Revisiting London Calling - The Clash (December 1979)

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London Calling - The Clash
CBS
Produced by Guy Stevens

 UK Chart #9
US Chart #27 

  Personnel
The Clash
    Joe Strummer – lead and backing vocals, rhythm guitar, piano
    Mick Jones – lead guitar, piano, harmonica, backing and lead vocals
    Paul Simonon – bass guitar, backing vocals, lead vocals on "The Guns of Brixton"
    Topper Headon – drums, percussion

Additional performers
    Mickey Gallagher – organ
    The Irish Horns – brass

Tracklist

Side One

A1 London Calling   
A2 Brand New Cadillac   
A3 Jimmy Jazz   
A4 Hateful   
A5 Rudie Can't Fail

Side Two

B1 Spanish Bombs   
B2 The Right Profile   
B3 Lost In The Supermarket   
B4 Clampdown   
B5 The Guns Of Brixton

Side Three

C1 Wrong 'Em Boyo   
C2 Death Or Glory   
C3 Koka Kola   
C4 The Card Cheat

Side Four

D1 Lover's Rock   
D2 Four Horsemen   
D3 I'm Not Down   
D4 Revolution Rock   
D5 Train In Vain (Hidden Track)

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Singles On London Calling

UK and other related releases

 A-Side
A1: London Calling
A2: Armagideon Time
   
    B-Side
 Armagideon Time (Version)

B-Side 1: Justice Tonight

B-Side 2: Kick It Over   

  Released 7th December 1979
UK Chart #11
Australian Chart #28 

 A-Side: Train In Vain 

B-Side 1: Clash City Rockers 

B-Side 2: White Man In Hammersmith Palais
Epic Records 

New Zealand
Released 1979

A-Side: Stand By Me (Train In Vain) 

B-Side 1: Bankrobber 

B-Side 2: Rocker's Galore...UK Tour
Epic 

Australia
Released April 1980

A-Side: Clampdown

B-Side: The Guns of Brixton
Epic 

Australia

Released July 1980

A-Side: Rudie Can't Fail 

B-Side 1: Bankrobber 

B-Side 2: Rocker's Galore...UK Tour

CBS 

Netherlands*
Released 1980

Rudie side played at 45 RPM  and Bankrobber side played at 33 ⅓ RPM.

I believe it was this version that was being imported a lot into the UK because folks wanted the song Bankrobber and CBS in the UK were refusing to release it but finally gave in and August 1980 Bankrobber was released as a single.

*Train in Vain was also released with Bankrobber / Rocker's Galore...UK Tour as the B-Side in the Netherlands (See Below)

A-Side: Train In Vain   
B-Side 1: Bankrobber   
B-Side 2: Rockers Galore..... UK Tour

Released 1980

Both sides played at 33 ⅓ RPM

This was also released in Germany, Spain, France.

  A-Side: Train In Vain (Stand By Me)

B-Side: London Calling
Epic
US 1980
US Chart #23

A-Side: London Calling
B-Side: Brand New Cadillac

Released 29th July 1991

 A-Side: Train In Vain
B-Side: The Right Profile

CBS

Released 14th October 1991

 Train In Vain never got a proper UK release until 1991 and was issued as a single in support of the best of package released as The Singles - released November 1991 (it was called a re-release but as it hadn't been released in the UK before as a single so it should not have had that status attatched to it).

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Thirty nine years ago today The Clash released their third studio album, London Calling.

Many in the music world thought that bands like The Clash wouldn't still be around in 1979 as Punk was but a passing fad. The Pistols were gone, after having split in America not long after the start of 1978; The Damned had split after two albums in 1977 and then reappeared on the scene releasing the Love Song single in April 1979 and then a magnificent third album in Machine Gun Etiquette a month prior to the release of London Calling.

London Calling is a departure of sorts for The Clash as they sought to escape the world they had inhabited with their previous sloganeering (along with the rest of Punk) and that usual ramshackle sound of blistering guitars etc. On this 18 track Double Album (19 if you include the unmentioned Train in Vain stuck on at the end of Side 4) they were embracing new sounds and sharing them with us as they took us on their journey with them. It incorporates a range of styles, including punk, reggae, rockabilly, ska, New Orleans R&B, pop, lounge jazz, and rock - clearly something many fans of The Clash were not expecting.

