As a quick thanks-you to all my great COMMENTERS, here's a l'il rarity, a compilation put together by Released Emotions, home of The Price (more HERE) in 1993.
As the title implies and label-man Vince spells out in the liner notes shown below, the idea here was to cram 16 years of punk history into 23 songs. It's a revisionist history of course, one that supposes that the English punk sound of '77-'78 never wavered. (How American straight edge satire band Crucial Youth ended up here is anyone's guess!)
Anyway it's fun version of history and there's lots of bands who never
got what was coming to them here that you can enjoy and hope I'll be
able to dig out some of THEIR obscurities some day...
Released Emotions licensed some great '77 vintage stuff here and while they weren't able to get any Clash they did end up with THREE Clash covers, including the Indestructible Beat (featuring Steve Drewett of The Neurotics) take on "Capitol Radio":
1 The Vibrators - No Heart 1:50
2 The Lurkers - Walk Like A Superstar (Talk Like A Zombie) 1:49
3 Chelsea - Come On 2:05
4 Maniacs - Chelsea '77 2:35
5 Sham 69 - Questions And Answers 3:18
6 UK Subs - Motivator 2:26
7 Stiff Little Fingers - Tin Soldiers 5:04
8 The Ruts - Babylon's Burning 2:16
9 Angelic Upstarts - When Will They Learn 2:56
10 Red London - This Is England 4:58
11 Resistance 77 - Chelsea Girl 2:38
12 Oi Polloi - Scum 1:59
13 Attila The Stockbroker - Washington Bullets 3:34
14 The Sect - The Whole World Gets Me Down 4:07
15 Red Letter Day - Last Night 2:44
16 Anhrefn - Rhywle Yn Moscow 2:11
17 Last Rough Cause - Hey Lady 3:53
18 Crucial Youth - Turn The Other Cheek 1:35
19 Exit Condition - Plan 9 Channel 7 4:00
20 The Price - Standing In Your Way 3:19
21 Leatherface - Melody Lee 2:09
22 The Blaggers ITA - Guns Of Brixton 3:21
23 The Indestructible Beat - Capital Radio 3:25
LEAVE US YOUR THOUGHTS ON THIS COMP. IN THE COMMENTS SECTION!
No, really, legendary NYC punk, main mouth of Heart Attack and DGenration, Jesse Malin has joined with The Grateful Dead's Bob Weir to produce an utterly re-wired version of "Death or Glory". (via)
And a Bright Eyes side project, The Desaparecidos, have been caught doing a a cover of Spanish Bombs (via)
And to top off Joe Strummer's Birthday, Hellcat Records has announced plans to re-issue all three of the Mescaleros-aided solo albums Strummer released for the label (see here).
Oh and one more Strummer Sixtieth Birthday note, here's Strummer's note praising Bruce Springsteen (via)
So, The Wallflowers, a band led by Dylan The Younger, have joined forces with former Clash-man, Mick Jones, who Jakob's dad described in his book Chronicles as "the definitive Clash guitarist". (This was either a back-handed swipe at Vince White and Nick Sheppard or Bob had just run out of adjectives for guitarist.)
The song on which Dylan and his band, The Wallflowers, colluded with Jones on is called "Re-Boot the Mission" and it's a funky-reggae number that sounds somewhere between a lost Sandinista track and a good BAD song. (Rolling Stone has a run-down here)
While hypothesizing about Chuck Prophet's record collection (see HERE), I left out a number of probably obvious choices, not least among them being The Clash's London Calling. To celebrate my and Chuck's shared love of London Calling here's a great-sounding live recording of Chuck and his pick-up band, The Spanish Bombs, doing the album in its entirety.
