Official announcement from the Sex Pistols

[Fuggle]

At the Hall of Fame induction, the Sex Pistols don't show and Blondie has an onstage blowup

BY RAFER GUZMAN
STAFF WRITER

March 14, 2006


A bunch of no-show punks and a few thank-you speeches fraught with bitterness were the highlights of last night's induction ceremony into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum.

As the musicians in the iconic new-wave band Blondie accepted their awards, tensions boiled over on stage with one former band member begging singer Debbie Harry to be allowed to play after the induction.

When former bassist Frank Infante stood at the podium and asked Harry if he and another former bassist, Nigel Harrison, could play, Harry responded coldly, "Can't you see my band is already up there?"

If rock music is about chaos and unpredictability, the rock hall couldn't have found a better class of inductees this year. Among them were the Southern rock group Lynyrd Skynyrd, pioneers The Sex Pistols, the once-frightening heavy metal band Black Sabbath and the contrarian jazz trumpeter Miles Davis.

Even the otherwise upbeat Blondie revealed its darker side at the ceremony. Also inducted were Herb Alpert and Jerry Moss, founders of the record label A&M.

At least a couple of the honorees had been so rebellious that they had lambasted the rock hall itself. After his band was repeatedly snubbed, Black Sabbath singer Ozzy Osbourne called the institution "irrelevant." Johnny Rotten, the famously nasty front man for The Sex Pistols, once called the induction ceremony a "geriatrics' ball" and swore he would never attend if honored. Indeed, the Pistols didn't show and didn't play, having posted a hand-scrawled letter on their Web site cursing the hall and the music industry in general.

Still, the evening began warmly enough with a tribute to Wilson Pickett, the soul singer who died in January. His contemporary, Solomon Burke, was joined by two newcomers, vocalist Leela James and guitarist-singer Marc Broussard. Though Burke performed while sitting on a high-backed golden throne, he encouraged the crowd to dance to classics such as "634-5789," "Mustang Sally" and "Land of 1,000 Dances." "Get on your feet, Sting," Burke commanded.

Herbie Hancock inducted Davis, the irascible trumpeter who married jazz and rock on fusion albums such as "Bitches Brew."

But things turned rocky during Blondie's acceptance speech. Bassists Harrison and Infante, who have been involved in a lawsuit against the band, were given trophies but were not allowed to play with the band. "It's messed up for us," Harrison said as audience members murmured uncomfortably. Harry and her group then played "Heart of Glass," "Rapture" and "Call Me," ending with a brief riff from The Sex Pistols classic "Anarchy in the U.K."

The Sex Pistols, even in their absence, conveyed their hostility toward the rock hall. Rolling Stone founder Jann Wenner inducted the band by reading out the group's nasty note, tortured grammar and all. "That Rock and Roll Hall of Fame is a ---- stain," Wenner read as the crowd laughed and applauded. "We're not coming."

Black Sabbath, inducted by Metallica singer James Hetfield and drummer Lars Ulrich, accepted its award with little fanfare, and Osbourne made no mention of the rancor he'd heaped on the rock hall in the past. But for whatever reason, the group declined to play. Instead, Metallica covered two of the group's songs, "Iron Man" and "Hole In The Sky."

Near the night's end, Kid Rock inducted Lynyrd Skynyrd, and the current band members used their speeches to pay tribute to deceased members. The group played its anthem "Sweet Home Alabama," and an appropriately sprawling version of "Freebird."

[Fuggle]

Rock & Roll gets ‘Pistol’-whipped

Written by Sarah Delia, staff writer


“We’re not coming.” That sentence, along with being a fragment and grammatically incorrect, was one of the only successfully coherent parts of the letter the almighty pretentious Sex Pistols asked to be read in their absence from the 2006 induction to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. You know the Sex Pistols — those angsty kids, a product of the U.K., who claim to be the ultimate punk band. Al Gore created the Internet and the Sex Pistols, well those charming, ideal “bring-home-to-mom” kids invented punk rock. Never mind the New York Dolls, The Clash, Velvet Underground or the Ramones — these guys ate, lived and breathed the punk rock sentiment that wannabe punks eat up today. The ingredients? 50 percent anti-establishment anarchy, 30 percent green hair dye, 15 percent one note bass lines, and 5 percent tight jeans. Put those all in the oven and out pops a jeering, old school, music-elitist punk. His music is better then yours and has the back of the box ingredients which he came out of as evidence to prove it.

Each time I watch the inductions I’m always surprised to see who goes in that particular year. Surely Miles Davis, Blondie, Lynyrd Skynyrd, and Black Sabbath should have been welcomed into the golden gates of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame years ago, but when I heard that the Sex Pistols were going to get their grubby-Mohawk-sorry-excuse-for-a-punk-band hands on the ultimate emblem for musical history, I felt as angry as a 12-year-old punk when he’s told he has to dye his hair back to a normal color for school pictures. How unfair is that? I have to cope however; the judges didn’t ask my opinion, or I didn’t pick up the phone when they called.

So why didn’t they show up? Were they too busy painting their nails black, slicking up their hair and trying to fit into their jeans from the days of anarchy in the U.K.? Claiming that being inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame would be the ultimate way of “selling out,” the surviving members turned down the invite with an “obscene gesture” along with advising the Hall of Fame to “kiss this.”

