Cock Sparrer - The original Oi band. A punk history with pictures

Cock Sparrer.

Discography | NME Interview | 1977 Fanzine Interview | Live Reviews | Links

Formed in 1974 as a pre punk pub band they acquired and retained a largely skinhead following as they sped up like so many other bands at the time, with the onset of punk. An aggressive sounding band in the Small Faces / Slade tradition. East End boys singing about tough times and football violence in cockney accents.

A live review from 15.4.78 in Sounds sums them up perfectly. "Musically and visually, the Cock Sparrer crew are just about as motley and uncouth as its possible for a band to project. Imagine five collectively imageless Cockneys with hair length varying from skinhead to Woody Roller, wearing clothes they look they pool from from jumble sales, and singing about how East End life is tough but fun..(they)...create a good time sound that occasionally approximates to the original...spirit of Slade."

The future for these boys could have been all so different. Intrigued by an advert from Malcolm McLaren in Melody Maker they approached him with a demo. Differing tales tell of them turning him down because he refused to get a round in or because as he outlined his vision he demanded they get their hair cut. Either way they didn't hook up and the rest is history. Yet there's similarities in attitude and sound ( riffs & boogie guitars) to the early Pistols but missing of course the galvanising, centrifugal and focusing presence of Mr Rotten and those basic tunes of Glen Matlock that separated the average from the great.

What was it with Decca and boot boys? First Slaughter & The Dogs, then Cock Sparrer. Come to think of it what was Decca's idea of punk? Their next release was Adam & The Ants 'Young Parisians'! As like all Decca releases Cock Sparrer's sank like stones

Their advertising featured them as hooligans and later songs extolled the virtues of Trouble On the Terraces. Decca was a mistake but at least they got their music out. Then Decca went bust and in 1978 Cock Sparrer split. In their career they supported bands like The Small Faces, & Motorhead and played Soho's infamous punk Roxy Club. Their aggressive Poplars following got them banned from venues as The Vortex and Nashville and unfortunately everyone seemed to spell their name wrong from Cock Sparrow to Cock Sparra!

Were they ahead of their time as regards oi music and working class expressions of angst ? Could be argued, but they never got to capitalise as Sham took the plaudits.

In the end Cock Sparrer were a pub style hybrid of punk & pub rock. (their lead guitarist left to form The Little Roosters - a pub rock style band) They certainly weren't the Pistols. Check out any greatest hits by them and compare their snarling version of We Love You against Sunday Stripper or I Need a Witness. Its painful but you can't deny they had some fine raucous tunes. We love 'em!