John Lydon on the “guy glue” baguette fiasco: The most despicable sandwich a punk ever served
The word punk is used frequently in the modern age of music. People refer to themselves as punk or post-punk and then talk about artists being punk, having a punk mentality, and being punk before punk was ever a thing, to the point that the definition has become convoluted in popular culture, and it’s hard to officially pin down what it means.
Billie Joe Armstrong put it well when he said, “A guy walks up to me and asks, ‘What’s punk?’. So I kick over a garbage can and say, ‘That’s punk!’. So he kicks over a garbage can and says, ‘That’s punk?’ and I say, ‘No, that’s trendy’.”
John Lydon said something similar, stating that he pioneered the movement, and those who came after him were essentially jumping on a bang wagon. He states Britain was “A very depressing place… There was trash on the streets, total unemployment – just about everybody was on strike, if you came from the wrong side of the tracks, then you had no hope in hell and no career prospects at all,” he said, “Out of that came the Sex Pistols and then a whole bunch of copycat wankers after us.”
Despite how difficult it might be to pin down what punk is or what the actions of a punk might be, one of the basics is to be willing to shock everyone. Few punks are seen as such without an unexplainable act of rebellion attached to them. When it came to the Sex Pistols, they shocked people with how openly they spoke about their disdain towards the police, parliament and the monarchy — taking down British culture in a patriotic country as enough to drop monocles and enrage the public. This notable negativity towards the establishment has become a staple in punk ever since their first single was released.
The band’s shocking element didn’t start and stop at the music they made, either. Partly thanks to manager Malcolm McLaren’s keen eye for mass marketing, their on-tape attitude trickled down into how the band acted with one another, other people, and especially with audiences. If they weren’t spitting at their fans, they were always keen on throwing chairs and amps, getting into fights, and generally causing chaos.
Stunts or acts of apparent indecency were par for the course. Sometimes, this looked rebellious; other times, it was downright disgusting. One of the best examples was the “guy glue” baguette.
“I didn’t do it, I merely reported! And what does it matter to you?” John Lydon was relatively defensive when asked about the incident, which allegedly involved somebody masturbating into a sandwich and then serving it to the Sex Pistols bassist, Glen Matlock. “Have you no life of your own, or are you looking for a certain sandwich yourself?” he asked.
Lydon continued to talk about the incident, “Look, you’ve got to bear in mind that at that time, we were all starving, and any protein was good enough. So, I reckon Glen got off well. He got something rare and special. But this sounds like pangs of jealousy from him here, doesn’t it? Go see Glen. See if he’s got any left.”
Punk will continue to be an elusive beast, especially as people continue to persistently use the term to describe things that seem completely different from one another. However, nothing will ever be as punk as those who pioneered it, for better or for worse, as Glen Matlock would likely attest.
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