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Malcolm McLaren dies
By CMU Editorial | Published on Friday 9 April 2010
Former Sex Pistols manager Malcolm McLaren died yesterday in Switzerland aged 64, it has been announced. He had been diagnosed with cancer last October.
Born in 1946, McLaren was raised by his grandmother in Stoke Newington, north east London from the age of two. After stints at various art colleges, he began designing clothes and opened a boutique on London’s Kings Road, called Let It Rock, with partner Vivienne Westwood in 1971. The following year they changed the name of the shop to Too Fast To Live Too Young To Die, and began supplying stagewear to The New York Dolls, who McLaren later briefly managed.
By 1975, the shop had again changed its name, to SEX, and McLaren began managing a band called The Strand, whose name he changed to The Sex Pistols after installing John Lydon as their frontman. The band, of course, went on to be the most notorious of punk bands and, much to McLaren’s delight, courted controversy wherever they went.
When The Sex Pistols split in 1978, the members, particularly Lydon, accused McLaren of mismanagement and withholding funds. McLaren’s version of events was laid out in the 1980 film ‘The Great Rock N Roll Swindle’, which painted the band as puppets manipulated to serve his own agenda. Although the film was just one example of McLaren writing his own mythology, the effect that he had on music, fashion and culture in England and across the world is undeniable.
McLaren also had a career as a musician in his own right, releasing sixteen studio albums in all, though most notable was his 1983 debut, ‘Duck Rock’, produced by Trevor Horn, which blended musical styles from around the world, including the then relatively new hip hop sound. As a result, the album is widely credited as being instrumental in bringing hip hop to a wider audience, particularly through the singles ‘Buffalo Gals’ and ‘Double Dutch’.
Although less ubiquitous in recent years, McLaren continued to work in various areas of entertainment, including as a film producer, writer, presenter and artist. He also briefly dabbled in politics.
In a statement last night, John Lydon paid tribute to McLaren, despite their rocky relationship, saying: “For me Malc was always entertaining and I hope you remember that. Above all else he was an entertainer. I will miss him and so should you”.
Vivienne Westwood told reporters: “When we were young and I fell in love with Malcolm, I thought he was beautiful and I still do. I thought he is a very charismatic, special and talented person. The thought of him dead is really something very sad”.
Joseph Corré, McLaren’s son from his relationship with Westwood and the founder of the lingerie brand Agent Provocateur, said of his father: “[He was] the original punk rocker [who] revolutionised the world. He’s somebody I’m incredibly proud of. He’s a real beacon of a man for people to look up to”.
New York Dolls guitarist Sylvian Sylvian said: “Malcolm opened up the doors for punk music around the world. He was a visionary and took what was going on in New York City and made it global. He was a massive influence on everyone who ever had a punk shop or a punk band. His passing represents the final chapter in an era when music was exciting”.
Funeral arrangements have not yet been made, but it is planned that McLaren will be buried at Highgate Cemetery in north London.
