FI£THY LUCRE - LIVE!
The UK shows

FINSBURY PARK, LONDON, N4
23rd June 1996
'Happiness is a worn gun'
Review by David Sinclair, The Times. 25th June 1996

Well, we’re not that f****** bad after all, are we?” announced a typically defiant John Lydon (née Rotten), halfway through the Sex Pistols’ first British show in 20 years. And, if you cut a swath through all the hype this reunion has generated and the scepticism with which it has understandably been greeted, then he had probably got it about right.

For, although dubbed the Filthy Lucre tour (after a tabloid headline from 1977 (“Punk? Call It Filthy Lucre”), there is no doubt that the Pistols were out to prove more than their ability to make money. Part of the “unfinished business” to which Lydon referred at their recent press conference involved the dismantling of their long-standing reputation as the band that could not play.

But no matter what they did they were never going to recapture the sense of outrage that they generated so effortlessly in their prime. Indeed, it is a measure of the group’s baleful influence that nobody now gets worked up about pop stars using bad language in their lyrics, and there was an air of relaxed camaraderie among the 30,000-strong crowd as they sang along with genial gusto to the f-words in the opening number, Bodies.

The Pistols had obviously done their homework and despite a somewhat arthritic feel to the rhythm section, they thundered through Seventeen and No Feelings with surprising conviction. But it was hard to ignore the element of panto­mime in the performance. With his hair arranged in vertical spikes, Lydon looked more like a postcard-punk caricature than he ever did in his original incarnation. “Oh, how you longed to see this day,” he goaded the crowd, which responded with a chant of: “You fat bastard.” “Don’t be naughty,” Lydon admonished them.

With its pedalling rhythm, descending chord steps and Chuck Berry-style guitar solo God Save the Queen was always a magnificent song, and the lyrics have held up remarkably well. But the punk ethos — which always railed against the mindless adulation of rock stars and preferred its heroes to come equipped with a self-destruct mechanism — was not de­signed with big, open-air events in mind. With no new material on offer, the set lacked depth and variety, and having built to a quick climax with Holidays in the Sun, Pretty Vacant and EMI, the Pistols left the stage after less than an hour to a muted response.

The “encores” produced reliable versions of Anarchy in the UK and Problems, but they lost their way as soon as they departed from the script during a more ambitious rendition of the Stooges’ proto­punk anthem, No Fun.

“Thank you for coming to my garden party,” Lydon said as he departed, his duty done. No future indeed, but still a band with a past worth making a bit of noise about.

SECC, GLASGOW, 6th July 1996

It had been nearly 20 years since the Pistols played their one and only Scottish gig at Dundee Tech 12th October ‘76. They were supposed to play the Glasgow Apollo on the Anarchy Tour, but Glasgow councillors put a stop to that. Needless to say I wasn’t there, so to say I was looking forward to the Glasgow SECC gig was an understatement. I had already been to see them at Finsbury Park, but I was looking forward to seeing them in a venue, not a field. The SECC is the sort of place people like Tina Turner and Brian Adams usually play. I’d never been there before. I’d been told it was a shit venue, which it was, but it didn’t stop the Pistols pulling off a brilliant show! I was a bit surprised when it was announced the Pistols where playing Glasgow (and at the time) Belfast and Dublin. These are places a lot of bands ignore on tours, so well done lads. The Pistols where playing Hall 4, which is the largest holding 10,000. I was interested to see who would turn up, I wasn’t sure there where 10,000 Pistols fans in Scotland.

Stiff Little Fingers where the support band. Fingers can be OK, but I was there to see the Pistols. You couldn’t take drink into the actual venue so we decided just to listen to them. It didn’t sound like they had a very good sound mix, but SLF are quite popular in Glasgow so they got the crowd going. In fact SLF drummer Dolphin Taylor was complaining the next day in the local press that the Pistols had snubbed them backstage and that Rotten had tried to get them thrown off the tour, because they were going down so well with the crowd! I think Fingers where looking for a bit of “Punk” Solidarity, and the Pistols weren’t interested.

After Fingers had finished their set, we made our way to the front of the stage. I knew it would be bedlam, but I wanted a good view. The crowd was pretty mixed, but there where a lot more “Punks’ than I expected. There aren’t usually that many about Glasgow, so I reckon there was a lot of dressing up that night! (“here they come, lala lala la la, the part time punks”). What did surprise me, were the kind of people down at the front of the stage. They didn’t seem like the kind of people who would buy the fanzine or collect the records etc. they just seemed like the kind of people you get at every concert. The stage was set up the same as Finsbury Park, except there was a St Andrews flag on Glen’s amp.

After much fucking about by the roadies and having to listen to those crap 70’s songs, the lights went down. The Pistols arrived to a massive cheer. They didn’t burst through the tabloid style curtains this time, they just walked on from the side of the stage. Thankfully they weren’t wearing kilts, which had been rumoured in the local press: Glen looked the same as he did on Top Of The Pops (but doesn’t he always), Paul was just his usual self too. Steve, I noticed didn’t have his usual Les Paul, instead he had a metallic blue one with a guitar strap with ‘slag’ printed on it. Rotten looked absolutely mental, he had bright orange hair and a tartan style shirt with removable sleeves, which got ripped off after a few minutes.

