30 years later, "Bollocks" is still hotter than a pistol
By John Petkovic
The Cleveland Plain Dealer
October 29,2007
The ransom-note style artwork of "Never Mind the Bollocks" was a visual clue to what was in store once the shrink-wrap came off.
The Summer of Love had "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band." For the Summer of Hate, it was "Never Mind the Bollocks, Here's the Sex Pistols."
Released in the United States on Oct. 29, 1977, the album is still considered the ranting bastard of anti-social misfits hardly as "important" a work as the Beatles' costumed opus. But 30 years after its release, the impact of the Sex Pistols on rock 'n' roll is undeniable.
"Never Mind the Bollocks" the vortex of the punk rock movement that roared from 1976 to 1978 is a staple in any serious rock fan's collection. It's ranked as the 41st greatest album of all time by Rolling Stone magazine. It's influenced, well, just about any act that's come in its wake, from U2 to Guns N' Roses to Nirvana to Green Day.
The influence goes beyond sound. The album's Dadaist cover cut-out letters glued together like a ransom note has become a graphics standard. The "punk" look spiky hair, ratty striped T-shirts, torn jeans and a smirk remains in vogue.
And while "Never Mind the Bollocks" never debuted in the Billboard Top 100, it's gone double platinum. Not that that means anything.
Mainstream acceptance, lasting popularity and influence the band was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2006 were never on the minds of singer Johnny Rotten, guitarist Steve Jones, bassist Sid Vicious and drummer Paul Cook when they embarked on a crash-and-burn career.
Or even when the band recorded the "album."
"It's really a collection of singles," says Ira Robbins, editor of Trouser Press, an influential (and now-defunct) New York rock magazine that covered the punk explosion in the 1970s. "The album had dribbled out all that year, between the 45s and demos and bootlegs floating around. It was anticlimactic when it finally came out." Perhaps. But perfectly punk.
Unlike the Beatles, who guarded "Sgt. Pepper" like a secret until its release date, the Sex Pistols' knack for scandal turned "Bollocks" into a public mess.
The band's attention-seeking manager, Malcolm McLaren, owned a London boutique with his partner, Vivienne Westwood, that specialized in "anti-fashion" everything from fetish gear to trashy rock clothes that defined the punk look.
To him, the Pistols were mannequins he sought to dress up in controversy.
EMI signed the band a full year before the record came out but dropped it after numerous rude stunts, including the backbreaker: Guitarist Jones allegedly vomited on old ladies at Heathrow Airport in London.
"I don't understand it," Rotten said, after the band was released. "All we're trying to do is destroy everything."
A second label, A&M, signed the band in March 1977, only to drop it after Vicious trashed the company director's office and vomited on his desk.
The scandal continued even after the band signed with Virgin Records, which would eventually release the disc. The BBC banned the band's second single, "God Save the Queen," because it was seen as an attack on Queen Elizabeth II.
To celebrate the song and the queen's Silver Jubilee the Pistols chartered a boat to perform live while sailing down the Thames. That is, until police raided the boat.
The summer's stunts sparked a backlash against punk rockers, including Rotten, who was ambushed by a gang and wounded in a knife attack.
But it increased the notoriety of the band and turned a grass-roots happening into an international movement.
"We suddenly felt that we weren't alone," says Cheetah Chrome, guitarist of the Dead Boys, which came out of Cleveland's early punk scene.
"In the 1970s, Cleveland was a lot like England. The economy was really bad and more than that, we hated what had happened to rock 'n' roll."
The '70s saw the rise of arena rock. The bombastic style was marked by plodding songs, aloof rock stars, guitar jams and escapist lyrics that dabbled in post-hippie mysticism and other trippy stuff.
Rotten, renowned for wearing an "I Hate Pink Floyd" T-shirt, was seen as a nihilist, hellbent on destroying rock. But to Chrome, he was reviving the music's rebellious spirit. "When I heard the Pistols, I thought they sounded like the Who," he says. "Them and the Ramones were doing what seemed right to anyone who'd grown up loving rock 'n' roll and hating bands like Emerson, Lake & Palmer or Yes."
No doubt, says Robbins.
"The Sex Pistols were revolutionary in what they were saying and doing and singing about," he says. "But the music was hardly revolutionary: They had a tremendous guitar player, great drummer, unique singer and some amazing pop songs."
The songs combined with the stunts opened the floodgates for bands that saw rock 'n' roll as dying under a sea of flickering lights and longhaired guitarists wallowing in endless solos.
"Rock was a bunch of pretentious, overblown (expletive)," Ramones guitarist Johnny Ramone, now deceased, said in a 2003 interview. "We loved rock 'n' roll. And we wanted to keep it real simple."
