Billy Idol and his guitarist Steve Stevens performed an acoustic version of Idol’s iconic hit “Rebel Yell” while tethered to a balcony atop the Empire State Building.
After playing the first-ever concert at the Hoover Dam last year, Idol went a step further — and much higher — by strapping himself to a narrow balcony on the 103rd floor of the Empire State Building to play the acoustic number. The platform was originally built as a disembarkation deck for passengers of airships tethered to the Empire State’s spire.
Needless to say, the footage is incredible, with sweeping drone shots showing Idol and Stevens side by side on the small platform above the clouds. Whatever nerves they may have been feeling from the vertigo-inducing heights, neither flinches as they knock out the passionate acoustic rendition — just like they did on the Today show in May.
“When I was a little boy we lived in Long Island for a few years and my mom and dad took me to visit the Empire State Building, probably in 1959,” commented Idol [via Classic Rock]. “Hard to fathom that 65 years later I’d be playing rock ‘n’ roll on top of the building! Then and now the Empire State Building is an unrivaled jewel of Art Deco magic. A career highlight for sure!”
The video of the ESB performance was produced by Steven Gottlieb, who was approached by Idol’s team about the project.
“They came to me and said they wanted to film a performance at the top of the Empire State Building and they had a connection with a drone company that could help so it was sort of all pieced together nicely,” Gottlieb told Time Out New York.
He continued: “It almost feels unreal, as if it’s visual effects, but they’re not. It’s all real. It’s just an angle of the city that you almost never see. Everything that Billy does is larger than life and the Empire State Building is probably the most iconic tall building in the world so if you’re going to do something like this, this is where to do it.”
The performance was part of a continued celebration of the 40th anniversary of Idol’s classic album Rebel Yell. An expanded reissue of the LP was released earlier this year, and is available here.
Fans can catch Billy Idol much closer to the ground as he continues his current tour of Canada. Tickets are available here.
Watch the clip of Billy Idol playing “Rebel Yell” from atop the Empire State Building below.