Chuck Prophet's Spanish Bombs
High Sierra Music Festival
Vaudeville Tent - Late Night
Quincy, CA
2011-07-02
CD 1
01.intro
02.London Calling
03.Brand New Cadillac
04.Jimmy Jazz
05.Hateful
06.Rudie Can't Fail
07.Spanish Bombs
08.The Right Profile
09.Lost In The Supermarket
10.Clampdown
11.The Guns Of Brixton
12.Wrong 'Em Boyo
13.Death Or Glory
14.Koka Kola
15.The Card Cheat
16.Lover's Rock
17.Four Horsemen
CD 2
01.I'm Not Down
02.Revolution Rock
03.Train In Vain
04.Bankrobber
Leave us your take of Mr. Prophet 's take on The Clash in the COMMENTS section (where you'll find CP & SB: LC)
I suppose Record Store Days singles still seem more of a tribute to our favourite faltering institution than cash grab. That said, aside from the pleasure of the new Pennie Smith cover art (more here) and the subtly-tweaked mix (supervised by Mick Jones, Paul Simonon and Bill Price) this RSD Clash single is a bit of a minor item. Still, even minor Clash pleasures are worth noting, so enjoy this version until Sony yanks it down sometime in the next fifteen minutes.
Jimmy Cliff is one of the greatest artists ever to come from Jamaica (where the competition for that honour is murderous) and hearing him cover Rancid's"Ruby Soho, The Clash's "Guns of Brixton" as well as Bob Dylan's "A Hard Rain’s A-Gonna Fall" on the Tim Armstrong-produced EP Sacred Fire (Collective Sounds, 2011) is a sweet, sweet sensation.
Jimmy Cliff - "A Hard Rain’s A-Gonna Fall" (Bob Dylan)
Besides the aforementioned list of covers (Rancid, The Clash AND Dylan - how could MRML not cover this!) the vinyl version also contains two Cliff originals, "Ship is Sailing" and "World Upside Down", the latter of which he recently performed live with The Roots:
Winnipeg guitarist/singer/song-writer/label head/community-organizer Greg Macpherson has been releasing albums and touring this world for over a decade. Imagine a dramatic splicing of Bruce Springsteen, Billy Bragg John K. Sampson (of the Weakerthans) and Joe Strummer and you'll just have a thumbnail sketch of this strikingly original figure.
To read my review of his show last week at the West End Cultural Centre go to The Big Takeover.
To hear Macpherson cover The Clash's Bankrobber, click 'play'
To get this entire radio concert, "Live at the Hideaway" click HERE (and be sure to leave some words in our COMMENTS section).
To see Macpherson perform "California" on Exclaim TV go HERE, to see him perform "West St. James" go HERE.
To learn more about McPherson go visit his HOMEPAGE or his MYSPACE
I'm back after nine days in the wilds of Western Canada ("Hello, Moosamin"), endless miles of prairie and mountains mitigated by near-endless iPod playlists (and that bloody Ramouns CD). Thanks for the comments on the pre-prepared posts (I had to keep the ruining up, I had to) and remember that things will be back to 'normal 'round here soon enough.
Till the unpacking is all done, here's a newly upgraded FM broadcast of a show by The Clash from the "Take the 5th Tour" of 1979.
If you want to know more about this show go to the still-awesome Black Market Clash.
Thoughts on The Clash, travel or the state of the universe are welcome and can be written in the COMMENTS section (where the link for 'Live in Chicago' can be found).
R.I.P. Joe StrummerAugust 21st 1952 - December 22nd 2002
Sandinista is a mess. Call it an inspired mess or self-indulgent one but few accuse it of cohesiveness. While the Clash's fourth album, a triple L.P. from 1980, has its defenders and detractors my estimation remains unchanged since making my own cassette distillation back in the eighties: roughly one album of strong material, one album of fine B-sides and one album of endurance-defying filler.
So, as MRML once presented Cut the Crap Revisited, we’d now like to offer up Sandinista! Live!, a collection of just-about every song the Clash played live from that album. This compilation is not so-much an alternate version (listeners make their own even faster now) as a supplement to the studio work. After all, unlike Cut the Crap, Sandinista doesn't suffer over-production, if anything it suffers from the lack thereof. The final goal of this set was to observe how well the test of the stage succeeded in burning off the dross.
