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From: belsenghost
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  • Best song PIL ever did . Saw them lip sync it on Japanese TV when I iived in Tokyo .

  • this song should have been renamed new york the lyrics sound more like the attitude of that city.

  • Having recently moved to Seattle, I can attest that it sucks. It is the worst city I have ever lived in and I've lived everywhere. The people are cold and egotistical and downright nasty. If you ever considered moving here in the early 90's, be grateful you never fulfilled that dream. Seriously. It's wretched.

    I'm glad to know one of my favorite bands felt the same way. Incidentally, Kurt Cobain also hated it, and so did Jimi Hendrix.

  • @highwaymiles

    Where-abouts in Seattle are you living/working? This used to be a cool town, but the population's gone up 50% in the last 10 years, outsiders (like yourself, no offense) moving in and changing the vibe considerably. All the old neighborhoods & cool places have been 'condoed' into homogeneity.

    Honestly, I am thinking of moving to Portland soon; have a bunch of friends who've moved there & they say it's like Seattle used to be.

  • @ginsoak

    Jesus.... PDX has doubled in size over the last 15 years. I recall the old haunts in NW Portland and NE and now the old dilapidated buildings are down and the condos are up. Really, you might as well stay in Seattle.

    If you want to know what Portland used to look like though, watch 'Drugstore Cowboy' (a terrific movie) that shows off the city when it was old.

  • @highwaymiles

    Yeah, I hated the Seattle Freeze. But it grows on you, if you are a narcissist. It gives you an excuse to be a dick. I love Seattle.

  • @de132 yea try being homeless in the uw district...youll never feel more human in your life.

  • 0:38-0:39 that was $7.00 wasted, hahahaha it was actually funny. John Lydon is my favorite.

  • Not too impressed. Actually kinda lame.

  • It's obvious that John and the boys did their shopping in the late 80s at Chess King. Who can blame them?

  • i found seattle to be more open minded than houston area. seattle had more people with colored hair (pink , green , blue) more mohawks, punks , more tatooed people and more variety of music, just tooo much rain

  • still fresh love it!

  • Seattle is 1/2 full of 2nd/3rd generation Norwegians or something. The people here, and I'm not alone in this appraisal, are neither friendly, nor very interesting or entertaining. You'll have to look very hard to find a unique, or even mildly remarkable personality here.

    Google Seattle Chill.

    Way too many people have experienced this phenom already.

  • Seattle is a fairly generic American city, like a hundred others.  With many Americans who do not belong to any ethnic group.

  • I saw this preformed LIVE in Toronto at Massey Hall in '87

    Anyone else in Utube land there?

  • I don't know specifically what Lydon's gripe is/was with Seattle, but since having lived here for the past 5 yrs., I think I at least understand his hostility.

    This place blows big chunks of ass-crackers

  • @spunkets Lydon did a interview about this song and said he wrote it while touring seattle and said it was about how boring and dull seattle is

  • @Bluesrock2009

    Well, "boring" and "dull" doesn't cut the mustard if you're a big time, pseudo-intellectual punk rock icon, does it?

    Most of the lyrics of this song are ambiguous, when they're not safe and innocuous, and I tend to expect more deconstruction-ism from my from wannabe Nihilist revolutionaries.

  • @spunkets well in that case I'd like to argue that there can be nothing more deconstructionist than ambiguity. Perhaps not in the way that Derrida or someone else with a name might understand the term, but definitely in a more purer way. There is nothing that exploits the idea of meaninglessness, than ambiguity/meaninglessness itself.

  • @spunkets and there should be a 'more than' in there.

  • @spunkets Hey now, that's where I was born. I was just going to ask why it was named Seattle. Now I will assume it is a song against Yuppy-ism. Maybe this recession will take the city back down to the nice town it was 20 years ago.

  • @tdr124

    I wouldn't read too much into the tite of the track. Knowing Lydon, it's just as likely that he picked a word at random from a newspaper.

    This is certainly the best video that PIL ever made, if not the best song.

