I don’t know why I still like Johnny Rotten. In the Sex Pistols and early days of Public Image Limited he seemed more of a red herring, go-for-broke sort of chap, always teetering on the fine line somewhere between indulging and impatient. A few of his longtime fans might feel that the guy has recently become soft in his old age. (Or maybe they’ve gone that route as well.) Perhaps it’s that vegetarianism or just a decision to be kinder and more endearing Rotten, sort of a funnily-cynical curmudgeon, always outspoken but perhaps not as mean-spirited in his outbursts. The first comparison that comes to mind is how Borscht Belt comedian Milton Berle was so ahead of his time years ago but ended up exchanging one-liners and punchlines with Muppets on Sesame Street. Rotten didn’t seem too too far off from that last part Friday evening. But he still proved he could deliver a great set, not give a shit if we liked it or not, and have the crowd eating out of his hand.

Part of the reason you love have to love him is because he’s not afraid to fuck with you, that before he’s a singer he’s a showman, and he loves the schadenfreude. It was a bit of a relief to see the old smart-ass back, and keeping his particularly loyal subjects hungry for more. Tonight he took a few jabs at Jay-Z, who was easily drowned out in the poppy, post-punk noise of PiL, the corporation/band/outfit he began following Sid Vicious’ death and the subsequent albeit temporary break-up of his Pistols.

While they could easily fit into the decade that birthed them in a neon fluorescent totally rad pile of placenta, tonight even up against Billboard’s latest and greatest his band was a conglomerate of excellent musicians that all managed to bring loads of different influences aboard. His songs aren’t so much traditional verse/chorus/verse ditties as  proggy, stream-of-consciousness banter like “Rise”. Of course he opened with “This is Not a Love Song”, still one of his very best and one that’s still as loud and rocking as ever. With his intangible knack for making clever music seem simple (or maybe vice versa), it’s that combination of dubstep Reggae basslines and syncopated, prog-rock guitar with lots of nifty pedals — that all makes for a sort of odd selection in arms for combating the kids next door.

It’s his flamboyance, the fact that he never grew up, or maybe that he never had a chance to. Purely out of fond reflection, I put together some clips of his better moments with music journalists and media, just in anticipation of getting to meet the guy, which unfortunately never quite happened (perhaps for the best). Ever get the feeling someone doesn’t give a sh*t? Again, it’s why you have to love Johnny Rotten…

Words by Jeff Nau, Photos by JP Croswhite