http://billboard.com/bbcom/news/article ... 1002074761

The Sex Pistols have opted not to attend their induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, which will take place March 13 at New York's Waldorf Astoria Hotel. "We're not coming. We're not your monkeys," reads a handwritten statement filled with spelling mistakes posted on the infamous punk band's Web site.

"Next to the Sex Pistols, rock and roll and that hall of fame is a p*** stain," the statement says. "If you voted for us, hope you noted your reasons. You're anonymous as judges, but you're still music industry people. We're not coming. You're not paying attention."

The Sex Pistols last toured in 2003, having earlier reformed in 1996 for the first time since their original 1978 split. In a 2003 interview with Billboard.com, frontman Johnny Rotten referred to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as "the rock and roll hall of shame," and proudly proclaimed the group would never write another new song. "We only needed to make one album to absolutely define how the world is," he said.

"Quite frankly, I think it's a miracle that we're still alive, and that's historical in itself," he continued. "We fought this industry tooth and nail non-stop for 25 solid years, and we're still here. Hello? They can't get rid of us. And there's a reason for that. It's truth. You can't hide truth. You can manipulate it. You can slag us or put us down, but you'd be wrong. I've not put a word out wrong, not ever."

http://www.thefilthandthefury.co.uk/
(the whole note)


to be honest, i'm surprised its taken this long for a band to tell the hall of fame to stick it. i mean, bands like black sabbath have been like, fuck you i can't believe we're not in, but nobody has ever said "we don't want it" before, i don't think. anyway, i'm glad its sex pistols. i wouldn't want it any other way.

neither would sid

Johnny Rotten is such an arrogant bastard. That being said thats part of what makes him cool.

good for them, but in what sense did they fight the music industry tooth and nail for 25 years? i'd say the music industry was pretty good to them.

Nice to see they're still staying "in character".

My opinion of them just went up a notch.

yeah guy, you made one record.....

do it again....

You're joking, right?

I view the HOF as being more irrelevant than something anyone needs to take the piss out of. Looking over the list of members its for the most part better than I might have expected but the ceremonies themselves are awful. I'm glad the Pistols are in. I do actually consider it to be at least somewhat of an honor (and a deserved one) but at the same time it would have been horribly inappropriate for them to be on stage playing God Save the Queen with guys like John Cougar Mellencamp trying to sing along.

The fact that the Sex Pistols are getting inducted and The New York Dolls have not yet been acknowledged is reason enough for Rotten et al. not to show up.

so. awesome.

not at all...i think johnny lydon is a dick. he runs around declaring what is punk and what isnt. i cant think of anything less punk than him handing down edicts of what is punk like he is some kind of dirty pope.

they were all attitude. fucking sid vicious couldnt even play his intrument and im supposed to listen to some guy that made 1 good album?

He made more than one good album.

since im blaspheming the godfather of punk, i'll just go all out...no one would have given PIL a second look if it werent for the sex pistols' notoriety and some guy that USED to be in the clash....

hes gone from bitter to bitter old man....

Verdict: Talking shite.

My thoughts, exactly. How much you wanna bet they show up and crash the stage during another inducted band's performance? Scandalous!

Your comment about how no one might have given PiL a second look if it weren't for the pistols is, in all probability, completely true. That being said, PiL has some great moments over quite a few albums. Have you heard their entire output? He's obviously talented and if notoriety with his former band got him a record deal and press, more power to him. He had a leg up that a lot didn't.

Regarding his statements about the R&R Hall of Fame? I find them more puzzling than annoying because I don't know what the hell he's talking about.

This just reeks of trying too hard.


But... but... we're so punk! Look! We're not coming to your award ceremony! Because... because... um... we're not... um... we're not... your monkeys? Yeah! We're not your monkeys! Hello? They can't get rid of us.

Dude, they're inducting you into the rock and roll hall of fame. They're not trying to get rid of you. It's an honor.

Bollocks, dude. Fuck the establishment! Fuck the man! Punk rock! I have tattoos! Look at my hair!! It's crazy!!!

<----raises hand to ask question:

So Johnny Lydon can make remarks about everything he doesnt deem worthy as shite no matter how rediculous he sounds, but calling his output shite in the same manner as he does others doesn't fly? damn double standards....i didnt think punk was that hypocritical...

Who's not paying attention?

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Johnny is his own marketing machine and he's very good at it and you can't take everything he says seriously. He doesn't expect or want everyone to like him or his music. He's opinionated for sure but I don't think I've ever heard anything to make me suspect he thinks he speaks for punk rock or that anyone could. He's often pointed out how rediculous it is how lots of grass roots punkers adopted his style of dress as a punk uniform saying that they missed the whole point -- that punk was about expressing your individuality and not being sheep.

You've made your mind up that you don't like him...fine. but don't try to speak for the rest of us. Never Mind the Bollock's is a great f'n album. And with regard to Sid not being able to play, he didn't even play on it. Sid was a coattailer who only is as famous as he is because of all his personal problems. PIL has many great songs and I disagree completely that no one would have paid attention to them. There's plenty of people who don't like the pistols much that do like PIL.

Keith Levene and Jah Wobble get PiL noticed if Lydon does not. You're diatribe limited him to one album, good or not, hence my request for clarification--it certainly implied that you suffer from ignorance of a high degree.