The Sex Pistols were an iconic and highly influential English punk rock band, formed in London in 1975. The band originally comprised vocalist Johnny
Rotten, guitarist Steve Jones, drummer Paul
Cook and bassist Glen Matlock (later replaced by Sid
Vicious). Although their initial career lasted only three years and produced only four singles and one studio album, the Sex Pistols have been described by the
BBC as "the definitive English punk rock band."[1] The Pistols are widely credited with initiating the punk movement in the United Kingdom[2] and creating the
first generation gap within rock and roll.[3]
The Sex Pistols emerged as a response to what was perceived to be the "increasingly safe and bloated" progressive rock[4] and manufactured pop music of the mid-1970s. The band
created various controversies during their brief career which captivated Britain,[5] but often eclipsed their music.[6] Their shows and tours repeatedly faced difficulties from authorities, and public appearances often
ended in disaster and riot. Their 1977 single, "God Save the
Queen", was widely regarded as an attack on the British monarchy and British
nationalism.[7]
Rotten left the band in 1978, amid a turbulent tour of the United States; the remaining
trio carried on for the remainder of the year with vocals provided by Jones, Edward
Tudor-Pole and Ronnie Biggs but disbanded in early 1979. With Lydon, they reunited
in 1996 for the "Filthy Lucre" tour and have staged subsequent reunion tours in 2002, 2003, and 2007. On 24 February 2006, the Sex Pistols were officially inducted into the
Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, but they refused to attend the induction, calling
the museum a "piss stain".[8]
History
Origins and early days
The Sex Pistols evolved from The Strand, a band formed in 1972 with Jones on vocals, Cook on drums and Wally Nightingale on guitar. Early line-ups also included Jim Mackin (now a GP practising in
Lincolnshire) on organ, as well as Stephen Hayes, and later Del Noones, on bass.[9] By 1973 the band members were spending time at Don Letts' "Acme Attractions", and the more upmarket Let It
Rock,[6] a 1950s-themed clothes shop in the
Kings Road, Chelsea area of London. "Let It Rock" was owned by former New York Dolls
manager Malcolm McLaren and his partner Vivienne
Westwood; the shop specialised in "anti-fashion",[4] selling the drapes, slashed T-shirts, brothel
creepers and fetish gear[6] later popularised by the punk movement. As Rotten observed: "Malcolm and Vivienne were really a
pair of shysters: they would sell anything to any trend that they could grab onto."[6] The shop was to become a focal point of the punk rock scene, and brought
together many of its primary members, including Jordan and Soo Catwoman, as well as Captain Sensible, John Ritchie (later Sid Vicious), Jah Wobble, Gene October, Mick Jones, Tony
James, and Marco Pirroni.[6] All were reacting to a distaste to the prevailing fashion of long hair and flared jeans of the
early 1970s. McLaren took over management of the band around this time.
By then renamed "The Swankers",[10] the band
began rehearsing at the Crunchy Frog, a studio near the London Docklands. In 1974, they
played their first gig at Tom Salter's Café in London. Noones was ejected from the band shortly afterwards, due to his
unreliability and unwillingness to rehearse.[9]
Johnny Rotten joins the band
Johnny Rotten c. 1977, photographed by Dennis Morris.
Glen Matlock was recruited as bass player in early 1975. Around this time Jones and Nightingale began to argue over the band's
musical direction, and Nightingale departed soon afterwards. In August 1975, John Lydon
(Johnny Rotten), was spotted by Jones at the now renamed and restyled SEX boutique.
According to Jones: "He came in with green hair. I thought he had a really interesting face. I liked his look. He had his 'I Hate
Pink Floyd' T-shirt on. John had something special, but when he spoke he was a real asshole -
but smart."[11] After miming along to
Alice Cooper's "I'm Eighteen" on the shop juke box
and though he had never considered singing before, Rotten was asked to join as vocalist.[12] Rotten and his circle of friends (including Soo Catwoman and
Bromley Contingent members Siouxsie Sioux,
Steve Severin and Billy Idol),[13] were by now dressing in the torn-shirt,
sado-masochistic inspired clothing sold by Vivienne Westwood;[1] the trend quickly spread, and was adopted by the band's fans.[12]
NME journalist Nick Kent used to jam occasionally with
the band, but left upon Rotten's recruitment. According to Rotten: "When I came along, I took one look at him and said, 'No. That
has to go.' He's never written a good word about me since".[11] Following Kent's departure, Cook began to feel that Jones might not be capable enough alone on
guitar, and 1976 they placed an advertisement in the Melody Maker for another "Whiz Kid
Guitarist"[14] that read "Wanted Whizz kid
guitarist Not older than 20, Not worse looking than Johnny Thunders." Steve New
answered the advert, and played with the band for a few weeks, though he too left shortly afterwards.
