Having been turned down by several record companies, Adam and the Ants released their debut single on Decca in July 1978 – their first and only for the label.

The band entered Island studios in Basing Street, Notting Hill on 26th August and recorded Young Parisians and what was to become the B-side Lady.

Ever subversive and ground-breaking, Adam later described the A-side in his autobiography "I'd chosen the song deliberately to confuse those people who thought we were a punk band".