(In the early eighties this image sold as a poster, alongside ones of Rambo and Cheryl Tiegs)
1 Intro Kingston, Jamaica (27-1-'81) A little Kosmo Vinyl to rile you up. 2. The Magnificent 7 Jaap Edenhal, the Netherlands (10-5-'81) The original (more so than its re-mixes) succeeds at its somewhat dubious goal (white-boy rap-punk) so well that the live versions, even this guitar-heavy one, rarely out-do the original (the mash-up of the songs and "Armagiddeon Time" preserved on Live at Shea CD possibly excepted).
3. Junco Partner - Kingston, Jamaica (27-1-'81) Look, I don’t know what makes that bown! sound on the record but it’s fucking annoying and any version without it has a leg up on the original.
4. Ivan Meets G.I. Joe Jaap Edenhal, the Netherlands (10-5-'81) The Topper song sans the disco touches is kinda fun
5. The Leader Jaap Edenhal, the Netherlands (10-5-'81) It’s a little slight in the lyrical department but the original rocks any way you cut it.
6. Somebody Got Murdered Jaap Edenhal, the Netherlands (10-5-'81) Lyrically and musically devastating, this song got a bit buried in the vinyl avalanche that was Sandinista and here it gets a rough treatment with Jones vocal being stretchy but his guitar ringing at full force.
7. One More Time Jaap Edenhal, the Netherlands (10-5-'81) A throbbing version of one of Sandinista's better reggae tracks.
8. Lightning Strikes Jaap Edenhal, the Netherlands (10-5-'81) Structurally a bit too similar to Magnificent 7 but this version rocks out.
9. Corner Soul Lille, France (09-05-'81) This bantam level song has dodgy sound but a solid performance.
10. Let’s Go CrazyBarcelona, Spain(27-04-81) Great song but by far the worst recording here. 11. The Sound of the Sinners (US Festival, 05-28-83) A secret joy of Sandinista is this little gospel pastiche done both tongue-in-cheek and with reverence for the power of the music. The live versions are fiery with hilarious Joe intros.
12. Police on my Back Tokyo, Japan (30-01-82) You’d be hard-pressed to find a bad version of this one, Mick and co. just seemed to love ripping up Eddy Grant's classic.
13. The Call-Up Bonds, New York, USA (09-06-81) A live audience definitely gave this less-successful single the extra push it needed.
14. Washington Bullets Bonds, New York, USA (09-06-81) Long one of my fave songs from the album (in retrospective it foreshadows the Mescaleros) despite a few clunky lines ("Castro is the colour that will earn him a spray of lead"), this version features a jam with some toasting (mmmm jam toast).
15. Broadway Bonds, New York, USA (09-06-81) A subtle, jazzy song from the album that feels more immediate in this setting. 16. Charlie Don’t Surf Jaap Edenhal, the Netherlands (10-5-'81) A loping version that shows that even with slower material the Clash were still an exciting live band.
17. The Street Parade Bonds, New York, USA (03-06-81) A noisier version of another of the undeservedly ignored songs from the album.
18. Radio Clash Jaap Edenhal, the Netherlands (10-5-'81) An honourary Sandinista song (it came out between that album and Combat Rock) and despite being slagged off as "This is Disco Clash" it's never a drag, especially on this burning version.
I’m saddened that “Hitsville UK”, “Something About England”, “Loose This Skin” (resurrected by the Mescaleros-era Strummer) “Rebel Waltz” and “Kingston Advice” (despite being the title of a fine bootleg) never met the stage but glad for what we do have to remember Joe by.
MRML Readers: Is Sandinista trash, treasure or some unholy muddle-up of the two? Let us know in the comments!
