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England's Dreaming: Anarchy, Sex Pistols, Punk Rock, and Beyond
England's Dreaming is the ultimate book on punk, its progenitors, the Sex Pistols, and the moment they defined for music fans in England and the United States. Savage brings to life the sensational story of the meteoric rise and rapid implosion of the Pistols through layers of rich detail, exclusive interviews, and rare photographs. This fully revised and updated edition of the book covers the legacy of punk twenty-five years later and provides an account of the Pistols' 1996 reunion as well as a freshly updated discography and a completely new introduction.
656 pages, Paperback
First published October 21, 1991
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16.8k people want to read
About the author
Jon Savage
59听books106听followersJon Savage (born Jonathan Malcolm Sage) is an English writer, broadcaster and music journalist, best known for his definitive history of the Sex Pistols and punk music, England's Dreaming (1991).
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 216 reviews
May 9, 2013
It is a REAL question if I will finish this, and it's about one of my favourite periods of musical history! Page 6: "Evocations of the thirties environment characteristic of the babyboomer childhood -- a process which would peak with that palace of fun, Biba's superstore -- went hand in hand with the fine-art codification in 1968 of thirties styles under the term Art Deco." Who the fucking fuck writes like that? Did he program a robot?
(Also, NO, clothing did not 'become' costume in fucking -1968.- Moron.)
Words I never wanted to read in this lifetime right there on page 56: "....another commission, this time for Ken Russell's flamboyant 'Mahler.' Asked to work out something for the climactic dream sequence where the Jewish composer confronts his Aryan anima...." PS Dear Savage: Describing any Ken Russell film anywhere ever as 'flamboyant' is not only bloody redundant it is INADEQUATE. And wtf is up with all the real dodginess about fixating on people as Jewish and attributing various character traits to that and so on? Terribly offputting. No reference (yet) to the bondage scene which I always thought was a big inspiration -- and wasn't Pynchon's Oedipa Maas drawn from that whole Nazi/bondage scenario? And that was in 1966....
Still continuing, hundreds of pages later. Now I'm thinking of all the other books I wish I had read instead of this one! A history of women in punk! A history of minorities in punk! Johnny Rotten's/John Lydon's autobiography! (I have that around here somewhere....) Hell I went and reread about a third of Please Kill Me the other day in desperation. And here, right here, on page 435 -- I had skipped ahead in despair earlier only to read: 'After the demise of the Ed Sullivan Show, there was no concentrated, nationwide TV exposure of pop until MTV in 1981.'
Seriously this is so wrong, it is staggering. Three words. AMERICAN. FUCKING. BANDSTAND. Or hell, Soul Train. Just a few months before MTV there was Night Flight, and for years I watched Night Flight a lot more regularly than MTV (and the USA network also had Video Concert Hall). And besides that, there was stuff like SNL and a dozen other variety shows bands appeared on including the fucking Muppets, for Godsakes, and people were certainly making 'music videos' even before there was MTV. And if you looked at what MTV first showed, they had something like twenty fucking clips they played over and over, and it wasn't even available in a lot of places -- and it wasn't the only thing, there was Friday Night Videos on NBC too and at least a couple of other video shows. It wasn't like MTV sprang up out of a vacuum and it wasn't like it was EVERYWHERE when it first started. At this point the book is just NOT EVEN WRONG.
I am sure anyone reading this (not that there's anyone reading this) will have the inevitable question, But why are you reading this, Moi? Research partly. I love this era and have read a lot about it. Also -- and this is why I don't actually read books I don't like v often -- I have to compulsively finish a book once I start it, or it really fucking bugs me.
But I also wanted something with which to occupy myself during the long holiday (ugh) weekend because I was bored and miserable and going through personal crap. And in the service of that desire, getting frequently annoyed with this book to the extent of writing pissy lengthy pseudo-scholarly annotations all over the margins succeeded admirably in distracting me.
Chewing through the bibliography (yes I am one of those freaks who reads all the footnotes and sits through the end of the film credits) - DEPT OF THINGS I NEVER WANTED TO KNOW, Virgin published a 'Sid Vicious Family Album' in 1980. Good fucking God. OTOH, there are apparently now several books about Vivienne Westwood, who struck me as a far more interesting figure than MM.
You can view my extremely misguided attempt to enter the entire sixty-five-plus-page discography as a streamable last.fm tag station here:
(Also, NO, clothing did not 'become' costume in fucking -1968.- Moron.)
Words I never wanted to read in this lifetime right there on page 56: "....another commission, this time for Ken Russell's flamboyant 'Mahler.' Asked to work out something for the climactic dream sequence where the Jewish composer confronts his Aryan anima...." PS Dear Savage: Describing any Ken Russell film anywhere ever as 'flamboyant' is not only bloody redundant it is INADEQUATE. And wtf is up with all the real dodginess about fixating on people as Jewish and attributing various character traits to that and so on? Terribly offputting. No reference (yet) to the bondage scene which I always thought was a big inspiration -- and wasn't Pynchon's Oedipa Maas drawn from that whole Nazi/bondage scenario? And that was in 1966....
Still continuing, hundreds of pages later. Now I'm thinking of all the other books I wish I had read instead of this one! A history of women in punk! A history of minorities in punk! Johnny Rotten's/John Lydon's autobiography! (I have that around here somewhere....) Hell I went and reread about a third of Please Kill Me the other day in desperation. And here, right here, on page 435 -- I had skipped ahead in despair earlier only to read: 'After the demise of the Ed Sullivan Show, there was no concentrated, nationwide TV exposure of pop until MTV in 1981.'