They started with Bodies and by the time Paul had done the cymbal intro, I knew we where in for a good night! The sound was really loud and powerful. It was the same set as Finsbury Park, but it sounded better, mostly I think because it was in an indoor venue. In between songs there was loads of good banter, a lot of it Scotland-England related. With John saying he had burst his bagpipes and Steve taking the piss by singing the Bay City Rollers ‘ Bye Bye Baby’ and asking where “all the ‘aggis was”! After GSTQ John was slagginq off the monarchy, saying we could replace them with him, which didn’t go down too well! Paul and Glen didn’t say anything. The crowd where slagging the Pistols for being fat bastards (how original). John agreed with them, though only about Steve. Steve got his own back later on by showing them his arse!

During the whole set there was a youngish lad of around 19/20 standing on the side of the stage. He was obviously supposed to be there, because no one bothered with him, lucky bastard! It was absolutely mental in the crowd, people where jumping around and falling everywhere. I didn’t see much spitting, in fact the only time I noticed it was when Steve was playing the solo on Problems and there was a white light on him, Steve didn’t give a fuck, he just turned around and pointed his arse at them. At one point some mad man got on stage, though god knows how, he just put his arms around Rotten and started jumping about until the bouncers carted him off. I have to admit that I was enjoying myself so much I forgot I was going to be reviewing the gig, so if I’ve missed any good bits out, sorry. The gig lasted about 70 minutes, but it just sped by. Anarchy and Problems where the first encore and No Fun was the second. They didn’t do Roadrunner (bastards!). Before I knew it, it was all over. I enjoyed it more than Finsbury Park. Which don’t get me wrong was great too, but the band where more relaxed and they seemed to enjoy themselves more too.

The Scottish press practically ignored the gig, but everyone at the show seemed to have enjoyed themselves. The gig wasn’t sold out, but it couldn’t have been far off and by the noise the crowd made you’d never have known.

Review by Scott Murphy

SHEPHERDS BUSH EMPIRE, LONDON, 17th July 1996

A CREATION RECORDS STATEMENT

I never saw the Sex Pistols in 1977. They never came to Scotland. I saw everybody else. Everybody. The Clash three times in ’77. Buzzcocks. Ramones. Everybody. I got a ticket on Wednesday night in a way out of embarrassment that I never stayed around to watch them at Finsbury Park which I had heard they were like “cabaret”. I went half expecting it to be part comedy part irrelevancy. What I saw destroyed my preconceptions. Granted they are no longer a social phenomenon, that they had to wait almost 20 years to play their music and to be judged on that shows you how much of a social phenomenon they actually were.

The Sex Pistols at Shepherd’s Bush Empire were simply stunning. Literally the best rock ‘n’ roll band around. If you accept Oasis and to my mind 3 Colours Red are the most exciting rock ‘n’ roll bands in the country, then accept this that both Noel Gallagher and Chris McCormack told me separately that “they are better than us”. I stood with Noel as he sang every song. Steve Jones is the man The Throb has always wanted to be. It is lazy to say they are cabaret. They blew everybody way. I came along cynical and it was one of the best gigs I’ve ever seen. John Lydon utterly majestic after being for so long unfocused. Steve Jones the rock ‘n’ roll guitar player. Glen Matlock the songwriter. They were only ever shit live in ’77 because he had left. The band was amazing looking and sounding. Paul Cook shaved head and soul.

The Sex Pistols changed my life in 1977 and in 1996. They are Gods to a man. Rock ‘n’ roll should always be this great. This was “Never Mind The Bollocks” note for note. It’s still beautiful. If you don’t get it now, you would have never got it then. Britpop? More like Shitpop. You’re welcome to your mediocrity. This band are our alternative royal family. God Save The Sex Pistols.

Alan McGee, 20th July 1996

Note. The Shepherds Bush Concert was arranged following the cancellation of the Belfast gig arranged for the same date. Also cancelled was the concert in Dublin, scheduled for 18th July (see press advert - right).

PHEONIX FESTIVAL, 21st July 1996

When I was young, barely out of my shorts and all that, my brother took me to see the Pistols. They played four songs and then Johnny Rotten fell through the stage. Now, 20 years later, it seems fitting that time only allows me to see the first four songs of their set, “Bodies”, “Seventeen”, “New York” and “I’m Lazy Sod”. It’s cabaret. Rotten (let’s drop Lydon for the sake of the game, shall we?) playing out the role of a pink and green whippy-haired Liza Minelli. It’s both happy and sad, powerful and pathetic, a celebration of the naive energy of punk rock and an acknowlodgment of how it all turned sour.

At the start of the fifth track EMI, the stage shows no sign of collapse, presumably strengthened to support Rotten’s extra weight, so I leave. Vowing not to return if they get it together again in another 2O years.

Time for a long, cool bath, l think.

Review by MJ, Melody Maker. July 27th 1996

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