Sex Pistols

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Lore & Background

The Sex Pistols' sole studio album, Never Mind the Bollocks, Here's the Sex Pistols, was released on 28 October 1977 through Virgin Records. Recording sessions saw lineup changes: original bassist Glen Matlock left early in the process, playing bass on only one track, "Anarchy in the U.K.", though he is credited as a co-writer on all but two tracks. Sid Vicious replaced Matlock and is credited on two songs written after he joined, but his lack of skill meant guitarist Steve Jones played bass on many tracks. Drummer Paul Cook, Jones, and singer Johnny Rotten appear on every track. Producers Chris Thomas and Bill Price led sessions, sometimes together, and each song is jointly credited to both producers due to combined mixes from different sessions. By the time of its release, the Sex Pistols were already controversial, having spoken profanity on live TV, been fired from two record labels, and been banned from playing live in some parts of Britain. The album title added to that controversy, with some people finding the word "bollocks" offensive. Many record stores refused to carry it and some record charts refused to list its title, showing just a blank space instead. Despite many sales bans at major retailers, the album debuted at number one on the UK Album Charts. It achieved advance orders of 125,000 copies after a week of its release and went gold on 17 November 1977. It remained a best-seller for nearly a year, spending 48 weeks in the top 75. The album has also been certified platinum by the RIAA. It has seen several reissues, the latest in 2017.

Reader's Guide

The album's 12 tracks were written by John Lydon, Steve Jones, and Paul Cook between August 1975 and June 1976, with Glen Matlock co-writing most tracks before his departure in February 1977, and Sid Vicious co-writing the two written after he joined. The first track written was 'Pretty Vacant,' and by their 6 November 1975 concert at Central Saint Martins College of Art and Design they had written 'Seventeen'. The group debuted 'New York' on 21 November 1975, 'Problems' on 14 February 1976, 'No Feelings' by 3 April 1976, 'Anarchy In the U.K.' on 20 July 1976, and 'Liar' by 14 August 1976. Recording began in October 1976 with EMI, but the band was dropped on 6 January 1977 after controversy. In February 1977, Matlock quit and was replaced by Sid Vicious. In March 1977, the Sex Pistols entered Wessex Sound Studios with producer Chris Thomas and engineer Bill Price. Vicious played on "Bodies" and "God Save the Queen", but his skills were not considered fit for the full album, so guitarist Steve Jones played bass on the remaining tracks. Four tracks were recorded during two days at Wessex. After signing with A&M, the contract was terminated on 16 March 1977. The band signed with Virgin on 18 May 1977. They returned to the studio on 18 June to record "Holidays in the Sun", the first song written without Matlock. In August 1977, they recorded "Bodies" with Vicious on bass, though the final version also had a second bass track by Jones. The album was completed with the finalization of the track list after "Bodies".

Did You Know?

• Original bassist Glen Matlock played bass on only one track of the album, "Anarchy in the U.K.", despite being credited as a co-writer on all but two tracks.
• Sid Vicious played bass on only two tracks, "Bodies" and "God Save the Queen", but his lack of skill meant guitarist Steve Jones played bass on many other tracks.
• The album debuted at number one on the UK Album Charts despite many record stores refusing to carry it and some charts showing a blank space instead of the title.
• The album achieved advance orders of 125,000 copies after a week of its release and went gold on 17 November 1977.
• Producer Chris Thomas and engineer Bill Price were attacked by a group of men on 18 June 1977 after visiting a nearby pub during recording sessions.