Various – Live At The Roxy London WC2 (Jan - Apr 77)

Four decades later, critics and fans are still arguing about what "punk" meant. Was it a musical style? A code of dress? Did the bands themselves embrace the term, or was it thrust upon them? Was it always political? Was it *ever* political? Even if we confine ourselves to the musical aspect of the debate, it's obvious that punk never had a single definition. Play this record back to back with "Live from CBGB's" and you'll understand just how astonishingly different the New York and UK scenes were; at times, the only immediate resemblance between the two versions of punk is that they were both played in small nightclubs. The Roxy, which operated for just four months in 1977, was the epicenter of London's punk scene...but, as "England's Dreaming" author Jon Savage acknowledges, "it was also where the dream of access turned sour, as many of the groups that came up displayed a lack of imagination and a reliance upon formula...Punk's accessibility seemed to suggest that anyone could do it: the Roxy proved that not everybody could." The Unwanted typify this dreary, derivative approach on 'Freedom'. Wire deliver solid early versions of two "Pink Flag" standards ('Lowdown' and '12XU') but were already beginning to distance themselves from the sneering punk stereotype, and wisely so. The Roxy being synonymous with London, it's interesting to note that the record opens and closes with performances by Mancunian bands: Slaughter and the Dogs and Buzzcocks. They also happen to be the tightest of the groups represented here; Buzzcocks, in particular, were going places and their talent is unmistakable even on this ragged live recording.

Not the most entertaining album of its era, but an essential listen for students of punk history.