"No Elvis, Beatles or Rolling Stones in 1977"

Did Punk Rock Really Start in 1977?

If you ever go to any punk rock show, especially if you are 16 or under, you will either see or hear loads of references to '77. People often talk about that legendary summer in 1977 when punk rock was seemingly invented out of nowhere. When asked many people will tell you that it was better back then. Well this little rant is to prove that not only was 1977 not start of the 1st wave of punk but more like the end. The style was said to be created by a bunch of young kids from all over New York City playing at a dingy former bluegrass and blues bar named CBGB's(Country Blue Grass Blues). The bands that are considered integral to that movement were Blondie, Talking Heads, The Ramones and The Dead Boys.

I think that if you had to argue for a beginning point for punk rock I would say 1975 would be more apt. Many of the bands that get lumped in with the initial "CBGB" movement of punk, although many bands didn't know what the hell punk was or hated the term, all formed well before 1977. The Ramones formed in 1974 and really got going in 1975. The same can be said about The Talking Heads, Blondie, The Dead Boys and many others. Television started all the way back in 1973. 1977 often gets the credit as the year punk exploded out of nowhere due the mostunpunk of reasons, all the bands signed to major labels and dropped their debut albums. The Dead Boys released "Young, Loud and Snotty" in 1977 on Sire Records. The Ramones dropped their classic trilogy of albums(Self Titled, Leave Home and Rocket To Russia) before or right after the legendary summer of 77. Blondie had their debut out in the middle of 1976.

In fact according to several scenesters 1977 was the death rattle of the original CBGB's scene. Legs McNeil, founder of Punk Magazine, said "There was no real scene at CBGB's all of the bands were signed to major labels and touring outside of the city" It seemed everyone had been signed by Seymour Stein's Sire Records and was out on the road. Even the mighty Television was off in England where their classic debut, Marquee Moon, hit top 30 in the UK.

Also, another important note in 1977 proto punk bands split like The New York Dolls, although only Sly Slyvain and David Johansen remained with the band. Many of the former Dolls formed the Heartbreakers with Richard Hell and went off to England. The Stooges had been done since at least 1973 or 74 after they got dropped from Columbia records. So where was the punk rock in really in 1977? Over in England that's where.

The only way that you could argue for 1977's importance is due to the music being released in the UK. Many of the UK's leading punk bands had also formed before 1977: Sex Pistols(1975), The Clash(1976), The Damned(1976), The Adverts(1976), Generation X(1976), Sham 69(1976) Buzzcocks(1976). There is a reason that you see so many of these bands formed in 1976-The Ramones. The Ramones toured through England in late '76 with all girl punk's The Runaways(featuring a very young Joan Jett and Lita Ford). Their most legendary show was at The Roundhouse. Everyone was said to have been there, although there were only a couple of hundred tickets sold. This was the debut of punk or loud fast rock and roll on British shores and they fell for it instantly. Some groups formed their bands directly after the show or were so inspired by the perfromance that they now had the guts to take the stage for the first time. Legend has it Paul Siminon spoke to Johnny Ramone about what it was like to be in a touring band. They had a conversation about it which ultimately led Siminon to mention that he had a band(The Clash) but were not good enough yet to be live. Johnny shot back, "It doesn't matter if you are good. Look at us, we stink". The Clash would latter turn into one of the biggest alternative rock bands on the planet with several hit songs and albums and influence that is still being felt today. In fact Johnny Ramone said later on, "We all knew that The Ramones were the best live band around. The only band we were really scared of was The Clash. They were great"

Many of key bands released their debut albums in '77: The Clash, The Sex Pistols, The Damned . Punk really received a push due to the outrageous fashion choices of fans, which were being guided by the evil ring master and Sex Pistols manager Malcolm McLauren. Punk rock looked different in England, although the basic punk rock look was ripped off ex-Television/Heartbreakers Bassist and New Yorker Richard Hell. Hell was seen by McLauren during his short tenure as The New York Dolls manager. He saw Hell's get up which was ripped clothing complete with safety pins to keep them together and brought it back to England with him. Now with some aggressive clothing punk rockers seemed less like the bunch of drunks, stoners and bored kids they were in New York and more like a gang. Many of the kids dressed in bizarre clothing including masks, ripped up pants and jackets and swastika patches (which later on led The Clash to never play with The Pistols again after Jewish member Mick Jones saw Johnny Rotten wear one). Note that many punk rockers wore the patches as a way to be aggressive and stand out and not as an affiliation with the Nazi party, although that would show it's ugly head a little bit down the line. Now it's important to note that many of the bands at the time did not encourage or dress like their fans. Many legendary punk musicians came out against the established "punk rock" look. Clash Bassist Paul Siminon said, "Kids would show up with bin liner(trash bags to us Americans) for clothing, chains and what they thought was the punk rock look. Well, if you take a look at the groups none of them dressed like that" Sex Pistols frontman Johnny(Lydon) Rotten said, "The fans killed punk rock. They took something that was supposed to be about being an individual and twisted it into a uniform"