One of McLaren's first acts as manager was to rename the band. Among the options considered were 'Le Bomb', 'Subterraneans',
'Beyond' and 'Teenage Novel'. The band played their first gig as Sex Pistols at Saint Martins College, on 6 November
1975,[10] though
they were thrown off before finishing their first song. The gig had been arranged by Matlock, who was studying there at the time.
This gig was followed by other performances at colleges and art schools around London. In early 1976, the Sex Pistols began to
play larger venues such as the 100 Club, and the Nashville. On 3
September 1976, the Pistols played their first concert outside Britain, at the opening of
the Club De Chalet Du Lac in Paris. Their first major tour of Britain soon
followed, lasting from mid-September to early October.
EMI and the Grundy incident
Following a showcase gig held during London's first punk festival, at the
100 Club in Oxford Street, in September 1976, the Sex
Pistols signed to the major label EMI. The band's first single, "Anarchy in the U.K.", released on 26 November 1976, served as a statement of intent—full of wit, anger and visceral energy. Despite a common perception that punk
bands couldn't play their instruments, contemporary music press reviews and live recordings reveal the Pistols to have been a
tight, competent, and ferocious live band.[15][16][17]
Their behaviour, as much as their music, brought them national attention. On 1 December
1976 the band and members of the Bromley Contingent
created a storm of publicity by swearing during an early evening live broadcast of Thames
Television's Today programme. Appearing as last-minute replacements for fellow EMI artists Queen, band and entourage took full advantage of the Green Room facilities, and consumed large amounts of
alcohol. During the interview, Rotten used the word "shit", and host Bill Grundy, who was
drunk at the time, flirted openly with Siouxsie Sioux ("We'll meet afterwards, shall
we?"). This prompted Jones to call Grundy a "dirty sod". Grundy responded by requesting that the band "Go on..you've got 5 more
seconds, say something outrageous",[18] to which Jones
replied: "you dirty fucker . . . what a fucking rotter."[[#wp-_note-Barkham
|[19]]] Although the programme was only broadcast in the London region,
the ensuing furore occupied the tabloid newspapers for days. The Daily Mirror famously ran the headline "The Filth and the Fury", while the Daily Express led with "Punk? Call it Filthy Lucre"—phrases Lydon adopted for Pistols projects many
years later. Thames Television suspended Grundy, and though he was later reinstated, the interview effectively ended his
career.[20] The episode created mass publicity for the band
and brought punk into the mainstream. The 'Anarchy' tour of the UK followed, though many of the concerts were either crowded by
hostile press or cancelled by local authorities.[12] London councilor Bernard Brook Partridge, during a television interview conducted at the time,
declared: "Some of these groups would be vastly improved by sudden death . . . I would like to see someone dig a huge hole and
bury the lot of them in it".[21] Following the end
of the tour in December 1976, EMI arranged a series of concerts for January 1977 at the Paradiso in Amsterdam.[22] But before
boarding the plane at London Heathrow Airport, the band reportedly spat on each
other and verbally abused airport staff. "One witness claimed the Sex Pistols were doing something so disgusting that she could
not repeat it for publication . . . it became generally believed Jones had been vomiting on old ladies in the preflight lounge,"
reported Rolling Stone.[17] EMI released the band from their contract two days later.[22] "I don't understand it," Rotten remarked at the time. "All we're trying to do
is destroy everything."[23]
Sid Vicious joins the band
The Paradiso gigs would be their last with Matlock, who parted company with the band in February 1977. According to popular
legend he was sacked because he "liked The Beatles",[1] but Steve Jones later claimed the reason was that Matlock didn't "fit in" with
the others, stating, obliquely, that Matlock was "always washing his feet".[24] Matlock now claims to have quit voluntarily, mainly because of an increasingly acrimonious
relationship with Rotten.[25]
Matlock was replaced by Rotten's friend and self-appointed "ultimate Sex Pistols fan"[26] Sid Vicious (John Simon Ritchie),
previously drummer of Siouxsie & the Banshees and The Flowers of Romance. McLaren approved Vicious as a member on account of his look and
"punk attitude", despite his limited musical abilities.[14] According to McLaren: "When Sid joined he couldn't play guitar but his craziness fit into the
structure of the band. He was the knight in shining armour with a giant fist."[27] Lydon later recalled: "The first rehearsals with Sid were hellish.
