But as far as looking back on the history of things, it’s hard to pinpoint photos and times. I mean, the thing is, that doesn’t mean a lot to us now. I think Sid Vicious, his leather jacket maybe came about a little bit later. And so I’m guessing a lot of those kids probably adopted the leather jacket at that time. A lot of the inspiration for that - “Oh, we can do this too!” - came from watching the Ramones in London. And then when they came back the following year on their second tour, all of the kids who were in the front at the shows now had formed their own bands. When the Ramones had their first tour of England, in 1976, they wore leather jackets. Graham Wood/Evening Standard/Hulton Archive/Getty Imagesīut the leather jacket, I would say, became popular because of the Ramones. The contract was terminated after one week. The Sex Pistols with their manager Malcolm McLaren signing a new contract with A&M Records, outside Buckingham Palace in March 1977. I would say the lack of resources probably contributed to the artistic-ness and your creativity of doing things yourself, DIY, altering your own clothing. Their parents were working class, people were maybe on the dole. Actually, their parents were working class - we’re talking about kids who were probably between the ages of 14 and 19 during those two years. A lot of these kids, they didn’t have money. That’s kind of the vibe that I get from a lot of the real experimental-looking stuff.
There’s a lot of ripped-up clothing and sewn and safety-pinned back together that probably wasn’t even worn except to a punk show, where maybe it was photographed one time. There’s a photo of some kid at a punk show in, like, 1976 who’s like wrapped up in bloody gauze. So you see a lot of experimentation in clothing that doesn’t really translate into real life. Because it was being invented at that moment, you see a lot of style that never really caught on.
… There weren’t well-defined rules about what is punk and what isn’t punk. I would say the first wave of punk in London, so 1976, ’77, I think that was more characterized by experimental styles. Malcolm McLaren probably brought that spiky hair-look back to London, and stuck it on Johnny Rotten and Sid Vicious. I think you could also probably contribute the Richard Hell spiky-hair look. That caused the first wave of punk-rock youth in London to rip their clothes and safety-pin it back up. I believe that Malcolm McLaren took that look directly back to London at the right time, and put it on the Sex Pistols. Malcolm McLaren was in New York in the mid-Seventies, and saw Richard Hell, and Richard Hell would rip his clothing and safety-pin it back together. The safety-pin look was made famous by the Sex Pistols, but was possibly imported from New York. Safety pins in all of your clothing, in T-shirts, through people’s cheeks. I’d say Vivienne Westwood and Malcolm McLaren invented the British look of punk.īondage pants - plaid pants and straps - that’s a British punk look. I would say if it wasn’t for those two designers and the Sex store on the King’s Road, then there would be no Sex Pistols. The Sex Pistols would owe their fashion style to Malcolm McLaren and Vivienne Westwood, first and for foremost. What makes the Sex Pistols’ fashion style unique? Six, modeling bondage gear from Vivienne Westwood and Malcolm McLaren’s boutique Seditionaries, formerly known as Sex. Pamela Rooke, a.k.a, Jordan, and Simon Barker, a.k.a.