"Anarchy in the U.K."
Side A of the 1976 UK single
Single bySex Pistols
from the albumNever Mind the Bollocks, Here's the Sex Pistols
B-side	"I Wanna Be Me"
Released	26 November 1976
Recorded	17 October 1976
Studio	Wessex Sound, London[1]
Genre	Punk rock
Length	3:31
Label	EMI
Songwriters	Paul Cook,Steve Jones,John Lydon,Glen Matlock
Producers	Chris Thomas,Bill Price,Dave Goodman
Sex Pistols singles chronology
"Anarchy in the U.K." (1976) "God Save the Queen" (1977)
Music video
"Anarchy In The U.K" onYouTube

"Anarchy in the U.K." is a song by the Englishpunk rock band theSex Pistols. It was released as the band's debut single on 26 November 1976 and was later featured on their albumNever Mind the Bollocks, Here's the Sex Pistols. "Anarchy in the U.K." was number 56 onRolling Stone magazine's list of the500 Greatest Songs of All Time^[2] and is included in theRock and Roll Hall of Fame's 500 Songs That Shaped Rock and Roll.^[3]

Originally issued in a plain black sleeve, the single was the only Sex Pistols recording released byEMI, and it reached number 38 on theUK Singles Chart before EMI dropped the group on 6 January 1977, a month after members of the band used profanity duringa live television broadcast. (The EMI version was recorded on 17 October 1976. An earlier demo version, titled "Nookie', was recorded between 10 and 12 October at Lansdowne/Wessex Studios, London. This version later surfaced on the Sex Pistols bootleg albumSpunk).

In 2007, the surviving members (not including original Pistols bassistGlen Matlock) re-recorded "Anarchy in the U.K." for the video gameGuitar Hero III: Legends of Rock because the multi-track master could not be found^[4] (it was rediscovered along with the rest of theNever Mind The Bollocks masters during a move in January 2012^[5]). TheGuitar Hero version also appears in thefilm adaption of theA-Team. The song was also featured in the video gameTony Hawk's Pro Skater 4 as part of the soundtrack.^[6] The song also appears in theConstantine TV series during the episode "The Devil's Vinyl".^[7]

A limited edition 7" picture disc of the single was released on 21 April 2012 for that year'sRecord Store Day.^[8][9] In June 2022, atest pressing of the single that belonged toJohn Peel sold for more than £20,000 at auction.^[10]

"Anarchy in the U.K."

With its "inflammatory, venomous lyrics [and] crude energy", theSex Pistols' debut single "established punk's modus operandi".^[11] ProducerChris Thomas layered multiple tracks ofSteve Jones's guitar to create a "searing wall of sound",^[12] whileJohnny Rotten spewed the vocals "as if his teeth had been ground down to points."^[13]

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In the documentaryThe Filth and the Fury,John Lydon described the composition of the song's opening lyrics, explaining that the best rhyme he could devise for the first line, "I am anAntichrist", was the second line, "I am an anarchist". (Lydon confirmed that he is not an anarchist in a 2012 interview.^[14])

Sex Pistols managerMalcolm McLaren considered the song "a call to arms to the kids who believe that rock and roll was taken away from them. It's a statement of self rule, of ultimate independence."^[15]

The abbreviations used in the lyrics are a selection of civil war references from 1970s headlines, a suggestion of what could happen in the United Kingdom. The IRA and the UDA were the largest paramilitary armies in the conflict in Northern Ireland: the heavily armed IRA (Irish Republican Army) were on the Republican (anti-British, pro-unification) side, and the thousands-strong UDA (Ulster Defence Association) were on the Loyalist (pro-British, anti-unification) side. The MPLA (Movimento Popular de Libertação de Angola, or the People's Movement for the Liberation of Angola) were the political party that took control ofAngola, formerly one of Portugal's African colonies, in a 1975–1976 civil war, and still run the country today. When Rotten sings "I use the enemy", it's a deliberate homonym for "I use the NME", orNew Musical Express, the British weekly music newspaper.^[16][17]

1. "Anarchy in the UK"  – 3:31
2. "I Wanna Be Me"  – 3:12

• Johnny Rotten – lead vocals
• Steve Jones – guitar, backing vocals
• Glen Matlock – bass, backing vocals
• Paul Cook – drums