Everyone agreed he had the look. Sid tried real hard... but boy, he couldn't play bass."[11]
In recent years McLaren stated that Vivienne Westood told him he should "get the guy called John who came to the store a
couple of times" to be the singer, and that once he did and Johnny Rotten was recruited for the band, Vivienne said he had got it
wrong, "he had got the wrong John." She actually meant John Simon Ritchie (Sid Vicious) to be the singer.[28] According to this version of the events the original
plan would have been to get Sid Vicious to be the singer and not Johnny Rotten, and Vivienne had always been interested in Sid
but didn't have an opportunity to do so until Glenn Matlock left the band.
Marco Pirroni: "After that, it was nothing to do with music anymore. It would just be
for the sensationalism and scandal of it all. Then it became the Malcolm McLaren story..."[27] Vicious' amplifier was often turned down, or off, during live
performances,[29] and most of the bass parts on the band's
later recordings were played by either Jones or Matlock.[11]
Membership in the Sex Pistols began to have a destructive effect on Vicious ' personality. As Rotten observed: "Up to that
time, Sid was absolutely childlike. Everything was fun and giggly. Suddenly he was a big pop star. Pop star status meant press, a
good chance to be spotted in all the right places, adoration. That's what it all meant to Sid."[27] Vicious responded by actively cultivating a notorious persona.
Early in 1977, he met Nancy Spungen, a drug addict and occasional prostitute[30] from New York with a
history of severe emotional problems.[27] Spungen is commonly thought to be responsible for introducing Vicious to heroin, and the
emotional co-dependency between the couple alienated Vicious from the other members of the band. Rotten said: "We did everything
to get rid of Nancy. She was killing him. I was absolutely convinced this girl was on a slow suicide mission. Only she didn't
want to go alone. She wanted to take Sid with her. She was so utterly fucked up and evil."[11] Sid Vicious debuted with the band at the Screen on the Green in London on
3 April 1977.
God Save the Queen
-
The cover of the
God Save the Queen single was designed by
Jamie Reid in the ransom
note style so closely associated with the group.
On 10 March 1977, at a press ceremony held outside
Buckingham Palace, the Sex Pistols signed to A&M
Records. They later went back to the A&M offices for what would become an unruly party. Sid Vicious trashed the
managing director's office and vomited on his desk. Under pressure from its own employees, artists and distributors, A&M
broke contract with the Pistols six days later.[17]
In May the band signed their third and final record deal with Virgin Records.[4]
The Pistols' second single, "God Save the Queen", was released
27 May 1977. Though widely perceived as a personal attack on
Queen Elizabeth II,[12] Rotten later stated that the song was not specifically aimed at the Queen,
but was instead intended to critique the deference given to Royalty in general. However, the perceived disrespect to the monarchy
caused widespread public outcry. The record was banned from airplay by the BBC, whose
Radio 1 dominated music broadcasting at the time. Rotten later remarked, "We had declared
war on the entire country—without meaning to!"[11]
During the week of Queen Elizabeth's Silver Jubilee, the single reached number one in
the NME chart, but number two in the official UK chart.[7] However, many suspected that the chart compilation had been massaged,[31] suggesting that the record had actually reached number one,
but that the charts had been rigged to prevent a spectacle.[32] At least one radio station announced the song at number one, but refused to play it, as they had
been advised it might cause upset to the national celebrations.[33][34]
The Pistols marked the Jubilee, and the success of their record, by chartering a private boat, intending to perform live while
sailing down the River Thames, passing Westminster and
the Houses of Parliament. The event ended in chaos, however, when the boat was
raided by police, despite a license to perform having been granted in advance. McLaren, the band, and many of their entourage
were taken into custody when the vessel docked.[35]
Violent attacks on punk fans were on the increase at this time, and Rotten himself was assaulted by a knife wielding gang
outside the Islington Pegasus pub,[36] causing damage to two tendons in his hand. Due to the attacks, a tour of
Scandinavia, which would have started at the end of June, was delayed until mid-July. This
was followed by a secret tour of the UK at the end of August (known as SPOTS—Sex Pistols On Tour Secretly), with the band playing
under pseudonyms to avoid cancellation.[37]
Never Mind the Bollocks
-
Never Mind the Bollocks, Here's the Sex
Pistols was recorded between March and June 1977, in Wessex Studios, Highbury,
London [38] and was produced by Chris Thomas, who had previously worked with Roxy Music. Due to
Vicious' lack of musical ability, the bass parts on Never Mind the Bollocks were performed by others, including Glen
Matlock, brought back as a session musician, Glen Thomas and Steve Jones. According to
Jones: "Sid wanted to come down and play on the album, and we tried as hard as possible not to let him anywhere near the studio.
