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Despite their short existence, the [[Sex Pistols]] were perhaps the quintessential British [[punk rock]] band. Whilst [[The Clash]] were both more articulate and politically motivated, and [[The Buzzcocks]] had more astute [[pop music|pop]] sensibilities, no other group better exemplified the punk movement's spirit and inherent contradictions.
==Origins and Early Days==
The group was formed in August [[1975]] by [[Paul Cook]], [[Steve Jones (rock_musician)|Steve Jones]] and Wally Nightingale. Nightingale left the band shortly afterwards, and the remaining members recruited [[bass guitar|bass]] player [[Glen Matlock]] and [[vocalist]] [[Johnny Rotten]], who were among the clientele of the 'SEX' boutique in Kings Road, [[Chelsea, London, England|Chelsea]]. This shop (previously known as ''Let It Rock'') was owned by the [[situationist]] influenced [[Vivienne Westwood]] and [[Malcolm McLaren]], who had briefly been the manager of the [[The New York Dolls]]; McLaren became the group's manager. The name no doubt was intended to bring to mind the [[Penis|male sex organ]], but McLaren has stated that he wanted the band to be "sexy assassins" (in later years band members frequently accused McLaren of both cheating them and making [[revisionist]] history). Under McLaren's guidance, the band was initially influenced in part by the simple, chord-based style of [[The New York Dolls]] and [[The Ramones]], and the torn-shirt, spiked-hair look of [[Richard Hell]], bass player for [[Television (band)|Television]]; all these were doyens of the [[New York City]] [[punk]] and later [[new wave music]] scene. McLaren also claimed that he wanted the Sex Pistols to be "the new [[Bay City Rollers]]".
==EMI and the Grundy Incident==
Following a showcase gig as part of [[London]]'s first [[100 Club Punk Festival|punk festival]] at the 100 Club in [[Oxford Street]], they were signed (for a large advance) to the major label [[EMI]]. The Pistols' first single, "[[Anarchy In The U.K.|Anarchy in the UK]]", released on November 26, [[1976]], served as a statement of intent, full of wit, anger and visceral energy. The Sex Pistols were, despite common misconception and as evidenced by their live recordings of the time, a tight and ferocious live band, easily as musically skilled as their non-punk contemporaries.
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<div style="float:left; margin: 1em; text-align: center;">[[Image:Pistolsflyer.jpg| ]]<br><small>Promotional flyer for an early Sex Pistols gig</small></div>
However, on December 1, 1976 the group and their close circle of followers, the [[Bromley Contingent]], created a storm of publicity in the UK when, goaded by interviewer Bill Grundy, guitarist [[Steve Jones (rock musician)|Steve Jones]] used the word "fuck" on [[Thames Television]]'s early evening television programme ''Today'', as well as calling Grundy a "rotter" after he made a rather inept attempt at 'chatting up' Siouxsie of [[Siouxsie and the Banshees]] ([http://www.thirdeyecandles.fsnet.co.uk/a/billgrundy.mp3 MP3 clip]). Although the programme was only seen in the [[London]] [[ITV]] region (and although Matlock had, unnoticed, been the first to utter the word, fuck), the ensuing furore occupied the [[tabloid]] newspapers for days and the band were shortly after dropped by the label. After a short and disastrous period spent with the [[A&M Records|A&M]] record label, The Pistols were picked up by the (at that time) independent [[Virgin Records]]. A shambolic tour of the UK followed, with the majority of the concerts dogged by a hostile press and cancelled by local authorities, and many of the rest ending in states of semi-riot.
==The Vicious Era and "God Save the Queen"==
In February [[1977]] bass player and principal songwriter [[Glen Matlock]] parted company with the band. According to legend he was sacked because he "liked [[The Beatles]]" - although Steve Jones later claimed the real reason was that he was "always washing his feet". However Matlock himself now claims to have quit voluntarily. He was quickly replaced by Rotten's friend and "ultimate Sex Pistols fan" [[Sid Vicious]] (real name [[John Simon Ritchie]]), famously endorsed as a member by McLaren for his looks and "punk attitude" despite his very limited musical abilities. According to [[Jon Savage]]'s biography of the Sex Pistols, ''England's Dreaming'', at live performances his amplifier was often turned down, and most of the bass parts on the band's later recordings were actually played by guitarist Steve Jones or Matlock, who (according to Lydon's autobiography ''Rotten: No Irish, No Blacks, No Dogs'') had been drafted in as a [[session musician]].