Seriously this is so wrong, it is staggering. Three words. AMERICAN. FUCKING. BANDSTAND. Or hell, Soul Train. Just a few months before MTV there was Night Flight, and for years I watched Night Flight a lot more regularly than MTV (and the USA network also had Video Concert Hall). And besides that, there was stuff like SNL and a dozen other variety shows bands appeared on including the fucking Muppets, for Godsakes, and people were certainly making 'music videos' even before there was MTV. And if you looked at what MTV first showed, they had something like twenty fucking clips they played over and over, and it wasn't even available in a lot of places -- and it wasn't the only thing, there was Friday Night Videos on NBC too and at least a couple of other video shows. It wasn't like MTV sprang up out of a vacuum and it wasn't like it was EVERYWHERE when it first started. At this point the book is just NOT EVEN WRONG.
I am sure anyone reading this (not that there's anyone reading this) will have the inevitable question, But why are you reading this, Moi? Research partly. I love this era and have read a lot about it. Also -- and this is why I don't actually read books I don't like v often -- I have to compulsively finish a book once I start it, or it really fucking bugs me.
But I also wanted something with which to occupy myself during the long holiday (ugh) weekend because I was bored and miserable and going through personal crap. And in the service of that desire, getting frequently annoyed with this book to the extent of writing pissy lengthy pseudo-scholarly annotations all over the margins succeeded admirably in distracting me.
Chewing through the bibliography (yes I am one of those freaks who reads all the footnotes and sits through the end of the film credits) - DEPT OF THINGS I NEVER WANTED TO KNOW, Virgin published a 'Sid Vicious Family Album' in 1980. Good fucking God. OTOH, there are apparently now several books about Vivienne Westwood, who struck me as a far more interesting figure than MM.
You can view my extremely misguided attempt to enter the entire sixty-five-plus-page discography as a streamable last.fm tag station here:
July 26, 2024
I read this when it was published in 1991. Over the last month or so (July 2024) I have been steadily reworking my way through this magnificent book.
Jon Savage was an eye witness to events and knew all the key players. He is also intelligent, erudite and brings an intellectual rigour to the history.
England's Dreaming still really stands up. The last word in the early punk years. Perceptive, provocative and interesting. If you only ever read one book on early UK punk make it this one, it's the definitive history.
I adored rereading it.
5/5
Jon Savage was an eye witness to events and knew all the key players. He is also intelligent, erudite and brings an intellectual rigour to the history.
England's Dreaming still really stands up. The last word in the early punk years. Perceptive, provocative and interesting. If you only ever read one book on early UK punk make it this one, it's the definitive history.
I adored rereading it.
5/5
July 11, 2014
This an insightful record of the Sex Pistols' formation and their short and frantic career that helped change British music and challenged on aBritish society on a number of levels.
The author has given readers a very well written account with many good, and for me unseen, photos. It provides social, economic and music/fashion background from the 1950s through to the explosion of Punk on both sides of the Atlantic (including some interesting info on France).
On reading this I was reminded at how the group were barred from almost every town in the country: councils and other venue owners sitting and passing bans with the police being called to stop gigs or ensure entry was refused. It is why there are few people (before 1996)in the UK who can really say they saw the Pistols play with audiences of just 20, 40 or just a couple of hundred, and many of those were regulars and later became band members in groups or personalties in music and the media.
The sale of the their records was also banned - I recall how difficult it was to buy the single God Save the Queen and the album Never Mind the Bollocks - and the charts were fixed to ensure they did not reach number one; lucky old Rod Stewart stayed a couple more weeks thanks to the Pistols. It is hard to believe today that a "pop" group could be so hated, reviled and indeed feared and yet they were and it scared people witless.
Of course Punk and the Pistols didn't do anything to lessen the bile and angst with violence accompanying gigs and wearing emblems such as the Swastika guaranteed to light fires under many a person.
The Sex Pistols' greatly helped (it is too strong to say they alone) changed how music was played and written, how bands were signed and promoted, how records were sold and marketed, how music was read about and how fans treated their idols and their movement including its involvement in politics.
The machinations at record companies and the frankly mad, bad and downright chaotic behaviours of Malcolm Mclaren are fascinating and well told. How the band interacted (or not) with their manager and each other and well as with others within the Punk movement and without is also interesting.
The US tour is another interesting chapter and the author's treatment of Sid Vicious's demise and death is told with clarity and sympathy, and include comment from Sid's mother.
One of the book's strengths aside from the author's ability and first hand connections to Punk, are the interviews and comments from key characters that helps provides a fascinating insight into what became the Sex Pistols and the movement/fashion/music called Punk: Maclaren, Lydon, Cook, Jones, Matlock, Strummer, Jones, Siouxsie, Devoto, Shelley, Sylvain Sylvain, Richard Hell, Capt Sensible, Adam Ant, Jordan, Viv Albertine et al they're all there, as are many people who were involved in managing the group.
The author's politics comes through at times a little more than is required, but that is a minor point. He perhaps over blows Punks significance to the UK at large but only then when you consider my comments above, and that the Pistols remain a focal point in music and media whenever the 1970s is discussed then he may be justified.
Highly recommended to anyone who likes the music or wants to know more about a strand of music and fashion that changed music, the industry, society and the people involved.
The author has given readers a very well written account with many good, and for me unseen, photos. It provides social, economic and music/fashion background from the 1950s through to the explosion of Punk on both sides of the Atlantic (including some interesting info on France).
On reading this I was reminded at how the group were barred from almost every town in the country: councils and other venue owners sitting and passing bans with the police being called to stop gigs or ensure entry was refused. It is why there are few people (before 1996)in the UK who can really say they saw the Pistols play with audiences of just 20, 40 or just a couple of hundred, and many of those were regulars and later became band members in groups or personalties in music and the media.
