"Sweet Sixteen" is a song by British singer-songwriter

Billy Idol William Michael Albert Broad (born 30 November 1955), known professionally as Billy Idol, is a British-American singer, songwriter, and musician. He first achieved fame in the 1970s emerging from the London punk rock scene as the lead singer o ...

, which was released in 1987 as the third single from his third studio album ''

Whiplash Smile ''Whiplash Smile'' is the third studio album by English rock singer Billy Idol, released on 20 October 1986 by Chrysalis Records. After his successful album ''Rebel Yell'' (1983), Idol continued his collaboration with producer Keith Forsey and ...

'' (1986). The song written by Idol and produced by

Keith Forsey Keith Forsey (born 2 January 1948) is an English pop musician and record producer. Early life Forsey began his career as a percussionist in the mid-late 1960s as the drummer for The SpectrumCaptain Scarlet and the Mysterons - The Vault - Chris ...

. "Sweet Sixteen" peaked at No. 20 in the US and No. 17 in the UK. It was also a hit across Europe and beyond.

Background

"Sweet Sixteen" was inspired by the true story of Edward Leedskalnin, a Latvian emigrant who single-handedly built the

Coral Castle Coral Castle is an oolite limestone structure created by the Latvian-American eccentric Edward Leedskalnin (1887–1951). It is located in unincorporated territory of Miami-Dade County, Florida, between the cities of Homestead and Leisure Cit ...

in Florida. In Latvia, Leedskalnin was set to marry Agnes Skuvst, but she broke the engagement and Leedskalnin decided to emigrate to America. He built the Coral Castle there in dedication to Skuvst, who he often referred to as his "Sweet Sixteen". Idol wrote the song after watching "The Castle of Secrets", an episode of

Leonard Nimoy Leonard Simon Nimoy (; March 26, 1931 – February 27, 2015) was an American actor, famed for playing Spock in the ''Star Trek'' franchise for almost 50 years. This includes originating Spock in the original ''Star Trek'' series in 1966, then ...

's program '' In Search of...'' which was based on Coral Castle. The song was written during the making of Idol's 1983 album ''

Rebel Yell The rebel yell was a battle cry used by Confederate soldiers during the American Civil War. Confederate soldiers used the yell when charging to intimidate the enemy and boost their own morale, although the yell had many other uses. No audio ...

''. In his 2014 autobiography, Idol described the song as a "heartfelt lament". He added that while the castle was Leedskalnin's "coral memorial" to his former love, "Sweet Sixteen" was Idol's to his then-girlfriend

Perri Lister Perri Lister (born 10 April 1959) is an English former dancer, singer and actress. She was a dancer with the British dance troupe Hot Gossip which appeared regularly on ''The Kenny Everett Video Show'' in the late 1970s – early 1980s in the Unit ...

Music video

Two music videos were filmed to promote the single. The black-and-white version, directed by Peter Sinclair, featured Idol performing the song in an empty room. An alternative video, filmed in colour, featured scenes shot at Coral Castle.

Release

The single was released on 7", 12" and cassette by Chrysalis. The B-Side was the ''Whiplash Smile'' album track "Beyond Belief. For the 12" single, another track from the album, "One Night, One Chance" was also included. The UK edition of the 12" single, which was also released in some other European countries, included an extended version of "Rebel Yell" instead.

Critical reception

In a contemporary review of ''Whiplash Smile'', ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first kno ...

'' described the song as having an "acoustic shuffle", which "recalled the texture" of Idol's 1984 hit " Eyes Without a Face". ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...

'' noted in their review of the album: "...quick spins of "World's Forgotten Boy," "Sweet Sixteen," and " Don't Need a Gun" provide positive indication that Idol is rocking on the right track." In a retrospective

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...

review of the album, Johnny Loftus commented on the song's "weird, Marty Robbins-meets-Del Shannon-in-space vibe." Loftus also selected the song as one of the album's highlights by labelling it an AMG Pick Track. On the 30th anniversary of the album, ''

Ultimate Classic Rock Townsquare Media, Inc. (formerly Regent Communications until 2010) is an American radio network and media company based in Purchase, New York. The company started in radio and expanded into digital media toward the end of the 2000s, starting wit ...

'' described the song as a "relatively stripped-back acoustic love song".

Formats

;7" single #"Sweet Sixteen" – 4:14 #"Beyond Belief" – 4:00 ;7" single (Costa Rican release) #"Sweet Sixteen" – 4:14 #"Man For All Seasons" – 4:38 ;7" single (US promo release) #"Sweet Sixteen" – 4:14 #"Sweet Sixteen" – 4:14 ;7" single (Australian limited edition double-pack release) #"Sweet Sixteen" – 4:14 #"Beyond Belief" – 4:00 #"Mony Mony (Extended Version)" – 5:01 #"White Wedding (Extended Version)" – 8:20 ;12" single (UK and European release) #"Sweet Sixteen" – 4:14 #"Beyond Belief" – 4:00 #"Rebel Yell (Extended Version)" – 4:45 ;12" single (European release) #"Sweet Sixteen" – 4:14 #"Beyond Belief" – 4:00 #"One Night, One Chance" – 3:52 ;12" single (US promo release) #"Sweet Sixteen" – 4:14 #"Sweet Sixteen" – 4:14 ;Cassette single (UK release) #"Sweet Sixteen" – 4:14 #"Beyond Belief" – 4:00 ;Cassette single (Canadian limited edition release) #"Sweet Sixteen" – 4:14 #"White Wedding" – 4:12 ;Cassette single (1990 US release) #"Sweet Sixteen" – 4:14 #"To Be a Lover" – 3:51

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Personnel

– vocals, guitar *

Steve Stevens Steve Stevens (born Steven Bruce Schneider; May 5, 1959) is an American guitarist. 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 w ...

– guitar *

Marcus Miller William Henry Marcus Miller Jr. (born June 14, 1959) is an American musician, songwriter, and record producer. He is best known for his work as a bassist. He has worked with trumpeter Miles Davis, pianist Herbie Hancock, singer Luther Vandros ...

– bass *

– producer, keyboards *

Thommy Price Thommy Price (born December 9, 1956) is an American musician. He has played drums in a number of bands, including Scandal, Billy Idol, Blue Öyster Cult, and Joan Jett and the Blackhearts, and is an in-demand session drummer. History Price was a ...

– drums *

Gary Langan Gary Michael Langan (born 19 April 1956) is an English engineer, record producer, mixer and musician. Biography His career started at age 18 when he worked as an assistant engineer at Sarm East Studios, learning the craft from Gary Lyons and M ...

– mixing * Pat Gorman – design * Dick Zimmerman – photography

References

{{Billy Idol 1986 songs 1987 singles Billy Idol songs Black-and-white music videos Chrysalis Records singles Songs about teenagers