Thanks, as always, to If Music Could Talk (esp nsc for the Equaliser jpg), which helped make this post possible, though I’m sure that many of the denizens of that community would make a very different, likely better version of such a compilation. Also thanks to Clash Photo Rockers for many of the fine images herein. Buy Clash albums!
Punk was progressive and reactionary. On the one hand, staunchly conservative, railing against the modernity of pop charts and calling for a return to basics, then on the other hand, fiercely revolutionary, calling for sweeping changes in the established order.
A by-product of this dichotomy was bands who defined themselves as much by what they were against as what they were for, from the Clash ("We're anti-fascist, we're anti-violence, we're anti-racist and we're pro-creative") to Propagandhi ("Anti-fascist, Gay-positive, Pro-feminist, Animal-friendly").
Part and parcel of these divergent ideas is the call to put money-to-mouth and play for free to raise money to fight against bad causes. A prime example of this call-to-arms was the British Anti-Nazi League's Rock Against Racism concert series (not to forget the racist response headed by Skrewdriver, which was not called Rock Against Tolerance, sadly, but rather Rock Against Communism).
The Clash, the ostensible subject of this post, played the first Rock Against Racism event in London's Victoria Park in early 1978. The success of that show (which was filmed for use in the movie Rude Boy) not only broke the band to a wider audience it was considered a crucial brake on the rise of the far-right in Britain, a battle unfortunately not yet won. Rock Against Racism suffered the same problems as those American wars against, poverty, drugs, terrorism; how do you know when you've beaten an idea? (The worst of this sort of pro-negative campaigning, came in the late eighties with Rock Against Drugs, which the departed Sam Kinison disparaged as being about as sensible as "Christians Against Christ".) That said, standing up against belligerent, divisive factions is, and always will be the duty of a free people. {MRML Readers: Leave us a comment telling us your views, memories or reactions to this Rock Against Racism business.}
No one resented The Clash's belated Number One Hit that they got for shilling for Levi's Jeans than lead Headcoat, Pop Rivet, Milkshake, Mighty Caesar, etc. etc., Billy Childish. In a flush of fury he unleashed this 1991 single (re-released in 1993) where he and his fellow Headcoats, under the alias Thee Stash, savaged two Clash songs, "Should I Stay or Should I Go"and "I'm So Bored with the U.S.A.".
{MRML Reader: leave a comment on what you make of Mr. Childish's "attack "on the Clash.}
We're wrapping up the series that saw Joe Strummer and Mick Jones' bands each get two nominations for First Great Post-Clash Song. "V. Thirteen", though part of a batch of songs co-written and co-produced by Joe Strummer and Mick Jones for the 1987 Big Audio Dynamite album No.Ten Upping Street, has a sound that is all B.A.D. That's good and that's not-so-good. Mick Jones' appeasement of the eighties fashionistas, with their thin, mechanical palette, can make his songs sound badly dated. Fortunately none of these limitations can overwhelm V. 13 though, with its Strummerized lyrics and Jones' keening hook. In fact, this song may represent the last echo of the Clash to be heard in the former memebers' music till into the ninties.
V. 13 (Mick Jones - Joe Strummer)
"Goodmorning Sodom and Gomorra Goodmornig sinners No that wasn't your radio set on the bleep again"
Sodom and Gomorra Let the DJ play 'Cos I'm only gone tomorrow and here today
Lotta rockheads on the block Dougie died and Sue got frocked If the stove is hot then I ain't lost And Rosa says my star is crossed Little Jamie writes V. Thirteen Comes in by the door goes out by screen He don't listen to me he knows everything Girls on the avenue ask me to sing
Sodom and Gomorra Let the DJ play 'Cos I'm only gone tomorrow and here today
The paper drags and folds me down Like a paper cup I fly around I've been eating food that ain't been checked And the Russian rain is beating down my neck Screen blackout on the southern war Cue talk breakdown on point forty four There must be a place the preacher say "I guess" But a drifter will tell you no place is best
Shout for all the people who have nothing to say 'Cos were only gone tomorrow and here today
Was a one off dirt jam when England came good One night in a thousand they've played knock on wood We used to go roamin' go roamin' around When you don't look for something it's sure to be found
Sodom and Gomorra Let the DJ play 'Cos I'm only gone tomorrow and here today Shout for all the people who have nothing to say 'Cos were only gone tomorrow and here today Sodom and Gomorra Let the DJ play 'Cos I'm only gone tomorrow and here today Yes I'm only gone tomorrow and here today
"Sodom and Gomorra this is London gov."