The sale of the their records was also banned - I recall how difficult it was to buy the single God Save the Queen and the album Never Mind the Bollocks - and the charts were fixed to ensure they did not reach number one; lucky old Rod Stewart stayed a couple more weeks thanks to the Pistols. It is hard to believe today that a "pop" group could be so hated, reviled and indeed feared and yet they were and it scared people witless.
Of course Punk and the Pistols didn't do anything to lessen the bile and angst with violence accompanying gigs and wearing emblems such as the Swastika guaranteed to light fires under many a person.
The Sex Pistols' greatly helped (it is too strong to say they alone) changed how music was played and written, how bands were signed and promoted, how records were sold and marketed, how music was read about and how fans treated their idols and their movement including its involvement in politics.
The machinations at record companies and the frankly mad, bad and downright chaotic behaviours of Malcolm Mclaren are fascinating and well told. How the band interacted (or not) with their manager and each other and well as with others within the Punk movement and without is also interesting.
The US tour is another interesting chapter and the author's treatment of Sid Vicious's demise and death is told with clarity and sympathy, and include comment from Sid's mother.
One of the book's strengths aside from the author's ability and first hand connections to Punk, are the interviews and comments from key characters that helps provides a fascinating insight into what became the Sex Pistols and the movement/fashion/music called Punk: Maclaren, Lydon, Cook, Jones, Matlock, Strummer, Jones, Siouxsie, Devoto, Shelley, Sylvain Sylvain, Richard Hell, Capt Sensible, Adam Ant, Jordan, Viv Albertine et al they're all there, as are many people who were involved in managing the group.
The author's politics comes through at times a little more than is required, but that is a minor point. He perhaps over blows Punks significance to the UK at large but only then when you consider my comments above, and that the Pistols remain a focal point in music and media whenever the 1970s is discussed then he may be justified.
Highly recommended to anyone who likes the music or wants to know more about a strand of music and fashion that changed music, the industry, society and the people involved.
December 26, 2007
I really liked this book when I read it. I would probably hate it now and put it in the same league as anything Griel Marcus has written on punk.
November 20, 2023
By far the most exhaustive and thorough history of London Punk ever written. This is the book which really gets you inside the Sex Pistols and the almost-dystopia of 1970's Britain and London from which they emerged.
The author has interviewed everyone involved who was still alive and willing to talk. There is very little ground left unsearched and unexamined.
There will probably never be a book on Punk as complete as this again. This is it, this is the definitive account.
The author has interviewed everyone involved who was still alive and willing to talk. There is very little ground left unsearched and unexamined.
There will probably never be a book on Punk as complete as this again. This is it, this is the definitive account.
December 24, 2020
"Never Mind The Bollocks, Here's The Sex Pistols" is one of my long-standing favorite punk albums and I have fond memories of jumping around and slamming at parties back in college with my friends Jeremy and Troy as we mutually discovered this music. This book gives a perspective on the chaotic, abusive, vulnerable, and frequently violent environment that spawned this album and hundreds more. It goes deep into the calculated approach of Malcolm McLaren, political push back of the Thatcher era conservativism, the ineptitude of the music industry, and the incompetence of the punks themselves. (see Moira Russell's review for a counter-perspective and an excellent breakdown of all the problems with this book.)
Like with many of the albums that I hold dear, it is astounding that "Never Mind The Bollocks" ever made it out into the world, and the same can be said for many of the other foundational UK punk albums. This mirrors the same fragile contingency of the American scene from a few years earlier, as I learned from reading "Please Kill Me" (/review/show...)
One of the interesting contrasts was how much UK punk centered around fashion, something that I was only vaguely aware of before. Much like in the US, UK punk started off relatively inclusive and broad based, and then quickly became codified and commoditized:
This book does discuss punk as in part a reaction against the excesses of progressive rock. Part of me understands how some people can become dogmatic about that kind of stance, but I find that attitude to be narrow and limiting. I have listened to hundreds of releases of both punk and prog rock and I embrace both. As with any genre, there will be a small percentage of great work, and a vast sea of mediocrity.
Finally, one of the best parts of this book is the extensive 47 pages of discography covering not just punk but also glam, no-wave, reggae, new-wave, post-punk, and other related splinters.
Like with many of the albums that I hold dear, it is astounding that "Never Mind The Bollocks" ever made it out into the world, and the same can be said for many of the other foundational UK punk albums. This mirrors the same fragile contingency of the American scene from a few years earlier, as I learned from reading "Please Kill Me" (/review/show...)
One of the interesting contrasts was how much UK punk centered around fashion, something that I was only vaguely aware of before. Much like in the US, UK punk started off relatively inclusive and broad based, and then quickly became codified and commoditized:
Throughout 1975 and 1976, a large, amorphous group of teenage stylists and social outcasts of all ages, sexes and sexual persuasions had gathered around the Sex Pistols and Sex, and around the other groups and shops on the King's Road strip as well. This was a milieu of some complexity, reduced within twenty seconds of the Grundy interview to white, male Rock.
This book does discuss punk as in part a reaction against the excesses of progressive rock. Part of me understands how some people can become dogmatic about that kind of stance, but I find that attitude to be narrow and limiting. I have listened to hundreds of releases of both punk and prog rock and I embrace both. As with any genre, there will be a small percentage of great work, and a vast sea of mediocrity.
Finally, one of the best parts of this book is the extensive 47 pages of discography covering not just punk but also glam, no-wave, reggae, new-wave, post-punk, and other related splinters.
