Peter Silverton
A prolific feature writer for Sounds in the ’70s and ’80s and later for MOJO, The Guardian et al., Pete was the author of books such as Essential Elvis, Filthy English and (with Glen Matlock) I Was a Teenage Sex Pistol. He died, after a long illness, in May 2023.
161 articles
List of articles in the library
The 101'ers, The Clash, Sex Pistols: The 101'ers — 1976
Special Feature by Ira Robbins, Peter Silverton, unpublished, 1976
September 21, 2021 introduction by Ira Robbins (www.trouserpress.com) ...
Live Review by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 11 December 1976
DOWN THE stairs and into the hall... and into a time warp. With the powerful aroma of smouldering illicit substances and the subdued, attentive audience, ...
Generation X: Central London College of Art and Design
Live Review by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 18 December 1976
WITH SIOUXSIE and the Banshees not playing because "they couldn't get it together" and the remaining support act, Eater, being a band that I wouldn't ...
Live Review by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 18 December 1976
The Sex Pistols/The Clash/The Heartbreakers /The Buzzcocks: Electric Circus, Manchester ...
Ultravox! New Music From A Doll's House
Interview by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 19 March 1977
CONTRARY to what Stranglers' bassist, Jean Jacques Brunel, is reputed to think, Ultravox! are not "a bunch of session musicians put together by Island records." ...
The Clash: The Clash (CBS)*****
Review by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 9 April 1977
If You Don't Like The Clash, You Don't Like Rock 'N 'Roll ...
The Motors: Marquee Club, London
Live Review by Peter Silverton, Record Mirror, 9 April 1977
No motorvatin' ...
The Small Faces: Small Faces: City Hall, Sheffield
Live Review by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 23 April 1977
WAITING FOR the newly reformed Small Faces to take the stage of Sheffield's City Hall, I was probably more nervous than they were (which is ...
Frankie Miller: Be Good To Yourself
Interview by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 14 May 1977
THREE YEARS back, Miami soul-singer Betty Wright had a minor hit with 'Shoo-rah! Shoo-rah!'. On his Radio London show, Honky-Tonk, Charlie Gillett has a "who ...
The Saints: Would You Let These Men Tie Your Kangaroo Down?
Interview by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 14 May 1977
Watch out, sport, the Saints are coming. PETE SILVERTON gets a buzz from 'em. ...
Boomtown Rats: Club 51, London
Live Review by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 28 May 1977
WATCH OUT. Here come the Boomtown Rats. Over the Irish Sea, into a reputedly hefty recording contract with Ensign and on to the tiny stage ...
Foreigner: Foreigner (Atlantic SD 18215 )*½ .
Review by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 28 May 1977
REMEMBER IAN McDonald? That's right, the geezer who used to mess around something chronic on keyboards for King Crimson back in the early days when ...
The Sensational Alex Harvey Band: Big Hits And Close Shaves
Review by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 28 May 1977
COMPILATIONS ARE generally the occasion for an in-depth reassessment of an artist's career. ...
Boomtown Rats: The Pluck of the Irish
Report and Interview by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 2 July 1977
They may have left him stranded in Canterbury, but the Boomtown Rats are plenty good fun says Pete Silverton – now there’s critical objectivity for ...
Motörhead: Pulling Out of the Pits
Report and Interview by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 2 July 1977
"GET OUT of the f––––– way. We’ve got a concert to do." ...
The Sensational Alex Harvey Band: Alex Harvey: The Thoughts (?) Of Chairman Harvey
Interview by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 9 July 1977
"WOULD YOU like to be a rock'n'roll star?" ...
Dead Fingers Talk: Hull Is For Heroes
Profile by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 30 July 1977
"Have you met Harry yet? He's the new man in the office. There 'something not quite right about Harry. I 'think he's qu-e-e-r… "And I leaned ...
The Rich Kids: Back With A Bullet
Profile and Interview by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 10 September 1977
COMING DOWN from the Harrow Road by bus, Steve New's getting the rise taken out of him by a bunch of kids because he's wearing ...
Tom Robinson Band: Up Against The Wall: Life with the Tom Robinson Band
Report and Interview by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 24 September 1977
"The British police are the best in the world.I don't believe one of these stories I've heard..." ...
