Vicious White Kids

Last updated

Vicious White Kids
Vicious-white-kids.jpg
L-R: Matlock, Scabies, New, Vicious
Background information
Origin London, England
Genres Punk rock
Years active1978
Past members Sid Vicious
Glen Matlock
Stella Nova
Rat Scabies
Nancy Spungen

Vicious White Kids were an English punk rock band from London that formed for only one concert on 15 August 1978, staged at the Electric Ballroom in London. The former bassist of Sex Pistols, Sid Vicious, was the lead singer. It was his final concert in England, as he died of a heroin overdose the following February. [1]

Contents

Recordings of the concert, which included covers of Frank Sinatra's "My Way" and The Stooges' "I Wanna Be Your Dog", [2] have been released multiple times: in 1991 on DeLorean Records, in 1993 on Receiver Records, in 2002 on Castle Records, and in 2007 on Sanctuary Records. The 2007 release includes an interview with Matlock and Scabies. [3]

Formation

Vicious was due to fly to New York City and needed money, [4] so after bumping into ex-Pistol Glen Matlock one day, he decided to play a gig with him. Matlock, who Vicious had replaced in the Sex Pistols, saw it as an opportunity "to show there was no animosity" between them, he later commented. [3] Matlock recruited his Rich Kids bandmate Stella Nova on guitar, and The Damned's Rat Scabies completed the line up on drums. Vicious' girlfriend Nancy Spungen sang backing vocals, but after hearing her at rehearsals, Matlock made sure her microphone was not plugged in on the night of the gig. The name of the band came from an amalgamation of Sid Vicious, The Rich Kids and Rat Scabies' part-time outfit The White Cats.

Music Style

The Vicious White Kids are described as heavy punk rock, much like Matlock and Vicious’ former band, the Sex Pistols.

Vicious White Kids; Live at the Electric Ballroom

The band performed in the Camden Electric Ballroom, a two-storey concert venue in Camden Town, London, England.

The Vicious White Kids performed several cover songs by musicians and bands such as The Stooges, Ramones, Frank Sinatra, and The New York Dolls. They also performed the controversial Sex Pistols song "Belsen Was a Gas".

Other songs performed by the band during their concert included “Chatterbox” by The New York Dolls, “Tight Pants” by Iggy and the Stooges, Frank Sinatra's “My Way”, Eddie Cochran's “C'mon Everybody” and “Somethin' Else”, and Dave Berry's “Don't Give Me No Lip”. The Vicious White Kids also performed “I Wanna Be Your Dog” by the Stooges and “(I'm Not Your) Steppin' Stone” by the Monkees.

Disbandment

The Camden Electric Ballroom concert would be the one and only complete concert that the Vicious White Kids would perform as a band. Following the concert, the band became almost completely inactive in the music world. They would permanently disband when Spungen was stabbed to death in a hotel room in October 1978, and Vicious was arrested for her murder. Vicious died of a heroin overdose in February 1979.

After the Vicious White Kids broke up, Matlock, Scabies and New all moved on with their careers. Matlock has performed with a number of other artists, including Iggy Pop and the London Cowboys. Scabies has played in various bands as a drummer over the years. New was minimally active in the music business after the band broke up, and died of cancer in 2010.

The band's one concert has been released and re-released many times. It was released in 1991 by DeLorean Records, by Castle Records in 2002, and Sanctuary Records in 2007. The band's one concert has been fully released onto YouTube, as well, with a 31-minute concert video of the band's performance.

Members

Selected discography

Their only concert has been released many times.

The Vicious White Kids featuring Sid Vicious, 1991

Track listing

  1. "C'mon Everybody" [originally by Eddie Cochran]
  2. "(I'm Not Your) Steppin' Stone" [originally by The Monkees]
  3. "Don't Gimme No Lip" [originally by Dave Berry]
  4. "I Wanna Be Your Dog" [originally by Iggy and the Stooges]
  5. "Belsen Was a Gas" [originally by Sex Pistols]
  6. "Chatterbox" [originally by New York Dolls]
  7. "Tight Pants (Shake Appeal)" [originally by Iggy and the Stooges]
  8. "Something Else" [originally by Eddie Cochran]
  9. "My Way" [originally by Frank Sinatra]
  10. [extra track on album reissues] Interview with Glen Matlock and Rat Scabies

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 punk image.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Stooges</span> American punk rock band

The Stooges, originally billed as the Psychedelic Stooges, also known as Iggy and the Stooges, were an American rock band formed in Ann Arbor, Michigan, in 1967 by singer Iggy Pop, guitarist Ron Asheton, drummer Scott Asheton, and bassist Dave Alexander. Initially playing a raw, primitive style of rock and roll, the band sold few records in their original incarnation and gained a reputation for their confrontational performances, which often involved acts of self-mutilation by Iggy Pop.