  • @spunkets Just out of curiosity what don't you like about it? I've always heard it was a pretty cool place and thought I might visit someday.

  • This song makes me feel great. His songs will always be the best of the best and will never fade out. John Lydon is my favorite.

  • The guitarist has a wonderful mullet!

    

  • I was listening to the album "Some Product" the other day, and I noticed that every time the Pistols mentioned money, they talked about either taking or stealing it, and then spending every dime of it. What hypocrites.

  • I think that Lydon was better in the sex pistols, but it's my opinion, I like punk so I prefer the pistols than Public Image.

  • new wave is a million times better than punk but punk is still a billion times better than anything else

  • holy crap this sucks.

  • I always wondered what they were chanting @ the end of the song, I get '..empty promises..' but that's it..!

  • @tomk773 "Palaces, barricades, ...... threats meet promises"

  • GET OUT of MY WORLD! Love it, definitely..

  • Always loved this song

  • this is a little to new-wave for my taste

  • poor johnny rotten, he wasWAAAAAAAAAAAYYYYYYYYYYYYYY better in the pistols, he went down hill, dont get me wrong hes very talented but his earlier stuff was better, he kinda got soft

  • I love this song!

  • Love you John. But who recorded that song so badly.

  • R.I.P. John McGeoch......T_T

  • literally worst song ever

  • @nbwhalin dude your on crack!!! pil rules!!!!!

  • @jamesholt80 im thinking that guy's more on crack then i. lets be honest.....pils was on pills

  • After 30+ years I'm finally going to see Mr. Lydon tomorrow in Pittsburgh. I'm sure my middle-aged mind will explode, and it will be delightful!

  • they are playin electric picnic in sept.cant wait.

  • Man I saw Them here in Kansas City and wow if you havnt seen PIL in concert Just stop your bitching Johnny Rotton has still got it and kcikin ass. Id thought id never get to say I saw Mr.Johnny Rotton on Person front Row. Fuck The radio and Fuck MTV with Joke music. Ive gotton to meet Tommy Ramone and seen so many other amazing concerts but by far PIL Takes the Cake.

  • Lydon indeed is a hypocrite. But at least he has no problem showing the world who he is (a snide, smart-assed englishman with an opinion). I despise a fellow American who acts as if he's from Manchester, and who loves when dumb kids know who he is and not The Clash. Music industry is about money and fame, but it shouldn't allow charlatans to appear and act as tho they created punk in 1996-

  • what is all this crap about comparing to green day or blink 182?! Johnny Lydon is a lyrical genious and a rock legend, he IS his OWN catagory!

  • Wow these guys are awesome!! They totally beat blink 182 and green day.

  • Awesome!

  • Wow! I used to love this song ... bittersweet memories lol!

  • i actually like the city of seattle, its alright. its not really that boring

  • saw them tonight in LA. It was effing incredible!

  • @frankiesdemise

     I see them 4/30! glad you posted this! i'm extra looking forward to it!

  • Excellent song! What really stands out in PiL songs are Johnny's lyrics and the way he delivers it. Pure genius!

  • i first heard pil on 120 minutes in 1986,rise was a milestone for little johnny,to bad crass was makin music out of chaos across the river before him,great though...still listen to the pil..

  • pil badge

  • This was the best PiL line up.

  • It looks like he took an idea from Nickelodeon's Doug with an oversized suit.

    Cool song, I've just gotten into these guys.

  • I read this article a while back where the lead singer of Green Day was talking shit about PiL. The nerve of him.

  • thanks for that info mate.

  • I remember this when I was in high school and it still sounds great!!

  • This is a lot better than Green Day. Who wants to hear a guy who is from Georgia try to sound British? Sell outs, that's who. Any group that gets too much air time on pop radio is not "punk"

  • Comment removed

  • @kerryman7 AMEN!

  • @kerryman7 just shut up. i dont care how right you are, thats old fucking news and even saying "this is a lot better than green day" is a horribe comparison. thats like comparing blink 182 with the clash.

