Public Image Ltd.
Background information
Also known as	PiL
Origin	London, England
Genre(s)	Post-punk (early records) Alternative dance (later records)
Years active	1978–1993 (indefinite hiatus)
Label(s)	Virgin Warner Bros. Elektra
Associated acts	The Sex Pistols The Damage Manual The Clash
Former members
John Lydon Jah Wobble Keith Levene Martin Atkins Allan Dias Richard Dudanski John McGeoch Jim Walker Bruce Smith

Public Image Ltd. (PiL) are an English rock band formed in 1978 by vocalist John Lydon (ex-Sex Pistols), ex-Clash guitarist Keith Levene, and bassist Jah Wobble. PiL are often regarded as one of the most challenging and innovative bands of the post-punk period. Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_England. ... This article is about the capital of England and the United Kingdom. ... Motto (French) God and my right Anthem No official anthem - the United Kingdom anthem God Save the Queen is commonly used England() – on the European continent() – in the United Kingdom() Capital (and largest city) London (de facto) Official languages English (de facto) Unified  -  by Athelstan 927 AD  Area  -  Total 130... This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... Post punk generally refers to the particularly fertile and creative period following the initial punk rock explosion. During the first wave of punk, roughly spanning 1976-1983, bands such as The Sex Pistols, The Clash, The Ramones and The Damned began to challenge the current styles and conventions of rock... Alternative dance (known primarily as indie dance in the United Kingdom) is a term used for the genre of music combining elements of dance-pop (or other forms of electronic dance music such as house or techno) and alternative rock genres such as indie pop. ... This does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... Virgin Records is a British recording label founded by British entrepreneur Richard Branson, and Nik Powell in 1972. ... Warner Bros. ... Elektra Records is an American record label owned by Warner Music Group, and today operates under Atlantic Records Group. ... The Sex Pistols in 1977. ... The Damage Manual is an industrial supergroup that originally formed in 2000. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... John Joseph Lydon (born January 31, 1956), also known as Johnny Rotten, is an English rock musician. ... Jah Wobble (born John Wardle, Stepney 1958) is an English bass guitarist, singer, poet and composer. ... Keith Levene (born Julian Keith Levene) (born July 18 1957, London) is an English guitarist and songwriter, best known as a member of Public Image Limited. ... The industrial drummer Martin Atkins was born in Coventry, England on August 3, 1959. ... John McGeoch, (May 28, 1955 – March 4, 2004), was a Scottish guitarist who played with some of the biggest bands of the post-punk era, including: Magazine, Visage, The Armoury Show, Public Image Ltd. ... Jim Donut Walker is a Canadian musician best known as the origional drummer for John Lydons post-Sex Pistols band Public Image Ltd. ... Motto (French) God and my right Anthem No official anthem - the United Kingdom anthem God Save the Queen is commonly used England() – on the European continent() – in the United Kingdom() Capital (and largest city) London (de facto) Official languages English (de facto) Unified  -  by Athelstan 927 AD  Area  -  Total 130... For other uses, see Rock music (disambiguation). ... A singer is a musician who uses their voice to produce music. ... John Joseph Lydon (born January 31, 1956), also known as Johnny Rotten, is an English rock musician. ... The Sex Pistols were an iconic and highly influential English punk rock band, formed in London in 1975. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... Keith Levene (born Julian Keith Levene) (born July 18 1957, London) is an English guitarist and songwriter, best known as a member of Public Image Limited. ... The electric bass guitar (or electric bass) is a string instrument played with the fingers by plucking, slapping, or using a pick. ... Jah Wobble (born John Wardle, Stepney 1958) is an English bass guitarist, singer, poet and composer. ... Post punk generally refers to the particularly fertile and creative period following the initial punk rock explosion. During the first wave of punk, roughly spanning 1976-1983, bands such as The Sex Pistols, The Clash, The Ramones and The Damned began to challenge the current styles and conventions of rock...

