download with all iTunes and Amazon pre-orders of the album from 26 August 2014. [2]
The song's music video was directed by Jason Trucco and produced by Niv Gat and Dana Lustig for Atlantis Pictures. It was shot at Santa Clarita Studios in Valencia, California and stars Idol, Izabella Miko and Ryan Heffington, with the latter also serving as the video's choreographer. Described as an "allegorical noir story of love gone wrong", the video is based on the finale of the 1947 American film noir The Lady from Shanghai . As the protagonist, Idol plays a version of Orson Welles' character from the film. The video premiered on YouTube on 23 October 2014. [3]
USA Today selected "Can't Break Me Down" as their "song of the week" during September 2014. Writer Brian Mansfield described it as being in Idol's "classic style" and noted its "punkish drive, sneering vocals and roaring guitar". He felt the song would have served as a "great follow-up" to Idol's 1987 hit "Mony Mony" or his 1990 hit "Cradle of Love". [4] In a review of Kings & Queens of the Underground, Kory Grow of Rolling Stone praised it as a "carefree" and "punky pop tune". He felt that the song's "bang bang bang" chorus was "catchier than anything Fall Out Boy have written lately". [5]
"Can't Break Me Down"
Production
| Chart (2014) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| US Adult Alternative Songs ( Billboard ) [6] | 15 |
Queens of the Stone Age is an American rock band formed in 1996 in Palm Desert, California. The band was founded by vocalist and guitarist Josh Homme, who has been the only constant member throughout multiple line-up changes. The current line-up consists of Homme alongside Troy Van Leeuwen, Michael Shuman, Dean Fertita, and Jon Theodore. The band also have a large pool of contributors and collaborators. Queens of the Stone Age are known for their blues, Krautrock and electronica-influenced style of riff-oriented and rhythmic hard rock music, coupled with Homme's distinct falsetto vocals and unorthodox guitar scales.
Steve Stevens is an American guitarist and songwriter. He is best known as Billy Idol's guitarist and songwriting collaborator, and for his lead guitar work on the theme to Top Gun – "Top Gun Anthem" – for which he won a Grammy in 1987: Best Pop Instrumental Performance. Stevens has played for Michael Jackson, Ric Ocasek, Robert Palmer, and many others. Stevens was in Vince Neil's band from 1992 to 1994, touring and recording on his album Exposed. Stevens was a founding member of the supergroup Bozzio Levin Stevens, which released Black Light Syndrome in 1997 and Situation Dangerous in 2000. He brought Spanish flamenco guitar stylings to the song "Pistolero" (1999) for the trance group Juno Reactor. During 2012–2016, Stevens appeared with Kings of Chaos. His "Steve Stevens" group headlined the closing performance at the Musikmesse in Frankfurt, Germany, in April 2016. He is also a television personality on the E! show Married to Rock, alongside his wife, Josie Stevens.
Keri Kelli is an American hard rock guitarist who has played with artists and groups including Alice Cooper, Slash, Jani Lane, Vince Neil and John Waite. In March 2013 he formed Project Rock together with James Kottak from the Scorpions. Project Rock consisted of Keri Kelli, James Kottak, Tim 'Ripper' Owens, Rudy Sarzo & Teddy Zig-Zag. Kelli is currently in the band Night Ranger.
Idol Songs: 11 of the Best is a greatest hits album by English rock singer Billy Idol, released on 20 June 1988 by Chrysalis Records. It comprises all the singles released from his first three studio albums—Billy Idol, Rebel Yell and Whiplash Smile—as well as the live version of "Mony Mony" and re-recorded Generation X song "Dancing with Myself", both of which appeared on Idol's debut EP Don't Stop. A limited edition of the album contains two extra remixes, and another limited edition contains four extra remixes. The album reached number two on the UK Albums Chart and has been certified platinum by the British Phonographic Industry (BPI). In 2003, the album was reissued with a different title and cover as The Essential.
Don't Stop is Billy Idol's first solo record. Released in the US in 1981, it contains a version of Tommy James and the Shondells' UK #1 "Mony Mony," that would become a later hit for him as a live version in 1987.
Vital Idol is a remix album by English rock singer Billy Idol, released in June 1985 by Chrysalis Records. It contains remixed songs from his first two albums and the Don't Stop EP. The album was reissued in the United States with one extra track in September 1987, peaking at number 10 on the Billboard 200. The US release was supported by a non-album live single version of "Mony Mony".