  • @kerryman7 A matter of opinion. Both bands are alright when you're in the right mood. Who really cares what "punk" is anyway? Does it matter? Does someone have more integrity because they seem more angry than someone else? Face it. John Lydon might seem cool from a distance, but I doubt he's someone you'd ever want to deal with on a regular basis. And talk about selling out? You don't think he's cashed in on his image? Get real. LOL.

  • @kerryman7 I don't like Green Day's music, But I don't care if a certain band was a sell out. Because they could make awesome music but be a bunch of sell outs.

  • @kerryman7 GREEN DAY IS FROM BERKLEY CALIFORNIA..THE EAST BAY..NOT GEORGIA

  • @kerryman7 this video sounds just like a typical 80's pop, dude. Sex Pistol had their moment in 70'sm but Dookie is still the best album in 90's which is why you still hear 'em on the radio. If you really think you know, Punk, you should listen to Dead Kennedy every day but I am pretty sure you can't stand that long cuz they are boring

  • @kerryman7 this video sounds just like a typical 80's pop, dude. Sex Pistol had their moment in 70'sm but Dookie is still the best album in 90's which is why you still hear 'em on the radio. If you really think you know, Punk, you should listen to Dead Kennedy every day but I am pretty sure you can't stand that long cuz they are boring

  • @kerryman7 Seriously heh? John Lydon is one of those few artists who made down to earth songs & videos. I don't like Green Day, especially nowadays where all they are making is an actual adaptation of their same "Dookie/Nimrod" formula.

  • @techhasnologictoday if only green day could make another album as good as dookie, their first and last decent album

  • @kerryman7 Totally agree!

  • fantastic. john, if you can read this, reform PIL... PALACES...BARRCADES...CORRECT.­..KEEP PROMISES....

  • They have reformed. US tour in April/May

  • They are coming to Milwaukee, WI 4-30 i ordered my tickets this morning :D lol yes!

  • Oh yeah, I'm gonna see them in Pontiac, MI on April 28

  • @Obrian81  you can tell me how awesome the show was then before i see it!

  • @TAP66 Yeah, but what does "reform" mean? They've had countless people in the group.

  • @gnrplmmr

    loved johnny rotten. hate lydon

    ????

    johmmy rotten / john lydon = same guy !!

  • Guess you ain't much for Crass then either?

  • Has Revolution become a commodity, too?

  • JOHN=GENIOUS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

  • JOHN = STRANGE

  • God, I love the bass line in this song.

  • My 2 favorite things, music and explosions!

  • Phoney people....Rotten is this in the middle of it....

  • I loved PiL in the 80's.

  • And people love to hate on this era of PiL, but for some of us these songs actually mean something. I remember when this was right in the mix with everything else on 120 Minutes at the time. And it always sounded so good! Coachella 2010. Do it!

  • Yeah, they're pretty much the band I'm most excited to see @ Coachella, and this year that's saying a LOT. I swear if there's some sort of last-minute cancellation I'll freak. But the reviews of the UK shows make it sound like they're in it to win it. See you there!

  • I hope the reports are true that P.I.L. are playing Coachchella 2009.

  • Wow! I haven't heard this song in 15-20 years and still remember it, word for word...

  • Amazing song!

  • great song, Pil were ace around this time!

  • this was a polished progression of punk and sounds good to me but grunge always sucked.

  • @The096757 grunge sucks but nirvana certainly doesn't. don't be a silly bitch. you're not cool.

  • @roejogan8

    nivana sucks and so do you you freak.

  • they don't suck. they sold 50 million records, are one of the most critically acclaimed bands in rock history, they still sell thousands of records every year to this very day, and they are still relevant and converting new fans. what the fuck have you done? dislike them if you want, but they don't suck. not at all.

  • @The096757 TOO TRUE MATE.

  • @The096757 fuck you right up ur stupid asshole. u cuntdiva.

  • Shame the footage is from some city in England and not Seattle, lol

  • Comment removed

  • Great Song

  • Saw P.I.L live in 85 @ Massey Hall in T.O. always wondered what Kurt Cobain thought of this song... It troubles me to this very day!!!

