THE BUZZCOCKS...JOHN PEEL SESSION 1977...

Buzzcocks are an English punk rock band that singer-songwriter-guitarist Pete Shelley and singer-songwriter Howard Devoto formed in Manchester in 1976.[5] During their career, the band combined elements of punk rock, power pop,[6] and pop punk.[7] They achieved commercial success with singles that fuse pop craftsmanship with rapid-fire punk energy; these singles were later collected on Singles Going Steady, an acclaimed compilation album music journalist and critic Ned Raggett described as a "punk masterpiece".[8]

Devoto left the band in 1977 and formed Magazine, after which Pete Shelley became the principal singer-songwriter.[9] The classic lineup of Shelley, Steve Diggle (guitar), Steve Garvey (bass) and John Maher (drums) recorded Buzzcocks' first three albums, after which the band broke up in 1981 following a dispute with their record label. The band reunited in 1989 and released six more albums before Shelley's death in 2018.[10] Prolific members during that time included Tony Barber (bass) and Phil Barker (drums). The band has remained active, being anchored by long-time guitarist Diggle, who has since also assumed lead vocal duties. As of 2019, the band consists of Diggle, Danny Farrant (drums), Chris Remington (bass) and touring member Mani Perazzoli (guitar, backing vocals). This line-up released the band's tenth album, Sonics in the Soul in 2022.[11]

Career
Early years
Howard Trafford, a student at Bolton Institute of Technology who had been involved in electronic music, placed a notice in the college looking for musicians to play The Velvet Underground's song "Sister Ray".[12][13] Fellow student Peter McNeish, who had played in a rock band called Jets of Air, responded to the notice.

Devoto and Shelley chose the name "Buzzcocks" after reading the headline "It's the Buzz, Cock!" in a review of the television series Rock Follies in Time Out magazine.[16] The "buzz" is the excitement of playing on stage and "cock" is northern English slang meaning "friend". They thought the name captured the excitement of the nascent punk scene and had humorous sexual connotations following Pete Shelley's time working in a Bolton adult shop.[17]

Buzzcocks performed live for the first time on 1 April 1976 at their college. Garth Davies played bass guitar and Mick Singleton, who also played in local band Black Cat Bone, played drums.[18]

After reading an NME review of Sex Pistols' first performance, in February 1976, Shelley and Devoto travelled to High Wycombe together to see Sex Pistols.[14] Shelley and Devoto were impressed by the show and arranged for Sex Pistols to perform at the Lesser Free Trade Hall in Manchester in June 1976. Buzzcocks intended to play at this concert but the other musicians dropped out, and Shelley and Devoto were unable to recruit replacements in time for the gig. Once they had recruited bass guitarist Steve Diggle and drummer John Maher, Buzzcocks made their debut opening for Sex Pistols' second Manchester concert on 20 July 1976 at the same venue.[14] A brief clip of Devoto-era Buzzcocks performing the Troggs' "I Can't Control Myself" appears in the documentary Punk: Attitude, which was directed by Don Letts. Buzzcocks made their London debut at The Screen on the Green in support of the Clash and Sex Pistols, while the next month they played the two-day 100 Club Punk Festival, which was organised by Malcolm McLaren, and would later replace the Damned on the Anarchy in the UK Tour.[14][19]

In between these live performances, Buzzcocks began developing their own material and recorded an 11-track demo at Stockport Studios which was eventually released in 1991.[14] By the end of the year, Buzzcocks had recorded and released a four-track EP called Spiral Scratch, which they released on their own label New Hormones, making them one of the first punk groups to establish an independent record label.[7] The EP was produced by Martin Hannett at Indigo Sound Studios; the music was roughly recorded, insistently repetitive and energetic.[20] The EP was re-released in September 1979 and reached number 31 in the charts.[14]

In March 1977, Devoto announced his departure from the band, expressing his dissatisfaction at the direction punk was taking in his statement: "I don't like movements. What was once unhealthily fresh is now a clean old hat".[21] He returned to college for a year then formed a band called Magazine. Pete Shelley took on the vocal duties for Buzzcocks and moved away from social commentary to adolescent themes.[7] Steve Diggle switched from bass to guitar, and Garth Davies—also known as Garth Smith—rejoined Buzzcocks to play bass. The band joined The Clash as support on their White Riot tour.