A week prior to the release came the single London Calling. It was very exciting. Ian Birch writing for the Melody Maker wrote, "Musically, the single shows a marked advance: an irresitibly rolling gait, finely underplayed performances and sweet harmonies on the title words which effectively work as a chorus line. The lyrics are still apocalyptic clarion calls, but now Joe sings them with a natural assurance and clarity that make them more forceful.

B-Side 'Armagideon Time', an old reggae song, continues the general theme and feel - "A lot of people won't get no supper tonight/A lot of people won't get no justice tonight", it begins. What's really impressive, however, is the way The Clash have finally come to grips with the roots/rock/reggae traditions and properly incorporated them into their own approach. The (albeit well-intentioned) apeing days are over.

Can't wait to hear the album..." 

 

Charles Shaar Murray in his review of the album for NME (15th December 1979) would speak about the new sound: "Clashrock as of now has a freshness, variety, vitality and range that they've never shown before. 'London Calling' is also - no small point, this - the first Clash record (with the possible exception 'Cost of Living') that actually sounds right. Guy Stevens has produced The Clash the way they should have been produced right from the start: the tinny wall-of-sound of the first album now sounds quaint and one-dimensional by comparison and the AOR, easy listening HM sound imposed on 'Give 'Em Enough Rope' by the appalling Sandy Pearlman is now exposed as an even more gargantuan error of taste and judgement than it seemed at the time." He would also say that, "Parts of it sound totally unlike anything recorded before, yet is the most quintessentially Clashlike Clash record thus far...The Clash have matched everybody else's bets and chucked their cards on the table; in Springsteen's words, they have shown a hand even The Police couldn't beat, and they deserve to clean up."

CSM would go on, "The album opens with the single: a straight line drawn between the apocalypse of Bowie's 'Diamond Dogs' and the testament to personal courage and integrity of Springsteen's 'Darkness at the Edge of Town'. A call for solidarity and trust in the face of impending disaster, 'London Calling' is a tuning fork that strikes the keynote for the album, a tone apparent even in the most light-hearted moments of what is to follow." He finishes up his review with these words and it's not often you find yourself in agreement with a critic but here I give a hearty slap on the back to Charles Shaar Murray because he summed it up so brilliantly, "The Clash have been criticised for becoming a straight-ahead rock 'n' roll band, which is specious in the extreme. The Clash love rock 'n' roll, which is why they play it, but they want to live up to its promises, which is why they play like they do. With groups like The Clash on the case, rock 'n' roll ain't in the cultural dumper: 'London Calling' makes up for all the bad rock 'n' roll played in the last decade...I've been listening to 'London Calling' for nearly two weeks now: it's been my most played album all that time and will no doubt fulfil this function for some time to come. The Clash are entitled to feel very very proud of what they've done here".

Some reviewers were not as positive as CSM had been and expressed reservations. DJ and critic Charlie Gillett believed some of the songs sounded like poor imitations of Bob Dylan backed by a horn section! Garry Bushell was more critical in his review for Sounds, giving the record two out of five stars while claiming The Clash had "retrogressed" to Rolling Stones-style "outlaw imagery" and "tired old rock clichés". But then again Bushell was leaning in those days towards a lot of that "Oi music" so you couldn't take him too seriously!

Guy Stevens produced the album and there were concerns from CBS because he was known to be a little eratic due to drug and drink issues. He actually lived in Forest Hill and my friends and I often chatted with him when he came down to the local record shop to flog some second hand LPs to get some easy booze money. He was quite a nice guy to talk to and always was happy to share a few war stories of days gone by.

