Biography
Few musicians aside from Pete Best have become better known for dismissal from a band than Glen Matlock. During February 1977, as the Sex Pistols moved from cult status toward a full-blown British scandal, bassist Matlock was let go and superfan Sid Vicious was asked to replace him despite his limited bass skills. Later events confirmed that the decision to remove Matlock was an error, since he possessed a keen melodic ear, supplied the melodies for most of the group’s strongest material, and played with notable skill. Matlock finally gained a chance to correct the narrative when the Sex Pistols mounted a worldwide reunion tour in 1996, yet by then he had already logged nearly twenty years as a working musician, fronting the Rich Kids, the Philistines, and Dead Men Walking, backing Iggy Pop, Ian Hunter, and Frank Black, writing his memoirs, and issuing and touring his own records. Matlock has repeatedly demonstrated a gift for sturdy, no-frills rock & roll in the classic British mold associated with the Faces, a connection made literal when he later joined a subsequent lineup of that storied band. In the 2020s he remained especially active, touring as a member of Blondie and delivering his sixth solo album, 2023’s politically pointed Consequences Coming.
Glen Matlock entered the world in London, England on August 27, 1956. After studying at St. Martin’s School of Art, he took a job at Sex, the boutique specializing in latex and leather garments, bondage apparel, and deliberately provocative designs; there, in 1974, manager Malcolm McLaren introduced him to Paul Cook and Steve Jones, two musicians intent on starting a band under McLaren’s guidance. The initial trio gradually became the Sex Pistols, with Matlock on bass and responsible for most of the music while vocalist John Lydon, also known as Johnny Rotten, supplied the words. The Sex Pistols played their first public show in November 1975, and a February 1976 support slot for Eddie & the Hot Rods drew a New Musical Express review that brought wider attention. McLaren’s talent for generating controversy, combined with the band’s raw sound and caustic lyrics, quickly positioned the Sex Pistols at the forefront of the emerging punk-rock scene. Matlock participated in the recording of their EMI debut single “Anarchy in the U.K.,” issued in November 1976, and was present for the group’s notorious live-television appearance in December 1976; when host Bill Grundy urged Steve Jones to say something outrageous, Jones unleashed several F-bombs that instantly made the band tabloid targets, while Matlock’s earlier comment that the group had “f–kin’ spent” its advance drew far less notice.
The sudden notoriety intensified internal friction, especially Rotten’s open animosity toward Matlock, and in February 1977 Matlock was dismissed, although some accounts indicate he returned to record several bass parts for Never Mind the Bollocks, Here’s the Sex Pistols because Sid Vicious proved unequal to the task. Matlock quickly regrouped, forming the Rich Kids with guitarist Stella Nova, drummer Rusty Egan, and singer Midge Ure. EMI signed the new band, whose debut Ghosts of Princes in Towers appeared in August 1978; the album favored clever new-wave pop over punk, and although the title track enjoyed modest single success the LP failed commercially and the group disbanded within a year. After a one-off performance with Sid Vicious in the Vicious White Kids, Matlock and Nova joined Iggy Pop’s touring band in 1979, and Matlock played bass on Pop’s 1980 album Soldier while co-writing four of its songs. He next assembled the Spectres, which included former Tom Robinson Band guitarist Danny Kustow; the group released two singles on Demon Records before splitting. His subsequent project Hot Club, featuring guitarist James Stevenson later of Gene Loves Jezebel and the Alarm, issued two singles on RAK in 1982 and 1983.
In 1984 Matlock joined London Cowboys, whose members included Steve Dior and Barry Jones of the Idols, and appeared on their album Tall in the Saddle; he also spent time in Johnny Thunders’ touring band, with some recordings surfacing on the 1990 compilation Bootlegging the Bootleggers. That same year Matlock published his autobiography I Was a Teenage Sex Pistol, written with Peter Silverton. He contributed bass to Ian Hunter’s 1994 album Ian Hunter’s Dirty Laundry, and a collaboration between Dave Vanian and Rat Scabies produced a studio reunion of the Damned that yielded the 1996 album Not of this Earth, also known as I’m Alright Jack and the Beanstalk. Also in 1996, Matlock signed with Creation Records and released his first solo album, Who’s He Think He Is When He’s at Home? Although critics responded favorably, the record was overshadowed when the Sex Pistols announced their reunion tour; Matlock reconciled with John Lydon, Steve Jones, and Paul Cook for the six-month run. One early date, a large outdoor concert at London’s Finsbury Park, was captured and released weeks later as Filthy Lucre Live. The Sex Pistols mounted further reunion tours in 2002, 2003, 2007, and 2008 before ending the project.