July 23, 2010
If you aren't interested in punk or the Sex Pistols, obviously skip this one. If you are, ask yourself "How interested am I?" before delving into it. It's long, and, at times, trying and tedious. I realise that even the briefest of historical moments can be long and winding when written about, and I appreciated all the precursory info about McLaren and Sex, and the most enjoyable for me was middle of the book, the section about the Pistols forming and gathering momentum; punk gathering momentum. But as the author states again and again in not so few words "The end was nigh," the writing keeps it in a stasis of decline for a couple hundred pages. The focus was not only the Sex Pistols, but other punk bands in the UK and US, so the linear flow of the book could be rather muddied at times. The book ended, much like the original movement, with a whimper and not a bang (not counting the 80 or so pages of appendices and bibliography/discography, which I did read).
For me, it's been about a decade and a half since I was really, really into the Pistols, and I while reading this book I felt compelled to dig out some of the music. The Great Rock n' Roll Swindle is a horrendous soundtrack to an even worse film; even in my youth I felt a twinge of listener/viewer emabarrassment, and I agree with the author that listening to NMTB straight-through is not enjoyable- only with this book I learned of the tracks released as singles timeline. The X-ray Spex album was fantastic to mine ears back in the day and even moreso now. I still don't like the Clash, despite how Savage goes on and on about them. I tried. Again.
And... while I appreciate and understand the necessity of giving the socio-political background of the times, as a non-Brit who wasn't even born during this period, there was a whole lot of googling of acronyms and events on my part. Be prepared for that if you're ignorant yet determined not to be so.
All in all, a really good view of what happened. Or some of what happened. According to a few people. What they said at the time, anyway.
For me, it's been about a decade and a half since I was really, really into the Pistols, and I while reading this book I felt compelled to dig out some of the music. The Great Rock n' Roll Swindle is a horrendous soundtrack to an even worse film; even in my youth I felt a twinge of listener/viewer emabarrassment, and I agree with the author that listening to NMTB straight-through is not enjoyable- only with this book I learned of the tracks released as singles timeline. The X-ray Spex album was fantastic to mine ears back in the day and even moreso now. I still don't like the Clash, despite how Savage goes on and on about them. I tried. Again.
And... while I appreciate and understand the necessity of giving the socio-political background of the times, as a non-Brit who wasn't even born during this period, there was a whole lot of googling of acronyms and events on my part. Be prepared for that if you're ignorant yet determined not to be so.
All in all, a really good view of what happened. Or some of what happened. According to a few people. What they said at the time, anyway.
August 11, 2011
It's taken me a while to get through this, not because the book was dull or hard work, but because of the sheer volume of information inside, covering a relatively short time span. plus the fact it was too unwieldy for reading on my commute (how punk does that sound!)
I'm giving it 5 stars on the basis that it covers the subject matter so well, plenty of other people seem able to find fault with it, but to my mind they're merely nit picking.
If you have any interest in the punk era this book will genuinely inform you and make you re-evaluate your preconceived ideas.
I was too young for punk the first time around, but following my early teen heavy metal stage, I got into it in later years.
The econcomic situation was different at that time, but that's the beauty of this book: it sets everything in a social, political and musical context, which enables you to grasp how and why it was so provocative and important.
You may not love the music or the attitide, but it gave society a kick up the backside and reset the priorities for young people. Given the wealth of musical genres that followed it, off shots of the bastard son punk, we have gained inumerable benefits.
In these times of woeful X Factor/Pop Idol karaoke, manufactured dross I yearn for something to reset the social agenda again.
The recent "riots" (looting) have also provided an interesting parallel to the events around the mid to late 70s. Who said history moves in cycles?
I'm giving it 5 stars on the basis that it covers the subject matter so well, plenty of other people seem able to find fault with it, but to my mind they're merely nit picking.
If you have any interest in the punk era this book will genuinely inform you and make you re-evaluate your preconceived ideas.
I was too young for punk the first time around, but following my early teen heavy metal stage, I got into it in later years.
The econcomic situation was different at that time, but that's the beauty of this book: it sets everything in a social, political and musical context, which enables you to grasp how and why it was so provocative and important.
You may not love the music or the attitide, but it gave society a kick up the backside and reset the priorities for young people. Given the wealth of musical genres that followed it, off shots of the bastard son punk, we have gained inumerable benefits.
In these times of woeful X Factor/Pop Idol karaoke, manufactured dross I yearn for something to reset the social agenda again.
The recent "riots" (looting) have also provided an interesting parallel to the events around the mid to late 70s. Who said history moves in cycles?
October 26, 2021
If you're gonna read one book about the Pistols...
August 27, 2013
Jon Savage has managed to produce a very excellent and readable book. This must have been quite a task given the plethora of material but the complete, and in some cases deliberate camouflaging of events and reasons, that could have led to either some kind of hero worshipful bible-like book or to the usual skim, have generally been avoided. Mr Savage has made an excellent review of the period and analysed the precursors whilst managing to keep the sense of wonder that was there all through the punk years. Having been there (but hardly 'in' them) I found his book to be absolutely fair and very astute in it's analysis.
This really is an excellent well-written book and as a bonus contains an excellent discography and bibliography.
This really is an excellent well-written book and as a bonus contains an excellent discography and bibliography.
March 13, 2021
Insanely detailed history of the Sex Pistols and the beginning of punk in London by a music reporter whose own career started in 1977.
May 28, 2013
'Face front, we got the future/Shining like a piece of gold/But I swear as we got closer/It looks like a lump of coal' - The Clash: All The Young Punks.
Any book whose first word is 'juxtaposition' is going to struggle from the outset to shake off the chains of pretension. And larded with plaudits such 'a claim to be the definitive work on the subject' (The Times, no less) and 'flawless' (Esquire), a book could very well sink beneath the weight of its own cleverness and self-regard.