Retrospective by Peter Silverton, Trouser Press, October 1977
IT'S 1968, ALRIGHT. Me and a mate are lounging around in his garden. His parents are out for the day. School's out for the summer. ...
Comment by Peter Silverton, Trouser Press, October 1977
EXTREME REACTIONS to the Stranglers are not unusual. Take the case of a mate (well, acquaintance) of mine, Dick O'Dell, tour/road manager for Alex Harvey. ...
Generation X: The Marquee, London
Live Review by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 8 October 1977
ROCK ON Indeed.I've finally figured out, after all this time, why, despite the fact that lots of people whose opinions I respect hate them, I ...
Profile and Interview by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 8 October 1977
IF I'D KNOWN what I was letting myself in for when I went to see John Cale at the Roundhouse this Easter, I think I'd ...
The Damned: Top Drummers Get Itchy Feet Dept.: Why I Quit The Damned by Rat Scabies
Interview by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 15 October 1977
IT'S COMMON knowledge that all drummers are certifiable nutters but I must admit that when somebody whispered in my ear the other Sunday that the ...
Review by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 22 October 1977
FLICKING IDLY through a rack and coming across an album entitled ha! ha! ha!, you'd expect, if not a comic masterpiece, at least a couple ...
Interview by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 29 October 1977
"I'M NOT stupid. I know, however successful I get to be right now, that in two, three, maybe four if I'm lucky, years' time, I'll ...
The Damned: Music For Pleasure
Review by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 26 November 1977
CATCHING SIGHT of the title in a news column, I wondered. 'Music For Pleasure'? Have the dervish-like Damned decided to junk all this credibility rubbish, ...
Sweet: The Sweet: Sweet's Golden Greats
Review by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 26 November 1977
EVERY GENERATION of rock writing throws up its own paper tiger. ...
Tyla Gang: Yachtless At The Nottingham Boat Club
Report and Interview by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 3 December 1977
Yacht'less 1. (yot-less) a., having no yacht/s; being in a no-yacht situation; a severe lack of the funds and/or wherewithal with which to purchase same; ...
The Damned: Voyage Of The Damned
Report and Interview by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 10 December 1977
A rainy Friday afternoon in Stiff publicist Glen Coulson’s office. Glen ruffles his hair, takes a swig from a can of warm Heineken and expounds ...
Review by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 17 December 1977
IN WRITING his plays, Bertolt Brecht operated according to a Roamin Rolland maxim: "Pessimism of the intellect; optimism of the will". Burning Spear's music works ...
Little Feat: Waiting For Columbus (Warner Brothers)
Review by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 1978
WHOEVER started the vogue for double live albums (the Band?) has a lot to answer for. Whether pretty good (Bob Seger, J. Geils) or embarrassingly ...
The Flamin' Groovies: "We're No Museum Piece"
Interview by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 7 January 1978
SOME BOXERS, if you believe what you see on the toob, just won't quit. Knocked down more times than they've slapped in their gum shield, ...
Interview by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 21 January 1978
'If I played my cards right, I'd be a gift to the media – chat shows, the lot' ...
The Pop Group: London College of Printing
Live Review by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 28 January 1978
Introducing eh?! and the enigmas ...
The 101'ers, The Clash: The Clash: Greatness from Garageland
Report and Interview by Peter Silverton, Trouser Press, February 1978
UNANNOUNCED, TO SAY the least, a kid in boots, suspenders and short-cropped hair clambers through the photographers' pit and up onto the stage of London's ...
Live Review by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 4 February 1978
Animated Egg head fails to impress ...
Link Wray, Robert Gordon: Robert Gordon with Link Wray: A Modern Elvis And The Missing Link
Report and Interview by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 4 February 1978
LINK WRAY finishes off his instrumental street opera, 'Rumble', with an amphetamine-psychosis, note-tumbling-after-note run worthy of any guitar army hero, clambers up from his bent-knee, ...
Review by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 11 February 1978
"ELLO MUSH...this one's all about getting' yer 'ead kicked in." ...