An alternative recording of the song in³
₄ time, accompanied by violin and accordion, apparently both translated into French and sung by a mysterious figure called Louis Brennon (also named as Jerzimy in some sources), appeared on the Sex Pistols' 1979 albumThe Great Rock 'n' Roll Swindle.^[22][23]

"Anarchy in the U.K."
German release cover
Single byMegadeth
from the albumSo Far, So Good... So What!
Released	February 17, 1988
Recorded	1987
Genre	Thrash metal[24]
Length	3:00
Label	Capitol
Songwriters	Paul Cook,Steve Jones,John Lydon,Glen Matlock
Megadeth singles chronology
"Peace Sells" (1986) "Anarchy in the U.K." (1988) "Mary Jane" (1988)

"Anarchy in the U.K." was covered by Americanthrash metal bandMegadeth for their third albumSo Far, So Good... So What!, released in 1988.

Megadeth's version has altered lyrics.Dave Mustaine explained that he could not understandJohnny Rotten's singing, so he made up the parts he could not understand (in a notable example, the line "another council tenancy" is changed to "and other cunt-like tendencies"). In addition, the country is changed to "USA", though the title is kept unchanged. The song's music video is a montage of live footage of the band, cartoon political figures, various scenes of violence, and of a man being forced to watch (much like Alex's therapy inA Clockwork Orange).Steve Jones played the second solo.

Mustaine now refuses to play the song live due to lyrics referring to the Anti-Christ, and he believes he's "better for it".^[25]

United States 7"

1. "Anarchy in the U.K."
2. "Liar"

United Kingdom 12"

1. "Anarchy in the U.K."
2. "Liar"
3. "502"

Germany 12"

1. "Anarchy in the U.K."
2. "Good Mourning/Black Friday" (live)
3. "Devil's Island" (live)

Green Jellÿ's version of "Anarchy in the U.K." is a parody cover of the original with addedFlintstones references. The song originally appeared as "Anarchy in Bedrock" on Green Jellÿ's (then Green Jellö's)Triple Live Möther Gööse at Budokan album.William Hanna andJoseph Barbera initially took offense to this version, and to Green Jellÿ mockingThe Flintstones, but they later relented, as this version was featured on the soundtrack to theFlintstones film that was released in 1994.

Pete Stanton fromSmash Hits gave the Green Jellÿ version five out of five, writing, "They've followed the insanity ofThree Little Pigs with more madness, littering a great song with "Yabadabadoo"s and an eardrum bursting "Wiiillmmaaaa" at the end. Get into Green Jelly quick before a doctor slips them into strait-jackets, shoves them into a room and locks the door."^[29]

1. "Anarchy in the U.K." – 3:29
2. "Green Jellÿ Theme Song" – 2:15
3. "Three Little Pigs (Blowin Down the House Mix)" – 6:34

• Danny Carey – drums
• Bill Tutton, Rootin' Bloomquist – bass
• Marc Levinthal, Steven Shenar, Bernie Peaks – guitar
• Bill Manspeaker, Joe Cannizzaro, Gary Helsinger, Greg Raynard, and Maynard James Keenan – vocals
• Kim O'Donnell and Caroline Jester – backup vocals, floor tom drums

Americanheavy metal bandMötley Crüe covered the song on their 1991 compilation albumDecade of Decadence, substituting US analogies and organizations in the lyrics for UK ones. It was also their last song with lead singerVince Neil until 1997'sGeneration Swine.

• SexPistolsOfficial.com: 'Anarchy in the UK 7"'
• Classic Tracks: 'Anarchy in the UK'

• 1976 songs
• 1976 debut singles
• 1988 singles
• 1991 singles
• 1993 singles
• Anarchist songs
• Capitol Records singles
• Elektra Records singles
• EMI Records singles
• Green Jellÿ songs
• Megadeth songs
• Mötley Crüe songs
• British protest songs
• Sex Pistols songs
• Song recordings produced by Chris Thomas (record producer)
• Songs about the United Kingdom
• Songs written by Glen Matlock
• Songs written by John Lydon
• Songs written by Paul Cook
• Songs written by Steve Jones (musician)
• Zoo Entertainment (record label) singles

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