London’s Burning is the story of punk rock as it happened, stripped of hindsight and future legend, and laid bare. Here are the Damned and the Adverts on tour, the Sex Pistols swearing through their prime-time television debut, the Tom Robinson Band conducting a club full of skinheads through the anthem “Glad to Be Gay,” rioting Rastas running through the carnage that closed the Notting Hill Carnival, Sid Vicious arguing about which was David Bowie’s best song. At the same time, it is a personal story of a confused but dedicated sixteen-year-old looking not just for kicks and great music, but for a cultural revolution--and finding one in his back yard. The social, political, economical, and musical elements that coalesced to shape the genre of punk have been well documented; however, few books tell the beginning from the perspective of a 17-year-old in the midst of a musical revolution. Thompson was that kid, working in a record store in London in the late 1970s and witnessing the humble start of punk rock. Although his narrative is personal, his emphasis throughout is on musicians who influenced and launched the DIY movement, both well-known acts (e.g., Patti Smith, the Sex Pistols, the Damned) and lesser-known ones (e.g., the Adverts, the Maniacs, and Roogalator). One of rock music's most prolific writers, Thompson has authored more than 100 books over the last 25 years. This most recent effort reminds us of what punk music looked like before it became a career and a topic in college classrooms. Recommended for all public libraries; this will particularly appeal to punk enthusiasts, musicians, and every member of the punk generation.—Joshua Finnell, McNeese State Univ. Lib., Lake Charles, LA Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. Thompson, 16 when punk exploded on the London scene in 1976, chronicles that pivotal year month-by-month, starting with American Patti Smith’s appearance on BBC-TV’s Old Grey Whistle Test, in which the budding poet and singer “drew a line in the sand the British music scene was never going to recover from” by daring to reinterpret Jimi Hendrix’s “Hey Joe,” complete with distaff writhing-guitar pyrotechnics. Previously, reinterpretation or criticism of rock gods like Hendrix and Pink Floyd had been verboten for Brit rockers. Between Smith’s effrontery and fashion statements like Johnny Rotten’s “I hate Pink Floyd” T-shirt, the times changed. Soon Thompson and friends were wading through a cornucopia of the Ramones, Television, and the rest of the New York punks and New Wavers as well as English acts like the Sex Pistols and the Clash. Reggae surfaced, and the punk and Rasta communities came together after years of violent racial and class strife. It was a heady, creative time, reminiscent of the “Swingin’ London” of Beatlemania days. Excellent anecdotal pop-music history. --Mike Tribby "[Thompson] knows his stuff and can organize and write well about it. Libraries that pride themselves on well-rounded music and pop culture collections should purchase his work." ―Library Journal "Excellent anecdotal pop-music history." ―Booklist "Fans of the genre will relish this chronicle from an insider's perspective." ―Kirkus Reviews "Thompson's a bit of a wiz, it must be said . . . Truly authoritative . . . compelling reading . . . Extraordinarily well researched, insightful and very funny . . . A dazzling accomplishment . . . Thompson is unafraid to have a lively opinion on (and a deep love for) the music he covers. And boy, there is an awful lot of it." ―Record Collector "Of everything I've read on punk rock, London's Burning paints the truest portrait of the time." ―Cherry Vanilla "He concocts colorful, driving portraits of the artists and we learn a lot from their struggles and triumphs as told by Thompson." ―Paper "Thompson, the 'king of rock book writing,' manages like a good director to efficiently shuffle characters, giving his book[s] a sense of cohesion and refreshing twists and turns. Always a good read." ―Hard Radio "A fond collection of memories from the early days of punk." ―Slug Magazine Dave Thompson is one of rock's leading experts and the author of Never Fade Away , Stories For Boys , and Wheels Out Of Gear . Among Thompson’s other titles are biographies of the Cure, David Bowie, Deep Purple, Depeche Mode, Genesis, Gothic Rock, KISS, Red Hot Chili Peppers, and ZZ Top. London's Burning True Adventures on the Frontlines of Punk, 1976-1977 By Dave Thompson Chicago Review Press Incorporated Copyright © 2009 Dave Thompson All rights reserved. ISBN: 978-1-55652-769-2 Contents Preface, Acknowledgments, Cast of Characters, 1 I Ain't Gonna Be History: Mid-May 1976, 2 The Great British Mistake: More May 1976, 3 We're Going Down the Pub: Mid-May 1976, 4 The Boy Looked at Johnny: Still May 1976, 5 Back in the Garage with My Bullshit Detector: June 1976, 6 Finding Ways to Fill the Vacuum: June 1976,