John Lydon has written quite a few songs. From his time as the legendary frontman of punk rock legends the Sex Pistols to touring for decades with Public Image Ltd., "Johnny Rotten" is arguably one of the most prolific songwriters in the history of rock.

When the Chinese government requested every lyric the singer had ever written ahead of Public Image Ltd.'s tour through the country, it took Lydon a while to write down every tune. Once he did, the iconic lyricist realized he had quite the collection on his hands, so he added some personal drawings and notes, and came up with Mr. Rotten's Songbook, a collection of his lyrics, artwork and other thoughts from the last 40 years.

The book is limited to 1,000 signed copies (and available for pre-order right now), and Lydon sat down to chat with us ahead of the collection's release. Hop to the next page to read the full interview.