Ramones ditties such as "Teenage Lobotomy" and "Blitzkrieg Bop" were simple and by no means political. But like the Pistols, they sought to overthrow a rock world that had killed the three-chord, three-minute song.
It was songs, not albums, that defined punk. Dozens of bands with little in common musically other than being misfits suddenly exploded with hundreds of songs.
Some incorporated reggae, like the Clash. Some sassy pop, like Blondie. Some sounded quaintly retro, like Elvis Costello or XTC.
"Every band sounded different and unique in their own way," Robbins says. "And yet they were all part of this larger phenomenon, one of the most productive ever in rock 'n' roll."
That phenomenon also had a look, one that started when New York punker Richard Hell stuck safety pins to a ripped T-shirt. By 1977, the Sex Pistols were so packaged like this year's model by McLaren and a salacious media that you could see the end was near. For the band, and for punk.
"When we arrived in London in 1977, punk was already just about fashion," says Chris Bailey, leader of Australian punk legends the Saints. "The Sex Pistols were a great band, but you could see that the whole thing was becoming a marketing ploy."
Rotten felt the same way. The singer displayed disgust at the circus surrounding the band, not to mention its ringleader, McLaren.
That was coupled with Vicious' drug abuse and McLaren's insanely bad attention-seeking scheme to have the band tour America's Deep South. They went where they were hated and it led to the band collapsing onstage.
On Jan. 14, 1978, after a mess of a show in San Francisco, the Pistols played their finale with Rotten ending it all by telling the crowd, "Ever get the feeling that you've been cheated?" Maybe.
But 30 years later, "Never Mind the Bollocks" still leaves rock fans satisfied.
29th October 2007 08:36 PM
robpop
Way to go Motels...You hit it that time. Great record, although, I'm sure many don't care for it. Too bad Sidney was such a piece of shit.
29th October 2007 08:41 PM
stonedinaustralia
i'm with you rob -
yes TTM good one (this time) imho
still rmember the first time i saw and heard "anarchy" - i am there WTF??
thing's have never been the same since
29th October 2007 08:42 PM
stonedinaustralia
that "summer of hate" nonsense is just sloppy bull shit journalism tho
29th October 2007 08:54 PM
robpop
quote:stonedinaustralia wrote:
that "summer of hate" nonsense is just sloppy bull shit journalism tho
I was thinking the same, you just put it into words pefectly.
I was searching You Tube to watch some Pistols...I found this. Haven't heard it in years.
This sucks so bad...I love it.
[Edited by robpop]
29th October 2007 08:56 PM
stonedinaustralia
rob - you must check out The Filth & the Fury" by julien temple
am sure you would dig it the most
29th October 2007 09:01 PM
robpop
Thanks SIA.
I will.
29th October 2007 09:07 PM
GotToRollMe
quote:robpop wrote:
I was thinking the same, you just put it into words pefectly.
I was searching You Tube to watch some Pistols...I found this. Haven't heard it in years.
This sucks so bad...I love it.
[Edited by robpop]
LOL...classic! And yeah, I'm with SIA - "The Filth And The Fury" is a must-see.
29th October 2007 09:08 PM
Sid Vicious
I was the perfect disaster.
29th October 2007 09:10 PM
stonedinaustralia
you were a funny guy too, at times
you really knew how to not give a fuck
29th October 2007 09:17 PM
robpop
quote:GotToRollMe wrote:
LOL...classic! And yeah, I'm with SIA - "The Filth And The Fury" is a must-see.
Thanks guys, I will check it out tomorrow. I would do it now, but getting up at 3:30 AM takes its toll.
29th October 2007 11:36 PM
M.O.W.A.T.
I downloaded Kiss This (Sex Pistols greatest hits?!?). I do have Nevermind the Bollocks, but i've been looking for Sid's My Way for forever.
30th October 2007 12:13 AM
pdog
quote:M.O.W.A.T. wrote:
I downloaded Kiss This (Sex Pistols greatest hits?!?). I do have Nevermind the Bollocks, but i've been looking for Sid's My Way for forever.
Great Rock & Roll Swindle is a good album. Has alot of stuff including My Way.
The Mini Album is good too, probably that is all you need, there's alot of lame live crap albums. Spunk is the best version of Bollocks, it's got a 2nd disc with alot of alt. mixes.
30th October 2007 01:56 AM
Child of the Moon
I've always thought it was a decent record, but I think the Sex Pistols are far too overrated. The "boy band" of punk rock...
30th October 2007 05:03 AM
MrPleasant
quote:Child of the Moon wrote:
I've always thought it was a decent record, but I think the Sex Pistols are far too overrated. The "boy band" of punk rock...
Yes. But the "Swindle" album is really good. And it's not so much the fault of the Pistols that they're so overrated. I mean, we all have to live because of "something".
