"Orgasm Addict'" is a song by the English punk rock band

Buzzcocks Buzzcocks are an English punk rock band formed in Bolton, England in 1976 by singer-songwriter-guitarist Pete Shelley and singer-songwriter Howard Devoto. They are regarded as a seminal influence on the Manchester music scene, the independe ...

. It was the

A-side The A-side and B-side are the two sides of phonograph records and cassettes; these terms have often been printed on the labels of two-sided music recordings. The A-side usually features a recording that its artist, producer, or record company ...

of the Buzzcocks' first single, with "Whatever Happened To...?" as the B-side, which was released on 4 November 1977 by record label

United Artists United Artists Corporation (UA), currently doing business as United Artists Digital Studios, is an American digital production company. Founded in 1919 by D. W. Griffith, Charlie Chaplin, Mary Pickford, and Douglas Fairbanks, the stu ...

Cover image

The sleeve was devised by graphic designer Malcolm Garrett and featured a collage, created by Linder Sterling, depicting a woman whose head is a

clothes iron A clothes iron (also flatiron, smoothing iron, or simply iron) is a small appliance that, when heated, is used to press clothes to remove wrinkles and unwanted creases. Domestic irons generally range in operating temperature from between to . ...

. Regarding the concept, Sterling explained: "Well, the iron came from an Argos catalogue and the female torso came from a photographic magazine called ''

Photo A photograph (also known as a photo, image, or picture) is an image created by light falling on a photosensitive surface, usually photographic film or an electronic image sensor, such as a CCD or a CMOS chip. Most photographs are now creat ...

''. I never cleared the copyright but no one noticed, so it was alright." Sterling later added "It was made in a

Salford Salford () is a city and the largest settlement in the City of Salford metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. In 2011, Salford had a population of 103,886. It is also the second and only other city in the metropolitan county afte ...

bedroom; I had a sheet of glass, a scalpel and piles of women's mags." The image was originally in colour but Garrett thought it would be best to change it to a blue monotone, for the record company specified the sleeve could be printed in only two colours.

Release

"Orgasm Addict" was released as the Buzzcocks' debut single on 4 November 1977. The 7" French vinyl release contains different takes of the same two tracks. This was the only Buzzcocks single featuring bassist

Garth Smith Garth Smith (born Garth Davies, 10 December 1955) and sometimes credited as Garth, was known for being one of the bassists of the Bolton formed punk rock band, Buzzcocks. Biography Garth was born in the Lancashire town of Tyldesley on Saturda ...

, who joined in early 1977 to replace

Steve Diggle Stephen E Diggle (born 7 May 1955) is an English guitarist and vocalist in the punk band Buzzcocks. Biography Early years Diggle was born on 7 May 1955 at Saint Mary's Hospital in Manchester, and grew up in the Bradford and Rusholme areas ...

, who switched to guitar. Shortly after its release, he was expelled from the band. The song later appeared on the album ''

Singles Going Steady ''Singles Going Steady'' is a compilation album by English punk rock band Buzzcocks, first released on I.R.S. Records in the United States on 25 September 1979. Background ''Singles Going Steady'' was the first Buzzcocks album to be release ...

'' and also on CD reissues of ''

Another Music in a Different Kitchen ''Another Music in a Different Kitchen'' is the first studio album by the English punk rock band Buzzcocks. It was released in March 1978 by the United Artists record label. This was the third line-up of Buzzcocks, with the guitarist Pete Shel ...

''.

Reception

The song was controversial due to its sexual content and was banned by the

BBC #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...

. Buzzcocks singer

Pete Shelley Pete Shelley (born Peter Campbell McNeish; 17 April 1955 – 6 December 2018) was an English singer, songwriter and guitarist. He formed early punk band Buzzcocks with Howard Devoto in 1976, and became the lead singer and guitarist in 1977 wh ...

later said that the song "is embarrassing. It's the only one I listen to and... shudder".

Track listing

# "Orgasm Addict" (

Howard Devoto Howard Devoto (born Howard Andrew Trafford, 15 March 1952) is a retired English singer and songwriter, who began his career as the frontman for punk rock band Buzzcocks, but then left to form Magazine, one of the first post-punk bands. After ...

) (1:58) # "Whatever Happened To...?" (Pete Shelley, Dial – alias of ex-manager Richard Boon) (2:07)

References

External links

* {{Authority control 1977 singles Buzzcocks songs Songs written by Pete Shelley Song recordings produced by Martin Rushent Songs written by Howard Devoto Obscenity controversies in music 1977 songs United Artists Records singles