''Bootleg Retrospective'' is a compilation album by

the Slits The Slits were a punk and post-punk band based in London, formed there in 1976 by members of the groups the Flowers of Romance and the Castrators. The group's early line-up consisted of Ari Up (Ariane Forster) and Palmolive (a.k.a. Paloma ...

. The album is officially untitled. It is also referred to as ''Y'' ( its record label), ''Y3LP'' (its serial number), ''Y3Lp—The Official Bootleg, '' (On a Japanese RCA Victor reissue), and, in Greil Marcus' book " Lipstick Traces," ''A Boring Life,'' or ''Once Upon A Time In A Living Room.'' The album consists of lo-fi demos and live performances, mostly, in all likelihood from 1977-9, preceding the sessions for 1979's '' Cut'' album. Two recordings, "Face Place" and "Or What Is It?", are skeletal, incomplete sketches of songs which appeared in finished form on 1981's ''

Return of the Giant Slits ''Return of the Giant Slits'' is the second studio album by English punk band the Slits, released in 1981 by CBS Records on LP and cassette. In comparison with its widely acclaimed predecessor, '' Cut'', released in 1979, it showcases a rhythmi ...

'' album. A 30-second section of "Bongos on the Lawn" appears at the opening of the promotional video for "Instant Hit" from the ''Cut'' album. In spite of its rough and informal appearance, the album was an authorized release compiled by the Slits, who were signed to

Y Records Y Records was a British independent record label set up in 1980 by Dick O'Dell in the United Kingdom, and distributed by Rough Trade. History Artists included the Slits, Shriekback and a number of groups that were associated with the Bristo ...

at the time. It was released by

, on or around 17 March 1980, and was distributed by

Rough Trade Records Rough Trade Records is an independent record label based in London, England. It was formed in 1976 by Geoff Travis who had opened a record store off Ladbroke Grove. Having successfully promoted and sold records by punk rock and early post-pu ...

Track listing

All tracks written by Viv Albertine, Tessa Pollitt, Arianne Forster ( Ari Up) and Paloma Romero (a.k.a. Palmolive)

Side one

#"A Boring Life" #"Slime" #"Face Place" #"No. 1 Enemy" – recorded by Dick O'Dell from ''In the Beginning (A Live Anthology 1977–81)'' #"Vaseline"

Side two

#"Or What Is It?" (a.k.a. "Or What It Is?" on ''

'') #"Bongos On the Lawn" – from the soundtrack to

Don Letts Donovan "Don" Letts (born 10 January 1956) is a British film director, disc jockey (DJ) and musician. Letts first came to prominence as the videographer for the Clash, directing several of their music videos. In 1984, Letts co-founded the band B ...

' short film ''Slits Pictures'' (1979) #"Let's Do the Split" (a.k.a. "Vindictive" on ''The Peel Sessions'') #"Once Upon a Time in a Living Room" #"No More Rock n Roll for You"/"Mosquitoes" A CD re-release by Japanese RCA Victor uses the wrong song titles on several of the tracks; this is verifiable by comparing the titles with other appearances of these songs on various studio and live Slits releases. The performance titled "No More Rock n Roll For You" is a 30 May 1977 live encore co-performance with the bands Subway Sect and the Prefects, from the California Ballroom in Dunstabl

on the White Riot tour. This track is included on Vic Godard and the Subway Sect's compilation ''Twenty Odd Years'' as "We Oppose All Rock and Roll/Sister Ray"; it features extensive lyric quotations from the

Velvet Underground Weave details visible on a purple-colored velvet fabric Velvet is a type of woven tufted fabric in which the cut threads are evenly distributed, with a short pile, giving it a distinctive soft feel. By extension, the word ''velvety'' means " ...

song " Sister Ray".

Personnel

;The Slits * Ari Up –

vocals Singing is the act of creating musical sounds with the voice. A person who sings is called a singer, artist or vocalist (in jazz and/or popular music). Singers perform music (arias, recitatives, songs, etc.) that can be sung with or witho ...

* Viv Albertine –

guitar The guitar is a fretted musical instrument that typically has six strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming or plucking the strings with the dominant hand, while simultaneously pressing selected string ...

* Tessa Pollitt –

bass guitar The bass guitar, electric bass or simply bass (), is the lowest-pitched member of the string family. It is a plucked string instrument similar in appearance and construction to an electric or an acoustic guitar, but with a longer neck and s ...

with: *Paloma Romero (a.k.a. Palmolive) –

drums A drum kit (also called a drum set, trap set, or simply drums) is a collection of drums, cymbals, and other auxiliary percussion instruments set up to be played by one person. The player (drummer) typically holds a pair of matching drumsticks ...

on "No. 1 Enemy" (uncredited) *

Nina Hagen Catharina "Nina" Hagen (; born 11 March 1955) is a German singer, songwriter, and actress. She is known for her theatrical vocals and rose to prominence during the Punk subculture, punk and New wave music, new wave movements in the late 1970s a ...

– vocals on "No. 1 Enemy" (uncredited) *Additional vocals/instruments on "No Rock N Roll for You" by Vic Godard and Subway Sect, and members of the Prefects (uncredited)

References

Release date/press release confirmed in ''Punk Diary: The Ultimate Trainspotter's Guide to Underground Rock, 1970–1982'', George Gimarc, p. 307. {{Authority control The Slits albums 1980 compilation albums Y Records albums