Kevin Coyne: Beautiful Extremes 1974-1977
Review by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 25 February 1978
KEVIN COYNE is, make no mistake, a major artist. His 'product' might not 'ship' a million 'units' but in every other way he's the superior ...
Review by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 25 February 1978
YOU KNOW how it is. You hear one word and you're tantalised into eavesdropping on the rest. Bars at receptions are a good place for ...
Eddie & The Hot Rods, Radio Stars: On The Road With Hot Rods And Radio Stars
Report and Interview by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 25 February 1978
THE LAST, incongruous Beatles' track spirals its way to the end of its grooves. The house lights dip way, way down, instilling in you that ...
Advertising, Blondie: Blondie, Advertising: St. George's Hall, Blackburn
Live Review by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 4 March 1978
SWEET LITTLE Debbie Harry sure has come on in the world. Only 32 and already she's got a single in the charts and the wish ...
Bob Marley & the Wailers: Bob Marley: T'ings Could Be Worse
Interview by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 4 March 1978
"Talking to no-one is strange, Talking to someone is stranger." – Kevin Coyne ...
The Sensational Alex Harvey Band: Zal
Interview by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 11 March 1978
THIS IS a singer? You call...this a singer. A monstrous looking creature in an Imperial Startrooper helmet, white paper one-piece jump suit and red, blue ...
Radio Stars: Songs for Swinging Lovers (Chiswick)
Review by Peter Silverton, Trouser Press, April 1978
DESPITE STIFF’S CLAIMS, Chiswick Records has been the most adventurous of the new British storefront labels. While Stiff has relied for the most part on ...
Elvis Costello: Costello Group Therapy
Report by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 1 April 1978
"KNOCK KNOCK.""Who's there?""Elvis.""Elvis who?""Forgotten already, huh?" ...
Live Review by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 1 April 1978
FATS DOMINO is and always has been the most unlikely looking bona fide Fifties rock and roller you can imagine. Where Elvis, Eddie and Gene ...
Review by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 8 April 1978
NEW YORK, New York. New albums falling down like rain. La Belle Smith's rock 'n' roll army third wave invasion. Uncle Lou's first street (ha, ...
The Damned: Final Spotlight On The Damned
Report by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 15 April 1978
"OOOOOOOOO CAPTAIN," says Helen from Headingley, "you're so cool these days. That jacket" – indicating his sombre black tuxedo affair and matching multi-colour polka-dotted tie ...
The Flamin' Groovies: The Flamin Groovies: Flamin' Groovies Now
Review by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 15 April 1978
LIKE SO many other people, the first time I caught an eyeful of the Groovies in the flesh was when they were supported by The ...
Steel Pulse: No Jah-Babble In-A Birmingham
Interview by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 22 April 1978
REGGAE IS HIP. Punks said it was OK way back and how the parasitic shower of hustlers and sycophants who comprise the music biz are ...
The Gladiators: Proverbial Reggae
Review by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 29 April 1978
LEAFING THROUGH an ancient copy of the once-revered American fanzine Shakin' Street last night I finally chanced on the solution to the difficulties – "it's ...
Lou Reed In Cloning Sensation!
Interview by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 6 May 1978
PETE SILVERTON goes to Philadelphia to borrow a book from Lou Reed (That's not what it said on his expenses — Ed.) ...
Black Sabbath: Apollo Theatre, Glasgow
Report by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 27 May 1978
Sabbath Bloody Sabbath ...
Interview by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 27 May 1978
THE FIRST time I met Ian Dury – nearly two years ago in Dingwalls when I was little more than just another wide-eyed and a ...
The Ramones: Goodbye Tommy, Hello Marky
Interview by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 27 May 1978
DRUMMER wanted for name NY punk band. Must have own leather jacket and torn Levis. Ability to mumble 'gabba gabba' an advantage. No interlektewals. Apply ...
Profile and Interview by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 3 June 1978
Pete Silverton assembles a few views of Basher — man, myth and magic ...
Bruce Springsteen: Darkness On The Edge Of Town
Review by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 10 June 1978
LET'S START with the obvious. It's impossible to approach this album without taking into heavy account the fortunes and misfortunes of this Crown Prince of ...
