Once upon a time, the word ‘punk’ struck fear into civil society. These days it’s simply ancient history and always good for a book or two – the latest of which is Babylon’s Burning by Clinton Heylin.
And it’s not for the faint-hearted. 700 pages covering punk from it earliest roots (well, from the Velvet Underground and CBGBs anyway), but focusing mainly on the British scene from 1976 – which means a hefty section on the Sex Pistols and lesser sections on the likes of The Clash, The Buzzcocks, The Undertones, Stiff Little Fingers, The Adverts, Wire and all. And it doesn’t end there, following punk right up to its "final mutation" (you may disagree) of grunge.
As you’d expect from a book of such length, it’s all done in intimate detail, using newspaper and music press clippings of the day, as well as the usual rose-coloured anecdotes you’d expect.
Available now, you can pick up Babylon’s Burning in hardback for around £13.