This rebellious and traditional anarchistic punk rock way would have been very respected and valid if not for the fact the Sex Pistols’ history is full of actions qualified as selling out, most recently when they sold the rights to their music to Universal Music Group on March 9 — how very punk rock.

Since the birth of the band, rumors have always circulated as to the exact origins of the Sex Pistols. Malcolm McLaren, the group’s first manager, is often credited with the manufacturing of the band. According to countless stories, McLaren was looking to start a band different from the pop music that appeared to be emerging throughout the ‘70s and ‘80s. He owned an alternative clothes store (picture modern day Hot Topic) called “SEX” and urged the boys to come up with a name that incorporated it. Being the guys they were, they added the “pistol” at the end of the name to reference their own sexual organs — not only are these guys great spellers, but also undoubtedly deep.

It also perplexes me as to how the judges could even think to let in a band whose second bassist, Sid Vicious, most likely killed himself and lover Nancy, but more importantly was rumored to be unknowingly “unplugged” during shows. Sid Vicious was purely in the band for fashion rather than talent. And that’s what the band should, and will inevitability be, remembered for — trendy plaid pants.

[Fuggle]

Same Old Song:
Sex Pistols fight the establishment by skipping Hall of Fame inductions

By Ian Goldstein
April 03, 2006


I don’t really know what the qualifications are to be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. I would like to believe the hall represents artists that dominated their era of music. The Hall recognizes artists not only of the rock persuasion but all different forms of popular music. The prestige of joining this club of inductees is not what every band starting out strives for, but in the grand scheme of things these are the artists that influenced other artists to come.

This year, alongside inductees Black Sabbath, Lynyrd Skynyrd and Blondie, the Sex Pistols were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. The Sex Pistols decided that they were all too worthy of the induction and sent a hilarious letter to the committee explaining how they felt about the situation. “Were not your monkeys and so what?” said the statement released on the Sex Pistols Web site on a white sheet of paper in handwriting that can be compared to that of an 11 year-old. (Yes, they are so punk rock that they don’t use apostrophes.) The statement continued, “If you voted for us hope you noted your reasons. Your anonymous as judges, but your still music industry people.”

There is irony in this statement if you ask yourself: Do the Sex Pistols deserve to be in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame? Yet, the Pistols feel they are making a statement by not accepting the nod. Once again, Johnny Rotten proved that he is nobody’s monkey boy even though he has always released music on a major label, both with the Sex Pistols and with his second band, Public Image Limited.

The Sex Pistols only recorded one album in their music career, the 12-track classic “Nevermind the Bollocks.” The album is solid and contains ideas that snapped your parents out of the disco era. It is one of the greatest albums of the ’70’s, and has stood the test of time, but it was their only album. The Sex Pistols changed an entire generation with one album.

Bassist Sid Vicious did not play a single note on the Sex Pistols’ only studio album, yet he was the main focus of the band. The Pistols broke up just before his death in 1979. The truth is Vicious wasn’t much of a musician, he merely exemplified punk rock. He encompassed everything about punk rock, except for the music.

The Sex Pistols stood for rebellion, but they were not the first band to make a punk rock record. They were the creators of a movement, a revolution against the establishment; however, Iggy and the Stooges, and the Ramones were making punk music well before the Pistols. The Ramones’ first album was released in 1976, a full year before “Nevermind the Bollocks,” while Iggy and the Stooges’ “Raw Power” was released in 1973.

The Pistols reunited in 1996, hoping to pick up where they left off, but to no avail. When asked why they were to tour again, Rotten replied, “We want your money.” Money seemed to be more important to Rotten in a capitalist society than accepting a silly induction from the music industry that will pay him nothing. The tour was a disaster. The Pistols broke up again within two weeks of the tour, and the band has only performed once since 2002.

Music fans appreciate that Johnny Rotten is a character. He is a character that did not live down the expectations of his image. He scoffed at the Hall of Fame and declared that he will not be put in the same society as the Eagles or Earth, Wind and Fire.

It’s a great twist from a band that has already pissed on its image but left us with an album that will truly stand the test of time.

[Fuggle]

SEX PISTOLS LETTER ENDS HALL OF FAME FILM




The SEX PISTOLS have had the last laugh in their battle with bosses at the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame in Cleveland, Ohio - their expletive-filled letter snubbing induction concludes a tribute film shown at the museum. The punk icons fired off the missive in March (06) when they were inducted into the hall alongside BLACK SABBATH and BLONDIE, insisting they wouldn't be paying for a table at the annual ceremony, which honours new members. In a hand-written statement, former frontman JOHN LYDON - known as JOHNNY ROTTEN during the band's 1970s heyday - called the Cleveland museum "a p**s stain", adding, "We're not coming and we're not your monkey." Lydon has since insisted a hand-written song in the museum's Pistols exhibit is counterfeit. The punk star's letter now ends a tribute film featuring all the Hall Of Fame inductees since the mid-1980s. The screen goes black after the 2006 class is honoured and then Lydon's angry letter appears on screen, leaving rock fans to explain the missive to their confused kids.