Malcolm McLaren

You may have seen the news from England that one Malcolm McLaren has died of cancer at age 64.

If you've never heard of McLaren, you probably have heard some of the bands he managed in the 1970s and 1980s - namely the Sex Pistols, The New York Dolls and Bow Wow Wow.

He's most known for helping form the Sex Pistols, therefore playing a major part in the development of punk rock, and setting up some successful publicity stunts that helped get the band even more notoriety than they were already generating. He is also known for being a notorious fake, flake and manipulator.

Absent his death, you wouldn't catch me writing about him. But, hey...the guy did have a role in creating one of the most significant pop music developments. Notice I said "role," because Malcolm may have though he invented punk himself...but clearly he did not.

In any event, the man was pretty good with a phrase, so I'll mark his departure with some of my favorite quotes from him...

"Punk became the most important cultural phenomenon of the late 20th Century. It's authenticity stands out against the karaoke ersatz culture of today, where everything and everyone is for sale."

"I was searching for a way to break the rules, change life - and I was looking to turn art into action."

"My intention was to fail in business, but to fail as brilliantly as possible."

"Be childish. Be irresponsible. Be disrespectful. Be everything society hates."