About The Song
“Dancing with Myself” is a song by the punk rock band Gen X, first commercially released in the United Kingdom in October 1980, where it reached number 62 on the UK Singles Chart. It was remixed and re-released by the band’s singer/frontman Billy Idol as a solo artist in the United States in 1981, where the song reached number 27 on the US Billboard Hot Dance Club Play chart. Nouvelle Vague covered the number in 2006 and released it on their album, Bande à Part.
The inspiration for the song occurred during a tour of Japan by the English post-punk band Generation X in mid-1979, when its vocalist/frontman Billy Idol and its bassist Tony James were struck by the sight of the young crowd in a Tokyo discotheque dancing with their own reflections in mirrored walls rather than with one another.
The song was written and first recorded by Generation X during demo sessions in mid-1979 at Olympic Studios in West London (this demo-recording was first commercially released retrospectively on the long-player K.M.D.-Sweet Revenge (1998)). After that band had split later in that year, Idol and James re-branded the act as Gen X, and in production sessions with Keith Forsey for a new long-player at AIR Studios in London in mid-1980, the song was re-recorded for commercial release as a single. The guitar parts of the song were a mix of the playing of three guitarists with distinctively differing styles, viz. Steve New playing the lead, Steve Jones playing rhythm, with another layer being added by Danny Kustow. On commercial sales in October 1980 as a pre-release single from the new band’s forthcoming long-player Kiss Me Deadly (1981), “Dancing with Myself” was a retail failure, reaching only number 62 in the UK Singles Chart.
In 1981, Idol, now a solo artist after Gen X had broken up, had Forsey remix the record for its release as a single in the United States, fading down the guitar(s) and bass tracks from their dominance in the 1980 UK release and accentuating the vocal and percussion tracks, to produce a more rhythmic sound for the American commercial market. It became his first hit single in the United States and launched his career there, two versions being issued: the 3:20 single version (which was later included on Idol’s 11 of the Best compilation) and the 4:50 extended version that appeared on Idol’s Don’t Stop EP.
Video
Lyrics
On the floors of Tokyo
Or down in London town to go, go
With a record selection and a mirror’s reflection
I’m dancing with myself
When there’s no one else in sight
In the crowded lonely night
Well, I wait so long for my love vibration
And I’m dancing with myself
Dancing with myself (ah, oh, oh-oh)
Dancing with myself (ah, oh, oh-oh)
When there’s nothing to lose and there’s nothing to prove (ah, oh, oh-oh)
Well, I’m dancing with myself, ah, oh, oh-oh
If I looked all over the world
And there’s every type of girl
But your empty eyes seem to pass me by
Leave me dancing with myself
So let’s sink another drink
And it’ll give me time to think
If I had the chance, I’d ask the world to dance
And I’d be dancing with myself, oh-oh
Dancing with myself, ah, oh (oh-oh)
Dancing with myself (ah, oh, oh-oh)
If I had the chance, I’d ask the world to dance (ah, oh, oh-oh)
And I’d be dancing with myself, ah, oh, oh-oh, yeah
Ah, oh, oh-oh, oh
Ah, oh, oh-oh
Ah, oh, oh-oh, wow
Dance
Dance
Well, I looked all over the world
And there’s every type of girl
But your empty eyes seem to pass me by
Leave me dancing with myself
So let’s sink another drink
And it’ll give me time to think
If I had the chance, I’d ask the world to dance
And I’d be dancing with myself, oh-oh
Dancing with myself, oh-oh
Dancing with myself
If I had the chance, I’d ask the world to dance
If I had the chance, I’d ask the world to dance
If I had the chance, I’d ask the world to dance
Ah, oh, oh-oh, ow!
Ah, oh, oh-oh, woo
Ah, oh, oh-oh, yeah
Ah, oh, oh-oh
Ah, oh, oh-oh
Ah, oh, oh-oh
Ah, oh, oh-oh
Yeah!
Well, I looked all over the world
And there’s every type of girl
But your empty eyes seem to pass me by
Leave me dancing with myself
So let’s sink another drink
And it’ll give me time to think
If I had the chance, I’d ask the world to dance
And I’d be dancing with myself
Dancing with myself, ah, oh, oh-oh
Dancing with myself
If I had the chance, I’d ask the world to dance
If I had the chance, I’d ask the world to dance
If I had the chance, I’d ask the world to dance, ow!
Ah, oh, oh-oh, yeah
Ah, oh, oh-oh, yeah
Ah, oh, oh-oh, yeah
Ah, oh, oh-oh
Oh, my ladies all wet, yeah, sweat, sweat
I wanna sweat, sweat, sweat, sweat, sweat, sweat
Sweat, sweat, sweat, sweat, sweat, sweat
Sweat, sweat, sweat, sweat, sweat, sweat
Sweat, sweat, sweat, ow!
Sweating with myself
I’m dancing with myself, myself
I’m all right