The only place that punk rock could really be played in London, especially in the early days, was at the legendary Roxy. The Roxy opened up in July of 1976 and closed a meer 100 days later. So really british punk or the first wave of at it least died out around 1977. By 1977 some of the biggest bands in the scene were signed to labels and were on tour and really couldn't contribute much to the scene around them anymore very much like their American counterparts.

Also, helping the British punks receive press on both sides of the Atlantic, were the legendary "Blank number ones". The British press was so afraid by punk rock that when The Sex Pistols record, "Nevermind The Bullocks, Here is The Sex Pistols" went number one it was not listed on the billboard charts. The same went for bands like The Clash who despite playing outsider music sold rather well. The reason for all of this fear of punk dealt with more than just fashion. The Sex Pistols had made an explosive and legendary appearance on Bill Grundy's show, which my UK friends tell me was on the scale of Johnny Carson's Tonight Show, in which they cursed him and gave him the finger. Depending on who you ask The Sex Pistols were not entirely to blame for their rowdy performance. For one the green room was filled with booze which most of the entourage(includingSiouxsie Sioux) and band downed with zeal. Also, it seems that the Pistols were goaded into saying something vulgar. When asked a question Rotten cursed, albeit quietly, under his breath and when asked what he had just said, Rotten responded with "nothing just something rude" And that was that. Steve Jones also cursed under his breath when asked what had happened to the money they had just gotten by signing a record deal. Jones said "Wefuckin spent it" Later on in the interview Jones was asked by Grundy to say "something outrageous " and Jones did calling Grundy several names. Damned Bassist/Guitarist Captain Sensible has said, "Anyone could have gotten on there and cursed of Grundy. JoeStrummer could have done it and I could have to" The reaction right after the interview was instant. Legend has it many people broke theirtelevisions because of it. The following day the press ran an article calling the pistols performance "The Filith and The Fury" and "Filthy Lucre" which has it's roots in a bible passage and basically means dirty money. This was used to refer to the deal they had just signed withEMI. The bad press almost completely killed the Anarchy Tour, which had The Sex Pistols, The Heartbreakers and The Clash. The tour was schedule for 35 dates but with the press backlash several venues canceled the dates until they only played a total of 5.

With no dates in England the Pistols headed to America. The press in the states was all over them before they even touched down. Their fame hadpreceded them and several of their concerts were canceled. The ended up playing some well received shows all before breaking up after a show at The Winterland in January of 1978.


The amount of press raised the level of awareness from the general public from very little to high profile all taking place in 1977. That was many people get the idea that punk started in 1977 because that's when the world learned about it. You, the true fans, know that this isn't true. Hopefully you were there. Hopefully you bought the records or saw the shows. I know I didn't but I would have loved to. Sure, there was punk music after 1977 and it would thrive again but the point I am trying to make is that 1977 was a year that punk rock was merely discovered by the public and not invented. Looking back at the history people should look on the year or two before a little more longingly. All of the band's tied to the first wave of punk rock especially in New York, were pretty much gone starting in that year. There was no scene at CBGB's anymore. These bands went on tour spreading the message and changing lives outside of New York at around that time. So that is why so many people have fond members of 77. That was the first time they saw The Talking Heads, The Ramones, Dead Boys and listen to their records for the first time. So it is all as if it seemingly came out of nowhere. Anyways, I hoped that rant proved informative. This is simply myopinion. If you disagree that's just fine. Post a message and we will have it out. If you have anymore questions about this topic feel free to ask or consult some of my favorite works on the subject.

DVD: Punk: Attitude
The Filth and The Fury
End Of The Century

Books: We've Got The Neutron Bomb


All of which you can grab from Amazon.com

The title as listed "No Elvis, Beatles or Rolling Stones in 1977" is a line from The Clash song, "1977". The Clash were right on in this statement. The Beatles had broken up in 1970, so no threat there. Elvis had actually died that very year, so 2 for 2. And lastly, although The Rolling Stones were together, the band would not issue a studio album for the year of 1977, a feat they had accomplished for over a deacde(1964-1976). Also, for what it's worth, "1977" was the b-side to the first Clash single, "White Riot".