The album stands out as probably the finest one they have ever recorded and it's amazing to think that when they entered the studio to lay down some demos they didn't really have any songs at all and yet out of the turmoil of a period of writers block for Strummer came some excellent songs. Of the 19 songs only three were covers, fourteen were written by Strummer/Jones, Paul Simonon got the writing credit for 'The Guns of Brixton' and the whole band are credited with 'The Card Cheat'. The hidden track, 'Train in Vain' had initially been recorded to be given away on a Flexi Disc with the NME but when that fell through it was included on the album though not mentioned on the cover or the records  themselves until later issues of the album.

It's worth a play today I reckon. Ah, it brings back some memories of teenage life in South East London!

40 Years of Punk & New Wave 1977: Complete Control - The Clash

 Complete Control / City Of The Dead - The Clash

CBS

Produced by Lee "Scratch" Perry and Mickey Foote

Released 23rd September 1977

UK Chart #28

 A-Side

    Joe Strummer - lead vocals, lead guitar
    Mick Jones - lead and rhythm guitars, backing vocals
    Paul Simonon - bass guitar
    Topper Headon - drums

Complete Control

Written by Joe Strummer/Mick Jones

 They said: "Release 'Remote Control'!"
But we didn't want it on the label
They said: "Fly to Amsterdam!"
The people laughed and the press went mad

Oooh
Someone's really smart
Oooh
Complete control, that's a laugh

On the last tour my mates just couldn't get in
I'd open up the back door but they'd get run out again
At every hotel we was met by the law
Come for the party, come to make sure

Oooh
Have we done something wrong?
Oooh
Complete control, even over this song!

You're my guitar hero!

They said we'd be artistically free
When we signed that bit of paper
They meant: "Let's make a-lotsa money!
Worry about it later"

Oooh
I don't understand
Oooh
Complete control, let me see your other hand!

I don't trust you
Why do you trust me?
Huh?

All over news spread fast:
"They're dirty, they're filthy
They ain't a-gonna last!"

(Total) This is Joe Public speaking!
(C-O-N control) I'm controlled in the body, I'm controlled in the mind!
(Total) This is the punk rockers!
(C-O-N control) We're controlled in the price of the first drugs we can find
(Total)
(C-O-N control)
(Total)
Parent control (C-O-N control)

We gotta work it up and bring it up and fight it and write it

(C-O-N control) That means you!
I kick it, I fight it, I get it out, write it
(C-O-N control)
I gotta kick it up

 

B-Side

     Joe Strummer - lead vocal, backing vocal, organ, lead guitar
    Mick Jones - backing vocal, lead guitar
    Paul Simonon - bass guitar
    Topper Headon - drums
    Gary Barnacle - saxophones

The City Of The Dead

Written by Joe Strummer/Mick Jones

 

This is the city of the dead
As we lie side by side in bed
I'd do something else instead
But it is the city of the dead

We went out kickin' around
But you got drunk an' fallen down
An' I wished I could be like you
With the Soho River drinking me down

In the city of the dead
Fall in love an' fall in bed
It wasn't anything you said
Except I know we both lie dead

Don't you know where to cop
That's what New York Johnny said
You should get to know your town
Just like I know mine

While all the windows stare ahead
An' the streets are filled with dread
Every nation in the world
Slinks through the alley after girls

What we wear is dangerous gear
It'll get you picked on anywhere
Though we get beat up we don't care
At least it livens up the air

But someday's we hide inside
All courage gone and paralyzed
Sniff that wind of ugly tension
Today the jerks have got aggression

It is the city of the dead

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I think if you ask most fans of The Clash what their Top Three songs are it is pretty much certain that Complete Control would feature among the many answers (the other two I'm guessing would be between White Man in Hammersmith Palais, London Calling and White Riot).

Earlier in 1977 The Clash had earmarked Janie Jones as their second single. Mick Jones had even told Melody Maker that would be the new single but the powers that be at CBS decided whilst The Clash were out on The White Riot Tour that they would be the ones to decide what record was going to be put out and that was Remote Control backed by a live mono recording of London's Burning.

This certainly did not sit well with the band and they were angered that CBS had undermined them by releasing the single without their permission.

"They said, we'd be artistically free
When we signed that bit of paper."

The Clash fought back in the best way they could by making sure their next single would not only be an absolute stone cold classic, but a song to bludgeon those very people who had made such grand promises to them and had betrayed their artistic integrity!