History

Early career

Following the Sex Pistols' breakup in 1978, Lydon spent three weeks in Jamaica with Virgin Records head Richard Branson, in which Lydon assisted Branson in scouting for emerging reggae musicians. Branson also flew American band Devo to Jamaica, with an aim to installing Lydon as lead singer in the band. Devo declined the offer.^[1] Virgin Records is a British recording label founded by British entrepreneur Richard Branson, and Nik Powell in 1972. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, the lead section of this article may need to be expanded. ... In the music industry, Artists and Repertoire (A&R) refers to the division of a record label that is responsible for scouting and artist development. ... This article needs additional references or sources for verification. ... Devo (pronounced DEE-vo or dee-VO, often spelled DEVO or DEV-O) is an American New Wave group formed in Akron, Ohio in 1972. ...

Upon returning to England, Lydon approached Jah Wobble (né John Wardle) about forming a band together. The pair had been friends since attending the same school in the early 1970s, and had sometimes played music together during the final days of the Sex Pistols. Both had similarly broad musical tastes, and were avid fans of reggae and world music. Lydon assumed, much as he had with Sid Vicious, that Wobble would learn to play bass guitar as he went. While that had proven a fatal assumption with Vicious (Lydon cites his musical inability as a prime reason for the Pistols' breakup), Wobble would prove to be a natural talent. Lydon also approached guitarist Keith Levene (né Julian Keith Levene), with whom he had toured in mid-1976, while Levene was a member of The Clash. Lydon and Levene had both considered themselves outsiders even within their own bands. Jim Walker (né James Donat Walker), a Canadian student newly arrived in the UK, was recruited on drums, after answering an ad placed in Melody Maker. Jah Wobble (born John Wardle, Stepney 1958) is an English bass guitarist, singer, poet and composer. ... It has been suggested that List of French phrases be merged into this article or section. ... World music is, most generally, all the music in the world. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... The electric bass guitar (or electric bass) is a string instrument played with the fingers by plucking, slapping, or using a pick. ... Keith Levene (born Julian Keith Levene) (born July 18 1957, London) is an English guitarist and songwriter, best known as a member of Public Image Limited. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... Jim Donut Walker is a Canadian musician best known as the origional drummer for John Lydons post-Sex Pistols band Public Image Ltd. ... The word student is etymologically derived through Middle English from the Latin second-type conjugation verb stÅ­dÄ“rÄ•, meaning to direct ones zeal at; hence a student is one who directs zeal at a subject. ... Melody Maker, published in the United Kingdom, was (until its closure) the worlds oldest weekly music newspaper. ...

PiL began rehearsing together in May 1978, though the band was still unnamed. In July 1978, Lydon officially named the band "Public Image" (the "Ltd." was not added until several months later), after the 1968 Muriel Spark novel, The Public Image.^[2] This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ...

PiL debuted in October 1978 with "Public Image", a song written while Lydon was still a member of Sex Pistols.^[3] The single was well received and reached number 9 in the UK charts, and performed well on import in the US.

First album

In preparing their debut album, Public Image, the band spent their recording budget well before the record was completed. The members have since admitted that a significant amount was spent on drugs.^{[citation needed]} As a result, the final album comprised eight tracks of varying sound quality, half of which were written and recorded in a rush after the money had run out. Wobble had also beaten up producer Bill Price's assistant engineer (Price, with John Leckie, had secured the tight sound of the "Public Image" single), inciting Price to ban the group from their preferred Wessex Studios. Image File history File links PiL_Public_Image. ... Software development stages In computer programming, development stage terminology expresses how the development of a piece of software has progressed and how much further development it may require. ... This article does not cite its references or sources. ... Bill Price (born 1917 in Hadley) was a professional footballer who played as a striker for Huddersfield Town, Reading, Hull City and Bradford City. ... This article is about the British music producer. ...

The album was considered groundbreaking on its release in December 1978. Grounded in heavy dub reggae, Wobble's bass tone was called "impossibly deep" by contemporary reviews. Levene's sharp guitar sound, played on an aluminium Veleno guitar, was widely imitated, most notably by The Edge of U2,^[4] and Geordie of Killing Joke. Lydon's vocals were more tuneless and incantatory than in the Sex Pistols, gesturing toward the avant-garde territory of such artists as Yoko Ono. Despite being widely criticised in the UK press for being self indulgent and not rock n' roll^{[citation needed]}, the first album sold well in the UK and Europe, reaching number 22 in the UK charts. This article does not cite any references or sources. ... General Name, Symbol, Number aluminium, Al, 13 Chemical series poor metals Group, Period, Block 13, 3, p Appearance silvery Standard atomic weight 26. ... Veleno is an album by Italian singer Mina, issued in 2002. ... U2 are a rock band from Dublin, Ireland. ... This article is about the musical group. ... Yoko Ono Lennon (小野 洋子 Ono Yōko (ONO Yōko), born February 18, 1933) is a Japanese-American artist and musician. ...

