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Anger Is an Energy: My Life Uncensored Paperback – February 23, 2016
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From the legendary frontman of the Sex Pistols, comes the complete, unvarnished story of his life in his own words.
John Lydon is an icon—one of the most recognizable and influential cultural figures of the last forty years. As Johnny Rotten, he was the lead singer of the Sex Pistols-the world’s most notorious band. The Pistols shot to fame in the mid-1970s with songs such as “Anarchy in the UK” and “God Save the Queen.” So incendiary was their impact at the time that in their native England, the Houses of Parliament questioned whether they violated the Traitors and Treasons Act, a crime that carries the death penalty to this day. The Pistols would inspire the formation of numerous other groundbreaking groups and Lydon would become the unlikely champion of a generation clamoring for change.
Following on the heels of the Pistols, Lydon formed Public Image Ltd (PiL), expressing an equally urgent impulse in his character: the constant need to reinvent himself, to keep moving. From their beginnings in 1978 PiL set the groundbreaking template for a band that continues to challenge and thrive to this day, while also recording one of the eighties most powerful anthems, “Rise.” Lydon also found time for making innovative dance records with the likes of Afrika Bambaataa and Leftfield. By the nineties he’d broadened his reach into other media while always maintaining his trademark invective and wit, most memorably hosting Rotten TV on VH1.
John Lydon remains a captivating and dynamic figure to this day—both as a musician, and, thanks to his outspoken, controversial, and from-the-hip opinions, as a cultural commentator. In Anger is an Energy, he looks back on a life full of incident, from his beginnings as a sickly child of immigrant Irish parents growing up in post-war London to his present status as a vibrant, alternative hero.
The book includes 70 black-and-white and color photos, many which are rare or never-before-seen.
- Print length544 pages
- LanguageEnglish
- PublisherDey Street Books
- Publication dateFebruary 23, 2016
- Dimensions5.31 x 1.28 x 8 inches
- ISBN-100062400231
- ISBN-13978-0062400239
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Editorial Reviews
Review
“Lydon is an unabashed grammatical scofflaw who can deploy an earthy colloquialism with the best of them. Anger Is an Energy is packed with this brand of vivid storytelling.” — San Francisco Gate
“Establishes that there’s much more to the person than the public persona.” — Paste
“A hilarious and at times touching account.” — Rolling Stone
“Vintage Johnny Rotten.” — Daily News
“A dishy chronicle.” — Details
“Lydon is at his best when writing about his family - his parents were working-class Irish immigrants - and . . . quite moving in his account of Vicious.” — Los Angeles Times
“Features plenty of morbidly fascinating tidbits from one of England’s least likely national treasures.” — RollingStone.com
“One of the most important figures in punk history.” — Gothamist
“A companion to Lydon’s 1994 memoir, Rotten. His life is rich enough to warrant another . . . and he’s a gifted enough writer to make it a fun read.” — Billboard
“It is clear that, though fond of zingers and political put-downs, Lydon is also a serious and thoughtful artist, bookish and unafraid of hard work, and thus serving as a model citizen in a more ideal republic than ours . . . A lucid, literate pleasure.” — Kirkus Reviews (starred review)
“Coarse, plain-speaking and mischievous, pitched somewhere between Dennis the Menace and Diogenes the Cynic.” — Financial Times
“Ridiculously entertaining . . . His tales of a near-Dickensian life in Sixties working-class London suggest how an inchoate rebel found his purpose in punk.” — Telegraph
“Fascinating . . . both elegant and blunt.” — The Guardian
“Fills in the gaps that his previous autobiography, ROTTEN left wide open, notably his pre-Sex Pistols days, while also going over old ground with a fully-toothed rake . . . fascinating.” — Irish Times
“John Joseph Lydon’s new autobiography isn’t just about his incarnation as Johnny Rotten, but his upbringing, youth and, later, Public Image Limited and further intrigues. His passion and his intellect remain an inspiration.” — NME
“A ripe, breathless romp through an extraordinary life . . . But this is a serious book too, about how poverty and illness can create pain that can be turned into something positive, presenting a man keen to fill out the nihilistic cartoon that has persisted in pop culture.” — The Observer
“An accurate reflection of the man it seeks to portray: unique, uncompromising, and . . . fascinating.” — Mail on Sunday
“The book is most fascinating about his childhood. I was gripped.” — The Times (London)
“Rollicking [and] rambunctious.” — Irish Examiner
“Both thoughtful and irascible . . . Throughout, Lydon’s skills as a storyteller are in evidence. [He] brings a humour to his recollections and is at pains not to take himself, or the music business, too seriously.” — Irish Independent
“A great autobiography, if you enjoyed Rotten, then you’ll enjoy this too . . . Lydon is always engaging, challenging and entertaining.” — The Register (UK)
From the Back Cover
From the legendary front man of the Sex Pistols and Public Image Ltd comes the complete, unvarnished story of his life in his own words
“Vintage Johnny Rotten.”—Daily News (New York)
“Packed with . . . vivid storytelling.”—San Francisco Gate
“A dishy chronicle.”—Details
“Ridiculously entertaining.”—The Telegraph (UK; four stars)
“A ripe, breathless romp through an extraordinary life.”—The Observer (UK)
“A companion to Lydon’s 1994 memoir, Rotten. His life is rich enough to warrant another . . . and he’s a gifted enough writer to make it a fun read.”—Billboard
“Establishes that there’s much more to the person than the public persona.”—Paste
“Lydon is at his best when writing about his family . . . and . . . [is] quite moving
in his account of Vicious.”—Los Angeles Times
“His passion and his intellect remain an inspiration.”—NME
“Unique, uncompromising, and . . . fascinating.”—Mail on Sunday (UK)
“A lucid, literate pleasure.”—Kirkus Reviews (starred review)
About the Author
John Lydon changed the game in popular music, first wreaking political chaos upon starchy mid-’70s Britain with the Sex Pistols, then shape-shifting with Public Image Ltd as a free experimentalist. He lives in Los Angeles, California.