This fight for "Control" was something that The Clash would have to persist at pretty much all their days at CBS because Remote Control was not the first fight and it certainly wouldn't be the last! (Think Bankrobber single, London Calling and Sandinista! albums and probably a few others as well).

Lee "Scratch" Perry was brought on to produce the single (his first non-reggae production). Perry had heard the band's cover of his Junior Murvin hit "Police and Thieves" and was moved enough to have put a picture of the band (the only white artist accorded such an honor) on the walls of his Black Ark Studio in Jamaica. When The Clash learned that Perry was in London producing for Bob Marley and the Wailers, he was invited to produce the single. "Scratch" readily agreed. But the band basically reworked his production by taking out much of the echo that he had put on it and brought the guitars more to front of the track. I have been yearning for years to hear that Lee Perry Mix of the song and 40 years on I have still never tracked a version down (so if anyone out there has a copy get in touch!). 

The other first for this single was that it was the first recording that Topper Headon appeared on as drummer for The Clash. Remember on the Debut Album and the first two singles (White Riot and Remote Control) that had been released Tory Crimes (Terry Chimes) had been behind the kit. His addition to the band certainly completed them and he brought a lot of talent to the table...drumkit!

(Cover of Promo UK CD Single 1999)

A live version of the song was included as part of the From Here To Eternity album in 1999 (recorded at Bonds International Casino, New York on 13th June 1981). A pretty tidy video was put together for it as well featuring the band live in action. City Of The Dead also featured on the album and was recorded at The Lyceum Ballroom, London 28th December 1978 (You can listen to the full show here!).

40 Years of Punk & New Wave 1977: The Clash - Debut Album

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 Listen to The Album Here

The Clash - The Clash

 CBS

Produced by Mickey Foote

Released April 1977 

UK Chart #12

US Chart #126*

*The album was not actually released in the USA until July 1979 with a revised Tracklist that included some of the band's singles. It did sell a lot (reportedly 100,000 copies!) on import though at the time of its release.

Side One

Side Two

The Clash
Joe Strummer − lead and backing vocals, rhythm guitar, lead guitar on 48 Hours
Mick Jones − lead guitar, backing vocals and lead vocals on Protex Blues
Paul Simonon − bass guitar
Terry Chimes* (listed as Tory Crimes) − drums

*Although Terry Chimes had already decided to leave the band he did return for the recording of the album and departed not too long afterwards. A new drummer would be in place for the up and coming White Riot Tour, a lad named Nicky "Topper" Headon.

What's With The Red Sticker

On The Inner Sleeve?

The Capitol Radio EP was released on 9 April 1977, and was given away to readers who sent off the coupon printed in the NME, plus the above red sticker found on the band's debut studio album. It was produced by Mickey Foote and engineered by Simon Humphrey. The interview was with the NME's Tony Parsons.

A-Side

 A1 Listen   
A2 Interview - Tony Parsons - The Clash

Listen Here To A-Side.

B-Side

B1 Interview - Tony Parsons - The Clash    
B2 Capitol Radio

Listen Here To The B-Side.

The Interview by Parsons had been in the 2nd April 1977 edition of NME

Singles On The Clash

White Riot* / 1977

 Released 18th March 1978
UK Chart #38

* The Single version was a little bit different to the Album version.

Remote Control / London's Burning

Released 13th May 1977

Did Not Chart

The B-Side, London's Burning, was a Live Version, though you honestly would never have known that listening to it as there is absence of any crowd noise!
The band were none too happy that CBS released it as a single and they would hit back later in the year with the mighty impressive Complete Control.

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(The Clash 1977 Photo by Chalkie Davies)

Whilst the Sex Pistols were looking for Record Company #3 to sign to (they had only survived a week at A&M before being dumped), The Clash had signed on the dotted line with CBS, recorded their debut album over the course of three weekends, released their Debut Single White Riot to much fanfare and were set to unleash their first major Public Service Annoucement with the release of the Debut Album.

