In a recent interview with The Times, the iconic London-born punk band Sex Pistols reflected on their 1978 tour, ahead of the release of their live album ‘Live in the USA 1978‘. With ‘Live In The USA 1978′ (a three disc collection capturing the band’s performances in Atlanta, Dallas, and San Francisco) set for release next month, Guitarist Steve Jones and drummer Paul Cook have revisited their chaotic first trip to America. Unsurprisingly, their memories of the experience are anything but fond.
“Were there any good moments?” Steve Jones pauses, reflecting on the Sex Pistols’ disastrous January 1978 U.S. tour. “No, there were none.” Cook then adds: “By the time we got to the U.S., we were already public enemy number one, we were thrown into the lion’s den, and it was a pretty dark time… It still gives me the horrors even now, to be honest.”
“The whole tour was chaos from start to finish,” Jones adds. The guitarist explained that their Manager Malcolm McLaren, had marketed the Pistols as punk’s ultimate villains: this has resulted in Americans seeing them as some sort of British devils. “Malcolm hyped us up as the worst of the worst,” Jones states, explaining their manager would allege that the band: “bite the heads off chickens. They throw up everywhere.’ All that nonsense…” Jones then confesses: “We were all sick of his crazy publicity stunts.”
Originally, the band—fronted by Johnny Rotten (John Lydon) and rounded out by bassist Sid Vicious—planned to play eight U.S. dates between late 1977 and early 1978. But nothing went smoothly. To start off, with criminal records ranging from drug charges to assaulting police officers, several band members were initially denied U.S. visas. They only secured last-minute entry when their label posted a $1 million bond, vouching for their “good behaviour”. Jones would later write in his biography: “Betting on the Sex Pistols to behave was like betting on a three-legged chihuahua to win the Grand National.”
At every stop, the band faced dangerously aggressive crowds, many of whom had already decided they were there to fight. “The audience was throwing everything—bottles, rats, even pig’s ears—at the stage,” Cook states, then continues: “They’d read about us being British devils, coming to destroy their country, so they thought that was how they were meant to react… I genuinely thought someone was going to get killed.”
The tour ultimately culminated in their final show in San Francisco, where Rotten famously sneered, “Ever get the feeling you’ve been cheated?”. The band would break up shortly after, in January 1978, due to internal conflicts, Syd Vicious’s worsening drug problem as well as having difficulties performing in the UK due to laws and reforms.
Later this month, the Sex Pistols will return to the stage—albeit with a new lineup. Frank Carter will take over for Lydon on vocals, while original bassist Glen Matlock has rejoined. The band is set to play Japan’s Punkspring festival in Osaka and Tokyo, followed by an Australia and New Zealand tour in April.
Meanwhile, ‘Live In The USA 1978′ is slated for release on April 25 and is available for pre-order now.