Product details
- Publisher : Dey Street Books; Reprint edition (February 23, 2016)
- Language : English
- Paperback : 544 pages
- ISBN-10 : 0062400231
- ISBN-13 : 978-0062400239
- Item Weight : 1.02 pounds
- Dimensions : 5.31 x 1.28 x 8 inches
- Best Sellers Rank: #391,849 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #117 in Punk Music (Books)
- #1,114 in Rock Band Biographies
- #1,228 in Rock Music (Books)
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Well, where should I start? I totally love `Anger is an Energy', much more than `No Irish, No Blacks, No Dogs'. It is less aggressive and very positive in a way. However, if you are hunting after juicy details and scandals, this book is obviously not for you. Mr. Lydon is quite decent in these regards and does not mention many names or private stuff. This book is more about emotions, ideas and trends in a man's life, memories and deeds re-thought and re-analyzed.
Now I don't think that everything in this book is 100 % accurate and it should be regarded as gospel of any sort. No, it could not possibly be so - a guy is talking about his life, it should be subjective and biased. The ghost writer - Andrew Perry - is Lydon's fan all right, so I don't think he interrupted or opposed Mr. Lydon's speech much.
Yet `Anger is an Energy' is full of amazing vibe. I generally enjoy an interesting plot and whatever else, Lydon definitely had / has an eventful life. He talks of himself and unveils his story in a very appealing, humorous and acid way - even if the described story is quite grim.
The main character - with bits and tats from real Mr. Lydon, I hope - is hilarious. He really has a rough start, but his relentless energy, audacity and people around him are such great fun. His life is actually very rich - with events, people, ideas, music, pain, gain, evil and good luck, death of the loved ones and near-death experience. The variety and differences are rather colorful. And these colors are not much smudged by drug haze which is a great thing for a reader.
"We were often portrayed as speed-crazed maniacs onstage, but that was far from the reality. The other three weren't `up there' at all. Regardless of Steve joining AA years later, he's never been big on anything, barely a pinch of salt by equivalent. And me, I stopped. I wasn't going to become too infected with drug pleasures, because I really wanted to conquer the opportunity. Also, you can't be singing on any kind of upper, forget it, ain't gonna work, with your heartbeat racing..."
The guy there is not lucky at all. Everything he touches turns out to be a problem or at least an issue. Yet his sentiments are quite understandable and his ideas reflect some individuality. He is not preaching any ideology or offer universal pill of happiness, but in the end this book is a praise to being what you are and doing what you - and only you - think is right, no, what you feel is right for you. Then everything is easy:
"When we went back to the shop and I sang to Alice Cooper's "Eighteen" and various other records off the jukebox, I really wanted it. I was up for it. I instantly had the mannerisms, the characterizations of the words. That I could do, I just couldn't sing. A minor thing..."
And yes, I am quite biased, because I really, really loved this guy, main character - and I don't care if he is a fiction or reality. He has charisma and bravery - in very nontraditional and somehow uncomfortable way. He takes the risk to be beaten up just because of weird clothes and color of his hair. Now, that is a strange cause to die for.
"So, there I was in mid-Hackney at 3 a.m., and I had to run the gang gauntlet to get back to Finsbury Park. That was a death walk, a serious death walk, particularly how I was dressing and how I was. I gave a toss for no one. I knew it was coming. Even local Arsenal boys, they'd still have a reason to row with me, just because of my attitude and I - don't - back - down."
It is hard to resist such approach to life and some funny quirks of character put out with utmost style and force. However, if you do not like lunatics, you obviously will never like the book. It is a story of a crazy human being, very determined, straightforward, stubborn, witty and maddeningly irritating. All his friends and people who matter in his life are also quite lunatic. Even his enemies and people who harm him - they are far away from being normal. The book is full of mad, mad world and uncompromising ideas, violence, twisted but powerful energy while at the same time offering positive and optimistic approach to all of these. I was literally roaring with laughter while reading through Mountjoy prison experience:
"On my arrival, the warders decided to make an example of me. They stripped me, threw me into the yard and hosed me down. But you know, you can strip me, cover me in flea powder and laugh at the size of my penis, it doesn't matter. It - does - no - matter. Over the years I've noticed that when these institutions get hold of you, the one thing they're trying to embarrass you about is your nakedness, and your penis. Let me tell you, Johnny's got a perfect penis to laugh at, and he don't care. That's not ever going to be a problem."