Here's a live B.A.D. take on V. 13
Here's Joe Strummer doing V. 13 song live in 1988 with Latino Rockabilly War
Next up on our (non-chronological) list of possible Great Post-Clash songs is the 1988 Joe Strummer and Latino Rockabilly War (Bass - Jim Donica, Drums -Willie MacNeil, Guitar - Zander Schloss) song "Trash City", one of several songs Strummer wrote for the soundtrack of the Keanau Reeves vehicle Permanent Record.
The song itself is little punkish rockabilly number with some Latin percussion and very little actual war. While Strummer's lyrics occasionally fizzle ("First I got a hot dog in a nightmare zone") and his performance starts off a bit restrained, "Trash City" does build to an almost Clash-strength and only gains power in repeated listenings.
Trash City (Joe Strummer)
In Trash City on Party Avenue
I got a girl from Kalamazoo
In Trash City on a transit line
I put you on hold but you're looking fine
In Trash City on Party Avenue
I got a girl from Kalamazoo
In Trash City on a transit line
I put you on hold but you're looking fine
When I see your car at the donut house
Wanna see a movie 'bout a creeper on the house
Wanna go bowling wanna chuck some rocks
Wanna come to my house and change all the locks
In Trash City on Party Avenue
I got a girl from Kalamazoo
In Trash City on a transit line
I put you on hold but you're sure looking fine
Sing you a song like rubber on a turn
Fifty-seven records that you know you ought to burn
Garbagemen don't care for the blues or rock n' roll
It's five o'clock in the morning in a coffee shop in Seoul
First I got a hot dog in a nightmare zone
Then I vandalize a cheap payphone
Crying to the girls won't you leave me alone
Makin' love in the graveyard with cockroach bones
In Trash City on Party Avenue
I got a girl from Kalamazoo
In Trash City on a transit line
I put you on hold but you sure look fine
First I got a hot dog in a nightmare zone
Then I vandalize a cheap payphone
Cryin' to the girls won't you leave me alone
Ain't makin' love with cockroach bones
Down on transit avenue
I got a girl from Kalamazoo
Down on Transit Avenue Panama Time
To hold to be real fine
ONE TIME!!
Joe Strummer and LRW - Trash City (live ,1988)
P.S. As is so often the case, I follow a few steps behind Punk Friction.
I took some upbraiding for suggesting that "Love Kills" is the First Great Post-Clash song, with the dissenters saying either it isn't a strong enough Strummer work or (more frequently) that the song cannot match the inventiveness or the tunes of the early singles of Mick Jones' B.A.D. (Big Audio Dynamite).
The story goes that before the sun had set on the day in 1983 he was fired from the Clash, Jones already had an early B.A.D. line-up (then called TRAC) in place. B.A.D. (Mick Jones - guitars and vocals, Don Letts - sound effects and vocals, Dan Donovan - keyboards, Leo Williams - bass, Greg Roberts - drums) created a sound fit for the eighties; with high-tech instrumentation, hip-hop accents and traditional pop song-writing.
Having this single on Def Jam does gives further credit to the fascinating role of the Clash in early hip-hop history, particularly their influence on the fierce, political work of Public Enemy.