"Heroin" is a song by the Velvet Underground, released on their 1967 debut album The Velvet Underground & Nico. Written by Lou Reed in 1964, the song, which overtly depicts heroin use and abuse, is one of the band's most celebrated compositions. Critic Mark Deming of Allmusic writes, "While 'Heroin' hardly endorses drug use, it doesn't clearly condemn it, either, which made it all the more troubling in the eyes of many listeners." In 2004, it was ranked at number 448 on Rolling Stone's list of "the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time, and was re-ranked at number 455 in 2010.
"Mony Mony" is a 1968 single by American pop rock band Tommy James and the Shondells, which reached No. 1 in the UK Singles Chart and No. 3 in the U.S. Written by Bobby Bloom, Ritchie Cordell, Bo Gentry and Tommy James, the song has appeared in various film and television works such as the Oliver Stone drama Heaven & Earth. It was also covered by English singer-songwriter Billy Idol in 1981. Idol's version, which took in more of a rock sound, became an international top 40 hit and additionally revived public interest in the original garage rock single. In 1986 it was covered by Amazulu, who gave it a ska rendition.
Gregory Allen Kurstin is an American record producer, multi-instrumentalist, and songwriter. He has won eight Grammy Awards, including Producer of the Year, Non-Classical in 2017 and 2018, and written and produced four songs that hit #1 on the Billboard Hot 100.
William Michael Albert Broad, known professionally as Billy Idol, is an English singer who holds dual British and American citizenship. He first achieved fame in the 1970s emerging from the London punk rock scene as the lead singer of the group Generation X. Subsequently, he embarked on a solo career which led to international recognition and made Idol a lead artist during the MTV-driven "Second British Invasion" in the United States. The name "Billy Idol" was inspired by a schoolteacher's description of him as "idle".
"Adam in Chains" is a song by English rock musician Billy Idol, released in 1993 as the third single from his album Cyberpunk. The song was written by Idol and Robin Hancock, and produced by Hancock.
Kris Allen is the major-label album debut from American Idol eighth season winner Kris Allen. The album was released on November 17, 2009, through Jive Records.
Casey Everett James is an American singer and guitarist from Fort Worth, Texas, who was the third-place finalist on the ninth season of American Idol and is an independent recording artist. He released his eponymous album in March 2012 from which three singles, "Let's Don't Call It a Night", "Crying on a Suitcase", and "The Good Life" were released. In October 2014, James released "Fall Apart" as the first single from a planned second studio album, but Sony opted not to release the record and they split ways. In 2017, James released his second album, Strip It Down, to critical acclaim.
Gar Francis is an American singer-songwriter.
Kings & Queens of the Underground is the eighth studio album by English rock vocalist Billy Idol, released on 17 October 2014 by BFI Records. It was Idol's first album of new original material since Devil's Playground (2005) and only his third album in over twenty years. The album debuted at number 34 on the Billboard 200, becoming Idol's highest-debuting album to date. The album also peaked at number 9 on the Billboard Top Rock Albums chart for the week of 8 November 2014. Videos were released for the songs "Can't Break Me Down" and "Save Me Now".
III is the seventh studio album by English pop band Take That. It is their first studio album since 2010's Progress and the first to feature the band as a trio, following the departures of Jason Orange and Robbie Williams. The album was released on 28 November 2014. According to Gary Barlow, the album's sound is an "amalgamation of the past eight years" of Take That material.
"Sorry" is a song by American singer Halsey, from her second studio album, Hopeless Fountain Kingdom (2017). It was written by Halsey and its producer Greg Kurstin. The track is a ballad where she apologizes to her potential lovers for not letting them to get close to her. The music video for the song was directed by Sing J Lee and Halsey and it was released on February 2, 2018 on Halsey's Vevo channel. The song has achieved over 300 million streams on Spotify, being the third most played song from the album, despite not being an official single.
Colors is the thirteenth studio album by American musician Beck, released on October 13, 2017, by Capitol Records. The album was recorded between 2013 and 2017, with Beck producing alongside Greg Kurstin. The album's earliest single, "Dreams", was released in June 2015, while three more singles were released between June 2016 and September 2017. The title track was also released as a single in April 2018. The album won the Best Alternative Music Album and Best Engineered Album, Non-Classical at the 61st Annual Grammy Awards.
"Circles Around This Town" is a song by American country music artist Maren Morris. It was written by Morris, along with her husband Ryan Hurd, Julia Michaels and Jimmy Robbins. It was released in January 2022 as the lead single from Morris' upcoming third studio album Humble Quest. The song received positive reviews from music critics.
The Roadside is an EP by English singer Billy Idol, his first release on George Harrison's Dark Horse Records. The EP is Idol's first release of new material since 2014's album Kings & Queens of the Underground. It was produced by Butch Walker and released on September 17, 2021. The EP's songs all feature Idol's longtime collaborator, guitarist Steve Stevens.