The single "Public Image" was widely seen as diatribe against Malcolm McLaren and his perceived manipulation of Lydon during his career with the Sex Pistols. The closing track "Fodderstompf", heavily influenced by dub, comprises nearly eight minutes of a circular bass riff, played over a Lydon/ Wobble double act lampooning public outrage, love songs and teenage apathy. The track culminates with the sound of a fire extinguisher being let off in the recording studio. Subsequently, the first album was renamed as First Issue. Malcolm McLaren (born Malcolm Robert Andrew Edwards, 22 January 1946, in London) is an English impresario, musician and self-publicist who is best known as being the manager of the punk rock band Sex Pistols. ...

Disgusted that the album had compromised everything he had come to the UK to achieve – that is, record accessible music for a youthful audience – Jim Walker walked out in early 1979.

Metal Box

1979's Metal Box was a more focused effort, although created, like Public Image, under difficult circumstances. In addition to the drugs and disorganization that were the normal condition of the band, Jim Walker had quit from general disillusionment, making way for a series of drummers. Auditions were later held at Rollerball Studios in Tooley street London Bridge. David Humphrey was their second drummer who went on to record two tracks for Metal Box at Manor Studios in Oxford,namely Swan Lake and Albatross. "Death Disco" aka Swan lake was released as a single in 1979 and reached no 20 in the charts. David left following other commitments. In one case Wobble set fire to Karl Burns (formerly and latterly of The Fall). Following sessions took place in which a star-struck young drummer would show up for an 'audition' and discover himself in the middle of a recording session with the tape rolling.^{[citation needed]} Image File history File links Memories_PiL_35_Sc_Ogg. ... Software development stages In computer programming, development stage terminology expresses how the development of a piece of software has progressed and how much further development it may require. ... Categories: Nintendo items | Computer and video game stubs ... Death Disco is a song by Public Image Limited. ... Karl Burns is a British musician probably best known as drummer for The Fall throughout most incarnations of the band in the 1970s, 80s and 90s. ... The Fall are an English post-punk band, formed in Manchester in 1976. ...

Metal Box was originally released as three untitled 45rpm 12-inch records packaged in a metal film canister (it was later reissued as a double LP set, Second Edition), and features the band's trademark hypnotic dub reggae bass lines, glassy, arpeggiated guitar, and bleak, paranoid, stream of consciousness vocals. Metal Box is starker than First Issue, more spread out and uncompromising, and scattered with bits of ambient synthesizer. 45 is the natural number following 44 and followed by 46. ... Second Edition is a double-album by Public Image Ltd released in 1980 by Virgin Records. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... Various arpeggios as seen on a staff Notation of a chord in arpeggio In music, an arpeggio is a broken chord where the notes are played or sung in succession rather than simultaneously. ... In literary criticism, stream of consciousness is a literary technique which seeks to portray an individuals point of view by giving the written equivalent of the characters thought processes, either in a loose internal interior monologue, or in connection to his or her sensory reactions to external occurrences. ... Ambient music is a musical genre that incorporates elements of a number of different styles - including jazz, electronic music, new age, modern classical music, traditional, world, and noise. ... Synthesizer as used in music, is a term derived from a Greek word syntithetai < synthesis (συντίθεται < σύνθεσις) and is used to describe a device capable of generating and/or manipulating electronic signals for use in music creation, recording and performance. ...

