The Boy Looked at Johnny: The Obituary of Rock and Roll

by Julie Burchill, Tony Parsons, Lenny Kaye (Introduction)

Book by Julie Burchill, Tony Parsons

Genres: Music, Nonfiction, Punk, British Literature

95 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1978

About the author

Julie Burchill is an English writer and columnist known for her provocative comments. Beginning as a writer for the New Musical Express at the age of 17, she has written for newspapers such as The Sunday Times and The Guardian. She is a self-declared "militant feminist". She has several times been involved in legal action resulting from her work. She is also an author and novelist, her 1989 novel Ambition being a bestseller, and her 2004 novel Sugar Rush being adapted for television.

Reviews

[Michael · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the ultimate rock criticism book: something in it will offend everyone with any opinion about any rock, past or present. It is intended, apparently to be the “obituary” that follows on the Sex Pistols’ promise to “destroy rock n roll.” The Pistols play a prominent role in it (the second and third chapters are titled “ Sex” and “Pistols”), but unlike most punk bios, it is far from a hagiographical account. The authors certainly don’t like Malcolm McLaren, or for that matter any of the Pistols individually (except, perhaps, grudgingly Johnny Rotten), but they aren’t entirely above celebrating them collectively. Other founding punk bands (notably the Clash, the Ramones, the Damned, and the Jam) are far less ambiguously trashed. In fact, pretty much the only bands the authors have anything nice to say about are X-Ray Spex and the Tom Robinson Band. It’s safe to say that no one today will agree 100% with their opinions (although I like X-Ray Spex and TRB, myself). Probably no one ever did, and I’m not even sure that both authors completely agreed on any of the opinions expressed in the book, either (they married and were divorced a few years after the original publication of the book).

But, if you listen to rock, especially punk rock, in order to be challenged rather than validated, and you read rock criticism to have your opinions about rock challenged rather than validated, there is much pleasure to be found in this slender volume. Burchill & Parson’s style is snarky on a level that would put bloggers and twitters to shame, and their command of English excels the level to be found on even the most clever and educated online sources. Their humor (or humour) is brilliant, and probably over the heads of most readers today. Who, for example, would catch all the references in this line: “The Great British Punk Sex Symbol (sing if you’re glad to be it, Gaye) aside, the only UK girls left are the Rezillo’s Fay Fife and Penetration’s Pauline Noname – who are both so well-integrated into their respective bands that their sex seems superfluous.”

OK, it’s a little unfair to expect kids today to be familiar with has-beens, one-hit-wonders, and never-rans from their grandparents’ generation, but for those with an interest, this is an excellent way to learn what 1977 meant to people who lived and witnessed it at the time. Burchill and Parsons were writers for the New Musical Express, which was something of a cutting-edge rock magazine at the time, and their opinions were heard (and probably hated) by the generation they criticized. If you hate punk, this may still be a great weapon to use the next time that self-righteous hipster with the balding mohawk tries to get uppity. Well worth the read, love it or hate it.

[Kurt · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is obnoxious and off-puting, but it's a hilarious slice of life. The writers pull no punches in pursuing their self appointed cause; to skewer, pillory, debunk, debase and generally pull the rug out from under nearly every rock star or punk rock luminary they can think of. There are a few who escape their ire, but the real meat of the book is just slicing through all of these folks like a hot knife through wax. Of course it reads like kids with nothing to lose wrote it, and that's true, but they're smart kids and they have a point (or points, really). Anyway, the book is mean spirited, but reading it all these years later, what was intended to piss people off just made me laugh in it's outrageousness. After all, since it was written in 1978, some of these folks had yet to make any lasting cultural impact (The Clash, The Jam) as their best work would be ahead of them. It's a quick read, and it was written on speed, so I guess that's appropriate. I recommend it for a quick good time. Just like Punk Rock.

[Andrew · Rating 1 out of 5]

Tiresome polemic; an attempt at "outrage" mostly consisting of calling people either "ugly" or "hippie". This woman was mildly notorious in the UK during the punk era for this schtick, which is equal parts schoolyard bully, Stalinist, and small-minded hatemonger.

[Jim Jones · Rating 4 out of 5]

If I had read this book when it came out in 1978, I would have thrown it across the room. The Boy Looked at Johnny is an evisceration of the punk movement by two music journalists who felt betrayed by punk’s wasted promises. It’s infuriating, funny and gets so much wrong (as the authors now agree). Who are the worst punk bands? According the Burchill and Parsons, The Damned and The Adverts seem beyond redemption. And yet history has shown that the Damned are the most consistent of punk bands and one of the only bands still going (and making good music!) from the class of ’77. The Adverts were probably the most poetic of the London bands, so why all the vitriol towards them? Puzzling. Did Gaye Advert tell Parsons to fuck off? The bitterness seems personal. The bands that are most praised are X-Ray-Spex (well they got that right!) and Tom Robinson Band (Please!). Still it’s a quick read and great overview of the whole punk movement with some classic put-downs (how punk!). If you want to know more about punk and want a good laugh, I would recommend it. This is at the complete opposite spectrum from Caroline Coon’s 1988, which was the best love letter to the movement ever written.

