The Greatest Rock N' Roll Swindle

RIP Malcolm McLaren

22/01/1946 - 8/4/2010

“I am an antichrist, I am an anarchist
Don’t know what I want but I know how to get it
I wanna destroy the passer by”

- Anarchy in The UK, The Sex Pistols

My impressions of Malcolm McLaren are mostly based on The Great Rock n Roll Swindle- a badly executed mockumentary released in 1980 that chronicles the rise to fame of a little band he managed. You may have heard of them, I think they were called The Sex Pistols or something? I discovered The Great Rock N Roll Swindle on VHS crammed into a bookshelf at home when I was going through my punk phase. If you never went through a punk phase growing up, you probably don’t have a soul. I don’t remember much of the film given it made little to no sense but I do remember Malcolm sitting naked in a bath tub with his penis bobbing in the water while he discussed the success of The Sex Pistols and his skills as a marketing aficionado. It was the birth of a hero in my 15 year old mind. I loved how his take on the band’s success and the mockery he made of an increasingly over the top music industry were simply a by-product of his goal to "make a million pounds". It was like learning about one of those horrifically rare, albiet electrifying, moments in history when the secrets of the bourgeois fell into the hands of the proletariats and a whole lot of “shit hit the fan” ensued.

The Sex Pistols' early shows and their raw chaotic style are referenced in interviews as an irrefutable turning point by pretty much every punk band to come out of London in that era. Malcolm McLaren helped orchestrate this style which every rock genre to followed has struggled to escape the influence of in some way or another. I’ll agree it’s debatable how much credit he can be afforded for it, but it’s undeniable that a large portion has his name tattooed all over it.

The godfather of punk, Malcolm stole Vivienne Westwood from a ho hum marriage and life as a school teacher, throwing her into the swells of fashion in their boutique store, Sex. He managed The New York Dolls amongst others, he created (depending on who’s side you believe) and managed The Sex Pistols, he had his own brief solo career in the early 80’s and continued to be an influential figure in London’s music scene till his death. Though Malcolm is not as well known as many of the artists he was involved with, his influence has been further reaching then the lot of them combined. A rebel, a businessman, an artist and a punk rocker till the very end, his last words are reported to have been “Free Leonard Peltier” (an unfairly incarcerated member of the American Indian Movement).

Malcolm McLaren’s untimely death last Thursday at the age of 64 after his battle with cancer signifies a tragic loss to pop culture. He will be sorely missed and immortalised as a hero in the minds of so many.