One critic wrote, "they sounded nothing like the Pistols or anyone else at the time."^[5]. In fact, although radically different from other British and American rock groups, PiL was heavily influenced by German experimental rock, or Krautrock, especially by Can, Neu!, and the sonic aesthetic of producer Conny Plank. PiL's strong dub influence and abrasive sound, however, set them apart. Hallmarks of the genre include minimalism, classically-inspired ambient or atonal leanings, via Stockhausen, and an abandonment of traditional song form in favour of long, slowly-unfolding compositions. Krautrock is a generic name for the experimental music that appeared in Germany in the late 1960s and gained popularity throughout the 1970s. ... Can was a musical group formed in West Germany in 1968. ... Neu! (the German word for new, pronounced noy) were a German band, probably the archetypal example of what the UK music press at the time dubbed Krautrock. ... Konrad Conny Plank (frequently spelled Planck) (born about 1943 in Austria, died December 18, 1987 in Cologne) was a record producer. ... Minimalism describes movements in various forms of art and design, especially visual art and music, where the work is stripped down to its most fundamental features and core self expression. ... Ambient music is a musical genre that incorporates elements of a number of different styles - including jazz, electronic music, new age, modern classical music, traditional, world, and noise. ... Atonality in a general sense describes music that departs from the system of tonal hierarchies that are said to characterized the sound of classical European music from the sixteenth through the nineteenth centuries. ... Karlheinz Stockhausen (born August 22, 1928) is a German composer, and one of the most important and controversial composers of the 20th century. ...

The U.S. teenage dance show American Bandstand, hosted by Dick Clark, was not normally a venue for such music. In 1980, PiL appeared on the show miming to "Poptones" and "Careering" from Metal Box. Lydon harassed the cameramen and made no effort to conceal that fact he was lip-synching. The studio audience made a valiant but futile attempt to dance and stay in character, ruined by Lydon's good-humoured incitements to storm the stage. Chaos broke out and the show ended with the audience dancing with band members, band members goofing on their instruments, and Lydon chatting with fans while "Careering" played on. Dick Clark, host of American Bandstand American Bandstand was a long-running dance music television show that aired in various versions from 1952 to 1989. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ...

A U.S. tour led to several cancelled dates and more chaos, this time between the band and their U.S. label, Warner Brothers (PiL was on Virgin in the UK).

In 2006, San Francisco-based vinyl reissue label 4 Men With Beards reissued the album as a triple 12" inside a metal box, making it the first time the original packaging was available in North America as a domestic release.

PiL's elusiveness lent the band a certain mystique, but to those close to PiL's operations, they were known as "the laziest band in the world"^{[citation needed]} -- rehearsing infrequently, rarely gigging (the original band only played five UK shows), and recording only when forced into the studio by record executives.^{[citation needed]} (One such executive called PiL "a well-oiled machine that burns money and generates pot smoke and excuses."^{[citation needed]}) When Jim Walker joined, he started spending time at Lydon's apartment, and noticed that Levene would often call from wherever he lived -- presumably miles away, since he never saw him. One evening, moments after a phone exchange, he was astonished to see Levene walk in the door: he had been living in the flat downstairs the whole time, but had never bothered to come up before.^{[citation needed]} A dried flowered bud of the Cannabis sativa plant. ...

Wobble had been releasing solo singles since 1978, and had long been unhappy with the band's lack of ambition. He began using PiL basslines as backing tracks to his solo work, on the premise that nobody else in the band seemed likely to mind. However, when Levene became aware of this, matters came to a head.^{[citation needed]}

Lydon had always been difficult to work with^{[citation needed]}, but Levene had begun to challenge him, reportedly acting increasingly grandiose and delusional, and becoming increasingly remote from the world due to an increasing heroin habit. When these personalities collided, Wobble lost the battle. While claims differ as to whether he quit or was fired, the split was decisive. Upon Wobble's departure, the band continued as a bassless trio. Heroin (INN: diacetylmorphine, BAN: diamorphine) is an opioid synthesized directly from the extracts of the opium poppy, Papaver somniferum. ...