So on this day in April 1977, 40 Years Ago! The moment of truth had arrived. Were The Clash just a bunch of sloganeers with a catchy tune or two or were they the voice that was finally coming out from behind the shadow of the Sex Pistols and making themselves heard on their own terms? 

It was pretty rough sounding (they would be more polished come the making of their second album), it was angry, it was loaded with 14 furious songs that spotlighted everything from the despair of the Inner City (London's Burning) to self-mythology (Garageland); violence (Hate and War) to self-discovery (What's My Name); town hall corruption (Remote Control) to making a stand against the times (White Riot); and future job prospects (Career Opportunities) to facing up to the truth (Deny).

It was a fine opening shot and one that they would build upon over the coming years. 

Forty Years on there are elements of it that are still pretty current, even if it does sound a little rough around the edges!

 (Photo by Kate Simon)

Before we go any further it is worth pointing out that Mark Perry of Sniffin' Glue had a change of heart regarding The Clash (and you know, it's okay to change your mind about things). He had previously declared that Punk died the day The Clash had signed to CBS and that quote seems to have stuck around without any mention of what he had to say regarding the Debut Album by The Clash.

Well, this is what he said in Sniffin' Glue:

"THE CLASH ALBUM IS LIKE A MIRROR, IT REFLECTS ALL THE SHIT.IT SHOWS US THE TRUTH.TO ME,IT IS THE MOST IMPORTANT ALBUM EVER RELEASED.IT'S AS IF I'M LOOKING AT MY LIFE IN A FILM.A STORY OF LIFE IN LONDON.PLAYING IN AND OUT OF THE FLATS.A SCHOOL THAT DIDN'T EVEN KNOW WHAT AN O-LEVEL WAS.A JOB THAT SAT ME BEHIND A DESK AND NICKED MY BRAIN.ALL THAT SHIT IS NO LONGER IN THE DARK.THE CLASH TELLS THE TRUTH!" (Sniffin' Glue #9 April/May 1977)

Tony Parsons, writing for the NME said,

  "The Clash have made an album that consists of some of the most exciting rock 'n' roll in contemporary music. Whether the great mass of British Youth can get into the sometimes painful but incisive reality of what the band are about is another matter. But they chronicle our lives and what it's like to be young in the Stinking '70s better than any other band, and they do it with style, flash and excitement. 

I urge you to get your hands on a copy of this album. The strength of the nation lies in its youth." - (NME 16th April 1977)

Michael Oldfield writing for Melody Maker said:

"As an album, The Clash is much as you'd expect: raucous, basic and should go down a treat with the Blank Generation. Thank God 'I'm too old to have to enjoy it'." (Melody Maker 16th April 1977)

The People Have Their Say...

Yesterday on the Facebook among some friends and in the Group Punk...New Wave77...Now I posted a wee thing asking these four questions:

1. How old were you when The Clash released their debut album?
2. What is your favourite track off of the album?
3. How did the album impact your own life or thinking? (if you could give an example in a particular way that would be helpful)
4. Do you have any specific Clash related memories from 1977 that you would like to share (it doesn't have to be a huge story)?

Here are some of the responses:

Nikolas Armes: "14 years old. Garageland." - Middlesbrough UK.

Peter Oliver: "16 nearly 17 years old. Career Opportunities." - Birmingham, UK.

João Bnews Almeida: "ok, let´s do it...
1. How old - 7
2. Favourite track - a struggle between "White Riot" and "I'm So Bored with the USA" (beside, "Career Opportunities" and "London's Burning")
3. Album impact -yes, but around 1982 (was 12 then)."
- Lisbon, Portugal.

Charles Furniss: "I was 16, my favourite track used to be Janie Jones (the greatest opening track ever!) but I think I now prefer What's My Name. The whole album went some way to shaping my political views for the next 40 years. My abiding memory is of the first time I heard White Riot (the single version) on the radio and thinking 'what a racket'!" - Warwickshire, UK

Lester McCoy: "11.....
Janie Jones.
The impact of the crackle and drum intro to Janie Jones cannot be over emphasised enough. Prior to that it was ELO etc.... this changed everything. Saved up and bought a guitar and Bert Weedons 'play in a day' book for £18 and that was that.... still gigging....mini German tour in three weeks!
Saw the group 15-20 times...ligged a couple of times with them in 78/79.
And am Mick Jones as well in a Clash Tribute group. I've been Mick since I was 11/12." (I think Lester is in Scotland!)