That Jon Savage's England's Dreaming stays afloat (just) is due to two things. First, that the times about which he writes are so vibrant, real, close yet distant and fundamentally dirty, makes for exciting copy. And second that his obvious enthusiasm for the people, the music and the events, shines through bright enough to burn.
That enthusiasm almost fucks him over, if you'll forgive a punk way of putting it. Rock writing has yet to produce great literature. Sure, there are some articulate and trenchant critics and commentators, but even the greatest - the Marcuses, the Shaar Murrays, the Nick Kents - are too close to their subject, too a little in love, to present full objectivity and balanced description, evaluation or judgement. The majority finds it difficult to lift itself above the mundanity and self absorption of Adrian Mole-level teenage scribblers - NME, the last remaining of the great triumvirate of British rock weeklies has always been a stew of teenage hormones and spite ponced up as critique. Savage's completism, the recounting of every detail he's garnered - enthusiastic and all too often uncritical - can get wearying. And repetitious. How often, for example, do we need a roll call of the various extremist flag carriers of each of the main western European nations, just to reinforce his thesis that punk was part of some wider nihilistic surge sweeping the developed world?
Faults aside, a strong narrative thread makes this pretty much the biography of the Sex Pistols, something it does more effectively than being a (rather weak) analysis of punk as musical, cultural or historical phenomenon. It's particularly dramatic in the closing stages - the disintegration of Sid Vicious in a welter of unstoppable drug use, compounded by music industry indifference, Malcolm McLaren's ruthless yet comically inept scheming, co-dependency with his fucked up (sorry again) mess of girlfriend and the input of his appalling drug-addled bat of a mother, whom Savage inexplicably defends. You wont like a lot of the characters - McLaren is unpleasantly self-serving and less of a genius than he thinks, Vivienne Westwood is deluded and unpleasant, and only Jhnny Rotten seems to have a modicum of self-awareness though this is spoiled by his being consumed with hate. I was agog. Riveting stuff and almost enough to make you forget that the promise of the irony in the title isn't quite realised.
Not a good book in the conventional sense - it's too chaotic, sprawling and ill-disciplined for that but Not quite 'ever get the feeling you've been cheated?' Either. I suppose given the subject, that's scarcely a surprise.
Any book whose first word is 'juxtaposition' is going to struggle from the outset to shake off the chains of pretension. And larded with plaudits such 'a claim to be the definitive work on the subject' (The Times, no less) and 'flawless' (Esquire), a book could very well sink beneath the weight of its own cleverness and self-regard.
That Jon Savage's England's Dreaming stays afloat (just) is due to two things. First, that the times about which he writes are so vibrant, real, close yet distant and fundamentally dirty, makes for exciting copy. And second that his obvious enthusiasm for the people, the music and the events, shines through bright enough to burn.
That enthusiasm almost fucks him over, if you'll forgive a punk way of putting it. Rock writing has yet to produce great literature. Sure, there are some articulate and trenchant critics and commentators, but even the greatest - the Marcuses, the Shaar Murrays, the Nick Kents - are too close to their subject, too a little in love, to present full objectivity and balanced description, evaluation or judgement. The majority finds it difficult to lift itself above the mundanity and self absorption of Adrian Mole-level teenage scribblers - NME, the last remaining of the great triumvirate of British rock weeklies has always been a stew of teenage hormones and spite ponced up as critique. Savage's completism, the recounting of every detail he's garnered - enthusiastic and all too often uncritical - can get wearying. And repetitious. How often, for example, do we need a roll call of the various extremist flag carriers of each of the main western European nations, just to reinforce his thesis that punk was part of some wider nihilistic surge sweeping the developed world?
Faults aside, a strong narrative thread makes this pretty much the biography of the Sex Pistols, something it does more effectively than being a (rather weak) analysis of punk as musical, cultural or historical phenomenon. It's particularly dramatic in the closing stages - the disintegration of Sid Vicious in a welter of unstoppable drug use, compounded by music industry indifference, Malcolm McLaren's ruthless yet comically inept scheming, co-dependency with his fucked up (sorry again) mess of girlfriend and the input of his appalling drug-addled bat of a mother, whom Savage inexplicably defends. You wont like a lot of the characters - McLaren is unpleasantly self-serving and less of a genius than he thinks, Vivienne Westwood is deluded and unpleasant, and only Jhnny Rotten seems to have a modicum of self-awareness though this is spoiled by his being consumed with hate. I was agog. Riveting stuff and almost enough to make you forget that the promise of the irony in the title isn't quite realised.
Not a good book in the conventional sense - it's too chaotic, sprawling and ill-disciplined for that but Not quite 'ever get the feeling you've been cheated?' Either. I suppose given the subject, that's scarcely a surprise.
November 22, 2017
The slog is over - I finished it! I knew going in that this book had a mixed reputation for being both exhaustive in its coverage while also a tedious and dull read. The latter is definitely true. Believe it or not someone found a way to make a book about punk be very, very dull and boring. However, that's not even its worst sin - the problem is that it's not really all that exhaustive. McLaren's life is covered in minute detail, and a good deal of the book deals explicitly with the history of far-left extremist political groups in the UK, Germany, and France. However, by the time it was over I still didn't feel like I knew the band very well. Lydon's transformation from being a dumb jerk of a kid to a still-obnoxious but nonetheless somewhat savvy and occasionally thoughtful media critic, music professional, professional celebrity, and groundbreaking art-rocker is really underplayed. The rest of the guys in the band are sort've mysteries...except for Sid Vicious whose pathetic life is often chronicled day-by-day. Furthermore, the actual creation of the music is seriously under-discussed. There is little talk about how the songs were written and what the recording sessions were like, though the contract negotiations and business-side of things is heavily focused on. Even with all the discussion of left-wing extremist political groups like Beider-Meinhoff and the Situationists, there is little discussion on how the actual band related to all this. Did these homeless school drop-outs and drug addicts actually read Beaudrillard and have opinions on various post-Marxist critiques of capitalism? I'm guessing no, but it's all left a bit vague. Another interesting point is that the music is very working-class and masculine but the bands spent a lot of time at gay bars and with gays, lesbians, and the generally androgynous - more discussion of first-gen punk's relation with gender and sexuality would have also been interesting. In short this is a book that often focuses on some of the more boring aspects of an exciting time period while covering so much ground that it often feels rambling and unfocused. I gotta say, I really don't recommend it.
