Bollock Brothers

Last updated

Frontman Jock McDonald Jock McDonald - 25.11.2018 Piano Dortmund.jpg
Frontman Jock McDonald

The Bollock Brothers are a British band formed in 1979 by the London promoter, DJ and manager Jock McDonald. They are best known for their English-language cover of Serge Gainsbourg's song "Harley David (Son of a Bitch)" (originally in French) and Alex Harvey's "Faith Healer". [1]

Contents

As well as being known for their original songs "Horror Movies", "The Bunker", "The Legend of the Snake" and "The Slow Removal of the Left Ear of Vincent van Gogh" which featured Martin Glover of the band Killing Joke, they are known for their release of cover versions by artists Led Zeppelin, The Sensational Alex Harvey Band, Steppenwolf, David Bowie and Vangelis, among others.

Their 1983 electro version of the Sex Pistols' album Never Mind the Bollocks featured Michael Fagan, the man who entered the Queen's bedchamber at Buckingham Palace. Jimmy Lydon, brother of Johnny Rotten, was a featured vocalist for a short period in the early 1980s. [2]

In 1994, Croydon-based DJ Andy Hubbard aka, "Alby" remixed "Faith Healer" at the Alaska Studios in Waterloo, London.The record was never released and the original DAT copy was held by Jock McDonald. Andy Hubbard also replaced the original keyboard player for a gig later that year in Wuppertal, Germany.

Having released nine studio albums as well as other EPs, singles, live releases and compilations, the band continues to play music throughout Europe primarily in Belgium, Germany and France.

Discography

Studio albums

Live albums

Singles

Compilation albums

VHS videos

The current members are Jock McDonald (vocals), Chris McKelvey (guitar), Richard Collins (bass), Klaus Fiehe, Patrick Pattyn (drums) Ciaran Crossan (guitar) and Morgan Michaux (keyboard).

Their album Last Will & Testament (2009) is dedicated to their longtime keyboard player "Big Mark" Humphries, who died on 31 March 2008. [3]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sex Pistols</span> English punk rock band

The Sex Pistols were an English punk rock band formed in London in 1975. Although their initial career lasted just two and a half years, they were one of the most culturally influential acts in popular music. The band initiated the punk movement in the United Kingdom and inspired many later punk, post-punk and alternative rock musicians, while their clothing and hairstyles were a significant influence on the early punk image.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Public Image Ltd</span> English rock band

Public Image Ltd are an English post-punk band formed by lead vocalist John Lydon, guitarist Keith Levene, bassist Jah Wobble, and drummer Jim Walker in May 1978. The group's line-up has changed frequently over the years; Lydon has been the sole constant member.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sid Vicious</span> English bassist (1957–1979)

Simon John Ritchie, better known by his stage name Sid Vicious, was an English musician, best known as the bassist for the punk rock band Sex Pistols. Despite dying in 1979 at age 21, he remains an icon of the punk subculture; one of his friends noted that he embodied "everything in punk that was dark, decadent and nihilistic".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Glen Matlock</span> English musician

Glen Matlock is an English musician, best known for being the bass guitarist in the original line-up of the punk rock band the Sex Pistols. He is credited as a songwriter on 10 of the 12 songs on the Sex Pistols' only officially released studio album, Never Mind the Bollocks, Here's the Sex Pistols, although he had left the band early in the recording process, credited as bassist and backing vocalist on only one song on the album, "Anarchy in the U.K.". However, on the bootleg album Spunk, Matlock played bass on all the songs, which included earlier studio recordings of 10 of the 12 songs that later appeared on the Bollocks album.

<i>Never Mind the Bollocks, Heres the Sex Pistols</i> 1977 studio album by Sex Pistols

Never Mind the Bollocks, Here's the Sex Pistols is the only studio album by English punk rock band the Sex Pistols, released on 28 October 1977 through Virgin Records in the UK and on 11 November 1977 through Warner Bros. Records in the US. As a result of the Sex Pistols' volatile internal relationships, the band's lineup saw changes during the recording of the album. Original bass guitarist Glen Matlock left the band early in the recording process, and while he is credited as a co-writer on all but two of the tracks, he only performed bass and backing vocals on one track, "Anarchy in the U.K." Recording sessions continued with a new bass player, Sid Vicious, who is credited on two of the songs written by the band after he joined. While Vicious's bass playing appeared on two tracks, his lack of skill on the instrument meant that many of the tracks were recorded with guitarist Steve Jones playing bass instead. Drummer Paul Cook, Jones and singer Rotten appear on every track. The various recording sessions were led alternately by Chris Thomas or Bill Price, and sometimes both together, but as the songs on the final albums often combined mixes from different sessions, or were poorly documented who was present in the recording booth at the time, each song is jointly credited to both producers.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Anarchy in the U.K.</span> 1976 single by Sex Pistols

"Anarchy in the U.K." is a song by English punk rock band the Sex Pistols. It was released as the band's debut single on 26 November 1976 and was later featured on their album Never Mind the Bollocks, Here's the Sex Pistols. "Anarchy in the U.K." was number 56 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time and is included in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's 500 Songs That Shaped Rock and Roll.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Steve Jones (musician)</span> English guitarist

Stephen Philip Jones is an English guitarist, best known as a member of the punk band Sex Pistols. Following the split of the Sex Pistols, he formed the Professionals with former bandmate Paul Cook. He has released two solo albums, and worked with Johnny Thunders, Iggy Pop, Cheap Trick, Bob Dylan and Thin Lizzy. In 1995, he formed the short-lived supergroup Neurotic Outsiders with members of Guns N' Roses and Duran Duran. Jones was ranked #97 in Rolling Stone's 2015 list of the "100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">God Save the Queen (Sex Pistols song)</span> 1977 single by Sex Pistols

"God Save the Queen" is a song by the English punk rock band the Sex Pistols. It was released as the band's second single and was later included on their only studio album, Never Mind the Bollocks, Here's the Sex Pistols. The song was released during Queen Elizabeth II's Silver Jubilee in 1977.