Shaun Hogg: "15 What's My Name one of the greatest tracks ever made short sharp and to the point , was still at school Punk was not big in Isle Of Man only one or two most in to Quo grrrrr , changed my way of thinking gave me confidence to do what ever i wanted . Never got to see them live, Geography and age although i did bring a Clash tribute band to the Island and they where very good." - Isle of Man

Barry Sax: "Unfortunately I was only 5 at the time the album came out, but I was aware of punk , as my cousin David was a punk at the time, my fave track of the album is probably London's Burning, although there is so many great songs to chose from. The Clash taught me about politics, two of my fave Clash related memories are my own band The Cherry Reds playing Guns of Brixton in a Reclaim The Streets Rally gig in the middle of Brixton High Street, and recording a version of White Riot in the recording studio, and thinking it was a big powerful sound." - UK (I think)

Tony Taylor: "Was 15 when it came out was just starting listening to The Damned's New Rose. But this was magnificent so many good ones on there but maybe Jamie jones for me ,went to my first gig in '78 The Clash with The Specials, got in to watch the sound check Mick 'n' Joe rowing. About timing. Joe said Mick was coming in too quick, Mick said the opposite ,went back stage after Glen Matlock was there with the ferrets of Camden town. Not bad for a first ever gig." - Leicester, UK

Angus Brown: "I was 15, my favourite track is probably London's Burning, I went to see the Clash on the White Riot tour, it was at The Playhouse Edinburgh.I remember quite a lot about it. I remember Palmolive's drumming (I probably shouldn't mention what I particularly remember about Palmolive* drumming - I was an impressionable kid with hormones coursing through my body - you can use your imagination). I can remember it being heaving and sweaty, and we broke down about the first three rows of seats. I knew that punk rock was for me." - Edinburgh, Scotland (*Palmolive was the Drummer for The Slits for those unaware - Doug)


Rupert Todd: "I was four when The Clash debut was released, music was limited to nursery rhymes and songs on the radio. Punks we're just clowns avoided on visits to town.

It wasn't until the mid-eighties that I warily approached The Clash because they were name-checked by so many bands I loved. I knew a few songs, and wasn't that impressed.

Even then I didn't pick-up their debut, I approached them by the convoluted route of Essential Clash, London Calling, Give 'em Enough Rope. To the angry young man it meant so much more than the angry music I was hearing, even if it was a decade after it was released, because it appeared to have a sense of optimism and desire for change.

It's hard to pick a favourite, but when I think of the album with the eyes of a teenager I always return to London's Burning" - Stoke, UK


Michele Jaffe Stork: "Well… it’s a bit complicated for an American, because OUR debut Clash album was Give 'Em Enough Rope, and The Clash was the second album here. But since you are from over there – I’ll go with that. 😉 I was 7 years old, so didn’t actually get into them until a little bit later.
Favourite track off of the album? Challenging choice, but it would have to be Career Opportunities.

 I didn’t listen to the album until Mtv introduced me to them – so a little bit later. But I was fascinated – there were these catchy tunes but with anger and force behind them. It opened my eyes to a world outside of my own, and definitely helped point me in the direction of rebellion of the “norm” at the time.