A show at the Ritz, in New York, was a turning point. The band's musical core had by then been stripped down to Lydon and Levene (drummer Martin Atkins had recently departed), and PiL had begun to relocate to New York, partly because the MI5 was conducting a harassment campaign -- later admitted -- against the band's headquarters, the London flat that Lydon bought with his Sex Pistols royalties. (A similar campaign would chase Throbbing Gristle and Psychic TV frontman Genesis P. Orridge out of Britain in the early '90s.) Levene had also begun to rethink PiL's formerly-ironic claims to be a 'corporation' and an 'art collective'. While friends of the band including filmmaker Jeanette Lee had long been 'full members' of PiL (original drummer Jim Walker was only 'voted off the board' in 1980), no creative works besides the records had ever ensued. For the Ritz gig however, Levene decided that PiL would reorganize as an improvisational multimedia troupe -- working, as usual, without planning or rehearsals. The Ritz was a New York City rock club in the 1980s. ... NY redirects here. ... The industrial drummer Martin Atkins was born in Coventry, England on August 3, 1959. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... Throbbing Gristle (formed on September 3, 1975, in London) is a British experimental music and industrial music group that evolved from the performance art group COUM Transmissions. ... Psychic TV (sometimes spelt Psychick TV) or PTV, is a video art and music group that primarily performs psychedelic, punk, electronic and experimental music. ... Genesis P-Orridge (born Neil Andrew Megson February 22, 1950, or May 22, 1949), is an English performer, musician, writer and artist. ...

PiL appeared at the Ritz playing from behind a projection screen. (Drummer Sam Ulano had been recruited for the gig from a bar -- the 60-year-old jazz player had never heard the band before). While something reminiscent of, but clearly different from PiL, improvised behind the screen, PiL records were played simultaneously through the PA. Lydon taunted the audience, who expected to hear familiar material (or at least see the band), and a melée erupted in which the audience pelted the stage with bottles and pulled on a tarp spread under the band, toppling equipment. A swearing, swaggering Lydon was probably lucky to escape with his life. The promoters cleared the hall and cancelled the next night's show, and a local media furor ignited in New York. Sam Ulano (b. ...

An appearance a short time later on NBC's The Tomorrow Show with Tom Snyder had Lydon and Snyder insulting each other on-air.^[6] The band soon returned to London. The Tomorrow Show was an American late-night television talk show hosted by Tom Snyder. ... Tom Snyder, former host of CBS The Late Late Show Tom Snyder (born May 12, 1936 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin) is an American television personality best known for The Tomorrow Show. ...

Flowers of Romance

Martin Atkins, who had initially joined at the tail end of the Metal Box sessions (most tracks on that album were played by Richard Dudanski), was re-recruited to drum on Flowers of Romance, an album considered much stranger and more difficult than the already strange Metal Box. Levene had by then largely abandoned guitar in favour of synthesizer, picking up a technique that was unique, although perhaps owing a debt to Allen Ravenstine of Pere Ubu. Atkins' propulsive marching band-style drumming and Lydon's increasing lyrical abstraction made this LP a difficult listen for rock fans, and contemporary reviews expressed great confusion. The record consists mostly of drums, vocals, musique concrète, and tape loops, with only gestures toward bass (played by Levene) and keyboards. Its drum sound was widely copied, notably by Phil Collins and Kate Bush.^{[citation needed]} Collins admits the deed; Bush went an extra step in buying some of Wobble's 'impossibly deep' Metal Box-era bass equipment: he used a 1970s or equivalent Fender Jazz Bass through all-tube Ampeg SVT amplifier, speakers faced toward a solid wall, and microphones arranged to pick up the ambient sound. Most of Wobble's live or television appearances with PiL, however, (including the American Bandstand show and clips on the Old Grey Whistle Test) featured him playing an Ampeg AMB-1 "Scroll" bass, which he still uses on occasion. Wobble also usually played while seated in a chair, leading to speculation that he was physically handicapped and/or he was too pickled to both stand and play at once.^{[citation needed]} The industrial drummer Martin Atkins was born in Coventry, England on August 3, 1959. ... Flowers of Romance is an album by Public Image Ltd, their third collection of original music. ... Synthesizer as used in music, is a term derived from a Greek word syntithetai < synthesis (συντίθεται < σύνθεσις) and is used to describe a device capable of generating and/or manipulating electronic signals for use in music creation, recording and performance. ... Allen Ravenstine played synthesizer (and occasionally saxophone) with the music group Pere Ubu. ... Pere Ubu are a rock music group formed in Cleveland, Ohio, in 1975. ... An American college marching band on the field (University of Texas) A marching band is a group of instrumental musicians who generally perform outdoors, and who incorporate movement â€“ usually some type of marching â€“ with their musical performance. ... // Much like electroacoustic music, Musique concrète (French; literally, concrete music), has been subject to conflicting perceptions about its character. ... Tape loops are loops of prerecorded magnetic tape used to create repetitive, rhythmic musical patterns. ... Philip David Charles Collins (born January 30, 1951 in Chiswick, London) is an English singer, songwriter, drummer and actor. ... Kate Bush (Born Catherine Bush on 30 July 1958, Bexleyheath, Greater London) is an English singer, songwriter, musician and record producer. ... It has been suggested that Fender Amplifier History be merged into this article or section. ... The Jazz Bass was the second bass model created by Leo Fender. ... A microphone, sometimes referred to as a mike or mic (both IPA pronunciation: ), is an acoustic to electric transducer or sensor that converts sound into an electrical signal. ...

