Live at the Roxy Club - Buzzcocks

To put it mildly, April of 1977 was not a peak moment in the Buzzcocks' career -- Howard DeVoto had just bailed out to form Magazine, Pete Shelley was taking his first stab at lead-vocal duties, Steve Diggle had newly made the change from bass to guitar, and Garth Smith was in the infancy of his brief six-month tenure as Diggle's replacement on bass. Clearly, the stage was set for disaster...and while there's obviously a great deal going wrong, the poor quality of the live recording renders it all quite obscured. Yet Live at the Roxy Club: April '77 is a fascinating, invaluable document precisely because it is bad -- just six months later, keep in mind, the Buzzcocks would unleash "Orgasm Addict," the first in the series of breathtaking singles that would cement their reputation as one of punk's most important bands. That records like "What Do I Get?" and "Ever Fallen in Love" could come from such humble beginnings only makes them that much more remarkable...so in an odd sense, Live at the Roxy Club: April '77 is a necessary document for devoted fans looking to piece together a comprehensive Buzzcocks history. ~ Jason Ankeny, All Music Guide