Not A Music Magazine

[keepturningleft]

How to alienate sections of your readers in one easy lesson. With Backtrack covering mainly the 70’s and 80’s period, it follows that for many of your readers, myself included, the pop music of that period will have played an important part in our upbringing and background

Therefore it was with dismay that I read on page 20 of the latest issue, a highly opinionated condemnation of “the awful God Save The Queen by the Sex Pistols”, when in fact this is classic single by one of the most important bands in history.

Of course you are entitled to your opinion, but please keep prejudicial comments on non-speedway topics out of an otherwise terrific magazine.

A minor point this I know, but it’s been bugging me all week!

Stick to speedway!!

[AndyM]

That's called "being contentious" and the ensuing debate is one way to ensure that the readership figures stay high!! Most of the people who regarded the SPs as "awful" at the time were probably the wrong side of 40, but many who were 30+ probably admired GSTQ in secret while condemning it in public - I wonder if that's the scenario here, or whether we're overdue a revisionist view of punk? Maybe time for an ELP and Yes comeback!!

[TonyMac]

KTL,

 

I thought I understood our readers, and that they were paragons of good taste, but you have proved me hopelessly wrong!

 

And there was me thinking that we'd lose half our readership at the mere inclusion of a Sex Pistols pic!

 

If that was a 'classic' single, then God Help Us, let alone The Queen!

 

I guess I was old well before my time. Still, as you say, it's all about opinions. And you are, of course, entitled to yours. I promise we'll never say a detrimental word against the SPs again.

 

Now where are my Sinatra LPs....

Edited August 1, 2006 by tmc

[Paulco]

That's called "being contentious" and the ensuing debate is one way to ensure that the readership figures stay high!!  Most of the people who regarded the SPs as "awful" at the time were probably the wrong side of 40, but many who were 30+ probably admired GSTQ in secret while condemning it in public - I wonder if that's the scenario here, or whether we're overdue a revisionist view of punk?  Maybe time for an ELP and Yes comeback!!   

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Yes have never been away Andy - since 2000 i have saw them in concert at the armadillo in glasgow 3 times

Still sound as good as ever - and i will keep my opinion of punk to myself only to add its down there along with rap .

[tigerbrandcoffee]

when in fact this is classic single by one of the most important bands in history.

 

...played by session musicians

 

You'll be saying Kurt Cobain was a genius next...

[AndyM]

Ah, but just as the creative geniuses behind art don't necessarily have to create their own masterpieces, the Sex Pistols were rightly famous for what their iconic status and style! Punk might have been a watershed against the pomp and circusmtance of prog rock and a coutry moving rapidly towards Thatcherism, but it was never much of a musical statement, much more a cultural movement. Discuss!

[FenTiger76]

Although a 'punk' in my early years, I have to agree Andy M that the music has not dated well, and was in many cases no more than 'Pub' rock. It certainly was more about expression and quickly became a cultural movement.

 

However it did rid us of ELP, Yes and the likes, but more importantly showed the youth of the time that being in a band was not elitist, but something anyone could do if they chose.

 

Of course many of the more noted bands of the movement, The Jam and The Clash for example, were never really 'punk' bands in the true sense and their music is imo a testament to the fact that there was some great music coming out of that era.

[AndyM]

Some of it has dated very well. I was only listening to Gary Gilmour's Eyes by the Adverts and Holiday in Cambodia by the Dead Kennedys this last weekend, which tells me that good songs score well in any era. Mind you, kids won't have a clue who Gary Gilmour or Pol Pot were!

Edited August 2, 2006 by AndyM

[keepturningleft]

I’ll lay my cards on the table here, I am a bit of an aficionado on the SP’s and the punk period in general. Amazingly, the SP’s played their last ever gig (not counting the 90’s comeback) 2 minutes away from my front door in Huddersfield on Christmas day 1977, but I couldn’t go because of family commitments!!

