"Silly Thing" is a song by the

Sex Pistols The Sex Pistols were an English punk rock band formed in London in 1975. Although their initial career lasted just two and a half years, they were one of the most groundbreaking acts in the history of popular music. They were responsible for ...

that was released in 1979. It was the 3rd single released in promotion of the film '' The Great Rock 'n' Roll Swindle''. It was written by

drummer A drummer is a percussionist who creates music using drums. Most contemporary western bands that play rock, pop, jazz, or R&B music include a drummer for purposes including timekeeping and embellishing the musical timbre. The drummer' ...

Paul Cook and

guitarist A guitarist (or a guitar player) is a person who plays the guitar. Guitarists may play a variety of guitar family instruments such as classical guitars, acoustic guitars, electric guitars, and bass guitars. Some guitarists accompany themselve ...

Steve Jones, and recorded after the band's original lead singer,

Johnny Rotten John Joseph Lydon (; born 31 January 1956), also known by his former stage name Johnny Rotten, is an English singer and songwriter. He was the lead singer of the late-1970s punk band the Sex Pistols, which lasted from 1975 until 1978, and aga ...

, left the band. Typically, Jones also played

bass Bass or Basses may refer to: Fish * Bass (fish), various saltwater and freshwater species Music * Bass (sound), describing low-frequency sound or one of several instruments in the bass range: ** Bass (instrument), including: ** Acoustic bass gui ...

in the studio, rather than suffer the ineptitude of the band's official bassist,

Sid Vicious John Simon Ritchie (10 May 1957 – 2 February 1979), better known by his stage name Sid Vicious, was an English musician, best known as the bassist for the punk rock band Sex Pistols. Despite dying in 1979 at age 21, he remains an icon of the ...

"Silly Thing" (A-side)

Paul Cook album version

The original version of the song, on which Paul Cook sings lead vocals and Steve Jones plays bass guitar, was recorded with engineer Steve Lipson at Regents Park Studios in London in April or May 1978. The recording of further guitar overdubs and the final mixing took place at

Rockfield Studios Rockfield Studios is a residential recording studio located in the Wye Valley just outside the village of Rockfield, Monmouthshire, Wales. It was originally founded in 1963 by brothers Kingsley and Charles Ward. Facilities Rockfield is a two- ...

in Wales with producer Dave Goodman in late May 1978.Dave Goodman: ''“My Amazing Adventures With The Sex Pistols”'' (''The Bluecat Press'', 2006, page 165) This original version of "Silly Thing" appeared on the movie soundtrack album of '' The Great Rock 'n' Roll Swindle'' and was used for the single in New Zealand, France and Japan. A different mix of this original version, with Cook singing the verses and Jones singing the chorus, was released in 1988 in Japan, along with an outtake from the same recording sessions, the original version of the Jones/Cook composition "Here We Go Again".

Steve Jones single version

In the second week of March 1979, Jones and Cook went into Wessex Studios in London with engineer Bill Price and recorded a new version of the song. On this version, bass guitar was played by Andy Allen of the

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, who later in the year formed The Professionals with Cook and Jones. This version of "Silly Thing" was used for the single in the UK, Australia, West Germany and Portugal. It appeared on the 1992 Sex Pistols compilation '' Kiss This''.

"Who Killed Bambi?" (B-side)

The song "Who Killed Bambi?" was written and sung by Edward Tudor-Pole, with

Vivienne Westwood Dame Vivienne Isabel Westwood (née Swire; born 8 April 1941) is an English fashion designer and businesswoman, largely responsible for bringing modern punk and new wave fashions into the mainstream. Westwood came to public notice when she ...

contributing to the lyrics. The song was recorded with a 45 piece orchestra, arranged and conducted by Andrew Jackman, in a large studio in

Wembley Wembley () is a large suburbIn British English, "suburb" often refers to the secondary urban centres of a city. Wembley is not a suburb in the American sense, i.e. a single-family residential area outside of the city itself. in north-west Londo ...

in summer 1978. Tudor-Pole's vocals were added later at the same studio. The subsequent movie sequence of Tudor-Pole performing the song was filmed in one day with actress Irene Handl at

Rainbow Theatre The Rainbow Theatre, originally known as the Finsbury Park Astoria, is a Grade II*-listed building in Finsbury Park, London. The theatre was built in 1930 as a cinema. It later became a music venue. Today, the building is used by the Universa ...

in London.Phil Singleton: ''“Ed Tudor-Pole In Conversation With Phil Singleton”'' (''Sex-Pistols.net'' website, 2005)

Charts

*In the UK, the single spent 8 weeks in the Top 75 an
reached #6 on 15 April 1979.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Silly Thing (Song) 1979 singles Sex Pistols songs Songs written by Paul Cook Songs written by Steve Jones (musician)