Luckily he had hepatitis at the time".[11]
Although Vicious did record on one occasion, his contribution was later over-dubbed. Jones recalls: "We just let him do it,
innit. When he left I dubbed another part on, leaving Sid's down low. I think it might be barely audible on the track".[11]
Never Mind the Bollocks was released on 28 October 1977, to mixed reviews. Rolling Stone described the album positively,
comparing the sound to "two subway trains crashing together under 40 feet of mud, victims screaming", and praised the band for
playing "with an energy and conviction that is positively transcendent in its madness and fever".[39] Some critics, however, were disappointed that the album contained versions of
all four previously released singles, and considered the release to be effectively a "Greatest Hits" album.[40] In recent years, the album has come to be commonly regarded to be one of
the most influential rock albums of the last 40 years,[41][42][43] and has been described as "one of the greatest, most inspiring rock
records of all time".[44]
The album title caused difficulties for the band. Boots, W.H.
Smith and Woolworth's refused to stock the album, a Conservative
MP condemned it as "a symptom of the way society is declining", and the Independent
Television Companies Association refused to carry the album's TV advertising campaign.[45] In Nottingham a record outlet was
threatened with prosecution for displaying "indecent printed matter". The case was overturned however, when defending
QC John Mortimer produced expert witnesses, who
were able to demonstrate that the word bollocks was a legitimate Old English term originally used to refer to a priest.[46] Although the word in popular slang means testicles, in this context it is intended to signify 'nonsense'; the title
had been unwittingly suggested by Steve Jones when, in response to bickering over possible titles, he exclaimed "Oh, never mind
the bollocks of it all!"[11]
The Sex Pistols' final UK performance took place at Ivanhoe's in Huddersfield, on
Christmas Day 1977, where the band played a matinee and evening show as part of a benefit for the families of striking firemen.
The location of the gigs was not announced until shortly before the venue opened, a tactic the band used at the time to avoid the
sort of attention that had led to earlier cancellations.
U.S. tour and the end of the band
Promotional poster for
The Great Rock 'n' Roll Swindle.
In January 1978 the Sex Pistols embarked on a US tour, consisting mainly of dates in America's Deep South. Though originally scheduled for December 1977, it was delayed due the US authorities reluctance
to issue visas to band members with criminal records.[47] Though highly anticipated by fans and media, the tour was plagued by in-fighting,[47] poor planning and physically hostile
audiences.[48] Malcolm McLaren has admitted that
he purposely booked redneck bars to create those hostile situations.[28] Over the course of the two-weeks, Vicious, by now chronically addicted
to heroin,[49] began to live up to his stage name.
According to Rotten: "He finally had an audience of people who would behave with shock and horror. Sid was easily led by the
nose."[11] Early in the tour, Sid wandered off
from his Holiday Inn in Memphis, Tennessee,
looking for drugs. He was found in a Memphis hospital with the words "Gimme a fix" self-carved in his chest with a razor. During
a concert in San Antonio, Texas, Vicious called the
audience "a bunch of faggots", before striking a member of the audience across the head with his bass guitar.[49] In Baton
Rouge, Louisiana, he received simulated oral sex on stage, later declaring "that’s the
kind of girl I like".[50] Suffering withdrawal
symptoms from heroin, Vicious appeared onstage in Dallas, Texas,
with the words "Gimme a Fix" still cut into his chest, and spat blood at a female who had climbed on stage and punched him in the
face.[11] He was admitted to hospital later
that night to treat injuries resulting from his wounds. Offstage he is said to have kicked a female photographer, attacked a
security guard, and was eventually beaten by one of his own bodyguards.[27]