Atkins, like Levene and Lydon, was a control freak, but Levene had the disadvantage of having repeatedly fired Atkins over apparent trifles, and of being incapicated on heroin much of the time -- so when conflict arose again, Levene was the one to go. An aborted fourth album recorded in 1982, was later released by Levene as Commercial Zone. The album included contributions from bass player Pete Jones. Lydon and Atkins claim Levene stole the master tapes. Accounts differ widely on the particulars, and the album, while considered far superior to the official This Is What You Want... This Is What You Get that later appeared, has never been legally reissued. Atkins stayed on through a disastrous live album, Live in Tokyo -- in which PiL consisted of him, Lydon, and a band of New Jersey wedding musicians -- and left in 1985, following the release of This Is What You Want, This Is What You Get. The band was moving towards a more commercial pop music and dance music direction, and while many new fans found PiL, little of their original audience (or sound) remained. Pete Jones can refer to different people: Pete Jones, the director of Stolen Summer, via Project Greenlight. ... This Is What You Want. ... For popular forms of music in general, see Popular music. ... This article or section does not cite any references or sources. ...

Album/Compact Disc/Cassette

PiL's 1986 release was simply entitled Album, Compact Disc, or Cassette, depending on the format. The cover's blue typeface and spartan design parodied generic brands; promotional photos featured Lydon in a "generic blue" suit surrounded by generic foods and drinking generic beer. Produced by Bill Laswell (despite Lydon-fuelled faction and disunion) and with many of Laswell's usual rotating cast of musicians, it also featured guitar solos by Steve Vai, considered by Vai himself to be some of his best work. Jonas Hellborg, solo bassist and at the time, member of John McLaughlin's reformed band, The Mahavishnu Orchestra, played bass on the album. Legendary Cream drummer Ginger Baker also played on the album. Controversy reared again, with claims that the album cover and title concept had been stolen from the San Francisco noise/punk band, Flipper, contemporaries of PiL, whose album, Album, featured a similarly unadorned sleeve. Flipper retaliated by naming their next album, Public Flipper Limited. Neil Perry gave Album a positive review in the NME: "This is a wonderful, stunning and equally confusing record, and working on the theory that you'd never expect to hear the Lydon sneer backed by prime metal riffing, that's exactly what you get. Not everywhere, of course, as proved by the haunting "Rise." And "Ease", by the way, with its shock-horror two minutes plus guitar solo, is quite beautiful...In short, Lydon and PiL are still breaking barriers. The man has extracted the false phallus from rock's trouser front and is smashing it over our heads."^[7] Album (also known as Compact Disc or Cassette depending on the format it is released in) is an album by Public Image Ltd, released on February 3rd, 1986. ... A generic brand product is one made by a manufacturer the customer doesnt know much about who may or may not put thier name on the product. ... Bill Laswell (born February 12, 1955 in Salem, Illinois and raised in Albion, Michigan) is an American bassist, producer and record label owner. ... This article or section does not cite any references or sources. ... Jonas Hellborg (born June 7, 1958) is a Swedish bass guitarist. ... John McLaughlin John McLaughlin (aka pinyon)(born January 4, 1942), also Mahavishnu John McLaughlin, is a jazz fusion guitar player from Doncaster, Yorkshire in England. ... The Mahavishnu Orchestra was a jazz-rock fusion group that debuted in 1970 and dissolved in 1976, only to reunite briefly from 1984 to 1986. ... Cream were a 1960s British rock band, which consisted of guitarist Eric Clapton, bassist Jack Bruce and drummer Ginger Baker. ... Peter Edward Ginger Baker (born August 19, 1939, Lewisham, South London) is an English drummer and singer who gained fame as a member of the Graham Bond Organisation (GBO) and Cream from 1966 until 1968. ... Flipper is an influential punk/noise band from San Francisco, California, formed in 1979, continuing on in often erratic fashion until the mid-1990s, then reuniting in 2005. ... Not to be confused with the Canadian music magazine Music Express The New Musical Express (better known as the NME) is a Popular music magazine in the United Kingdom which has been published weekly since March 1952. ...