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Nevertheless, in the week of [[Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom|Queen Elizabeth II]]'s [[Silver Jubilee]], the record officially reached number two in some UK charts (although the number-two spot was, tellingly, left blank in several listings, and many believe, with evidence, that the record actually reached number one, and that the charts were rigged to prevent such a spectacle). Meanwhile, The Sex Pistols decided to celebrate the Jubilee, along with the success of their record, by chartering a boat, upon which they sailed down the [[Thames]], past [[Westminster]] and the [[Houses of Parliament]], performing their live set. As usual, the event ended in chaos; the boat was raided by the police, and Mclaren, The Pistols and most of their entourage were arrested and taken into custody. Arguably all good fun and a great [[publicity stunt]], but matters took a distinctly uglier turn when young punk followers of the Sex Pistols became victims of physical attacks in the street by 'pro-royalists', and Rotten himself was assaulted by a razor wielding gang of '[[Teddy Boy]]s' in [[Finsbury Park]] who, it seems, didn't see the funny side of the Pistols' antics.
==''Never Mind the Bollocks''==
The promise of the band's early singles was eventually fulfilled by the group's first album ''[[Never Mind The Bollocks Here's The Sex Pistols]]'', released on October 28, 1977. (Producer Chris Thomas took a different approach from earlier punk records, achieving a very clear sound layered with multiple guitar overdubs.) The album included singles "Pretty Vacant" (released on July 2, 1977), an ode to apathy, and "Holidays in the Sun" (released on October 15, 1977). Again the band faced controversy when a record shop in Manchester was threatened with prosecution for displaying the album's 'obscene' cover, although the case was overturned when defending [[Queen's Counsel|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, and that although the word is also slang for testicles, in this context it meant 'nonsense'.
==Last UK gig and 1978 US Tour==
The Sex Pistols' final UK performance was at Ivanhoes in [[Huddersfield]] on Christmas Day 1977, a benefit for the families of striking firemen. Despite the band's state of disintegration by this time, the gig was considered by some as a vindication of their anti-establishment stance when they were, for once, united with what might be viewed as their true constituency, the dispossessed English working class. They played two shows, a matinee and an evening show. Tickets for the latter were furtively sold for a secret venue, announced shortly before the gig as a tactic to avoid the attentions of local councillors and the like, who had cancelled many of the Pistols' other shows. Those waiting outside for the second show were given turkey sandwiches from the remains of the meal laid on for the strikers' families. The atmosphere in the evening show was counter to the negative publicity that had been generated towards the band by the tabloid press; before the show, Johnny Rotten mingled with the crowd wearing his pith helmet, and the good humour of the matinee (which was a benefit played for free) lingered on. Years later the promoter of the evening show confessed that the Pistols never cashed his cheque.
Early in [[1978]] an American tour was booked by McLaren. Originally they were scheduled to begin the tour in December 1977, beginning with a performance on [[Saturday Night Live]] but due to the members' minor scrapes with the law, they were unable to receive passports in time. ([[Elvis Costello]] and [[the Attractions]] went on in their stead). The two-week American jaunt was an exhausting, badly-planned, dispiriting experience for all concerned (Vicious was beaten by the bodyguards hired to protect him, Rotten had a fierce head cold, and the band's performances were plagued by bad sound and physically hostile audiences), and on the final date at the [[Winterland Ballroom]] in [[San Francisco]] on [[January 14]], the disillusioned Rotten quit, famously asking "Ever get the feeling you've been cheated?" from the stage before walking off. The remainder of the group soldiered on for a short time, trading on their reputation and gimmicks, such as recording with notorious British criminal [[Ronnie Biggs]] and Vicious releasing a version of "My Way", but after the release of the movie ''[[The Great Rock 'n' Roll Swindle]]'', they finally split.
==Post Sex Pistols==
Rotten, now using his given name Lydon, went on to form the group [[Public Image Ltd]]. Vicious recorded an album of live tracks and was arrested for the murder of his girlfriend, Nancy Spungen, in New York. He died of a [[heroin]] overdose before coming to trial. A fictionalised account of Vicious's relationship with Spungen was later recounted in the 1986 film ''[[Sid and Nancy]]'' (dir. [[Alex Cox]]), which toned down much of the band's outrageous exploits. For instance, the movie's Sid Vicious wears a red shirt with a hammer and sickle, rather than the swastika worn by the original Sid.
==Influences and Legacy==
The Sex Pistols remain influential, however, both for the musical style they were pivotal in helping to define, and in terms of their influence on the British cultural landscape, helping to change the cultural climate. Whereas previous challenges to the class system had come mainly from within, such as the [[English public school|public school]] and [[Oxbridge]] dominated satire boom of the [[1960s]] or the socially realist theatre of the [[1950s]], the Pistols communicated directly with a much wider audience and, to some extent, the resulting shock waves can still be felt.
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