Some of the music of the period has aged well and some hasn’t. The Clash sound more dated than the SP’s to my ears for example… and did it really rid of us ELP etc?… well we’ve still got dreary pompous stuff like Coldplay, so maybe not!

The statement from tigerbrandcoffee is not true, the band played on all their recordings. The only anomaly is that Steve Jones played all the bass guitar parts at the expense of Sid Vicious.

TCM, I love the Sex Pistols and Frank Sinatra!!

Andy M, I could discuss the cultural phenomenon of this all day but hang on…this is a speedway forum!!

[AndyM]

[keepturningleft]

sorry I meant TMC...

[tigerbrandcoffee]

The statement from tigerbrandcoffee is not true, the band played on all their recordings. The only anomaly is that Steve Jones played all the bass guitar parts at the expense of Sid Vicious.

 

Only joshing mate

You're right about punk not 'killing off' anything...ELP had their biggest chart success the same week as Pretty Vacant was in the top 10...

[Sotonian]

Of course many of the more noted bands of the movement, The Jam and The Clash for example, were never really 'punk' bands in the true sense and their music is imo a testament to the fact that there was some great music coming out of that era.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

I agree about The Jam but the Clash were 100% punk in their early years.

[south coast robin]

yep Sotonian ,The Clash were the first punk band to hit Swindon in '76

[Racer X]

I’ll lay my cards on the table here, I am a bit of an aficionado on the SP’s and the punk period in general. Amazingly, the SP’s played their last ever gig (not counting the 90’s comeback) 2 minutes away from my front door in Huddersfield on Christmas day 1977, but I couldn’t go because of family commitments!!

Some of the music of the period has aged well and some hasn’t. The Clash sound more dated than the SP’s to my ears for example… and did it really rid of us ELP etc?… well we’ve still got dreary pompous stuff like Coldplay, so maybe not!

The statement from tigerbrandcoffee is not true, the band played on all their recordings. The only anomaly is that Steve Jones played all the bass guitar parts at the expense of Sid Vicious.

TCM, I love the Sex Pistols and Frank Sinatra!!

Andy M, I could discuss the cultural phenomenon of this all day but hang on…this is a speedway forum!!

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

 

Punk still has an awful lot of relevance today, and the agression and spirit of the music still inspires many. Although most US bands love their sanitised "punk" (but The Bronx buck that trend somewhat!) - I could do without Good Charlotte, etc

 

There were tons of bands around at the time which still sound good - The Prefects, The Banshees (first two albums) and The Buzzcocks for instance.

 

Glen Matlock was the original bassist of the Pistols (as I'm sure you know keepturningleft) and was the original composer of most of the Pistols bass lines which were later played on the NMTB sessions by Steve Jones. You can hear the original Pistols as they were before NMTB on the "Spunk" bootleg which has just been reissued on Castle / Sanctuary. (The popular view is that this recoding is better than NMTB - this is not a theory I hold!)

 

Clash not punk?

Hmmm pretty sure not many people around in the day would agree with that, although when punk fizzled out they quickly distanced themselves from the (fading) scene.

There's a few decent DVD documentaries about on the Clash that I'm sure would help form a different opinion about the Clash if anyone thinks they didn't start out as fully fledged punk.

 

There will always be a market for some pompous over elaborate pretentious music, no genre is ever wiped out.

But the legacy of punk and "new wave" is that Indie and Alternative music (near enough ignored pre 76) is a strong genre now, with a ton of decent bands all across the world having access to markets that were totally denied them in the days that prog dinosaurs ruled the earth.

 

I would also subscribe to the view that decent music needs the likes of Coldplay to rally against. You need contrast for good music.

[Dekker]

A minor point this I know, but it’s been bugging me all week!

Who gives a crap.... only anoraks like you. its a speedway mag.

[TonyMac]

Well said, Dekker. For a minute there, I thought this was a speedway forum.

 

That's decided it then...no more music (or SPs) in Backtrack!