As a Huge Clash Fan (Strummer Division) I've never felt comfortable with B.A.D. It's likely the sampling, the lengthy songs, the lack of guitar and the abundance of keyboards but mostly it's that infernal synthetic drum sound. That hollow-sounding, programmed beat tied Mick's very impressive work to the worst of eighties' production excesses.
All my biases (a result of having survived the eighties) aside, "The Bottom Line" is clearly excellent - the tune is unforgettable, Mick's guitar still rings out and those dopey lyrics are kinda charming. The best argument for this being the Last Great Clash Song is that the Clash did rehearse it, under the title "Trans Cash Free Pay One" before they self-destructed. Makes you wonder what could've been...
THE BOTTOM LINE (Jones)
The horses are on the track
Theres a new dance thats going around When the hits start flying you gotta get down All the young people dance round the square That old time groove is really nowhere
When you reach the bottom line The only thing to do is climb Pick yourself up of the floor Don`t know what you`re waiting for
A dance to the tune of economic decline Is when you do the bottom line Nagging questions always remain Why did it happen and who was to blame?
When you reach the bottom line The only thing to do is climb Pick yourself up of the floor Don`t know what you`re waiting for
They`ve been doing it down at the zoo And I can show ya heres what to do All of the States and over UK Even the Soviets are swinging away
When you reach the bottom line The only thing to do is climb Pick yourself up of the floor Don`t know what you`re waiting for
The road aheads` clear as a motorway Give us this day our daily bread and send us on our way Perchance to dream or take a holiday Romeo oh Romeo You gotta have your say
So when you reach the bottom line The only thing to do is climb Pick yourself up off the floor Anything you want is yours
When you reach the bottom line The only thing to do is climb Pick yourself up of the floor Don`t know what you`re waiting for
So when you reach the bottom line The only thing to do is climb Pick yourself up off the floor Anything you want is yours
Part two - Part two I`m gonna take you to part two part two
{MRML Readers: What claim does this song have to being first Great Post-Clash Song?}
Remember if you like what you hear, not only are most of the B.A.D. albums in print there are also a multitude of compilations available from Amazon, Itunes or your local retailer. Live version are often better, however those syth drums are omnipresent...
Regarded coldly in the modest post-Clash canon,"Love Kills", Joe Strummer's contribution to Alex Cox's 1986 bio-pic Sid and Nancy, deserves a moment's consideration.
Sure there's some stiff playing, a bit of eighties production gloss and Mick Jones' glorious return was supposedly wiped out in the mix but that's a cool riff, the lyrics are witty and that hook, with it's haunting back-ups, is simply devastating.
"This is Disco Clash..." goes the standard slag, if you want any more you can sing it yourself.
Not much to add that the liner notes below won't tell you, other than this was released in the early nineties, after a re-mix of "Guns of Brixton" and later an ad-sponsored re-release of "Should I Stay of Should I Go" brought the Clash back into critical and commercial grace.
Of course this was the golden era of the cassette single (maxi-single?), so of course this was released on Chromium Dioxide.
Many people have tried their own Clash remixes (see "This is Dub Clash" here), here's another example.
MRML is a blog about the devestating effects of culture: music, politics, comics plus etc. blah blah blah. At times MRML will post fine, unpurchasable three-chord obscurica (punk, pop-punk, new wave, mod, power-pop, gospel, reggae, hardcore, rockabilly, folk, country...whatever.) - - - - - - "The otherwise unavailable files in this blog are posted for a limited time and are intended for educational, non-commercial use. These files were transcribed from what are believed to be out-of-print sources. If you are aware of any of these items being readily available from commercial sources, or if any of these files infringe upon rights that you hold, please notify us so that we can quickly remove the referenced items immediately." - - - SUPPORT THE ARTISTS - BUY MUSIC!
If you have any questions or music to donate you can contact me at musicruinedmylife (at) gmail (dot) com
Re: Re-Ups
MRML does not plan to restore all of the content lost in The Great Mediafire Gutting of 2012. Polite requests may be made in the appropriate section, regular commenters will get priority.
