sound of the suburbs

After last Friday's Clash post and yesterday's Damned musings I get the feeling that things are shaping up for a punk (inspired) week, I only hope my heart can take the strain! I guess you could consider that from the first wave that there where 4 front line groups, the two already mentioned, a certain band from Manchester that galvanised that city into action and McLaren's merry band of misfits that started the media train rolling, The Sex Pistols. I can remember, vaguely reading the first articles on the band in Sounds, written if I recall correctly, by Jon Ingham, this article and what followed grabbed my attention and got me talking to my school chums about this 'new' band and music, as was to often be the case my colleagues preferred chart fodder rather than anything left of field. I missed their appearance on the Grundy show, and did not catch up with events until the next day at school when I was branded as a punk and held responsible by my peers for all the ills in the world and have never looked back. Being an honest person I won't lie to you by recounting how good they were as a live force as I don't know. I can remember planning to go and see them at the Brunell University on the other side of London, though truth be told why I never went I can't remember. What I do remember is having purchased the 'Spunk' bootleg at the Lea Valley Trading Estate Sunday Market (just a stones throw from the 2012 Olympic site), I made cassette copies for the rare open minded friend that I had. As you are probably aware this famous bootleg release has recently become officially available for the first time (?), I'm in 2 minds whether to buy it (again) or not. Spunk was a collection of studio demos produced by Dave Goldman, that lacked the Hard Rock studio production given to the official 'Nevermind the Bollocks', its track listing was very similar to that of the then soon to be released official product. Many years later I used to use play the introduction to the Virgin version of 'Holidays I The Sun' at full volume whenever my neighbor's used to piss me of by listening to their insipid watered down disco at exaggerated noise levels, and it worked! I can recall in the 90's having long conversations with friends justifying my point of view as to why we should boycott the reformed Sex Pistols gigs, I must say that seeing the way things turned out I was right.

And so to the music, first up an alternative mix of personal Pistols favorite of mine the sub Doors 'Submission' this originally saw the light of day on the NME cassette 'Pogo A Gogo' and is subtitled the psychedelic mix and credited to The Rainbow Twins? I have no idea whether it has turned up anywhere else but seeing the amount of product available it would surprise me if it has remained a rarity. Next up a live track recorded as the band were burning out on their US tour, 'Seventeen' as heard by the Winterland, San Francisco audience. Last up is a bootleg/mashup by studio wizard Go Home Productions, I would suggest you visiting his site as he has plenty of goodies up for grabs, his tribute to the Sex Pistols is built around the monster riff from 'Pretty Vacant' and parts of 'Hollidays In The Sun' and is called 'Ray of Gob', somewhat surreally Rotten gets to share vocal duties with Madona, now if only.......................