In Memoriam
Malcolm McLaren
January 22, 1946 – April 8, 2010 · aged 64
Punk · New Wave · Hip-Hop
Malcolm McLaren was the ultimate provocateur, a brilliant cultural impresario who arguably did more to shape the visual and ideological landscape of punk than any musician. Born in London in 1946, McLaren combined Situationist philosophy with a razor-sharp fashion sense. Through 'SEX,' the infamous boutique he ran with Vivienne Westwood, he outfitted the British youth rebellion. His most infamous masterstroke, however, was assembling and managing the Sex Pistols. By perfectly packaging their chaos, he turned punk into a global cultural phenomenon and a highly lucrative media spectacle. Later, as a solo artist, his 1983 album 'Duck Rock' was wildly ahead of its time, introducing hip-hop, scratching, and world music elements to the British mainstream. Charismatic, manipulative, and relentlessly visionary, McLaren died of mesothelioma on April 8, 2010, at the age of 64. His coffin was famously sprayed with the words 'Too Fast to Live, Too Young to Die.'
Milestones
Manager of the Sex Pistols, Duck Rock, Double Dutch
Also remembered in 2010
- Captain Beefheart (1941–2010)
- Guru (1961–2010)
- Ronnie James Dio (1942–2010)
- Solomon Burke (1940–2010)