Interview by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 10 June 1978
I THINK it was the Jesuits of whom it was said they always answer a question with a question. Or maybe it was the Jews. ...
The Rolling Stones: Some Girls
Review by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 10 June 1978
WHICHEVER WAY you look at it, this is an important album of the first order. Important primarily because it's the first album (excluding Love You ...
Jane Aire & The Belvederes, Tin Huey, The Waitresses: Rock in Akron: The Music Of Greater Akron
Report and Interview by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 17 June 1978
Is this the avant-garde or the sound of cash registers? Pete Silverton has a pretty good idea ...
The Clash: The "Serious In-Depth Interview" You've Been Waiting For!
Report and Interview by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 17 June 1978
"AAAWOOOEEEUUUOOO, PETE...'ear you bin to the States...how wazzit?" ...
Review by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 24 June 1978
FEELING RUTHLESS, you could divide the entire spectrum of pop and rock'n'roll into two. ...
Devo: Q: Are We Not Men? A: We Are Devo
Review by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 26 August 1978
'Monkey men allIn business suitTeachers and criticsAll dance the pootAre we not men?We are Devo!Are we not men?D-E-V-OWe must repeatOK let's go!' ...
The Rich Kids: Ghosts of Princes in Towers
Review by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 26 August 1978
What do you do with what you've got? ...
Blast Furnace & The Heatwaves: The Chord Is Mightier Than The Pen
Interview by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 9 September 1978
HEAR THE CLASH OF LEWIS LEATHERS AS PETE SILVERTON MEETS BLAST FURNACE ...
Dr. Feelgood: Dr Feelgood: Private Practice
Review by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 16 September 1978
The Worthington White Shield of Rock ...
Stiff Little Fingers: Electric Ballroom, London
Live Review by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 16 September 1978
Let's give the Fingers a big hand ...
Live Review by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 23 September 1978
"HELLO, MY name's Mick Farren...I wanna drink!" ...
Interview by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 30 September 1978
AN HOUR or so in the company of Kate Bush is rather like being trapped for the duration as an unwitting participant in a very ...
Profile and Interview by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 7 October 1978
IF MY FIRST sight of Jake Burns had been while keeping myself occupied on a bus by speculating on the lives of the other passengers, ...
Siouxsie & The Banshees: The Scream
Review by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 14 October 1978
NO MATTER what anyone may say or think, the success of 'Hong Kong Garden' was neither predicted nor predictable. Despite its obvious instantness (primarily, of ...
Review by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 11 November 1978
EVEN BEFORE slotting the stylus into the grooves, you're aware that this is one of the most bizarre albums ever to make it a: far ...
Boomtown Rats: This Feature Is Guaranteed Free From Bob Geldof
Interview by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 18 November 1978
...THAT'S THE PETE SILVERTON PLEDGE ...
Rod Stewart: Blondes Have More Fun
Review by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 25 November 1978
OR BLOATED egos with lots of money get to see more of the world. ...
Siouxsie & The Banshees: Siouxsie and the Banshees: The Most Elitist Band In The World
Report and Interview by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 25 November 1978
'A gig is often an exaggeration of what we feel every day and therefore it can probably seem a bit ridiculous at times maybe. It ...
Julie Covington: Julie Covington
Review by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 2 December 1978
AND SO this is Christmas. ...
Sniff 'n' the Tears: Fickle Heart
Review by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 2 December 1978
DON'T BE misled by the collective title. Sniff 'N' The Tears is no more a real band than Tommy Dunbar's imaginary Psychotic Pineapple. Everything here ...
The Cars: (I Love The Sound Of) Fading Brakes
Live Review by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 2 December 1978
The Cars: Lyceum, London ...
Public Image Ltd: Public Image (Virgin)
Review by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 9 December 1978
AND THE BOY looked at Johnny. And he shouted: "Look, ma, the Emperor's got no clothes." ...
Report by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 16 December 1978
"HI, THIS is the Nightbird, Alison Steel, brought to you by the Army Reserve. And tonight my guests in the studio are Scott Gorham and ...
Neil Young: Live Rust (Reprise)
Review by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 1979
THE WORD is, of course, survivor. Just Neil left on the Reprise label and Neil being the only remnant of the sixties still hanging in ...