Clash related memories from 1977... Nothing from 1977 unfortunately. But later on, my older brother bought a Clash album – and I stole it. I was probably about 12 years old, and I'm still proud of that! 😀" - New Jersey, USA

 Peter Frostick: "18, Whats my name? Saw then on White Riot tour and at the Rainbow in '77 Loved the first Album." - Chelmsford, UK

Nathan Seaton: "This album is still special , every listen." - Ossett, West Yorkshire, UK

George Houstoun: "I was 20. I bought the album in Glasgow but was living in London. I love all of it. Hate and War probably my fave." - London, UK

Peter Squires: "Not quite 15..Garage Land . Main memory being everybody seemed to have it. Didn't actualy buy my own copy until 79. Kind of concur with Parsons and Burchill in "The Boy Looked at Johnny" that within 6 months it had become as quaint as Mersey Beat. The Clash like most punk bands then had a big problem following up. And probably the band which evolved the furthest." - Halifax, UK

Sven Säge Stöwer: "1. 8 Born in Germany
2. White Riot
3. Dont know - Its still my (Punk) Life
4. No, i was 8 :) - But i can tell you a lot of stories when i was 13." - Cuxhaven, Germany

Craig Campbell: "As I have said on many a 'punk' site, the first Clash album is really the only one worth bothering about and if their supposedly 'situationist' manager was genuine, he should have let it all implode after the release of the LP!" - Ramsgate, UK

Pauline Woods: "Well, I was 16 and to be honest it was all about the Sex Pistols at the time. They were the band who were making all the waves for me. My exposure to The Clash first came about via a colleague who was potty about Joe Strummer. I remember vividly her being distraught when he went AWOL for a time. I really didn't connect with their music until around 84/85 when I met Simon who was/is a huge fan and then I really got into their music and realised that whilst the Sex Pistols really challenged the status quo it was all rhetoric, albeit necessary snd rebellious rhetoric, whereas The Clash I think we're more considered and have stood the test of time better. With regard to favourite tracks I'd have to say White Riot purely because it's the one I'm most familiar with. Know more from subsequent albums I guess." - Dronfield, UK

Paul Pigott: "16 years old, police and thieves. Bought the album complete with red sticker but never got round to sending it off for the free EP(can't remember if it was with sounds or melody maker, but i had the coupon). One of my all time favourite albums that i still spin when a touch of class is required. 40 years! Where did they go..." - UK

And my own answers to the questions:
Doug Watson (Soundtrack4Life): "I was 13 years old, a month away from my 14th birthday. My favourite track on the album changes from time to time but always close to the top of the pile is the amazing cover version of Police and Thieves. That showed how vital Reggae was to Punk in the early days and also with that added sense of danger spoke of the times that we were living in.
It made an immediate impact on my life and thinking as the lyrics made sense when you could discern what Strummer was singing about, and he wasn't really sounding like 'a demented seal barking over a load of pneumatic drills' (as he had been described by their US Label Chief) but rather like an angry prophet confronting the state of the nation at the time. It made you think about where you lived and what you could possibly change in that town or city for the better. It gave voice to the longings at such a young age that I could make something of myself regardless of my education etc.
As for memories of 1977 regarding The Clash, well I think I played White Riot single so many times prior to the album coming out that I wore it out. The album would be a constant companion, and I think I read every interview of the band across the music press to discover what else they had to say." - London (when the album was released) but now Wishaw, Scotland


Lastly, a Dedication
To The Late Great Joe Strummer
Still Missed

40 Years of Punk & New Wave 1977: White Riot - The Clash

White Riot / 1977

CBS

Produced by Micky Foote

Released 18th March 1978

UK Chart #38

A-Side

    Joe Strummer - lead vocal, rhythm guitar
    Mick Jones - lead guitar, backing vocal
    Paul Simonon - bass guitar, backing vocal
    Terry Chimes - drums

 White Riot
Strummer/Jones
White riot - I wanna riot
White riot - a riot of my own
White riot - I wanna riot
White riot - a riot of my own

Black people gotta lot a problems
But they don't mind throwing a brick
White people go to school
Where they teach you how to be thick

An' everybody's doing
Just what they're told to
An' nobody wants
To go to jail!

White riot - I wanna riot
White riot - a riot of my own
White riot - I wanna riot
White riot - a riot of my own

All the power's in the hands
Of people rich enough to buy it
While we walk the street
Too chicken to even try it

Everybody's doing
Just what they're told to
Nobody wants
To go to jail!

White riot - I wanna riot
White riot - a riot of my own
White riot - I wanna riot
White riot - a riot of my own

Are you taking over
or are you taking orders?
Are you going backwards
Or are you going forwards?

