4,992Shows
249,891Spins
Friday, Feb 5 2016, 6AM
Good morning and happy Friday. It's International Clash Day! They were, "quite simply, among the most explosive and exciting bands in rock and roll history." Read their biography at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame: rockhall.com
This early song by The Clash was written soon after Joe Strummer initially joined the band in 1976. It is apparently the only song the band played in every one of their shows.
The middle part of this song is based on an old nursery rhyme, "Oranges and Lemons," and names, among others, David Bowie, Gary Glitter, The Move, and The Groove.: en.wikipedia.org
This song talks about unemployment and the culture of those stuck in no-hope jobs.: www.songfacts.com
This song was inspired by the London Notting Hill riots in August, 1976. It began as a celebration of Caribbean culture, but became a clash between police and youth. Joe Strummer and Paul Simonon and manger Bernie Rhodes were at the riot. A photo of the Notting Hill riots is on the back of the album.
"No Elvis, Beatles, or the Rolling Stones in 1977....Here come the police in 1984...." Here are the lyrics to "1977": www.theclash.com
Mick Jones and Joe Strummer wrote this song about their record company's heavy-handed management. It talks about how The Clash signed a contract and then lost "complete control" of their music.: www.songfacts.com
"Exodus,' rleased June 3rd, 1977, was the ninth studio album by Bob Marley and The Wailers. They were well-established when The Clash and others first heard them. "Jamming" refers to getting together and celebrating.
The lyrics were inspired by the character Norman Bates in "Psycho." The translation of the French lyrics in this song is: "What I did, that evening
What she said, that evening
Fulfilling my hope
Headlong I go towards the glory... OK
Read an Allmusic biography of this important British band under the direction of Paul Weller: www.allmusic.com
An exhibition of previously unpublished pictures of The Sex Pistols has just opened in London. You can preview those pictures of Sid Vicious, Johnny Rotten, and Nancy Spungen here: www.bbc.com
Joe Strummer continued to play this song with his band The Mescaleros and it was played at his funeral.
Based on an American Civil War song, this song warns about the alarming rise of the far right in Britain.
"I went to the place where every white face is an invitation to robbery..." This song, based on a writing trip to Jamaica, chronicles the feeling of alienation in a strange and hostile environment: www.songfacts.com
The video for "Tommy Gun" was filmed by Don Letts.: www.youtube.com
Read this review of Blondie's seminal third album, "Parallel Lines": pitchfork.com
The prolific and continually performing Elvis Costello published his memoir, "Unfaithful Music and Disappearing Ink," last year: www.post-gazette.com
Joey Ramone came up with this song after he burned himself with hot water and had to be treated at a hospital. He used to inhale steam from a kettle before concerts to clear his nasal passages.
Written by The Crickets' Sonny Curtis, this song was a big hit for the Bobby Fuller Four.. The Clash originally heard it on a recording-studio jukebox while they were recording "Give "Em Enough Rope": www.allmusic.com
Joe Strummer wrote this song in disgust at the fences that were being put up in football stadiums to separate fans to keep fights from breaking out.
Rolling Stone named this the best album of the 1980's. Allmusic called it "a remarkable leap forward" and one of the greatest rock and roll albums ever recorded: www.allmusic.com
Guitarist Mick Jones sang lead on this song and the lyrics apparently refer to an on again-off again love affair he was having.: www.songfacts.com
Rudie is a reference to the "rude boys," young Jamaicans who rejected their parent's culture. Here's the Youtube video: www.youtube.com
This song was written by Paul Simonon. Joe Strummer insisted that, since he wrote the lyrics, he should sing them. Brixton was the site of race riots in both 1981 and 1985.
Speaking of album covers (as John and Troy were talking about "London Calling"), here's the story of the pulsar science behind the cover of "Unknown Pleasures": www.rollingstone.com
Here's a thoughtful and thorough biography of post-punk band Gang of Four: www.amoeba.com
Watch the Peel Session version of this "dark seductive gothic masterpiece": www.youtube.com
If you're wondering what Joe Strummer sub-vocalizes at the beginning of this song, here it is: "The kingdom is ransacked/the jewels all taken back/and the chopper descends/they're hidden in the back/with a message on a half-baked tape/with the spool going round/saying I'm back here in this place/and I could cry/and there's smoke you could click on..."
The Clash filmed a low-budget video for this song, featuring two of their roadies wearing bandannas and pretending to rob a bank in Lewisham. During the filming, the two were stopped and questioned by the police, who thought they were the real thing: www.youtube.com
In this song, The Clash took a reggae song and stripped it down to straight rock-and-roll: www.allmusic.com
When The Clash came to New York City in 1980, hip-hop was emerging in a powerful way. "The Magnificent Seven" was The Clash's endeavor to celebrate and harness the energy of hip-hop: www.rollingstone.com
"With no Washington bullets what else could he do..." Read the lyrics to this powerful song: www.metrolyrics.com
In this video, also directed by The Clash's friend Don Letts, Topper Headon is dressed as a World War II fighter pilot: www.youtube.com
Winston Smith created lots of artwork for the Dead Kennedys. You can make a slideshow of albums and inserts or of Dead Kennedys flyers here: www.winstonsmith.com
Watch X performing "Your Phone's Off the Hook But You're Not": www.youtube.com
Joe Strummer wrote this song for the soundtrack of a movie called "Crusing," but it was not used and made the "Sandanista!" soundtrack instead.
"Lightning Strikes" was one of The Clash's first movements into hip-hop: www.allmusic.com
Read Rolling Stone's coverage of KEXP's International Clash Day and read their presentation of Seattle mayor Ed Murray's proclamation: www.rollingstone.com
"You have the right not to be killed...." Know your rights.. Read the lyrics: www.lyricsfreak.com
Watch The Clash's official music video for "Should I Stay or Should I Go": www.youtube.com
Here's a link to a live stream of the Engine Room in Bridgwater, England, our "sister city" which is celebrating International Clash Day today: youtu.be
This account of The Clash's performance at Shea Stadium says that it was "punk at its peak": www.today.com
Clash drummer Topper Headon wrote the music and the original lyrics ("Very, very pornographic lyrics.") to this song. Joe Strummer re-wrote the lyrics to focus on defying the Shareef's edict: www.songfacts.com Here's the video that perplexed Troy Nelson so much: www.youtube.com
This powerful song talks about, among other things, social ills in Britain, babies fathered by American soldiers in Vietnam, and the drug trade.: www.songfacts.com