James Chance & the Contortions, Cristina, DNA, Teenage Jesus & the Jerks: No New York
Report and Interview by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 17 February 1979
PETE SILVERTON meets the second generation of New York new wave bands... TEENAGE JESUS AND THE JERKS, THE CONTORTIONS, DNA and other assorted weirdos ...
Velvet Underground: 1969 Velvet Underground Live (Mercury)
Review by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 17 February 1979
BUT LOU REED, Lou’s got real problems. Ever since he started out he’s been trying to wheedle Jehovah into making him Keith Richard (‘Rock And ...
Wreckless Eric Cleans Up His Act
Report and Interview by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 24 February 1979
PETE SILVERTON JOINS HIM ON THE WAGON ...
Graham Parker and the Rumour: Squeezing Out Sparks
Review by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 17 March 1979
One current school of thought – represented at our editorial meetings by the capitalist Ruislip reader faction – has it that Graham Parker has well ...
The Pop Group: We Know There’s Something Wrong Somewhere: The Pop Group
Interview by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 24 March 1979
This and other astute observations on life, art and the consumer society in THE POP GROUP interview. ...
Buzzcocks: The Buzzcocks: Inside The Hit Factory
Report and Interview by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 7 April 1979
"It's really amazing. I can just sit there and go dee-da-dee-da-dee, da-dee-da-dee, put some words to it, teach the other three how to play it, ...
Buzzcocks: The Buzzcocks: Inside the Hit Factory
Report and Interview by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 7 April 1979
(PETE SHELLEY'S BACK PARLOUR IN GOSPORT, ACTUALLY, REVEALS PETE SILVERTON) ...
Live Review by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 21 April 1979
ANOTHER YEAR, another Lou Reed in a different toilet. ...
The Damned, The Specials, UK Subs: The Damned/UK Subs/The Specials: The Lyceum, London
Live Review by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 21 April 1979
WITH ENOUGH police grouped manacingly outside in coaches, in squad cars and standing around to supervise a couple of Manchester United away fixtures, I suppose ...
The Rezillos: Mission Accomplished…But The Beat Goes On (Sire)***
Review by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 21 April 1979
HEY, EVER known what it's like feeling like you're E.J. Thribb? Try reveiwing this album. Phil Sutcliffe got it just right in his 3 plus ...
Wayne County & the Electric Chairs: Things Your Mother Never Told You (Safari GOOD 2) *****
Review by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 12 May 1979
More songs about toilets and marines ...
The B-52s: B-52s: War in the hair
Profile and Interview by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 26 May 1979
LAST YEAR was none helluva year for singles. Ones that graced the airwaves like 'Hong Kong Garden' and 'Rhythm Stick'. Ones that were just a ...
Elvis Costello: Accidents Won't Happen: The Premeditated Rise Of Elvis Costello
Essay by Peter Silverton, Trouser Press, June 1979
A COUPLE OF days before Christmas, trying to make it home on the London tube before I dropped the bottle of tequila and the Times ...
Wayne County & The Electric Chairs: The Wayne County Interview
Interview by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 2 June 1979
WAYNE COUNTY was already in the car. I was ushered into the front seat, leaving Wayne staring down the back of my neck. That was ...
Report and Interview by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 9 June 1979
THE PARTY was catered for two hundred or so guests. You could tell no expense had been spared — there were real bits of shell ...
Robert Gordon: Down And Out In Paris The Robert Gordon Way
Review and Interview by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 23 June 1979
Robert Gordon: Palais des Sports, Paris ...
Van Morrison: Belfast to Belfast
Retrospective by Peter Silverton, Trouser Press, July 1979
IT'S IMPOSSIBLE TO imagine someone further removed than Van Morrison from looking like a pop star or even a rock'n'roll artiste. It's not even like, ...
Ry Cooder: Bop Till You Drop (Warner Bros.)*****
Review by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 21 July 1979
THERE'S PROBABLY a whole bunch of enormous ironies knocking around this world but right now I can't think of a bigger or more slap-happy one ...