October 16, 2023
A great insight into the beginnings of punk. Uses the story of the Sex Pistols to talk about the punk phenomenon and its social origins. Great for the understanding of the truth and lies about the Sex Pistols and punk in general. Deservedly regarded as a classic!
April 12, 2014
Faber Forty-Fives are a series of six short e-books which attempt to tell the story of British popular music from the birth of psychedelia in the late sixties to the post punk era of the late 1980's. This book concentrates on the formation of the Sex Pistols; the influence of Malcolm McLaren, early venues and the whole Punk lifestyle. Much of this essay is taken from the longer book, 鈥淓ngland Dreaming: The Sex Pistols and Punk Rock,鈥� and this is certainly an interesting introduction to that era.
Several things strike you about the Sex Pistols during that sweltering summer of 1976. First, is just how young they were and, really, how vulnerable. Although they obviously came across as very stroppy and opinionated, it is obvious from reading this that they were actually quite unsure of themselves. There is a story of one young punk rocker being challenged about wearing something which a member of the public found objectionable and being physically attacked in the street for instance 鈥� it is clear that he himself, on looking back, felt that it was too outrageous. Much of the clothes worn, obviously came from McLaren and Vivienne Westwood鈥檚 shop, which again shows that some of the adults involved were manipulative, rather than nurturing. There are stories of amphetamine use, the sheer joy of provoking a reaction, violence at early gigs and being banned from just about everywhere. This ends with the Sex Pistols signing with EMI, but it is an interesting perspective on a fashion, and music, which seemed to come from nowhere and sparked an enormous reaction at the time.
Several things strike you about the Sex Pistols during that sweltering summer of 1976. First, is just how young they were and, really, how vulnerable. Although they obviously came across as very stroppy and opinionated, it is obvious from reading this that they were actually quite unsure of themselves. There is a story of one young punk rocker being challenged about wearing something which a member of the public found objectionable and being physically attacked in the street for instance 鈥� it is clear that he himself, on looking back, felt that it was too outrageous. Much of the clothes worn, obviously came from McLaren and Vivienne Westwood鈥檚 shop, which again shows that some of the adults involved were manipulative, rather than nurturing. There are stories of amphetamine use, the sheer joy of provoking a reaction, violence at early gigs and being banned from just about everywhere. This ends with the Sex Pistols signing with EMI, but it is an interesting perspective on a fashion, and music, which seemed to come from nowhere and sparked an enormous reaction at the time.
December 22, 2022
A daunting book - 540 pages of text, two appendices, a huge index, bibliography and a review of post punk/post punk bands with the author's recommendation on what should be listened to.
In reality, it took me only a week to plough through and it was never a chore. It covers the history of punk, a detailed biography of the sex pistols and an overview of UK politics and culture in the late 70s.
You could say its the definitive guide. Jon Savage was there - in some photos, and the text is interspersed with his own diary extracts. You can tell the amount of research he has completed before you get to the bibliography at the end.
I would imaging this was used for the screenplay of Pistol, the disney tv series. Everything in the show is found in this book - including the emphasis on Steve Jones stealing kit from Bowies gig at the Hammersmith Odeon.
The sort of book that you need to take notes yourself, as there are frequent pointers to other films/books/tv appearances/musicians that you have probably forgotten in the 45 years that have passed since. Who would have though the Richard Allen books would be fetching so much on ebay. Never actually read any, but I remember flicking through them on book carousels outside newsagents
In reality, it took me only a week to plough through and it was never a chore. It covers the history of punk, a detailed biography of the sex pistols and an overview of UK politics and culture in the late 70s.
You could say its the definitive guide. Jon Savage was there - in some photos, and the text is interspersed with his own diary extracts. You can tell the amount of research he has completed before you get to the bibliography at the end.
I would imaging this was used for the screenplay of Pistol, the disney tv series. Everything in the show is found in this book - including the emphasis on Steve Jones stealing kit from Bowies gig at the Hammersmith Odeon.
The sort of book that you need to take notes yourself, as there are frequent pointers to other films/books/tv appearances/musicians that you have probably forgotten in the 45 years that have passed since. Who would have though the Richard Allen books would be fetching so much on ebay. Never actually read any, but I remember flicking through them on book carousels outside newsagents
August 21, 2014
OK. To be honest most of this was pretty familiar to me from years of listening to and reading about punk music. It wasn't as eye opening as a book like Can't Stop Won't Stop by Jeff Chang on Hip Hop, or Rip it up and Start Again by Simon Reynolds on Post Punk, or The Rest is Noise by Alex Ross on Modern Classical. Still, it's a good book. Most of all it was interesting to immerse myself in an era in which a large subculture dedicated itself to a totally bohemian, anti-corporate, anti bourgeois way of life. You just don't get that any more, even with youth subcultures, when the likes of Jay Z go on about being businessmen and entrepreneurs. Oh for the days when people were getting inspired by Situationism, Rastafarianism and Decadent French poetry and making their own crazy outfits...
