Sex Pistols Vow to Rock Iraq

As evident from the Sex Pistols' impromptu 1977 boat gig on the River Thames -- wherein they serenaded Queen Elizabeth from a afar on the twenty-fifth anniversary of her coronation with "Anarchy in the U.K." -- to their ill-fated U.S. tour of southern honky-tonks and rodeos the next year, the punk pioneers will play anywhere.

Add to the list of anywhere Atlantic City's Trump Marina and . . . Iraq.

That's right, along with setting the dates for their first U.S. tour since 1996's Filthy Lucre reunion outing, the Sex Pistols are promising to play the war-torn capital city of Baghdad as a benefit for the people of Iraq.

"If the people of Iraq are being offered democracy," says singer John Lydon (a.k.a. Johnny Rotten), "then they should understand it to its fullest extent, and that is the Sex Pistols."

But first the Sex Pistols -- Lydon, Steve Jones (guitar), Paul Cook (drums) and Glen Matlock (bass), the band's original lineup -- will take on the U.S., a place Lydon refers to as "the new Russia" under the Bush Administration. The tour kicks off August 20th in Boston and wraps up in San Diego on September 7th.

Sex Pistols tour dates:

8/20: Boston, Fleet Boston Pavilion
8/21: Wantagh, NY, Jones Beach
8/23: Atlantic City, NJ, Trump Marina/Grand Cayman Ballroom
8/24: Washington, DC, 9:30 Club
8/25: Toronto, Molson Amphitheater
8/27: Cleveland, The Scene Pavilion
8/28: Detroit, Cobo Arena
8/29: Chicago, Aragon Ballroom
8/31: Englewood, CO, Fiddler's Green Amphitheater
9/3: San Francisco, Warfield Theater
9/5: Las Vegas, NV, The Joint
9/6: Los Angeles, Greek Theater
9/7: San Diego, San Diego Street Scene

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Song Stories

“(We're Not) The Jet Set”

George Jones and Tammy Wynette | 1973

George Jones and Tammy Wynette were still married when they recorded the tongue-in-cheek "(We're Not) The Jet Set." The lyrics, written by Nashville songwriter Bobby Braddock, who also penned Wynette's "D-I-V-O-R-C-E" and Jones' "He Stopped Loving Her Today," make fun of the good life by declaring, "We're not the Jet Set/We're the old Chevrolet set." Braddock recalled that while writing the song, he needed the name of a city that evened out the rhyme he had with "Riviera" and "Missourah." “I got out a Rand McNally atlas," he said. "In the first part are the maps. The last part is an alphabetical listing of cities. I wanted a rustic, small-time sound. I went to the listing for Missouri. And I found 'Festus.' I loved the sound of it."

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