Chic: Risqué (Atlantic K50634)****
Review by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 11 August 1979
Chic at twice the price ...
New Barbarians: Knebworth Festival, Hertfordshire
Live Review by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 18 August 1979
ROCK AND ROLL having as it does sod all to do with music and a whole lot to do with sex and drugs (even to ...
The Pretenders: The Perils of Christine
Report and Interview by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 25 August 1979
PAY NO ATTENTION TO THE PICTURE ABOVE. THE PRETENDERS ARE DEPRESSED. MEETING PETE SILVERTON MAKES THINGS WORSE. AND CHALKIE DAVIES DOESN'T HELP MUCH, EITHER ...
Report by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 1 September 1979
ROCK AND ROLL at this level can be a damn luxurious business, I reflected in the air-conditioned comfort of the Nazareth limo sashaying and bumping ...
Siouxsie & The Banshees: Siouxsie And The Banshees: Join Hands
Review by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 1 September 1979
WHADDA YA MEAN, is it extreme? Can you honestly imagine the Banshees doing anything —whether it be throwing shapes for a camera, getting dressed for ...
John Cooper Clarke: Cool for Catholics
Interview by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 29 September 1979
John Cooper Clarke makes a good confession to Pete Silverton (lapsed) ...
Report and Interview by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 29 September 1979
TUESDAY LUNCHTIME: Cleveland Airport. With a couple of hours to kill before my one-stop-only flight to Minneapolis and the first date on the Clash’s second ...
Various Artists: Pebbles Vols. 1-4
Review by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 10 November 1979
[To be read in a C&A Paisley shirt and matching tie, black lace-up school shoes and a pair of 16" cuff flared trousers re-cut from ...
Marianne Faithfull: Broken English (Island Ml) ***½
Review by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 17 November 1979
NOT SO much a comeback as a c-c-c-comeback. Marianne Faithfull has restarted her career more times than Frank Sinatra's retired. ...
The Jam: Setting Sons (Polydor POLD 5028)****
Review by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 17 November 1979
THE WHO, why and where is of no concern here but someone once said of the Clash that they didn't want to become stars, they ...
The Bodysnatchers: Invasion of The Bodysnatchers
Profile and Interview by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 22 December 1979
UNDER NORMAL circumstances, the only people paying attention at a band's fifth gig should be a few friends and the cousin who's been roped in ...
Gang of Four: Family Entertainment
Interview by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 12 January 1980
The Gang of Four expound a spot of dialectical materialism for PETE SILVERTON. ...
The Beat: Electric Ballroom, London
Live Review by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 2 February 1980
Ranking dead stop ...
Flying Lizards: The Flying Lizards: The Flying Lizards (Virgin) **½
Review by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 2 February 1980
SOME TIME ago, American journalist and alliterator Tom Wolfe wrote an essay, 'The Painted Word', on the world of post-war American painting. ...
Review by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 9 February 1980
The way I heard it, at the panty-creaming peak of his career, Al Green was so drunk on the cortical rush of his fame and ...
Linda Ronstadt: Mad Love (Asylum) *
Review by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 23 February 1980
ROBERTSON DIDN'T want to do it. He'd reviewed the last eighty-five Linda Ronstadt albums or some such totally dubious excuse he made up on the ...
Madness: When The Screaming Had To Start
Report and Interview by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 23 February 1980
"'ERE, SUGGSY...'Ere, Suggs." ...
Prince Buster: Fabulous Greatest Hits (Melodisc) ****
Review by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 1 March 1980
1966 BEING 1966, a couple of light and bitters in the Sussex (a good two years underage) was the strongest refreshment to hand. Weed was ...
Pete Frame: The Man Behind the Trees
Interview by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 15 March 1980
FIRST, I suppose, I should declare an interest. I get thanked for my help three times in Pete Frame's Rock Family Trees (Omnibus £3.95) and ...
Elvis Costello: The Elvis Enigma
Profile by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 22 March 1980
WHEN I HEARD the first Elvis Costello single, 'Less Than Zero', I figured it was Stiff's mainstay of the time, Nick Lowe, having a bit ...
Interview by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 22 March 1980
NAPA HOSPITAL, Californian mental institution, the half-way ward. Lux Interior is reminiscing. ...
