Sex Pistols is a box set anthology of the career of the punk rock

Punk rock

Punk rock is a rock music genre that developed between 1974 and 1976 in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia. Rooted in garage rock and other forms of what is now known as protopunk music, punk rock bands eschewed perceived excesses of mainstream 1970s rock...

 band The Sex Pistols

Sex Pistols

The Sex Pistols were an English punk rock band that formed in London in 1975. They were responsible for initiating the punk movement in the United Kingdom and inspiring many later punk and alternative rock musicians...

 with singer Johnny Rotten. It was released on 3 June 2002. The set comprises three themed CD

Compact Disc

The Compact Disc is an optical disc used to store digital data. It was originally developed to store and playback sound recordings exclusively, but later expanded to encompass data storage , write-once audio and data storage , rewritable media , Video Compact Discs , Super Video Compact Discs ,...

s and an 80-page booklet.

The first disc features Never Mind the Bollocks, the band's only studio album, in its entirety, as well as four B-sides and the band's first demo session.

The second disc has demos and studio outtakes, from July 1976 to January 1977 and from the Never Mind the Bollocks sessions. This, together with the first disc, includes most of the material recorded by the band while Johnny Rotten was the singer.

The third disc, composed of previously unreleased live tracks, is almost completely made up with an August 31, 1976 gig at Islington

Islington

Islington is a neighbourhood in Greater London, England and forms the central district of the London Borough of Islington. It is a district of Inner London, spanning from Islington High Street to Highbury Fields, encompassing the area around the busy Upper Street...

 Screen on the Green Cinema. Live bonus tracks include songs never recorded in the studio, "Understanding", "Flowers of Romance" and the legendary live performance of "Belsen Was a Gas

Belsen Was a Gas

"Belsen Was a Gas" is one of the most controversial songs by the British punk rock band Sex Pistols. The song is about one of the concentration camps in Germany during World War II, i.e...

".

Completeness

The box set includes almost the entire known recorded output of the band while Johnny Rotten was in the band. There are eight demos and two outtakes not included, of which the eight demos can be found on the bootleg album Spunk

Spunk (Sex Pistols album)

Spunk is a bootleg demo album by the English punk rock band The Sex Pistols. It was originally released in the United Kingdom during September or October of 1977....

and the 1996 extended release of Never Mind the Bollocks, Here's the Sex Pistols

Never Mind the Bollocks, Here's the Sex Pistols

Never Mind The Bollocks Here's The Sex Pistols is the only studio album by the highly influential and controversial English punk rock band The Sex Pistols...

which comes with Spunk/This Is Crap

Spunk/This is Crap

Spunk/This is Crap is an rarities album by the English punk rock band The Sex Pistols. It was included with the 1996 reissue of Never Mind the Bollocks, Here's the Sex Pistols....

. Of the two outtakes, one--of "Submission"--can be found on Spunk/This Is Crap as well as a "Pretty Vacant

Pretty Vacant

"Pretty Vacant" is a song by the English punk rock band The Sex Pistols. It was released on 1 July 1977 as the third single from their only album, Never Mind the Bollocks, Here's the Sex Pistols. The song marked the band's only appearance on the British music show Top of the Pops...

" single from 1992, and the other--an alternate take of "Bodies

Bodies (Sex Pistols song)

"Bodies" is a Sex Pistols song about abortion from the 1977 album Never Mind the Bollocks, Here's the Sex Pistols. The lyrics contain very graphic imagery about a terminated fetus and feature a great deal of profanity for the time: the third and final verse begins with a couplet in which the word...

"--has not been officially released, although it can be found on the relatively widespread bootleg Party Till You Puke. None of the post-Johnny Rotten material is included, most of which can be found on The Great Rock 'n' Roll Swindle soundtrack

The Great Rock 'n' Roll Swindle (album)

The Great Rock 'n' Roll Swindle is the soundtrack album of the film of the same name. Although released under Sex Pistols' name, it includes performances by other artists.- Production :...

. It might be worth noting Sid Vicious

Sid Vicious

Sid Vicious was an English musician best known as the bassist of the influential punk rock group Sex Pistols...