<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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nancy Spungen</span> American girlfriend of Sid Vicious (1958–1978)

Nancy Laura Spungen was the American girlfriend of English musician Sid Vicious, and a figure of the 1970s punk rock scene.

<i>Sid and Nancy</i> 1986 film

Sid and Nancy is a 1986 British biographical film directed by Alex Cox, co-written with Abbe Wool, and starring Gary Oldman and Chloe Webb. The film portrays the life of Sid Vicious, bassist of the punk rock band the Sex Pistols, and his destructive relationship with girlfriend Nancy Spungen. The film also features supporting performances from David Hayman, Xander Berkeley, and Courtney Love.

<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 rock 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".

<i>Flogging a Dead Horse</i> 1980 greatest hits album by Sex Pistols

Flogging a Dead Horse is a compilation album of singles by Sex Pistols, released after their break-up, and includes the four songs issued as singles A-sides that were included on Never Mind the Bollocks, Here's the Sex Pistols, three of their B-sides, and the six A-sides taken from The Great Rock 'n' Roll Swindle and one B-side, "My Way".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">My Way</span> Song popularized by Frank Sinatra

"My Way" is a song popularized in 1969 by Frank Sinatra set to the music of the French song "Comme d'habitude" composed by Jacques Revaux with lyrics by Gilles Thibaut and Claude François and first performed in 1967 by Claude François. Its English lyrics were written by Paul Anka and are unrelated to the original French song.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rich Kids</span> English new wave band

Rich Kids were a short-lived new wave band from London, founded in 1977 by Glen Matlock following his departure from the Sex Pistols. The band also included future Ultravox member Midge Ure and Rusty Egan, who both later founded Visage together. They released one album and three singles during their existence, from March 1977 to December 1978.

<i>Sid Sings</i> Solo live album by Sid Vicious

Sid Sings is the first released solo live album by English punk rock musician Sid Vicious. It was released posthumously in 1979 and entered the British album charts on 15 December where it peaked at number 30.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Steve New</span> Musical artist

Stella Nova, born Stephen Charles New, was an English guitarist and singer who performed with a number of punk rock and new wave bands in the late 1970s and early 1980s, including the Rich Kids. In the 2000s, they came out as transgender and changed their name to Stella Nova, whilst performing with the band Beastellabeast.

"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".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">I Wanna Be Your Dog</span> 1969 single by the Stooges

"I Wanna Be Your Dog" is a song by American rock band the Stooges, released as the group's debut single from the band's 1969 self-titled debut album. The riff is composed of only three chords, is played continuously throughout the song. The 3-minute-and-9-second-long song, with its distortion-heavy guitar intro, single-note piano riff played by producer John Cale of the Velvet Underground, and steady, driving beat, gave the cutting edge of the early heavy metal and punk sound.

<i>Live at Winterland 1978</i> 2001 live album by Sex Pistols

Live at Winterland 1978 is a live album by Sex Pistols, first released in its entirety in 2001. The last two songs were released by Warner Bros Records on their two-disc 1980 Loss-Leader sampler, Troublemakers, bookending the compilation.

<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>The Idols with Sid Vicious</i> 1993 live album by The Idols and Sid Vicious

The Idols with Sid Vicious is a concert album of former Sex Pistols bassist Sid Vicious performing with The Idols; though recorded in September 1978, it wasn't released until 1993. Steve Dior provided a recording of this performance to the New Rose record label. It was originally released by the Fan Club division of New Rose. It was also released in Japan by Teichiku Records, under license from New Rose.

<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.

<i>Raw and Live</i> 2004 live album by Sex Pistols

Raw and Live is a two disc live album ostensibly by the English punk rock band Sex Pistols that was released in 2004. However, Disc 2 is a Vicious White Kids concert, the band featuring Sid Vicious, Glen Matlock, Steve New, and Rat Scabies.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The International Swingers</span>

The International Swingers is an American–British rock supergroup based in Los Angeles Formed in late 2011, the band is composed of Clem Burke (drums), Glen Matlock (bass/vocals), James Stevenson and Gary Twinn.

References

  1. Guzman, Rafer (13 March 2006). "The Sex Pistols Shoot Down Respectability". Newsday . Melville, New York: Newsday Media. p. B4.
  2. Takiff, Jonathan (4 March 2002). "Jimmy Buffett, On His Own". Philadelphia Daily News . Philadelphia, Pennsylvania: Philadelphia Media Network. Knight Ridder News Service. p. 39.
  3. 1 2 Mervis, Scott (24 March 2014). "Never mind the legacy: Here's the Sex Pistols". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette . Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania: Block Communications. p. G1. Retrieved 2 December 2018.
  4. "OMM: Reviews: Reissues etc: Other releases: Sid, say hello to Shabba..." The Guardian . London, England. 20 May 2007. p. 67. Retrieved 2 December 2018.