1976 and all that

I don't think there's anything special about a 33rd anniversary (why not ? is it somehow less of a number than 25 ?) but this Thursday marks thirty three years since the release of 'Anarchy In The UK' by the Sex Pistols. I know there have been doctorates based on that record and somewhere in the Channel Four warehouse there's probably a whole hour's worth of comedians, reality tv show veterans and former NME writers giving their thoughts on the significance of the event, but can I just direct you to a video of the band miming to it in an anonymous studio somewhere in London ? In 1976 music videos were fairly basic for bands on EMI who weren't Queen but the Sex Pistols didn't need trick photography. They had Johnny Rotten , who in this incarnation was a cross between the Tin Man from the Wizard of Oz who needs to go to the toilet reaally badly and Oor Wullie from the Sunday Post . They also had the great idea of putting the drummer, Paul Cook, in front of the rest of the band. Why this is such a great idea, I don't know, but it means that the camera catches the drummer trying not to laugh as clearly as it picks up the guitar player Steve Jones and bass player Glen Matlock in their own contest to see who could throw the rockingest of shapes. I think Steve Jones just about shades it , especially when he drops his plectrum and picks it up as coolly as picking up a fag butt in the street.
The shock of the single may have disappeared over the decades but look at it not as an excuse to kick in your colour tv in protest, but as an appreciation of the other 'four lads who shook the world'.