, while commonly referred to as the bass player for the Sex Pistols, only plays on one track out of sixty-four on this box set.

Disc 1: Studio Tracks & Early Demos

1. "Holidays in the Sun
   Holidays in the Sun
   "Holidays in the Sun" is a song by the English punk rock band the Sex Pistols. It was released on 14 October 1977 as the fourth and final single from their only album, Never Mind the Bollocks, Here's the Sex Pistols. A number eight chart hit in the UK, the single proved to be the last with singer...
   
   " – 3:22
2. "Bodies
   Bodies (Sex Pistols song)
   "Bodies" is a Sex Pistols song about abortion from the 1977 album Never Mind the Bollocks, Here's the Sex Pistols. The lyrics contain very graphic imagery about a terminated fetus and feature a great deal of profanity for the time: the third and final verse begins with a couplet in which the word...
   
   " – 3:02
3. "No Feelings" – 2:51
4. "Liar" – 2:41
5. "God Save the Queen
   God Save the Queen (Sex Pistols song)
   "God Save the Queen" is a song by the English punk rock band The Sex Pistols. It was released as the band's second single and was featured on their only album, Never Mind the Bollocks, Here's the Sex Pistols. The song was released during Queen Elizabeth II's Silver Jubilee in 1977...
   
   " – 3:20
6. "Problems" – 4:11
7. "Seventeen" – 2:02
8. "Anarchy in the U.K.
   Anarchy in the U.K.
   "Anarchy in the U.K." was covered by American thrash metal band Megadeth for their third album So Far, So Good... So What!, released in 1988.Notoriously, the song has incorrect lyrics...
   
   " – 3:31
9. "Submission" – 4:12
10. "Pretty Vacant
    Pretty Vacant
    "Pretty Vacant" is a song by the English punk rock band The Sex Pistols. It was released on 1 July 1977 as the third single from their only album, Never Mind the Bollocks, Here's the Sex Pistols. The song marked the band's only appearance on the British music show Top of the Pops...
    
    " – 3:18
11. "New York" – 3:06
12. "EMI (Unlimited Edition)" – 3:13
13. "I Wanna Be Me" – 3:06
14. "No Feeling" (bonus b-side) – 2:47
15. "Did You No Wrong" – 3:09
16. "No Fun" (unedited) – 6:56
17. "Satellite" – 4:01
18. "Problems" – 3:41
19. "Pretty Vacant" – 2:44
20. "No Feelings" – 6:53
    • Includes the hidden track
      Hidden track
      In the field of recorded music, a hidden track is a piece of music that has been placed on a CD, audio cassette, vinyl record or other recorded medium in such a way as to avoid detection by the casual listener...
      
       "Anarchy in the UK" (instrumental)

• Tracks 1-12 are comprised by Never Mind The Bollocks Here's The Sex Pistols
• Tracks 13-17 are B-Sides
• Tracks 18-20 are demos recorded at the Majestic Studios demo session in May 1976.
• Hidden track is a TV backing track recorded at the Wessex Studio in December 1976

Disc 2: Demos & Rarities

1. "Pretty Vacant"
2. "Submission"
3. "Anarchy in the U.K."
4. "Substitute"
5. "(Don't Give Me) No Lip"
6. "(I'm Not Your) Stepping Stone"
7. "Johnny B. Goode
   Johnny B. Goode
   "Johnny B. Goode" is a 1958 rock and roll song written and originally performed by American musician Chuck Berry. The song was a major hit among both black and white audiences peaking at #2 on Billboard magazine's Hot R&B Sides chart and #8 on the Billboard Hot 100.The song is one of Chuck Berry's...
   
   "
8. "Road Runner"
9. "Watcha Gonna Do About It?"
10. "Through My Eyes"
11. "Anarchy in the U.K."
12. "No Feelings" (instrumental)
13. "No Future"
14. "Liar"
15. "Problems"
16. "New York"
17. "God Save the Queen"
18. "Satellite"
19. "EMI"
20. "Seventeen"
21. "No Feelings"
22. "Submission" (version #1)
    • Includes the hidden track
      Hidden track
      In the field of recorded music, a hidden track is a piece of music that has been placed on a CD, audio cassette, vinyl record or other recorded medium in such a way as to avoid detection by the casual listener...
      
