Was punk necessary?

[snakes&ladders]

Of course punk was necessary.....there had to be some new sound to kick out the POMP that had crept into rock like Journey, Foreigner, Camel, etc.

 

[Foxhound]

there had to be some new sound to kick out the POMP that had crept into rock like Journey, Foreigner, Camel, etc.

And I don't think that those bands were even the guiltiest parties. When I think of pompous, self-indulgence, Yes, Electric Light Orchestra and Lighthouse are among the first bands that come to mind.

 

[runtfan]

Of course punk was necessary.....there had to be some new sound to kick out the POMP that had crept into rock like Journey, Foreigner, Camel, etc.

Hardly...Foreigner's debut was in 1977 and Journey was around but not on anyone's radar until "Infinity" was released in 1978...make the argument if you want but ya gotta come up with better examples than that. The punk movement was in full swing by the time these albums came out. Pink Floyd, Zeppelin, and Yes are the bands I've heard most identified as being the ones that needed "backlashing" against and they were turning in some mighty fine albums during that time (OK, I'll give ya Topographic Oceans, but Yes followed it up with their fine Going For The One album)...hard to make that argument against albums like Physical Graffitti, Wish You Were Here, and Animals, especially when the backlash turned out to be what it turned out to be. Any of these albums probably outsold the entire first couple of waves of the punk movement.

 

[snakes&ladders]

No, no.....I'm talking about the pre '77 yeARs of those baNDS...AND OTHERS OF COURSE

 

[METALPRIEST]

I'm gonna say no as I don't think it was "necessary" but IMO was welcomed as an art form. Can't say I don't own any and I have to agree with Flower in regards to The Ramones!

Great Band!

 

[Mr. Shadow]

Joey was an excellent producer, in addition to being a musician.

 

[Flower]

 

[METALPRIEST]

 

[rtbuck]

As I said earlier,I do agree it was needed & I feel it was more of an attitude than anything.I'm not sure where it really began,it could've been w/ the Velvet Underground in the 60's,it could've been the Detroit Scene in the 60's w/ The Stooges,MC5,& even those very early Alice Cooper days , or maybe it was the late 50's with Eddie Cochran & the Black Leather Rebel: Vince Taylor(Punk bands of the 70's really had a thing for Rockabilly). Hell,even alot of the Surf style music from the 60's.When the 70's broke I feel that all of this stuff I mentioned had quite an impact on what was to become real "Punk". The NY Dolls were the result of the Velvets,Mc5,Stooges,& Alice Cooper mixed in a blender with a dose of the Stones & who did the NY Dolls bring into the scene...Aerosmith,too many 80's bands to mention, & the Sex Pistols.Yes, Aerosmith...
the Dolls were on the verge of really being huge but by the time their second album hit they were a mess so their management took over Aerosmith & dumped all their money into them. Someplace in my home I have a review from October of '73 for a show starring Mott the Hoople,NY Dolls,& opening the show was Aerosmith.The reviewer tore into Aerosmith for being Dolls wannabes blatantly ripping them off. I've talked to someone who was backstage at the show & he told me Steven Tyler was following Johansen & Ian Hunter like a puppy dog only to keep getting ignored by them.The funny thing is Aerosmith seem to have gotten the last laugh & Steven Tyler ended up stealing & marrying Johansen's ex.When Perry left Aerosmith in 79/80 on his solo club tours he was playing Bo Diddley's "Pills" & Eddie Cochran's "Something Else" both were tunes that the Dolls had in their setlists(Pills was actually more known by the Dolls,in fact one night the Dolls had went to a gig of Mr. Diddley's & were shouting out their Anthem "Pills". Bo had forgotten he even wrote the tune & thought the band was just a bunch of druggies looking for some drugs!).Blackie Lawless played one or two gigs w/ the Dolls in Florida when Johnny Thunders quit the band which was no big deal but he & Doll bassist Arthur Kane did go on to form Killer Kane & released a couple of singles. The Sex Pistols connection was that Sex Pistols Manager Malcolm MaClaren became an advisor for the NY Dolls in '75 & tried turning a few heads by dressing the band in Red Leather with a huge Communist Flag hanging behind the drums(if that wasn't an attempt at Punk I don't know what is). Of course,it didn't get over at all & the Dolls disbanded.The Dolls still had contactual obligations in Japan do Johansen & guitarist Sylvain Sylvain created a band to tour Japan as the Dolls.During this time MaClaren took the bad boy image of the Dolls & the look of NYC Poet turned Punk Richard Hell(who was innovative with the messy spiked hair & ripped up shirts) to form the Sex Pistols.Originally Sylvain was to be in the Sex Pistols & in a tolen of good faith he sent his creme colored Les Paul to MaClaren in England while finishing up his obligations in Japan.He also gave MaClaren his piano to sell for a plane ticket to get to the UK & supposedly he's still waiting for the money. Naturally bands from NYC such as the Ramones,Television,Richard Hell,Patti Smith,etc were major influences on the UK Punk scene but I feel that the Dolls(& the Heartbreakers which featured 2 ex Dolls:Johnny Thunders & Jerry Nolan.In fact they were part of that huge "Punk" bill in 76 along w/ the Pistols,Clash,& Damned) is the perfect crossover between Punk & hard rock/metal. I know I kind of went off subject but what the heck! Getting back though...I hated & despised Punk in the 70's.My uncle gave me the Ramones 'Rocket to Russia' & I hated it (although the lyrics were kind of funny)& soon traded it for Bad Co. 'Straight Shooter'.Reading about Punk in magazines like Hit Parder I felt like I had to hate it.It seemed to go against bands like Kiss, Aerosmith, & Ted Nugent. The first time I heard the Sex Pistols was up north Ontario at Lake Nippising.There was only one radio station we could pull in up there while vacationing.The DJ said they weren't supposed to play this song but were going to anyway.The song was "God Save the Queen" by the Pistols & I hated it,especially the singing.I guess I didn't mind the music but that singing... A couple of years later(around 79/'80) I was at a friends house who had HBO & 'Rock & Roll High School' was on & the next thing I knew I went out & bought 'Rocket to Russia' & loved it! Around then I heard that intrview w/Pete Townshend where he said Punk brought R & R back & they played the Who's "My Generation" back to Back with Sex Pistols"Pretty Vacant" & I really dug it.
After seeing David Johansen live really pushed me over the edge & I liked Punk almost as much as the Hard Rock/Metal stuff! Punk really made me aware that there is other music out there besides metal/Hard Rock & I'm glad for it!!! (Some other time I'll get into how fake the Sex Pistols were)

 

[snakes&ladders]

Punk started way back in the early 50s really