In 1997 Matlock guested with Creation act 18 Wheeler on two singles and contributed to Primal Scream’s Vanishing Point. His next band, Glen Matlock & the Philistines, debuted with Open Mind in 2000; the lineup featured Stella Nova, Terry Edwards, Chris Musto, and David Donley, while former Clash guitarist Mick Jones played on two tracks. The Philistines issued two further albums, On Something in 2004 and Born Running in 2010, followed by the 2013 compilation Rattle Your Cage: The Best Of. Matlock also performed with the Flying Padovanis, whose ranks included original Police guitarist Henry Padovani, and toured with the loose acoustic supergroup Dead Men Walking alongside Mike Peters of the Alarm, Kirk Brandon of Theatre of Hate, and Pete Wylie of Wah! He joined yet another ad-hoc outfit, the Slinky Vagabonds, with guitarist Earl Slick, Blondie drummer Clem Burke, and musician-fashion designer Keanan Duffty. The Rich Kids staged a single reunion benefit in January 2010 for Stella Nova, then battling cancer; it proved one of her last appearances, as she died four months later. That year the Faces reunited for a tour featuring original members Ron Wood, Ian McLagan, and Kenney Jones, recruiting Matlock to play bass in place of the late Ronnie Lane; he remained with the band through 2011. After leaving the Faces, Matlock reunited with Clem Burke in the International Swingers alongside James Stevenson and Gary Twinn, releasing their self-titled debut in 2015.
Matlock made his acting debut in 2012 with a role in the British film The Paddy Lincoln Gang, portraying a member of the Faces in keeping with method-acting tradition. In 2013 he toured with Sylvain Sylvain of the New York Dolls under the billing Sex Dolls Tour. In 2017 he joined Walter Lure of the Heartbreakers, Mike Ness of Social Distortion, and Clem Burke for a tour celebrating the Heartbreakers’ album L.A.M.F.; that year he also released the EP Sexy Beast, recorded with Earl Slick and former Stray Cats drummer Slim Jim Phantom and containing one new original plus covers of songs by Richard Hell, David Bowie, and Pharrell Williams. The title track reappeared on his next album, 2018’s Good to Go, a twelve-song set featuring guitar contributions from Chris Spedding and Neil X of Sigue Sigue Sputnik. When Blondie bassist Leigh Foxx withdrew from North American and U.K. dates in April 2022 because of a back injury, Matlock filled the chair and stayed on for 2023 shows and recording sessions. Also in 2022 the Sex Pistols era was dramatized in the miniseries Pistol, drawn from Steve Jones’ memoirs; Matlock, portrayed by Christian Lees, criticized the depiction of his departure as inaccurate. He soon turned his attention elsewhere, issuing the politically charged solo album Consequences Coming in April 2023, which voiced his opposition to Donald Trump, Boris Johnson, and Brexit.
Glen Matlock entered the world in London, England on August 27, 1956. After studying at St. Martin’s School of Art, he took a job at Sex, the boutique specializing in latex and leather garments, bondage apparel, and deliberately provocative designs; there, in 1974, manager Malcolm McLaren introduced him to Paul Cook and Steve Jones, two musicians intent on starting a band under McLaren’s guidance. The initial trio gradually became the Sex Pistols, with Matlock on bass and responsible for most of the music while vocalist John Lydon, also known as Johnny Rotten, supplied the words. The Sex Pistols played their first public show in November 1975, and a February 1976 support slot for Eddie & the Hot Rods drew a New Musical Express review that brought wider attention. McLaren’s talent for generating controversy, combined with the band’s raw sound and caustic lyrics, quickly positioned the Sex Pistols at the forefront of the emerging punk-rock scene. Matlock participated in the recording of their EMI debut single “Anarchy in the U.K.,” issued in November 1976, and was present for the group’s notorious live-television appearance in December 1976; when host Bill Grundy urged Steve Jones to say something outrageous, Jones unleashed several F-bombs that instantly made the band tabloid targets, while Matlock’s earlier comment that the group had “f–kin’ spent” its advance drew far less notice.
