They are commonly regarded as an important influence on the Manchester music scene, the independent record label movement and the punk rock, power pop, pop punk and indie rock genres in general. They are primarily remembered for their singles, a string of would-be hits that combined a strong grasp of pop song craftsmanship with rapid-fire punk energy. These singles were collected on Singles Going Steady, described by critic Ned Raggett as a "punk masterpiece" The widely covered "Ever Fallen in Love?" remains one of their best-known songs.
The name "Buzzcocks" partially comes from the Manchester slang term cock meaning youngster, and its use in the 1970s ITV drama serial Rock Follies which included the catch phrases "that's the buzz, cocks" and "give me a buzz, cock!"
Buzzcocks were one of the key first generation British punk rock bands to form in the wake of the Sex Pistols in 1976. They were founded by Mancunians Pete Shelley and Howard Devoto, however Devoto left soon after the group released their Spiral Scratch EP (on their own independent label), leaving Shelley to take over vocals.
They are best known for their catchy, poppy punk sound, which has been widely influential, which was adopted as Peter Shelley took over on the vocals, singing about what the whole punk rock scene opted not to sing about: love. Devoto in the meanwhile formed Magazine.
They rehearsed in a friend's kitchen and played at the all-day 100 club punk "festival", in London. At the end of 1977 the band signed to United Artists and released "Orgasm Addict", with Shelley's high-pitched vocal delivery and Ramones-esque fuzz-guitar sound ensuring the controversial single would be played over again. Later came "What Do I Get?" which hit the UK charts and showed Shelley's brilliance in songwriting.
An LP was then released, Another Music in a Different Kitchen which came with its own carrier bag, labelled "Product". In 1978-79 five chart-hitting singles were released including "Ever Fallen in Love?" and had captured a pop-loving audience by this time. Love Bites, their second LP was released later on, which had less excitement than the last album, though it did sell well, with Steve Diggle taking over lyric-writing.
October 1979 saw A Different Kind of Tension which was panned by some critics, quite unfairly, as it contains some excellent songs, the title track being the stand-out. It perhaps suffered from being the second album to be released that year, with the record company keen to capitalise on the band's chart success at the time.
3 more singles followed in 1980, but the spark had clearly gone out for a while. Musical differences and the long slog behind them led to the band splitting in early 1981. Pete Shelley embarked in a solo career..
He released three dance/electronic influenced solo albums: Homosapien, XL1 and Heaven and The Sea - all with the same fine songwriting skills. Meanwhile, Steve Diggle formed Flag of Convenience - a power pop combo - and toured with some success.
A 5 album/CD set was released in 1989 called Product, which contained all the albums to date, plus the greatest hits and B sides album, Singles Going Steady, and the last non-album singles, Why She's A Girl From the Chainstore, Airwaves Dream and Running Free, plus the B sides
In 1992 the Buzzcocks reformed, without original drummer John Maher and bassist Steve Garvey, and releasd Trade Test Transmissions in 1993, quite different from their earlier material, with nods to the power pop scene popular at the time. All Set in 1996 saw a return to form with familiar riffs and pin sharp lyrics pop-punk. Next year Chronology was released, the missing album, including outtakes from the three United Artists albums. In 1999 they released Modern, which saw Shelley in reflective mode and Steve Diggle taking over more of the vocal duties.
Then followed another brief break in 2000, with Shelley teaming up with old band-mate Howard Devoto to release a largely disappointing album, Buzzkunst. Compilations followed, including Inventory in 2003, which contained every single to date, and 30 in 2005 to celebrate 30 years performing
2005 saw the Buzzcocks back touring and in 2007 they released the superb Flat Pack Philosophy, widely agreed to rank up with the best of Buzzcocks output
2008/9 saw a short tour where the band played tracks from Another Music and Love Bites.
In August 2011 they headlined the first night of The Rhythm Festival in Bedfordshire.
In November 2011 it was announced they would be playing two shows in 2012 that would feature the original line-up as well as the classic line-up of the band reunited for the first time in many years; these shows took place on 25 May 2012 in Manchester at the O2 Apollo and on 26 May in Brixton at the O2 Academy. It was announced on 26 May 2012 that, for the first time, they would headline Thursday night in the Empress Ballroom at the Rebellion Festival in Blackpool sharing the stage with the likes of Rancid, Public Image Limited and Social Distortion.
On 1 May 2014 Buzzcocks released the album The Way via PledgeMusic. On 13 September 2014 Buzzcocks played "a brief but triumphant set" at Riot Fest 2014 in Chicago, Illinois, USA. In October 2014 Buzzcocks toured the U.K. for three weeks with The Dollyrots as main support.
In 2016, the band embarked on their 40th-anniversary tour (dubbed "Buzzcocks 40"). In 2017, "Why Can't I Touch It" was featured in the opening segment of the Telltale game 'Guardians of the Galaxy.
Buzzcocks continue to be a huge influence on many bands and are still enjoyed by a large, and very loyal, fanbase.
Pete Shelley died on 6 December 2018.