  • This was my favorite song growing up in Florida immersed in the surf scene. One of my most favorite, timeless songs ever. Brilliant. Second from that time was Love and Rockets, No New Tale to Tell. Then, on the other side was Priest, the Cult, and Maiden. Yes, I had a very wide range of musical tastes. This was good stuff.

  • you kept it real mate, good selection

  • " don't like the looks of this old town what goes up must come down"

  • I can see how Seattle inspired these words.

  • The reason this song is called Seattle is that the song was written in Seattle Washington USA when PIL was there during their tour. According to Lydon, the song has nothing to do with Seattle itself.

  • Everything to do with America though, LOL! genius of lyrics.

  • The best thing that happened to John Lydon was meeting Malcolm McLaren. The next best thing was getting away from him.

  • good comment

  • This song will always make me think of Club Medusa and Smart Bar in Chicago circa 85,86.

  • He`s an ugly cunt

  • I bet Lydon doesn't hate Seattle, now that its not the grunge era anymore.

  • This was just before the Seattle grunge scene.

  • I guess you are right. Didn't know.

  • Lydon is the best!!

  • good comment

  • yeah, a piece of arshh, but he made it! hats off to you John. Love you always... K

  • It's still Rotten, hence the minor destruction in the video but is it just me or is he a sexy piece of ass also the lyrics fit his personality

  • big budgeted vids... it's the death thrall...

  • @mjsrocks. you are obviously NOT from the 80's. This was the succesdingly step forward the next era; The 90's and 21ST CENTURY. And now you need to know the rules of the 80's: After me nothing but EMPTINESS.

  • i respect people interests in music especially punk music but im sorry i have to say it wtf i almost had to do a double take when watching this i couldnt believe this is johnny rotten how could someone go from the most well known punks in england who sang for the most vile, destructive, band with an absolutely crude sound to singing poppy music like this im not one to talk shit about bands and im a huge fan of the pistols and john rotten but this to me is kinda sad
  • Classic track but PiL never the same after Metal Box and the loss of Jah Wobble.

  • Ya...To I luvPBouvier Not to sound like a douche but he says "Anti-Christ " not antry christ ... listen to words. and Pistols where in the seventies. Pil Was right after. but there where alot of cooler bands. But shit you do gotta love John Rotten.

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  • oh my god PIL are like the coolest punk band since the Pistols Hehe... figures..x

    i absolutely love Jony Lydon he is such a great character and he is like totallyyyy INSANE.!!!!!!!!!!!!

    I AM AN ANTRY CHRIST.!!!!!!!!! wooop gop punk bands :) <3

  • Hip Hop must really look up to John Lydon.

  • JOHN MCGEOCH!!!

  • "Message"?

    When did I say anything about a message?

    (I was talking about the sound of the song, not the lyrics).

  • -- not from down under either. But with "roo" in my name, it's easy for people to assume that.

  • I love this song and Lydon ;D

  • he must have been a handful as a child

  • I have 2 tickets i am selling at Machester Academy if interested please private message me

  • I wish I would have appreciated this when it came out. I was pretty much just into metal way back when.

    I see this for the brilliant music it is now though.

  • Heh, even though there's nothing in this video about Seattle (and I live here), it's actually not far from the truth.

    Our heyday came and went. Ironic that not long after they wrote this track, Seattle had a few years of being a musical powerhouse.

    That sure didn't last...

    The 90s are over. We're back to being boring again.

  • There were still a bunch of fairly well known bands coming out of Seattle after the Grunge era. Modest Mouse, Built to Spill, Band of Horses, Fleet Foxes, Death Cab for Cutie etc. etc.

  • Thanks soooo much for mentioning Modestmouse! That "Little Motel" song was outstanding! Gosh.....I miss talent like this on the radio instead of, well, U know.....Jonasbrothers shyt! Or horse voice Hanna! Thanks again :)

  • I wish I could seen Johnny assault Goofy as Disney World.