B-Side

     Joe Strummer - lead vocal, backing vocal, lead guitar
    Mick Jones - backing vocal, lead guitars
    Paul Simonon - bass guitar, backing vocal
    Terry Chimes - drums

  1977
Strummer/Jones
in 1977 i hope i go to heaven
cos i been too long on the dole
and i can't work at all

danger stranger
you better paint your face
no elvis, beatles, or the rolling stones
in 1977

in 1977
knives in west 11
lent so lucky to be rich
sten guns in knightsbridge

danger stranger
you better paint your face
no elvis, beatles or the rolling stones
in 1977

in 1977
you're on the never never
you think it can't go on forever
but the papers say it's better
i don't care 'cos i'm not all there
no elvis, beatles or the rolling stones

in 1977
sod the jubilee
in 1978
in 1979
stayed in bed
in 1980
in 1981
the toilet don't work
in 1982
in 1983
here come the police
in 1984 

***********************

(The Clash 1977 - Gettys Images)

"'White Riot' isn't a Poxy Single Of The Week, it's the first meaningful event all year.
The Clash aren't just a band, and this is more than just a single." - Tom Robinson

I have very fond memories of my journey to school especially on Thursdays when the new music papers came out. On the 19th March in the NME Tom Robinson was reviewing the singles and this is what he had to say about White Riot:

Tom Robinson's review of White Riot
19th March 1977 NME

"Last year's words belong to last year's language and next year's words wait for another voice. Look out, listen, can you hear it?

It's pointless to categorise this with other records: 'White Riot' isn't a Poxy Single Of The Week, it's the first meaningful event all year. Try and discount it. Go on, say they sold out to the enemy at CBS, say it's another idle London fad irrelevant to the lives of working people, say it's all clever hype that's conned everyone, say it's just the '60s rehashed an' you can't make out the words.

Say what you like, you still can't discount it cos The Clash aren't just a band, and this is more than just a single. There's a book written by a trad fan in 1963 saying how shoddy The Beatles were, how ripped off from R&B, how they could never last in the world of Tin Pan Alley. They didn't last in it, they took it to pieces.

Whatever your standpoint, everyone basically agrees there are two sides. You know it's coming, we know it's coming and they know it's coming. The Clash are the writing on their wall. The recorded version of 'White Riot' is one minute and 58 seconds of buzzsaw guitars, Simonon's pumping, offbeat bass, an insolent, slurred vocal and sheer musical aggro. It won't pick up much airplay cos you can't make out the words - it'd pick up much less if you could: "Black man gotta lotta problems but they don't mind throwin' a brick/White people go to school where they teach you how to be thick..."

Flip is '1977', already well known to those in the know:..."No Elvis, Beatles or Rolling Stones in 1977".

Hmm, so how come the riff is pure Kinks? No matter - forget the medium, cos this one has the message. Blag it, steal it, borrow it, tape it off the radio if they'll play it.  Buy it an' you're a wimp, miss it an' you're a real turkey."

(The Clash 1977 - Caroline Coon)

For the original photo session by Caroline Coon Joe Strummer was wearing  a boiler suit with the words 'Hate and War' painted on the back but this was airbrushed out and replaced with '1977'. One of those pictures then became the front cover for the Debut Single by The Clash. The picture was inspired by random stop and searches by the London Police upon Young Punks.

John Peel had played the single on his show ten days before its release and if I remember correctly (and the old memory is not always as good as it once was) someone in school had taped it off the radio and had brought the cassette into school and we all gathered around his cassette player to listen to this first communiqué from the HQ of The Clash all one minute and fifty-eight seconds of it!

Terry Chimes features on the single although not on the actual cover, he did help them record their debut album and is listed on that as Tory Crimes!

All the hype about The Clash was now to be determined by a 7" piece of plastic containing two songs, both under two minutes and totalling 3mins and 38 seconds. If they couldn't say all they wanted to say within that time frame they might as well have packed up and gone home! And say it they certainly did! This was the sound of Teenage Revolution!