Hot in the City

1982 single by Billy Idol

"Hot in the City"

Single by Billy Idol

from the album Billy Idol

B-side

"Hole in the Wall"

Released

27 May 1982

Genre

New wave

Length

3:38

Label

Chrysalis

Songwriter(s)

Billy Idol

Producer(s)

Keith Forsey

Billy Idol singles chronology

"Mony Mony"
(1981)

"Hot in the City"
(1982)

"White Wedding"
(1982)

Music video

"Hot in the City" on YouTube

"Hot in the City" is a song by Billy Idol, released as the lead single from his 1982 self-titled debut album. It charted at No. 23 in the US^[1] and No. 58 in the UK.^[2] A remix of the song was released in 1987 and reached No. 13 in the UK.^[2]

1987 release

The Exterminator Mix of the song was released as a single in the UK on 29 December 1987.^[3] It charted higher in the UK this time round, peaking at No. 13 in early 1988.^[4] This version was first released in 1985 on the remix album Vital Idol.

Music video

There are two versions of the video. The first version (the 1982 version) starts off with a girl walking into a record store. She picks up a Billy Idol record and the song starts to play. The video features scenes from New York City, interspersed with stock footage of nuclear bomb tests. The second version (the 1987 version) depicted Idol's girlfriend Perri Lister bound to a cross; it was banned by MTV.^[5] The later version was included on the DVD edition of The Very Best of Billy Idol: Idolize Yourself.

Other versions and covers

Although the released version of the song has Idol shouting "New York!", other versions of the song were recorded for various radio stations, including ones for such cities as "Amarillo", "Boston", "Minneapolis", "New Haven", "Phoenix", "Philly", "Chattanooga", and "Sioux Falls", or none at all with a repeated synthesiser stab instead.

Appearances in other media

The song, with a remixed synthesizer intro, was used as the introduction ^[6] for Booker, the TV series spin-off of 21 Jump Street. It is also featured in the 1988 hit film Big, starring Tom Hanks.

The song was used by the NBA's Phoenix Suns during the introductions of the visiting team at home games during the team's run to the 1993 NBA Finals.^{[citation needed]}

Track listings

(1982) UK 7" vinyl single

"Hot in the City"
"Dead on Arrival"

(1982) UK 12" vinyl single

"Hot in the City" (Extended Version)
"Dead on Arrival"

(1987) UK 7" vinyl single

"Hot in the City" (Exterminator Fix)
"Catch My Fall" (Remix Fix)

(1987) UK 12" vinyl single

"Hot in the City" (Exterminator Mix)
"Catch My Fall" (Remix Fix)
"Soul Standing By"

Chart performance

Weekly charts

Chart (1982)	Peak position
Australia^[7]	18
Austria^[7]	10
Canada^[8]	34
Luxembourg (Radio Luxembourg)^[9]	30
New Zealand	5
UK Singles	58
U.S. Billboard Hot 100	23
U.S. Cash Box Top 100	27

Chart (1987–88)	Peak position
Australia	58
Belgium^[7]	26
Canada	43
Luxembourg (Radio Luxembourg)^[9]	11
Netherlands^[7]	32
New Zealand^[10]	19
Switzerland^[7]	19
UK Singles^[2]	13
U.S. Billboard Hot 100^[1]	48
U.S. Billboard Mainstream Rock Tracks^[1]	31
U.S. Cash Box Top 100	57

¹Re-released in 1987

Year-end charts

Chart (1982)	Rank
Australia^[11]	108
New Zealand^[12]	50
U.S. Billboard Hot 100^[13]	90

References

^ ^a ^b ^c "Billy Idol | Awards". AllMusic. 30 November 1955. Retrieved 9 April 2014.
^ ^a ^b ^c Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums (19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. p. 266. ISBN 1-904994-10-5.
^ "Xmas News". Record Mirror. 26 December 1987. p. 9. ISSN 0144-5804.
^ "Hot in the City {1988} | full Official Chart History | Official Charts Company". Official Charts.
^ Billy Idol biography Archived 1 July 2009 at the Wayback Machine
^ Booker Intro. YouTube. Archived from the original on 11 December 2021.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e "Song artist 392 - Billy Idol". Tsort.info. 8 October 2007. Retrieved 31 October 2016.
^ "Image : RPM Weekly - Library and Archives Canada". Bac-lac.gc.ca. 17 July 2013. Retrieved 31 October 2016.
^ ^a ^b "Ultimate Music Database". Umdmusic.com.
^ "NZ Top 40 Singles Chart | The Official New Zealand Music Chart". Nztop40.co.nz. 20 March 1988. Retrieved 31 October 2016.
^ "ARIA Charts - End Of Year Charts - Top 50 Singles 1988". Aria.com.au. Retrieved 31 October 2016.
^ "Top Selling Singles of 1983 | The Official New Zealand Music Chart". Nztop40.co.nz. 31 December 1983. Retrieved 31 October 2016.
^ "Top 100 Hits of 1982/Top 100 Songs of 1982". Musicoutfitters.com. Retrieved 31 October 2016.