       "God Save the Queen" (instrumental)

• Tracks 1-2 are demos from the Denmark Street session in July 1976.
• Track 3 is the Wessex Studio session recording from October 1976.
• Tracks 4-10 are taken from rehearsal sessions in Wessex Studio, in October 1976.
• Track 11 is the rejected version of the Anarchy in The UK 7" single.
• Tracks 12-15 are demo sessions from the Manchester Square session in December, 1976.
• Tracks 16-17 are recordings from Gooseberry Studios from January 1977
• Tracks 18-22 are outtakes from Never Mind The Bollocks Here's The Sex Pistols
• Hidden track is a TV backing track recorded as the Wessex Studio in December 1976

Disc 3: Live at Screen on the Green ‘76, plus live rarities

1. "Anarchy in the U.K."
2. "I Wanna Be Me"
3. "Seventeen"
4. "New York"
5. "(Don't Give Me) No Lip"
6. "(I'm Not Your) Stepping Stone"
7. "Satellite"
8. "Submission"
9. "Liar"
10. "No Feelings"
11. "Substitute"
12. "Pretty Vacant"
13. "Problems"
14. "Did You No Wrong"
15. "No Fun"
16. "Understanding" (live bonus track)
17. "Flowers Of Romance #1" (live bonus track)
18. "Flowers Of Romance #2" (live bonus track)
19. "Belsen Was a Gas" (live bonus track)
    • Includes the hidden track
      Hidden track
      In the field of recorded music, a hidden track is a piece of music that has been placed on a CD, audio cassette, vinyl record or other recorded medium in such a way as to avoid detection by the casual listener...
      
       "Pretty Vacant" (instrumental)

• Tracks 1-15: August 29, 1976 - Screen On The Green Cinema, Islington, UK
• Track 16: April 3, 1976 - Nashville Rooms, London
  London
  London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
  
  , UK
• Track 17: June 29, 1976 - 100 Club, London, UK
• Track 18: August 14, 1976 - Barbarellas
  Barbarella's
  Barbarella's was a nightclub in the centre of Birmingham, UK.The name of the club was taken from the film Barbarella .This club was one of Eddie Fewtrell's clubs....
  
  , Birmingham
  Birmingham
  Birmingham is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands of England. It is the most populous British city outside the capital London, with a population of 1,036,900 , and lies at the heart of the West Midlands conurbation, the second most populous urban area in the United Kingdom with a...
  
  , UK
• Track 19: January 10, 1978 - Longhorn Ballroom, Dallas, US
• Hidden track is a TV backing track recorded at the Wessex Studio in December 1976

Personnel

• Johnny Rotten - vocals
• Steve Jones
  Steve Jones (musician)
  Stephen Philip "Steve" Jones is an English rock guitarist, singer and actor, best known as guitarist and founding member of the punk rock band the Sex Pistols.-Childhood:...
  
   - electric guitars
  Electric Guitars
  Electric Guitars were formed early in 1980 by Neil Davenport and Richard Hall who were both studying English at Bristol University. The band soon increased to a five-man line-up, with Andy Saunders , Matt Salt and Dick Truscott , they also later added two backing singers: Sara and Wendy...
  
  , bass
  Bass guitar
  The bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
  
  
• Glen Matlock
  Glen Matlock
  Glen Matlock is an English bass guitarist most famous for being in the original line-up of the punk rock band the Sex Pistols. Drummer Paul Cook has said that Matlock came up with much of the music for the band's songs and most of the lyrics, while lead singer Johnny Rotten made some adjustments...
  
   - bass disc one, tracks 8, 13, 18-20; disc two, tracks 1-17; disc three, tracks 1-18
• Sid Vicious
  Sid Vicious
  Sid Vicious was an English musician best known as the bassist of the influential punk rock group Sex Pistols...
  
   - bass live "Belsen Was A Gas" only
• Paul Cook
  Paul Cook
  Paul Thomas Cook is an English drummer and member of the punk rock band Sex Pistols.-Early life and career:...
  
   - drums
  Drum kit
  A drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person ....