May 23, 2018
I like cultural and social context with my music history and this book has it in spades. This fascinating account of the creation of one of music's most notorious and influential bands during the economic meltdown of 70's England is one of the best music books I have ever read. Savage was there from the beginning as a teenager in Manchester and offers firsthand knowledge of his subject. Sometimes heavy going, particularly in its account of the dada art movement of the early 20th century but overall an excellent read. I continue to refer to the excellent discography in the appendix for essential listening.
April 21, 2017
螣喂 危蔚尉 螤委蟽蟿慰位蟼 蔚委谓伪喂 蟿慰 蟺伪谓魏, 蔚委谓伪喂 畏 伪蟻蠂畏 蟿慰蠀 魏伪喂 未蔚谓 蔚委谓伪喂 渭蠈谓慰 伪蠀蟿慰. 螘委谓伪喂 畏 纬蟻慰胃喂维 蟽蟿慰谓 魏伪胃蠅蟽蟺蟻蔚蟺喂蟽渭蠈, 畏 蔚谓伪谓蟿委蠅蟽畏 蟽蟿畏谓 渭慰蠀蟽喂魏萎 尾喂慰渭畏蠂伪谓委伪, 蟽蟿畏谓 蟿蠀蟺慰蟺慰委畏蟽畏 蟿畏蟼 渭慰蠀蟽喂魏萎蟼, 蟽蟿畏谓 蟿蠀蟺慰蟺慰委畏蟽畏 蟿蠅谓 蟺维谓蟿蠅谓.
螆魏伪谓伪谓 蟿畏谓 伪蟻蠂畏 魏伪喂 苇未蠅蟽伪谓 苇谓伪 魏伪喂谓慰蠉蟻纬喂慰 魏委谓畏渭伪 渭伪魏蟻喂维 伪蟺蠈 位慰蠀蟽蟿蟻伪蟻喂蟽渭苇谓蔚蟼 魏伪喂 蟽蟿蠀位喂味伪蟻喂蟽渭苇谓蔚蟼 蔚蟺喂位慰纬苇蟼.
韦慰 蟺伪谓魏 蔚委谓伪喂 畏 渭蔚蟿维位位伪尉畏 蟿慰蠀 蟻慰魏 蔚谓蟿 蟻慰位 魏伪喂 蠈蟺蠅蟼 蠈位蔚蟼 慰喂 渭蔚蟿伪位位维尉蔚喂蟼 苇蟿蟽喂 魏伪喂 伪蠀蟿萎 蔚委谓伪喂 魏维蟿喂 蟺慰蠀 伪谓伪蟽蟿伪蟿蠋谓蔚喂.
螚 螒纬纬位委伪 蠈蟺蠅蟼 蟽蔚 蟺慰位位维 蟺蟻维纬渭伪蟿伪 蟽蟿畏谓 蟿苇蠂谓畏 苇蟿蟽喂 魏伪喂 蔚未蠋 苇未蠅蟽蔚 蟿伪 蠁蠋蟿伪 蟿畏蟼 蟽蟿慰谓 蠀蟺蠈位慰喂蟺慰 魏蠈蟽渭慰.
韦慰 尾喂尾位委慰 未蔚谓 蔚委谓伪喂 纬喂伪 蠈位慰蠀蟼, 蠈蟺蠅蟼 维位位蠅蟽蟿蔚 魏伪喂 畏 蟺伪谓魏.
螘喂未喂魏维 纬喂伪 维蟿慰渭伪 渭喂蟽慰蠂伪渭苇谓伪 蟽蟿伪 蠈蟻喂伪 蟿畏蟼 蠄蔚蠀蟿慰魏慰蠀位蟿慰蠉蟻伪蟼 魏伪喂 蟿畏蟼 蟺伪蟻伪味维位畏蟼.
螆魏伪谓伪谓 蟿畏谓 伪蟻蠂畏 魏伪喂 苇未蠅蟽伪谓 苇谓伪 魏伪喂谓慰蠉蟻纬喂慰 魏委谓畏渭伪 渭伪魏蟻喂维 伪蟺蠈 位慰蠀蟽蟿蟻伪蟻喂蟽渭苇谓蔚蟼 魏伪喂 蟽蟿蠀位喂味伪蟻喂蟽渭苇谓蔚蟼 蔚蟺喂位慰纬苇蟼.
韦慰 蟺伪谓魏 蔚委谓伪喂 畏 渭蔚蟿维位位伪尉畏 蟿慰蠀 蟻慰魏 蔚谓蟿 蟻慰位 魏伪喂 蠈蟺蠅蟼 蠈位蔚蟼 慰喂 渭蔚蟿伪位位维尉蔚喂蟼 苇蟿蟽喂 魏伪喂 伪蠀蟿萎 蔚委谓伪喂 魏维蟿喂 蟺慰蠀 伪谓伪蟽蟿伪蟿蠋谓蔚喂.
螚 螒纬纬位委伪 蠈蟺蠅蟼 蟽蔚 蟺慰位位维 蟺蟻维纬渭伪蟿伪 蟽蟿畏谓 蟿苇蠂谓畏 苇蟿蟽喂 魏伪喂 蔚未蠋 苇未蠅蟽蔚 蟿伪 蠁蠋蟿伪 蟿畏蟼 蟽蟿慰谓 蠀蟺蠈位慰喂蟺慰 魏蠈蟽渭慰.
韦慰 尾喂尾位委慰 未蔚谓 蔚委谓伪喂 纬喂伪 蠈位慰蠀蟼, 蠈蟺蠅蟼 维位位蠅蟽蟿蔚 魏伪喂 畏 蟺伪谓魏.
