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,[1] and for his lead guitar work on the theme to Top Gun – "Top Gun Anthem" – for which he won the Grammy for Best Pop Instrumental Performance in 1987.
After attending Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School of Music & Art and Performing Arts for a few years Stevens decided to drop out of school and started making a name for himself in Manhattan playing with local bands.[8] Following the dissolution of Generation X in 1981 Billy Idol moved to New York, City to start a solo career. Idol’s manager Bill Aucoin then introduced him to Stevens and the two hit it off immediately, with Idol later stating in a 2025 interview "Once I saw what Steve could do, I knew anything I wanted to do, I could do it. Then with Keith producing, I just knew we had this sort of triumvirate that ended up really fueling the Billy Idol of the '80s."[8]
They would go on to release their debut album Billy Idol in 1982 along with the follow up Rebel Yell in 1983 and 1986s Whiplash Smile. These three initial albums Stevens worked on with Idol saw success and went on to become multi platinum in both the U.S. and Canada.[9] However, he and Idol parted ways in 1988 as Stevens went on to record his first solo album and pursue other ventures.[10]
In 2001, Stevens and Idol reunited and appeared together on MTV, playing an acoustic set on VH1 Storytellers.[11] He and Idol then released Devil's Playground in 2005, which was their first album together in 18 years. Stevens has since collaborated with Idol on four more albums, the most recent being Dream Into It (2025). Stevens still tours regularly with Idol.[12]
Stevens first collaboration outside of Billy Idol was with Ric Ocasek, where he contributed to songs 1, 4, 5, 7, 9, 10 on his 1986 album This Side of Paradise.[14] He played the guitar on Mötley Crüe vocalists Vince Neil’s 1993 debut solo album Exposed.[15] Stevens also played on Japanese musician Kyosuke Himuro 1997 album I·De·A.
Stevens has his own line of Knaggs series guitars,[24] and in May of 2025, he partnered with Ciari to release another set of signature series guitars.[25]
For amps, Stevens relies on his signature Friedman head, a two-channel design powered by EL34 tubes. One channel draws inspiration from his 1969 Marshall Plexi, while the other is tailored to deliver a response similar to a Fender Twin Reverb. He also uses the very first prototype of this signature model. When he needs especially clean tones, he switches to a pair of Custom Audio Amplifiers PT100 heads, keeping one as a backup.[26]
When it comes to effects, he runs everything through a large, rack-mounted system. It features switching units from Egnater and Axess, along with processors like the Line 6 Mod Pro and Echo Pro, a TC Electronic D-Two, and an Eventide H7600 Ultra-Harmonizer. The setup also includes a few drawers filled with pedals from brands such as Moog, Source Audio, MXR, Joemeek, and Boss.[26]