Kevin Coyne: Bursting Bubbles (Virgin)
Review by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 5 April 1980
WHATEVER ELSE it might be, Kevin Coyne's universe is not a comfortable one. ...
Eddie Cochran: 20th Anniversary Album (Liberty)**
Review by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 24 May 1980
PHIL SPECTOR, for one, is of the opinion that Colonel Parker used to hypnotise Elvis into singing rhinoceros shit like 'Viva Las Vegas' and 'Girls ...
The Beat: I Just Can't Stop It (Go Feet)****
Review by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 24 May 1980
A JOURNALIST of this periodical on being asked if he fancied interviewing the Beat remarked that, although he'd nothing against the idea in principle, he'd ...
The Rolling Stones: Emotional Rescue (Rolling Stones)****
Review by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 28 June 1980
"IMAGE IS so important to rock stars. Mick Jagger is the rock star with the longest running image. He's the one all the young white ...
Report by Peter Silverton, Smash Hits, 27 November 1980
Pete Silverton (brave man) takes his gas mask (phew!) and his earplugs (that's better) to meet Motörhead (well known environmental hazard). Talk about angels with dirty ...
The Passions: (Suddenly) Everybody Needs Passions... but don't mention the German film star
Interview by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 31 January 1981
The Passions are in love with themselves. With each other. (For a week, at least.) ...
Profile and Interview by Peter Silverton, Sounds, 21 February 1981
IF AMERICAN TV ever decides to produce low-budget rock 'n' roll sitcoms, they could well cast Peter Holsapple and Chris Stamey as The Odd Couple. ...
Hazel O'Connor: What Katy Did Next
Interview by Peter Silverton, Smash Hits, 16 April 1981
"I get letters saying, 'Did you change your name to Hazel O'Connor for stage work? Is your name really Kate?' They won't even let you ...
Interview by Peter Silverton, Smash Hits, 30 April 1981
Pete Silverton takes a short course in Metalwork. ...
Interview by Peter Silverton, Smash Hits, 14 May 1981
SHE CHOSE the name... "Because there is a very sweet side to me – Honey – and there's a really horrible side to me – ...
James Chance, Cristina, Kid Creole & The Coconuts, Was (Not Was): ZE Records
Profile and Interview by Peter Silverton, New Sounds New Styles, July 1981
New York record label ZE is the product of a remarkable partnership between August Darnell and Michael Zilkha. Peter Silverton profiles the Z of ZE... ...
Report and Interview by Peter Silverton, Smash Hits, 23 July 1981
HE HAS EATEN THIRTY BIG MACS... BUT NOT ALL AT ONCE. DOUG TRENDLE DROPS THE FACADE AND TALKS ABOUT A BAND IN NEED OF A ...
Depeche Mode: Play For Tomorrow
Interview by Peter Silverton, New Sounds New Styles, August 1981
SCENE ONE. Interior. Depeche Mode are rehearsing in a deconsecrated church on the south side of London's dockland. It's a part of the capital that's ...
Interview by Peter Silverton, Smash Hits, 20 August 1981
"I must be the most boring person in the world..." sighs Chrissie Hynde. "What on earth is she on abut?" wonders Pete Silverton. ...
Interview by Peter Silverton, Smash Hits, 15 October 1981
FRIDAY afternoon. The Smash Hits works outing pay a visit to the movies. They munch popcorn, they suck their sweet orange drinks and watch a ...
Imagination: It was just my Imagination
Profile and Interview by Peter Silverton, Kicks, February 1982
Imagination try on their new outfits. Peter Silverton sticks to his jeans and leather jacket. ...
Interview by Peter Silverton, Smash Hits, 27 May 1982
AFTER NORWICH... THE WORLD? THE CULT HEROES ARE NOW AFTER FUN, FAME AND FORTUNE. PETER SILVERTON FILLS IN THE BACKGROUND. ...
Profile and Interview by Peter Silverton, Smash Hits, 9 December 1982
From just another American disco outfit to an extremely hip modern dance band in only a matter of months. Is it all down to Jeffrey's ...