螘喂未喂魏维 纬喂伪 维蟿慰渭伪 渭喂蟽慰蠂伪渭苇谓伪 蟽蟿伪 蠈蟻喂伪 蟿畏蟼 蠄蔚蠀蟿慰魏慰蠀位蟿慰蠉蟻伪蟼 魏伪喂 蟿畏蟼 蟺伪蟻伪味维位畏蟼.
June 18, 2019
Overall, this was very disappointing. A thin veneer of intellectualism is a poor disguise for the incoherent narrative and random cod sociology that Savage is peddling here. This story could been infinitely more powerfully told, and at a fraction of the length. Ever get the feeling you've been cheated?
February 27, 2018
I bloody loved England's Dreaming. Expected to browse it; but ended up reading all 530 pages. Reads like a novel. Brilliant!
Really got me thinking about the 70s and how oblivious to all that misery I was! I LOVED the jubilee; we had a fete and sports day at school and I got a commemorative mug. at 6 years old I was totally sold on the monarchy I was certainly "Dreaming".
Really got me thinking about the 70s and how oblivious to all that misery I was! I LOVED the jubilee; we had a fete and sports day at school and I got a commemorative mug. at 6 years old I was totally sold on the monarchy I was certainly "Dreaming".
May 3, 2007
brilliant history, not only of the sex pistols, but of the whole punk movement and cultural turmoil in britain at the time. i would love to sit down and have a cup of tea and a chat with jon savage, his knowledge is encyclopaedic.
October 10, 2008
This may be the longest thing I have ever read. This is almost a day-by-day account of the Sex Pistols. I am particuarly fascinated by Malcolm Mclaren and want to read more about him.
December 30, 2010
Detailed and comprehensive history of punk; well researched and well written. Hang on a minute; this is a history book and it's my youth they're talking about. Getting old !!
July 30, 2007
it's not Please Kill Me, but the Sex Pistol weren't the Stooges. Still pretty great.
December 22, 2022
Posiblemente el estudio m谩s completo sobre la banda m谩s famosa del Punk Rock. Este mastodontico libro no s贸lo analiza el auge y caida de los Pistols sino tambi茅n el movimiento punk en general: su contexto pol铆tico, est茅tico y musical y como cambio la 尘煤蝉颈肠补 un movimiento marginal surgido en Londres.
Asisitiremos a como Malcom McLaren creo desde su tienda de ropa transgresora al grupo que haria del nihilismo y la cr铆tica social su bandera y como otras bandas se encargaron de llevarlo a su esplendor.
Las vidas de los integrantes del grupo, el an谩lisis de bandas m铆ticas como The Clash, The Damned, Buzzocks y pr谩cticamente cada una de las que participaron del movimiento hacen de esta biografia un libro complet铆simo. Quiz谩s se echa en falta un poco m谩s de informaci贸n sobre las locuras del grupo como un estudio m谩s detallado de su bizarro paso por EEUU actuando en locales del sur redneck, algo que s贸lo a los Pistols se le podr铆a ocurrir haciendo gala de sudapoyismo hasta el final y me hubiese interesado m谩s leer sobre Jhonny Rotten, de lejos la figura m谩s interesante intelectualmente de la banda pero dir铆a que este debe ser el libro definitivo para conocer la historia en su totalidad.
Asisitiremos a como Malcom McLaren creo desde su tienda de ropa transgresora al grupo que haria del nihilismo y la cr铆tica social su bandera y como otras bandas se encargaron de llevarlo a su esplendor.
Las vidas de los integrantes del grupo, el an谩lisis de bandas m铆ticas como The Clash, The Damned, Buzzocks y pr谩cticamente cada una de las que participaron del movimiento hacen de esta biografia un libro complet铆simo. Quiz谩s se echa en falta un poco m谩s de informaci贸n sobre las locuras del grupo como un estudio m谩s detallado de su bizarro paso por EEUU actuando en locales del sur redneck, algo que s贸lo a los Pistols se le podr铆a ocurrir haciendo gala de sudapoyismo hasta el final y me hubiese interesado m谩s leer sobre Jhonny Rotten, de lejos la figura m谩s interesante intelectualmente de la banda pero dir铆a que este debe ser el libro definitivo para conocer la historia en su totalidad.
June 6, 2020
A detailed look at the factors that fired the short lived Punk Movement and it's principal actors. How anger, individualism, nihilism, and elements of feigned extremism, fused with creative genius expressed in music and dress code was the story of adolescent youth and culture during this socially turbulent period. This book traces the rise and fall of Punk through its highest profile band 'The Sex Pistols', and it's exploitative and cynical manager Malcolm McClaren. Punk will be remembered for its uncompromising voice, its savage energy, and 'I don't give a damn' portrayal. It should also be remembered for its challenge to existing convention and protocol, and it's undoubted contribution to the life of music. Punk failed to destroy what it despised, but it did shine a light that others , in their own way have since followed. From the ashes ...
June 14, 2020
An exhaustively researched book surrounding the English punk movement of the 70s. Jon Savage was there when it happened, which gives the book its authenticity without trying to rewrite history or produce a patchwork narrative. Finally it鈥檚 almost impossible to see Malcolm McLaren as anything but a scoundrel.
July 18, 2023
Very informative. If you are a fan of 70s/80s punk rock, you should read it. However, the author tends to jump around quite a bit and never really focuses on a single aspect. Parts of the book are about the Sex Pistols, parts are about other bands, etc.
It lacks cohesion and is a slow read.
It lacks cohesion and is a slow read.
February 26, 2025
el infierno no est谩 vac铆o, est谩 Margaret Tachter
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