Sixteen
Buzzcocks Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
An' I don't like to bop
Too much movement's exertion
Makes me wish I could drop
Dro' dro' dro' drop
An' I don't like French kissin'
'cause you swallow my tongue
You only want me 'cause you think I'm so young
Yo' yo' yo' young
All right
Okay
No way
An' I wish, I was sixteen again
Then things would be such fun
All the things I'd do would be the same
But they're much more fun
Than when you're twenty wo' wo' wo' wo' wo' one
All right
Okay
No way
An' I hate modern music
Disco boogie pop
They go on an' on an' on an' on an' on
How I wish they would stop
The Buzzcocks's song "16" is a fast-paced punk rock tune with sarcastic lyrics that criticize societal expectations, societal norms, and musical trends. In the first two verses of the song, the singer expresses his dislike of dancing, movement, and French kissing. He belittles the person who tries to make him do these things by calling them old, while he sarcastically refers to himself as young. In the chorus, he sings, "An' I wish I was sixteen again, then things would be such fun." The singer seems to be longing for the days when he was a teenager and carefree.
The last verse of the song speaks of the singer's disdain for modern music trends like disco and pop, which he refers to as "disco boogie pop." He wishes that they would stop playing these genres of music endlessly. The lyrics suggest that the singer is stuck in a time when he was happiest - when he was 16 years old. The song seems to be poking fun at societal expectations and the way people are expected to behave at certain ages.
Line by Line Meaning
You know I don't like dancin'
I dislike dancing and moving around too much
An' I don't like to bop
I also do not like bopping or jerking movements
Too much movement's exertion
I find exertion in excessive movement
Makes me wish I could drop
It can almost make me want to collapse or drop
An' I don't like French kissin'
I do not enjoy French kissing
'cause you swallow my tongue
As it can make me feel like my tongue is being swallowed
And you think that you're, oh so very old
You think you are much older than me
You only want me 'cause you think I'm so young
Your interest in me stems from thinking that I am young
An' I wish, I was sixteen again
I yearn to be sixteen again
Then things would be such fun
I think it would be very enjoyable
All the things I'd do would be the same
I would still do the same things I did back then
But they're much more fun
However, they would be even more fun now
Than when you're twenty wo' wo' wo' wo' wo' one
When you are in your twenties, including being twenty-one.
An' I hate modern music
I dislike contemporary music
Disco boogie pop
Specifically, genres like disco, boogie and pop
They go on an' on an' on an' on an' on
The songs in these genres can sound repetitive or drag on forever
How I wish they would stop
I wish they would cease playing this kind of music
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: Peter Shelley
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Mark Colonna
You know I don't like dancin'
An' I don't like to bop
Too much movement's exertion
Makes me wish I could drop
Dro' dro' dro' drop
An' I don't like French kissin'
'cause you swallow my tongue
And you think that you're, oh so very old
You only want me 'cause you think I'm so young
Yo' yo' yo' young
All right
Okay
No way
An' I wish, I was sixteen again
Then things would be such fun
All the things I'd do would be the same
But they're much more fun
Than when you're twenty wo' wo' wo' wo' wo' one
All right
Okay
No way
An' I hate modern music
Disco boogie pop
They go on an' on an' on an' on an' on
How I wish they would stop
Source: LyricFind
Songwriters: Peter Shelley
Sixteen lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Mark Colonna
You know I don't like dancin'
An' I don't like to bop
Too much movement's exertion
Makes me wish I could drop
Dro' dro' dro' drop
An' I don't like French kissin'
'cause you swallow my tongue
And you think that you're, oh so very old
You only want me 'cause you think I'm so young
Yo' yo' yo' young
All right
Okay
No way
An' I wish, I was sixteen again
Then things would be such fun
All the things I'd do would be the same
But they're much more fun
Than when you're twenty wo' wo' wo' wo' wo' one
All right
Okay
No way
An' I hate modern music
Disco boogie pop
They go on an' on an' on an' on an' on
How I wish they would stop
Source: LyricFind
Songwriters: Peter Shelley
Sixteen lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
RICHxROCKER
I really love the fill in guitar part in this song. Sounds so catchy and trippy
Andrea Prodan
When I bought this album...THIS one hit me! Love that sort os spanish 'flamenco' riff!!! Really original! Still sounds so fresh, 35 yrs on.
In A Northern Town
me to ..this was the second album I got back in 78..fuckin hell I was 55 yesterday lol
torai manchester
@In A Northern Town 26 2 weeks ago & just got this on vinyl obsessed!
In A Northern Town
one of my top 5 albums I still love it today :)
Gerard Ross
Damn, ain't this song the truth, especially the last verse! A masterpiece.
themigrators
Forever 16, ageless really... Life changing band! Rock on Pete!
petewadesays
Appreciate it mate
Jay KayP
First heard this when I was troubled at 16, of course I loved it, especially the Wish it would stop! line at the end, like it was the perfect soundtrack to my life at that time - still sounds flawless and modern, something about the driving rythm, sounds almost like techno could've copied it, how fabulous is that now...
I27T I84
god they're incredible