Profile and Interview by Peter Silverton, Smash Hits, 28 April 1983
A celebration of lunacy and loud noise imported from Australia. Peter Silverton finds it quite inviting. ...
Tom Waits: The Sultan Of Sleaze
Interview by Peter Silverton, You, 1985
Well I got a bad liver and a broken heart,yea I drunk me a river since you tore me apart,and I don't have a drinking ...
Interview by Peter Silverton, Beat, March 1986
TOM WAITS CHOSE to meet in the heart of his own territory, in a cheap restaurant just down the road from what he said was ...
Tom Waits: A conversation with Tom Waits
Interview by Peter Silverton, The Observer, 1992
To converse with Tom Waits is to be lied to, consistently, determinedly, entertainingly. ‘I’ll tell you all my secrets but I’ll lie about my past,’ ...
Interview by Peter Silverton, Vox, October 1992
TOM WAITS is in Paris wrestling with the truth. As usual the truth is losing, but that's what happens when you're promoting your first album ...
Bob Dylan's back in Britain. Again. Just like he was last year. And the year before that
Profile by Peter Silverton, Daily Express, 1996
John Lennon once said he felt that he'd been born half-American. These days, it seems, Bob Dylan has become a semi-Brit. ...
Obituary by Peter Silverton, The Observer, 1996
No one knows exactly when Ann Beverley died. Even the South Derbyshire coroner wasn’t detained by that particular detail. ...
The Clash, Sex Pistols, Sid Vicious: Sid Vicious: Disgusting of Tunbridge Wells
Essay by Peter Silverton, The Observer, 23 June 1996
Pete Silverton was busy celebrating his 21st with aunties and uncles, and the promise of a pewter mug. Then who should turn up but Sid ...
Retrospective and Interview by Peter Silverton, The Observer, 4 May 1997
The song that makes bad dancers worse. ...
Elvis Presley: Elvis's first love: The King and I
Interview by Peter Silverton, The Observer, 6 July 1997
THE NIGHT before I met June Juanico, the woman Elvis Presley nearly married in 1957, I got talking to a man named Bayard in a ...
Elvis Presley, Leiber and Stoller: Elvis, homoeroticism and 'Jailhouse Rock'
Essay by Peter Silverton, The Observer, 10 August 1997
'Oh yes,' said Stanley, a builder - though not a man known ever to have displayed his bum cleavage beyond the privacy of his own ...
Interview by Peter Silverton, Sunday Telegraph, 23 November 1997
When the news reached him, Ray Davies was sitting on the floor. ...
Village People: Young Men! The Village People
Retrospective and Interview by Peter Silverton, MOJO, March 1998
"YOUNG MAN!" IT BUTTONHOLES YOU. And then it requires that your body shapes the letters which form the acronym for the Young Men’s Christian Association. ...
Frank Sinatra: Sinatra's 'My Way'
Essay by Peter Silverton, The Observer, 17 May 1998
As songs go, 'My Way' doesn't so much wear its heart on its sleeve as rip it from its chest, throw it down and shout: ...
Report by Peter Silverton, The Independent, 1 December 2015
The mythology surrounding the White Album takes in warring Beatles, Charles Manson and installation art. What's even weirder is that Starr ended up with the ...
Peace and harmonies: Christmas songs still have the power to bring us together
Retrospective by Peter Silverton, The Independent, 16 December 2015
Even in the age of the digital download, compilations of festive music still have an impact, and this is why. ...
Report and Interview by Peter Silverton, The Independent, 25 January 2016
JUST WHEN WE thought we didn't have any more space in our life for 21st century Denmarkia, along comes another slice of Danish. This time, ...
Billy Bragg: English national anthem: Is 'Jerusalem' the hymn we've been looking for?
Comment by Peter Silverton, The Independent, 10 March 2016
In its 100 years, the hymn 'Jerusalem' has been sung with feeling by those of all political colours, says Peter Silverton. ...
Sniffin' Glue: A fanzine that epitomized punk
Retrospective and Interview by Peter Silverton, The Independent, 10 May 2016
It's UK punk's 40th anniversary year – sort of – and among the work being celebrated is Sniffin' Glue, the photocopied publication that embodied the ...
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