The sudden notoriety intensified internal friction, especially Rotten’s open animosity toward Matlock, and in February 1977 Matlock was dismissed, although some accounts indicate he returned to record several bass parts for Never Mind the Bollocks, Here’s the Sex Pistols because Sid Vicious proved unequal to the task. Matlock quickly regrouped, forming the Rich Kids with guitarist Stella Nova, drummer Rusty Egan, and singer Midge Ure. EMI signed the new band, whose debut Ghosts of Princes in Towers appeared in August 1978; the album favored clever new-wave pop over punk, and although the title track enjoyed modest single success the LP failed commercially and the group disbanded within a year. After a one-off performance with Sid Vicious in the Vicious White Kids, Matlock and Nova joined Iggy Pop’s touring band in 1979, and Matlock played bass on Pop’s 1980 album Soldier while co-writing four of its songs. He next assembled the Spectres, which included former Tom Robinson Band guitarist Danny Kustow; the group released two singles on Demon Records before splitting. His subsequent project Hot Club, featuring guitarist James Stevenson later of Gene Loves Jezebel and the Alarm, issued two singles on RAK in 1982 and 1983.
In 1984 Matlock joined London Cowboys, whose members included Steve Dior and Barry Jones of the Idols, and appeared on their album Tall in the Saddle; he also spent time in Johnny Thunders’ touring band, with some recordings surfacing on the 1990 compilation Bootlegging the Bootleggers. That same year Matlock published his autobiography I Was a Teenage Sex Pistol, written with Peter Silverton. He contributed bass to Ian Hunter’s 1994 album Ian Hunter’s Dirty Laundry, and a collaboration between Dave Vanian and Rat Scabies produced a studio reunion of the Damned that yielded the 1996 album Not of this Earth, also known as I’m Alright Jack and the Beanstalk. Also in 1996, Matlock signed with Creation Records and released his first solo album, Who’s He Think He Is When He’s at Home? Although critics responded favorably, the record was overshadowed when the Sex Pistols announced their reunion tour; Matlock reconciled with John Lydon, Steve Jones, and Paul Cook for the six-month run. One early date, a large outdoor concert at London’s Finsbury Park, was captured and released weeks later as Filthy Lucre Live. The Sex Pistols mounted further reunion tours in 2002, 2003, 2007, and 2008 before ending the project.
In 1997 Matlock guested with Creation act 18 Wheeler on two singles and contributed to Primal Scream’s Vanishing Point. His next band, Glen Matlock & the Philistines, debuted with Open Mind in 2000; the lineup featured Stella Nova, Terry Edwards, Chris Musto, and David Donley, while former Clash guitarist Mick Jones played on two tracks. The Philistines issued two further albums, On Something in 2004 and Born Running in 2010, followed by the 2013 compilation Rattle Your Cage: The Best Of. Matlock also performed with the Flying Padovanis, whose ranks included original Police guitarist Henry Padovani, and toured with the loose acoustic supergroup Dead Men Walking alongside Mike Peters of the Alarm, Kirk Brandon of Theatre of Hate, and Pete Wylie of Wah! He joined yet another ad-hoc outfit, the Slinky Vagabonds, with guitarist Earl Slick, Blondie drummer Clem Burke, and musician-fashion designer Keanan Duffty. The Rich Kids staged a single reunion benefit in January 2010 for Stella Nova, then battling cancer; it proved one of her last appearances, as she died four months later. That year the Faces reunited for a tour featuring original members Ron Wood, Ian McLagan, and Kenney Jones, recruiting Matlock to play bass in place of the late Ronnie Lane; he remained with the band through 2011. After leaving the Faces, Matlock reunited with Clem Burke in the International Swingers alongside James Stevenson and Gary Twinn, releasing their self-titled debut in 2015.
Matlock made his acting debut in 2012 with a role in the British film The Paddy Lincoln Gang, portraying a member of the Faces in keeping with method-acting tradition. In 2013 he toured with Sylvain Sylvain of the New York Dolls under the billing Sex Dolls Tour. In 2017 he joined Walter Lure of the Heartbreakers, Mike Ness of Social Distortion, and Clem Burke for a tour celebrating the Heartbreakers’ album L.A.M.F.; that year he also released the EP Sexy Beast, recorded with Earl Slick and former Stray Cats drummer Slim Jim Phantom and containing one new original plus covers of songs by Richard Hell, David Bowie, and Pharrell Williams. The title track reappeared on his next album, 2018’s Good to Go, a twelve-song set featuring guitar contributions from Chris Spedding and Neil X of Sigue Sigue Sputnik. When Blondie bassist Leigh Foxx withdrew from North American and U.K. dates in April 2022 because of a back injury, Matlock filled the chair and stayed on for 2023 shows and recording sessions. Also in 2022 the Sex Pistols era was dramatized in the miniseries Pistol, drawn from Steve Jones’ memoirs; Matlock, portrayed by Christian Lees, criticized the depiction of his departure as inaccurate. He soon turned his attention elsewhere, issuing the politically charged solo album Consequences Coming in April 2023, which voiced his opposition to Donald Trump, Boris Johnson, and Brexit.
Singles
