In the midst of Queen Elizabeth II’s Platinum Jubilee celebrations, a reissue of Sex Pistols‘ notorious punk classic “God Save The Queen” has hit the top of the charts in the U.K.
The song, which was reissued on Friday, launched into the No. 1 spot, exactly 45 years after it was infamously denied Number One. The song was released originally via Virgin in 1977.
Despite earning a total ban on radio airplay from the BBC 35 years ago due to its anti-royalist slant, the song reached number two on the U.K.’s singles chart and reached number on on the NME chart.
Originally titled “No Future,” the song was banned for containing lyrics comparing the U.K. to “a fascist regime” and claiming that the Queen is “not a human being.” However, lead singer John Lydon (aka Johnny Rotten) would later clarify, “You don’t write ‘God Save the Queen’ because you hate the English race. You write a song like that because you love them, and you’re fed up with them being mistreated.”
Lydon wrote in a recent editorial for the UK Times that he doesn’t have any “animosity” toward the royal family and even wrote, “God bless the Queen. She’s put up with a lot.”
To commemorate the reissue and the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee, the band also released a collectible coin and NFT displaying a Union Jack design on one side and the Queen (lip piercings and all) on the other.
(Photo: Koen Suyk)
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