John Lydon
From The Art and Popular Culture Encyclopedia
| Revision as of 16:44, 6 June 2007 WikiSysop (Talk | contribs) ← Previous diff |
Current revision Jahsonic (Talk | contribs) |
||
| Line 1: | Line 1: | ||
| {{Template}} | {{Template}} | ||
| - | '''John Joseph Lydon''' (born [[January 31]], [[1956]]), also known as '''Johnny Rotten''', is an [[England|English]] rock musician. He was the lead vocalist for the [[Sex Pistols]] and [[Public Image Ltd]]. With his sarcastic and provocative public persona, he participated in laying down a new template for rebellious youth and [[Rock band|band]] frontmen. His musical innovations have also been influential. He is currently (2007) working on a new album with a [[reggae]] influence. | + | '''John Joseph Lydon''' (born 31 January 1956), also known by his stage name '''Johnny Rotten''', is an English singer, songwriter and musician. He is best known as the lead singer of the late-1970s British [[punk rock|punk]] band the [[Sex Pistols]], which lasted from 1975 until 1978, and again for various revivals during the 1990s and 2000s. He is also the lead singer of [[post-punk]] band [[Public Image Ltd]] (PiL), which he founded and fronted from 1978 until 1993, and again since 2009. Since 2013, Lydon has held British, Irish and American citizenship. |
| - | == ''Reynebeau & Rotten'' == | + | |
| - | In 2005, he appeared in ''Reynebeau & Rotten'', a five episode documentary on [[Canvas TV Station|Canvas]], the cultural channel of [[VRT]], which is the [[Flanders|Flemish]] public broadcaster. John Lydon guided Belgian journalist Marc Reynebeau through Great Britain to show him and the Belgian viewers what makes Britain so great. When asked why he was chosen as a guide, he answered that he was the cheapest one available. | + | Lydon's rebellious image and fashion style led to his being asked to become the singer of the Sex Pistols by their manager, [[Malcolm McLaren]]. With the Sex Pistols, he penned singles including "[[Anarchy in the U.K.]]," "[[God Save the Queen (Sex Pistols song)|God Save the Queen]]," and "[[Holidays in the Sun (song)|Holidays in the Sun]]," the content of which precipitated what one commentator described as the "last and greatest outbreak of pop-based moral pandemonium" in Britain. The band caused a nationwide uproar in much of the media, and Lydon was seen as a figurehead of the burgeoning punk movement. |
| + | |||
| + | After the Sex Pistols disbanded in 1978, Lydon went on to found his own band, Public Image Ltd, which was far more experimental in nature and described in a 2005 ''[[NME]]'' review as "arguably the first [[post-rock]] group." Although never as controversial or commercially successful as the Sex Pistols, the band produced eight albums and a string of singles, including "[[Public Image (song)|Public Image]]", "[[Death Disco]]", and "[[Rise (Public Image Ltd song)|Rise]]", before they went on hiatus in 1993, reforming in 2009. In subsequent years, Lydon has hosted television shows in the UK, US, and Belgium, appeared on ''[[I'm a Celebrity ... Get Me Out of Here! (UK series 3)|I'm a Celebrity ... Get Me Out of Here!]]'' in the UK, appeared in advertisements on UK television promoting a brand of British butter, written two autobiographies ''Rotten: No Irish, No Blacks, No Dogs'' (1993) and ''Anger is an Energy'' (2014), and produced some solo musical work, such as the album ''[[Psycho's Path]]'' (1997). In 2005, he released a compilation album, ''[[The Best of British £1 Notes]]''. | ||
| + | |||
| + | There has been a recent revival of a 1980s movement to have Lydon [[Orders, decorations, and medals of the United Kingdom|knighted]] for his achievements with the Sex Pistols, even though he has declined efforts to award him an [[Order of the British Empire|MBE]] for his services to music. A prominent figure in [[British popular culture]] for four decades, ''[[Q (magazine)|Q Magazine]]'' remarked that "somehow he's assumed the status of [[national treasure]]". In 2002, he was named among the [[100 Greatest Britons]] following a UK-wide vote. | ||
| - | After the show had been broadcast on Flemish television, Lydon claimed in an interview with the popular Belgian magazine ''[[HUMO]]'' that he was very unhappy with the way they handled post-production and was very angry with the way they depicted him in this particular show. He claimed that the creators mainly showed his humorous, sometimes clownesque antics, instead of focusing on his personal opinions and sometimes philosophical conversations he had with Marc Reynebeau. Lydon was also infuriated that the production company used songs from the Sex Pistols' catalogue, without consulting all the remaining members of the band, including him. | ||
| {{GFDL}} | {{GFDL}} | ||
Current revision
|
Related e |
|
Featured: |
John Joseph Lydon (born 31 January 1956), also known by his stage name Johnny Rotten, is an English singer, songwriter and musician. He is best known as the lead singer of the late-1970s British punk band the Sex Pistols, which lasted from 1975 until 1978, and again for various revivals during the 1990s and 2000s. He is also the lead singer of post-punk band Public Image Ltd (PiL), which he founded and fronted from 1978 until 1993, and again since 2009. Since 2013, Lydon has held British, Irish and American citizenship.
Lydon's rebellious image and fashion style led to his being asked to become the singer of the Sex Pistols by their manager, Malcolm McLaren. With the Sex Pistols, he penned singles including "Anarchy in the U.K.," "God Save the Queen," and "Holidays in the Sun," the content of which precipitated what one commentator described as the "last and greatest outbreak of pop-based moral pandemonium" in Britain. The band caused a nationwide uproar in much of the media, and Lydon was seen as a figurehead of the burgeoning punk movement.
After the Sex Pistols disbanded in 1978, Lydon went on to found his own band, Public Image Ltd, which was far more experimental in nature and described in a 2005 NME review as "arguably the first post-rock group." Although never as controversial or commercially successful as the Sex Pistols, the band produced eight albums and a string of singles, including "Public Image", "Death Disco", and "Rise", before they went on hiatus in 1993, reforming in 2009. In subsequent years, Lydon has hosted television shows in the UK, US, and Belgium, appeared on I'm a Celebrity ... Get Me Out of Here! in the UK, appeared in advertisements on UK television promoting a brand of British butter, written two autobiographies Rotten: No Irish, No Blacks, No Dogs (1993) and Anger is an Energy (2014), and produced some solo musical work, such as the album Psycho's Path (1997). In 2005, he released a compilation album, The Best of British £1 Notes.
There has been a recent revival of a 1980s movement to have Lydon knighted for his achievements with the Sex Pistols, even though he has declined efforts to award him an MBE for his services to music. A prominent figure in British popular culture for four decades, Q Magazine remarked that "somehow he's assumed the status of national treasure". In 2002, he was named among the 100 Greatest Britons following a UK-wide vote.