Admittedly, after reading Lydon's biographies, I tried to listen to his music. I still don't like it - just a couple of songs from Sex Pistols and 4-5 from PiL, but whether I am influenced by his books or not, after listening to his bands, I actually understood why he is considered influential by some.
What I did not like about the book - well, the detailed description of bands and songs the main character is listening to. I love music as well, but reading about music is not very captivating for me. Sometimes it was hard for me to understand the language - well, English is my third language, so all the manipulations, somewhat unconventional wording and slang, which I could not possibly look up in a dictionary - these were a challenge for me. In a way these add up to the flavor of the book, but it was hard for me to unveil the idea behind some paragraphs - and it took some time and consideration.
I suppose some will find Lydon's words offensive - even when describing his friends (Sid Vicious, for example) or discussing some of the popular groups, but I don't mind his subjective opinions (although I am a fan of the majority of the music bands he so passionately criticizes, like Rolling Stones, Nirvana, to name a few). He also seems contradicting himself a lot, although I attribute the discrepancies to his sense of humor and irresistible urge to disturb the audience. Eventually, he forces the reader to take everything with a grain of salt and have a good laugh. I think Lydon sums that all up very well:
"I'm not deliberately out to antagonize an audience or spite them or anything like that, but if they adopt the attitude of `This isn't what we expected', then yippee, I'm gonna wallow in that, because you shouldn't sit back and expect anything at all. You can make the choice to like it or not like it, but if you're going to hate it because it doesn't sound like the previous album, you're not a John Lydon follower at all. You don't understand me. I don't follow myself so please - don't - follow - me."
All in all, the book turned out to be one of my favorites. I have not enjoyed reading literature for quite a while, so thank you, Mr. Lydon, I had quite a time. I will definitely recommend this book to anybody - either interested in music or not, it is captivating and rich, much better than most of modern fiction.
What we get from this great book, told by Lydon, is a personal and many times touching life history, with candor, honesty and views on the world that reveal a very compassionate peace loving and loving person behind the sneer he made famous. Lydon is also very intelligent, and his world view is admirable. He detests racism, nationalism, and other "-isms" that blind humanity and make it impossible to ever behave as true equals, no power mongers and others who use religion and politics to impose their agendas for self-gratification and money.
He touches on everything, his boyhood in a very poor section of north London, the Pistols and his relationships to that time in his young life, and on as the leader of Public Image, Ltd. Lydon is no one trick pony, either. We learn he deeply loves animals (hooray!) and has done television shows on various topics related to the animal kingdom. He also is a great lover of children, which I didn't quite expect. He states he is as happy as he can get playing with his grandkids from wife Nora's first marriage when they were young, building Lego structures, throwing birthday parties for neighborhood kids and playing their games with the same glee and delight as they do.
He also tells the reader that he had airline tickets for Pan Am flight 103, the horrible flight that was blown up in midair over Lockerbie, Scotland. His wife was running behind in the packing from mainland Europe, and they re-scheduled the flight for the next day. To say that near miss had a profound effect on him is a gross understatement.
The Sex Pistols would re-unite for a much larger successful U.S. tour and some other stops around the world, but the personalities by that time according to Lydon were not conducive to trying to work together again. He has instead used PiL as his vehicle for all his musical projects, and has done quite well.
"Anger Is An Energy" is a book that makes me greatly admire this man for his honesty and genuine desire to love his fellow man and fight for the good fight without resorting to violence, something he deeply abhors. It is not common to find musicians and entertainers these days to share so openly their stories and be erudite and sensible at the same time. Lydon was perhaps the most famous punk rocker of all, but as this book reveals, he is much much more.
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(2 more words are required.....hmmmm, must think. Think. Think. Think! It's raining outside.....
I haven't read Lydon's first autobiography, which sounds great (he writes/talks brilliantly and evocatively about his childhood and family) but the later stuff is mostly point-scoring and bitching. This is fine when the subject is something as interesting as his Sex Pistol or even PiL days, but it becomes dull when he's on about his nature documentaries and I'm A Celebrity, Get Me Out of Here!
Besonderes interessant sind dabei die Hintergründe der Entstehung einiger Lieder und Hinweise auf die damit verbundenen Thematiken.
Natürlich sind solide Englischkenntnisse hilfreich für die Lektüre, aber die Sprache ist zumeist einfach gehalten. Der working class Jargon beinhaltet zwar auch einige Vokabeln, die ohnehin in keinem Wörterbuch zu finden sind, doch der Kontext macht die Bedeutung ziemlich klar. So entgehen einem als nicht englischer Muttersprachler vielleicht ein paar sprachliche Nuancen, aber die grundsätzliche Aussage ist gut verständlich.
Mir hat das Buch viel Spaß gemacht und den Mensch John Lydon etwas näher gebracht.