Malcom Mclaren will be smiling now in the knowledge he can still provoke such black and white opinions.
In my forties i fondly remember those years and still think the album '' Never Mind The B*ll*cks'' is still one of the greatest rock albums ever, and yes i still have a copy. It still makes me smile when i play it now and again. I still like the slightly edgy music even now. Wether i would have liked the bloke if i met him i am not sure about, but we always need people like him to give the institution a kick up the 'bottom' now and again.
No matter what anyones opinion is about the Punk era, everyone must consider it important and a reflection of the decade when it started. I consider it a spring clean of the music scene at the time and gave disenchanted youth of the seventies a voice, fed up with the politics and 15 min prog rock solo's. Don't think the Seventies was a great decade otherwise, things were getting pretty bad by the end. It gave the teenager a chance to pick up an instrument and express themselves in a 2 or 3 min song, when otherwise they would have bottled it all up.
Wether Malcom Mclaeran actually invented Punk Rock is debatable, Iggy Pop and the Stooges for one example comes to mind. But he definitley gave it the British Edge and it kick started some great bands including The Clash, The Damned and Souxsie & Banshees to name a few. Don't forget the fashion either, with Vivien Westwood of course. Mohicans in London were a much photographed subject for visitors.
Anyway, RIP Malcom and thankyou for the great music and memories. ( actually not sure if RIP is appropiate for him
)
Craig.