  • happy to take the misery this mortal life can bring to me

  • i like it

  • Is it the the verses that remind me of Talking Heads, or just the big jacket?

  • I truly dislike those folks from down under who think they understand the message....

  • public image limited....

    <3

    questo è punk!

  • Lydon singin bout Seattle five years before the scene...

  • Pils best song with a bullet!

  • them humans an' their ;;crazy-xenomorphs;:-well that just goes to show!!!

  • i think any punk rock from the early 70s to the end of the 80s was the best all the new bands suck ass

  • thats nice -you missed the point. punk is what it is and always be evolving...

  • true

  • Punk was not just an english thing - get a clue. I'll slag Green Stain as being punk poseurs of the highest order any day of the week, but Herny Rollins was a punk because Black Flag was a punk band without a doubt. and lets not forget the DKs - the numero uno US punk record with Fresh Fruit. I did like more English bands, but the US punks were particularly scary...

    btw, this song came out before any grunge hits. It was the opening salvo for Seattle to get Lydon to name it in a song.

  • lydon is a glass of wine to;;;-{-losing my body heat!!!

  • Not only is John the King of Punk, he and Steve Jones and Paul Cook are the ONLY punks! All others are pretenders. Henry Rollins? Gimme a break!

  • Truly one of their best!..

  • Clearly, we have a genius here aside from the Sex Pistols.

  • kind of like the soundtrack to my day!

  • Lydon is legendary. very intelligent man.awesome vocalist.still going strong to this day . fucking madly brilliant

  • Never mind the Sex Pistols ... I mean Mr Lydon is amusing and all, but --

    JOHN McGEOCH

    -- is this guitar riff not one of the most memorable you've ever heard in your life? You heat it once and it chimes in the back of your head for a month!

    *moment of respectful silence*

    ok, now that we've paid our respects, ya'll can go back to bickering endlessly about Lydon. Cheers.

  • I fully agree with you. Lydon did a far better job picking his band than he did singing. Sounds like there's some matching delay on that gtr, and a second track that is complementary to the melody. Maybe he knew he needed it since Lydon sings basically two notes...

    Lets not ignore the rhythm section either.

  • I hear delay also, and I think you're right about at least one more track of fills and overdubs -- in places where the basic melody needed more "oomph." (At the end of the bridge, just after Lydon says "NOW!" you can hear the guitar best).

    And yes, I agree completely -- the rhythm section is perfect. Great bassline and solid playing. Gives the guitar and vocal melodies something to contrast to and to spiral around.

  • And yeah, now that you mention it, and now that I've given it a closer listen, Lydon is basically singing a slightly-more-elaborate version of the bass-line, but at a higher pitch. So, in a way, he's contributing more to the rhythm than to the melody, which makes the guitar stand out even more.

  • Hey, you're right! Hadn't noticed that before. That's probably what makes him a nice and interesting singer, even when he's not an accomplished one.

  • Yes, when you've got a limited voice but you want to sing, you'll find ways to work around your limitations. Some people are better at it than others. He's great at it. Another way Lydon gets around it is by using "volume" to compensate for "range" -- that is, he shouts louder instead of singing higher. The change in volume comes across as a note change because it sounds "different" than the note that came before it, even if it really isn't.

    Clever guy.

  • ok, its not the sex pistols, we get it. its still good music, and tho it wuz a more commercial sound than the pistols, it was still different.

  • John doesn't give a shit what anyone thinks...I will always respect him for that...I luv that commercial~!

  • this is the first video I ever favorited, I 650 favorites... 5/5

  • 2:05-2.07 funny moment :P

  • Ah, you guys are being too tough. Johnny Rotten is The Man! If he is not the King of Punk, who is?

  • The only other names that come to mind for me are either Jello Biafra or Henry Rollins.

  • What about Joey ramone or Lemmy?

  • Right! Lemmy is already a GOD of metal, but he can also be considered for punk. Joey could be up there as well.I could see a spot for Joe Strummer and Mick Jones as well.