Bollocks is a word of Middle English origin meaning "testicles". The word is often used in British English and Irish English in a multitude of negative ways; it most commonly appears as a noun meaning "rubbish" or "nonsense", an expletive following a minor accident or misfortune, or an adjective to describe something that is of poor quality or useless. It is also used in common phrases like "bollocks to this", which is said when quitting a task or job that is too difficult or negative, and "that's a load of old bollocks", which generally indicates contempt for a certain subject or opinion. Conversely, the word also appears in positive phrases such as "the dog's bollocks" or more simply "the bollocks", which will refer to something which is admired or well-respected.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pretty Vacant</span> 1977 single by the Sex Pistols

"Pretty Vacant" is a song by the English punk rock band the Sex Pistols. It was released on 2 July 1977 as the band's third single and was later featured on their only album, Never Mind the Bollocks, Here's the Sex Pistols, released during that same year. It is the first song written by the band.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Holidays in the Sun (song)</span> 1977 single by Sex Pistols

"Holidays in the Sun" is a song by the English group Sex Pistols. It was released on 14 October 1977 as the band's fourth single, as well as the advance single from their only album Never Mind the Bollocks, Here's the Sex Pistols. A #8 chart hit in the UK, the single proved to be the last with singer John Lydon for 30 years. Steve Jones and Paul Cook recorded one more single, "No One Is Innocent" with Ronnie Biggs, as the band imploded, and Sid Vicious recorded solo covers of "My Way" and "Somethin' Else" under the Pistols name. Rolling Stone ranked the song #43 of the 100 Greatest Guitar Songs of All Time.

"Belsen Was a Gas" is a song by the English punk rock band the Sex Pistols. The song is about one of the Nazi concentration camps in Nazi Germany, Bergen-Belsen, which was liberated by British troops in 1945.

"Bodies" is a song by the Sex Pistols, from their 1977 album Never Mind the Bollocks, Here's the Sex Pistols. The song tackles the subject of abortion with lyrics described as "some of the most uncompromising, gut-wrenching lyrics imaginable".

<i>Spunk</i> (Sex Pistols bootleg album) 1977 demo album (bootleg) by Sex Pistols

Spunk is a bootleg demo album by the English punk rock band The Sex Pistols. It was originally released in the United Kingdom during September or October 1977.

The Ex Pistols were an English punk rock band from London, England formed in 1979 by former Sex Pistols producer Dave Goodman. Goodman put the group together after his services were substituted for those of other producers on the Sex Pistols album Never Mind the Bollocks, Here's the Sex Pistols.

<i>Kiss This</i> (album) 1992 greatest hits album by Sex Pistols

Kiss This is a "best of" compilation by the Sex Pistols released in 1992. It features all tracks from Never Mind the Bollocks, Here's the Sex Pistols' and highlights from the soundtrack album The Great Rock 'n' Roll Swindle, interspersed with singles and B-sides.

<i>The Great Rock n Roll Swindle</i> (album) 1979 soundtrack album by Sex Pistols

The Great Rock 'n' Roll Swindle is the soundtrack album of the film of the same name by the Sex Pistols.

<i>D.O.A.: A Rite of Passage</i> 1980 American film

D.O.A.: A Right of Passage is a 1980 rockumentary film directed by Lech Kowalski about the origin of punk rock. The rockumentary takes interview and concert footage of some of punk rock's earliest bands of the late 1970s scene. It features live performances by the Sex Pistols, The Dead Boys, Generation X, The Rich Kids, X-Ray Spex, and Sham 69, with additional music from The Clash, Iggy Pop, and Augustus Pablo.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John Lydon</span> British punk rock singer (born 1956)

John Joseph Lydon, also known by his former stage name Johnny Rotten, is an English singer and songwriter. He was the lead vocalist of the punk rock band the Sex Pistols, which was active from 1975 to 1978, and again for various revivals during the 1990s and 2000s. He is also the lead vocalist of post-punk band Public Image Ltd (PiL), which he founded and fronted from 1978 until 1993, and again since 2009.

"E.M.I." is a song on the Sex Pistols' 1977 debut album, Never Mind the Bollocks, Here’s the Sex Pistols. It was written after the group's contract with record label EMI had been terminated on 6 January 1977 after only three months, following the publicity storm caused by their appearance on the Today programme in December 1976. The song, often called a diss track, mocks the label for wanting to cash in on the growing punk phenomenon and sign the band, only to drop them when the group's antics damaged the label's reputation. The song was first recorded the same month at Gooseberry Studios, in Glen Matlock's last recording session with the band before he was fired, but the version that appears on the album was a re-recording made two months later at Wessex Studios. It was first played live at Notre Dame Hall, London, on 21 March 1977.

References

  1. Radio, N. T. S. "The Bollock Brothers | Discover music on NTS". NTS Radio. Retrieved 16 October 2022.
  2. "Jimmy Lydon". Discogs. Retrieved 3 August 2022.
  3. "The Bollock Brothers' Mark Humphrey dead". Side-line.com. Retrieved 31 October 2019.

Bibliography

Further reading: