Customer Reviews

Boys

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Why The Boys' self-titled release isn't universally recognized as one of the essential albums that defined the 70's punk rock phenomenon will remain beyond me. Maybe they didn't fit in because they didn't conform to the punk "look" and because they were not sponsored by the right people. They were regarded as the Beatles of punk. The funny thing is that they were actually more punk than most bands of the movement. As far as I'm concerned their first album is the best punk rock album to come out of '77 UK. The sheer energy and overall drive of the music was nearly unparalleled at the time, far ahead of the Pistols and the Clash.

The music here is passionate, and it has attitude; it is somewhat remniscient of the Dead Boys. This is true oldschool punk rock here, the dirty kind of non-political I-don't-care rock'n'roll that set the foundation for the rest of the movement. The music is loud and energetic, and the songwriting is top-notch, almost too good to be punk (this may have been a reason why they were cast out). The Boys take no prisoners as they churn out classic after classic song. From the all-out rebellion that is the opener Sick On You, to the f***-everything attitude of I Don't Care, to the amazing Living in the City (which the Sex Pistols were never quite able to outdo in terms of raw power), you'll be turning this album up louder and louder until you can't hear anything else around you, but you won't even care to.

There are no weak songs here. Catchy riffs and hooks are all over the place, in just about every song. This isn't punk for the sake of punk, this is quality rock'n'roll that also has all the elements of punk, including loud vocals, distorted guitars, and definitely an overall feel of youth aggression. Whereas other bands were busy coloring their hair and sticking safety pins on their clothes, The Boys channeled the spirit of punk into the music itself. Do yourself a favor and buy this album if you want to hear the real deal.

Adrian hits it on the head. Why don't reviewers say "of all the punk that came before and after the movement, this one album could sit at the very top of that savage pile?"

The hooks in this thing are notorious. The music feels like it's barely controlled speed-punk, but you have to believe that somehow they poured their best into it, once you get to know the music. (It's not actually that fast.) They had a rock vision-thang going for one sweet album, it was a historic effort. No one who claims to know the history of punk should ever be caught with his pants down about this record.