[Edited by MrPleasant]
30th October 2007 08:34 AM
guitarman53
"Filth & The Fury" is a great film, very well done, it explains the whole truth, when Sid joined the group, like Steve Jones says, that was the beginning of the end, the music didn't matter anymore, it was all newspaper headlines, publicity, I remember when that album came out, NMTB, in '77 there were punk bands coming from everywhere, musically I prefer The Clash then the Pistols, all they have is that album & bootlegs.
30th October 2007 09:48 AM
sirmoonie
Spungicidal!
The liberal media hated the Pistols. On what seemed like a nightly basis, I remember seeing them being ridiculed and reviled on the U.S. news during that tour they did. America just hadn't come to terms with live spit/piss rock yet. And all that negative attention detracted from one of the greatest albums ever.
The Pistols were insane, the things they would snear out: Anti-christs, Anarchisimists, "no future, no future, no future for you!" "get pissed destroy!" Hell Yeah! - I love dancing around the living room with my kids, Bollocks blasting all over the goddam neighborhood. "We mean it mannnn!"
30th October 2007 10:50 AM
pdog
quote:sirmoonie wrote:
Spungicidal!
The liberal media hated the Pistols. On what seemed like a nightly basis, I remember seeing them being ridiculed and reviled on the U.S. news during that tour they did. America just hadn't come to terms with live spit/piss rock yet. And all that negative attention detracted from one of the greatest albums ever.
The Pistols were insane, the things they would snear out: Anti-christs, Anarchisimists, "no future, no future, no future for you!" "get pissed destroy!" Hell Yeah! - I love dancing around the living room with my kids, Bollocks blasting all over the goddam neighborhood. "We mean it mannnn!"
We have the same parenting skills. Raising kids is hard work, but it really pays off when your child asks for guitar lessons, and tells you they want to be a rockstar so they can write songs with curses...
30th October 2007 11:44 AM
speedfreakjive
Liar - what a track
30th October 2007 01:32 PM
polytoxic
Ever notice Sub-mission cops the lick from The Needle And The Spoon by Lynyrd Skynyrd?. Wonder which pistol had that in their record collection.
30th October 2007 02:52 PM
robpop
quote:pdog wrote:
Great Rock & Roll Swindle is a good album. Has alot of stuff including My Way.
The Mini Album is good too, probably that is all you need, there's alot of lame live crap albums. Spunk is the best version of Bollocks, it's got a 2nd disc with alot of alt. mixes.
Forgot all about Swindle, forgot I even had it, forgot how good it is. Pretty cool remake of "rock around the Clock".
30th October 2007 03:36 PM
robpop
quote:sirmoonie wrote:
Spungicidal!
The liberal media hated the Pistols. On what seemed like a nightly basis, I remember seeing them being ridiculed and reviled on the U.S. news during that tour they did. America just hadn't come to terms with live spit/piss rock yet. And all that negative attention detracted from one of the greatest albums ever.
The Pistols were insane, the things they would snear out: Anti-christs, Anarchisimists, "no future, no future, no future for you!" "get pissed destroy!" Hell Yeah! - I love dancing around the living room with my kids, Bollocks blasting all over the goddam neighborhood. "We mean it mannnn!"
Bollocks is all about the memories. Memories of college, going out and getting drunk. Trying to get laid. If I did not get laid then I'd get more drunk. Getting more drunk and blasting the Pistols. Then going out and breaking shit. Man, I broke a lot of shit in college.
Who the fuck killed Bambi?
30th October 2007 03:42 PM
robpop
Oh yeah,
SIA, GTRM The Filth & the Fury is on the way. Made a phone call to a friend who just happened to have it. I'll be checkin' it out later.
30th October 2007 03:45 PM
Sid Vicious
quote:robpop wrote:
Bollocks is all about the memories. Memories of college, going out and getting drunk. Trying to get laid. If I did not get laid then I'd get more drunk. Getting more drunk and blasting the Pistols. Then going out and breaking shit. Man, I broke a lot of shit in college.
Who the fuck killed Bambi?
I was Bambi, most people don't know that, they really think somebody killed a deer.
30th October 2007 06:02 PM
stonedinaustralia
quote:robpop wrote:
Oh yeah,
SIA, GTRM The Filth & the Fury is on the way. Made a phone call to a friend who just happened to have it. I'll be checkin' it out later.
cool - i recommend you take the time to listen to temple's director's commentary track as well - it's as intersting and informative as the film itself
30th October 2007 06:13 PM
glencar
quote:robpop wrote:
I was thinking the same, you just put it into words pefectly.
I was searching You Tube to watch some Pistols...I found this. Haven't heard it in years.
This sucks so bad...I love it.
[Edited by robpop]
Y did Gary Olsman ever think he could sing?
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