in one of its early lineups. The band was filled out by bassist
. It was formed in the wake of the 1978 breakup of
. For the most part, the band's early incarnation devoted itself to droning, slow-tempo, bass-heavy noise rock, overlaid by
's distinctive, vituperative rant. The group's debut single, "Public Image," was more of an uptempo pop/rock song, however, and it hit the U.K. Top Ten upon its release in October 1978. The group itself debuted on Christmas Day, shortly after the release of its first album,
. Neither the single nor the album was released in the U.S.
Metal Box, the band's second U.K. album, came in the form of three 45-rpm 12" discs in a film canister. It was released in the U.S. in 1980 as the double-album
Second Edition. By this time,
PiL were a trio consisting of
Lydon,
Levene, and
Wobble; the latter two played some of the drums on recordings, while the position was held by a series of percussionists, none of whom stayed long. The third album, not released in the U.S., was the live
Paris au Printemps (1980).
Lydon and
Levene, plus hired musicians, made up the group by the time of
The Flowers of Romance (1981), the much-acclaimed fourth album, which reached number 11 in the U.K. In 1983,
PiL scored their biggest U.K. hit when "This Is Not a Love Song" reached number five. By this time, however,
Levene had left, and the name from here on would be, more than anything else, a vehicle for
John Lydon (though with a comparatively steady lineup). A second live album,
Live in Tokyo, appeared in England in 1983.
The following year saw the release of
This Is What You Want...This Is What You Get, only
PiL's third album to be released in the U.S., though by now the group had six albums out. It marked the start of
Lydon's move toward a more polished and accessible dance-rock style, a direction that would be pursued further in 1986's
Album (also called
Cassette or
Compact Disc, depending on the format), notably on the hit "Rise," as well as on
Happy? (1987) and
9 (1989). In 1990,
PiL released the compilation album
The Greatest Hits, So Far, and in 1991 came the new album
That What Is Not. After completing his memoirs in late 1993,
Lydon decided to put
PiL to rest -- largely the result of contractual issues -- and pursue a solo career. The career-spanning box set
Plastic Box arrived in 1999, but otherwise the band seemed truly dead until 2009 when
Lydon announced he was reviving the project for a short set of gigs in the U.K. The new
PiL, featuring past members
Lu Edmonds and
Bruce Smith, along with
Scott Firth, were so warmly received in their homeland that a U.S. tour followed in 2010. An album of all-new material, This Is PiL, followed in 2012.
–
William Ruhlmann, Rovi