In the liner notes of PiL's Plastic Box compilation (1999), John Lydon remarked that "In some ways Album was almost like a solo album. I worked alone with a new bunch of people. Obviously the most important person was Bill Laswell. But it was during the recording of this album in New York that Miles Davis came into the studio while I was singing, stood behind me and started playing. Later he said that I sang like he played the trumpet, which is still the best thing anyone's ever said to me. To be complimented by the likes of him was special. Funnily enough we didn't use him..."^[8] Miles Dewey Davis III (26 May 1926 – 28 September 1991) was one of the most influential musicians of the latter half of the 20th century. ...

Late career

In 1986, Lydon recruited former Magazine and Siouxsie & the Banshees guitarist John McGeoch, world music multi-instrumentalist (and former Damned guitarist) Lu Edmunds, bass guitarist Allan Dias, and former The Pop Group and The Slits drummer Bruce Smith. As the years went on, PiL's line-up grew steadier as the sound of the albums drifted toward dance culture and drum-oriented pop music. Edmunds left due to tinnitus in 1988, and Smith left in 1990. Magazine were an English rock group active from 1977 to 1981. ... This article does not adequately cite its references. ... John McGeoch, (May 28, 1955 – March 4, 2004), was a Scottish guitarist who played with some of the biggest bands of the post-punk era, including: Magazine, Visage, The Armoury Show, Public Image Ltd. ... The Damned are a punk rock and later gothic rock band formed in London, England in 1976. ... Robert Lu Edmunds is a British rock and folk musician, born in Welwyn, Hertfordshire. ... The Pop Group were a post-punk band from Bristol, United Kingdom whose uncompromising, dissonant sound spanned punk, free jazz and dub reggae. ... The Slits are an all female punk rock band. ... Tinnitus (IPA pronunciation: or ,[1] from the Latin word for ringing[2]) is the perception of sound in the human ear in the absence of corresponding external sound(s). ...

PiL released Happy? in 1987, and during the spring of 1988 performed throughout the United States as part of INXS' Kick tour. The album was less well received by critics than its immediate predecessor, but still produced the classic single "Seattle". In 1989, PiL toured with New Order and The Sugarcubes as "The Monsters of Alternative Rock," an arrangement of disparate alternative bands that predated the Lollapalooza festival by two years. PiL's ninth album, 9, appeared earlier that year. Happy? was Public Image Ltd. ... INXS (pronounced In Excess) are an Australian rock group. ... Kick is an album by the Australian rock and roll group INXS, released in 1987. ... New Order are an English rock group formed in 1980 from the remaining members of Joy Division—Bernard Sumner (vocals, guitars, synthesizers), Peter Hook (bass, electronic drums), and Stephen Morris (drums, synthesizers). ... The Sugarcubes were an Icelandic rock-pop band formed in 1986 and disbanded in 1992. ... Lollapalooza is an American music festival featuring alternative rock, hip hop, and punk rock bands, dance and comedy performances, and craft booths. ... 9 was the seventh studio album by Public Image Limited, released in May 1989 on the Virgin Records label (see 1989 in music). ...

