The Vicious White Kids were a punk rock band from London that formed for one concert on August 15, 1978, at the Electric Ballroom in London. Sex Pistols bassist Sid Vicious was the lead singer. It was his final concert in England, as he died of an overdose the following February.
Vicious was due to fly to New York and needed some funds, so after bumping into ex-Pistol Glen Matlock one day they decided to do a gig together. Matlock, whom Vicious had replaced in the Sex Pistols, saw it is an opportunity "to show there was no animosity" between them, he later commented. Matlock recruited his Rich Kid bandmate Steve New on guitar and The Damned's Rat Scabies completed the line up on drums. Nancy Spungen sang backing vocals but after hearing her at rehearsals, Matlock made sure her microphone was not plugged in on the night of the gig. The name of the band came from an amalgamation of Sid Vicious, The Rich Kids and Rat Scabies' part time outfit The White Cats.
Recordings of the concert, which included covers of Frank Sinatra's "My Way" and The Stooges' "I Wanna Be Your Dog", have been released multiple times: in 1991 on DeLorean Records, in 1993 on Receiver Records, in 2002 on Castle Records, and in 2007 on Sanctuary Records. The 2007 release includes an interview with Matlock and Scabies.
The Belfast Telegraph, after the release of the 2007 album, called the music "raw and wonderfully chaotic".
Read more about Vicious White Kids: Band Members
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