[Mike Watts · Rating 1 out of 5]

Just re-read this after many years. After trashing virtually every band around, they end the book by telling you that the best band in the world is The TOM ROBINSON BAND! Well, I can't think of an album that they made, I do remember '2468Motorway' and 'Glad to be Gay' singles - but the band were a sort of plodding, University-scarfed novelty band with accountants hairdos. Compared to The Damned, The Clash or The Buzzcocks, they lacked pop pizazz or dynamic excitement - bit dull and worthy. The book tries to be controversial, but ends up being predictable - they're just not up to the job... Nasty black & white photos - nasty black & white writing...

[Nicholas Beck · Rating 3 out of 5]

Julie Burchill and Tony Parsons enfants terribles of the NME. They apparently had a bunker surrounded by barbed wire in the IPC tower that the NME offices were located in. In comes Iggy Pop and they feed him laxatives under the guise of drugs supposedly that is! Hired by the NME to make the newspaper more contemporary and attractive to younger readers they succeeded in spades. This book is their cash-in where they gleefully trash every single punk band and artist they came into contact with at the time (approx 1976 to 1978). This is perhaps the greatest weakness of this (ironically so) punk expose, the endless criticism and poking of sacred cows becomes tiresome. Luckily it's short and gets out quickly.

Oddly many of the artists that Julie and Tony bury under loads of alliteration have stood the test of time at least musically while our Jules and Tony progressed to writing (not very good fiction).
Reading this 48 years too late, it was still kinda fun and the NME itself remained a staple of my life for 25 years.

[Eric · Rating 4 out of 5]

An over the top takedown of the hypocrisies of punk rock and its musical sub-genre associates of the 70's and 80's. The authors are scabrously insulting of everyone from Sid Vicious to Debbie Harry.

Its an entertaining read, even (or especially?) if you like the music, which I do.

Fun fact, the journalist authors, a couple of Brits, used to be married reporters at NME, and have curdled into right wing loons! What a world.

[Dennis · Rating 5 out of 5]

Attitude on amphetamine

[Andrew Mcdonald · Rating 4 out of 5]

Forgot how funny this was. Still well worth a read.

[Zack · Rating 4 out of 5]

I first heard about this one in Please Kill Me or Lipstick Traces, one of those. Another book about the inception of punk and how it crossed over to England and back. The narrative voice prides itself on unvarnished honesty and almost every figure mentioned takes a licking. In the introduction they say it was written entirely on speed, which might make it the most authentic document of those times. Just a guess.

[Daniel Azélie · Rating 5 out of 5]

At the time, nailed a definitive and premature coffin to punk-rock, and above all, "the indulgent "rock'n'roll lifestyle" media circus, as factory music for robot youth consumption. Reads like it's been written on a speed (as in amph. sulphate) binge, which it has, according to the hateful pair (ParChill). Beating all writings on the subject, especially all the Caroline Coons of the (media) universe, with rude and direct words, Burchill & Parsons hate the rich pop rock aristocracy, but they also and mercilessly look down on the punk puppets and not only their coteries, but the sheepish fans as well. Had you/we read it at the time, even before the dawning 1980, would have save you, me and everyone around your student friends a lengthy and foul hangover, getting you to worship the same survivors today, mistakingly dressed as rock bizz casualties. Still very sane (as pure alcohol on a deep & fresh open wound). Bigger amphetamine anthem even, than Metal Machine Music.

[Bill Ardis · Rating 3 out of 5]

Back in the day, I had friend who would get into some new band before anyone else, and tell us how great that band was. But once other people started listening to that band, he would dump all over that band. Parsons and Burchill go through the same motions, trying to show how much better they are because they were the first to hate these bands after liking them. While amusing at first, it does get old after a while. Buried within all this trashing of bands is some interesting history of the rise of punk. You just have to get past their constant dumping on almost every band of the period. And there are some targets that do deserve having the piss taken out of them (record companies, prof rock, etc.). An amusing read.

[Eve · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sex drugs and rock n roll, ripped apart and mocked by two journalists who saw punk happen. This book manages to insult practically every band formed throughout the 60s and 70s, with only a few exceptions, X-Ray Spex, the Tom Robinson band and (slightly) the Sex Pistols are spared from the sharp tongues of Burchill and Parsons. Instead of glorifying rock and roll, they shred the self indulgent cocaine-snorting stars to pieces. The rose tinted glasses are removed from punk too, stating, as is the truth, that although some good came of it, most of the bands sucked. Funny, rude and informative, well worth a read.

[christopher · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is probably the first book about punk to be published and it's probably the best book ever written about punk. This is a mean spirited, hilarious, and brutal take down of 60s and 70s rock history. I laughed out loud a lot. My favorite discription of was of the New York Dolls as "acne blitzed lepers addicted to heroin" or that the authors keep calling Handsome Dick Manatoba, "Ugly Dickhead Manilow". Joey Ramone is described as "one of mother nature's greatest mistakes". There is a laugh on every page. All the recently published academic histories of punk have nothing on this!

[Andrew Tattersall · Rating 4 out of 5]

What a great read, full of vituperation and two eighteen year olds who know how the world is and how everything apart from them is shit. The language is wonderful and it is a great reminder of a great time in music, if not in the world. Read it!

[JoHnny Haddo · Rating 3 out of 5]

every word rang true hahaHa ~