The band's last album to date, 1992's That What Is Not, included a sample from the Sex Pistols' song God Save the Queen in which the young Lydon's voice is heard chanting the words, "No future, no future..." Lydon disbanded the group a year later after Virgin records refused to pay for the tour supporting the album and Lydon had to pay for it out of his own pocket. The band's last concert was performed on September 18, 1992 with the lineup of Lydon, McGeoch, Ted Chau (guitar, keyboards), Mike Joyce of The Smiths (drums), and Russell Webb (bass). That What Is Not was Public Image Ltd. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article may require cleanup. ... God Save the Queen (B-side Did You No Wrong) was the second single released by influential punk rock band the Sex Pistols. ... September 18 is the 261st day of the year (262nd in leap years). ... Year 1992 (MCMXCII) was a leap year starting on Wednesday (link will display full 1992 Gregorian calendar). ... Mike Joyce (born Michael Joyce on 1 June 1963) is a drummer from Fallowfield, Manchester, England. ... The Smiths were an English rock group active from 1982 to 1987. ...

Lydon released a solo album, Psycho's Path, in 1997. He considers PiL to be "on hiatus," and has spoken of writing a book on his years with the group.

Members and related people

Main article: Public Image Ltd. band members

Public Image Ltd. ...

Discography

All chart positions are UK.

Studio albums

• First Issue (1978 #22)
• Metal Box (1979 #18)
• Flowers of Romance (1981 #11)
• This Is What You Want... This Is What You Get (1984 #56)
• Album (1986 #10)
• Happy? (1987 #34)
• 9 (1989 #36)
• That What Is Not (1992 #46)

First Issue (also Public Image) is a post punk album by Public Image Ltd released in 1978 by Virgin Records. ... Categories: Nintendo items | Computer and video game stubs ... Flowers of Romance is an album by Public Image Ltd, their third collection of original music. ... This Is What You Want. ... Album (also known as Compact Disc or Cassette depending on the format it is released in) is an album by Public Image Ltd, released on February 3rd, 1986. ... Happy? was Public Image Ltd. ... 9 was the seventh studio album by Public Image Limited, released in May 1989 on the Virgin Records label (see 1989 in music). ... That What Is Not was Public Image Ltd. ...

Live, compilation, bootleg and other albums

• Second Edition (repackaging of Metal Box) - 1979
• Paris au Printemps (live) - 1980 #61
• Live in Tokyo (live) - 1983 #28
• Commercial Zone (bootleg) - 1983
• The Greatest Hits, So Far (compilation) - 1990 #20
• Box (box set) - 1990
• Plastic Box (box set) -1999
• Public Image/Second Edition (two-in-one) - 2003

Second Edition is a double-album by Public Image Ltd released in 1980 by Virgin Records. ... Categories: Nintendo items | Computer and video game stubs ... Commercial Zone is a semi-official bootleg album released by guitarist Keith Levene and credited to Public Image Ltd. ...

Singles

• "Public Image" - 1978 #9
• "Death Disco" - 1979 #20
• "Memories" - 1979 #60
• "Flowers of Romance" - 1981 #24
• "This Is Not A Love Song" - 1983 #5
• "Bad Life" - 1984 #71
• "Rise" - 1986 #11
• "Home" - 1986 #75
• "Seattle" - 1987 #47
• "The Body" - 1987 #100
• "Disappointed" - 1989 #38
• "Warrior" - 1989
• "Don't Ask Me" - 1990 #22
• "Cruel" - 1992 #49
• "Covered" - 1992 (Cancelled)
• "Acid Drops" - 1992 (Cancelled)

Death Disco is a song by Public Image Limited. ...

References

Headquartered in the legendary Flatiron Building in New York City, St. ... October 16 is the 289th day of the year (290th in leap years). ... For the Manfred Mann album, see 2006 (album). ...

Further reading

• Heylin, Clinton (1989). Public Image Limited: Rise/Fall. London: Omnibus Press. ISBN 0-7119-1684-5. 

External links

• Fodderstompf - An extensive PiL fansite
• Pete Jones website tells of his time as PiL bassist
• Adrian Sherwood speaks about PIL
• Don Letts speaks about PIL
• Keith Levene on PIL
• John Lydon's(Johnny Rotten) homepage which leads to Fodderstomp.com