A treat for Clash fans

[Greeny]

It's part of trying to flog the remastered albums, but it's a beautiful piece of marketing / PR: a new documentary film that you can watch online, featuring all the members of the Clash (including Joe), talking about how the albums were made - plus some unseen footage.

Enjoy! 

https://play.google.com/store/music/collection/promotion_20002d7_vid_clash_doc

[Redler]

Damn!!

"Sorry! Music on Google Play is not available in your country yet.
We're working to bring the content you love to more countries as quickly as possible.
Please check back again soon."

Must push f5 button every minute

[Redler]

The documentary is available on YouTube as well.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=16-WktpcHpI


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e0J5cIo_usU


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bSWEF7E_CRA


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bo56WJ-5uuM


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZSgA873N1n0

[Greeny]

The intro to 'white man in Hammersmith palais' still gets me excited!

[Ferryman]

I hate to say this but.......... I'm not a big Clash fan   I was very much into punk at the time but I always found The Clash a bit too manufactured and trying too hard to make "statements". The first album left me pretty cold, some reasonable songs on there but a really wimpy sound, it just didn't get to me like the Damned or the Buzzcocks (and several more obscure bands). Some of the later stuff was better but I always felt the image and stance took priority over the music. Saw them live in '78 and they were good but not as edgy live as several other bands I'd seen by then.

Does that make me a bad person?    

[Greeny]

Does that make me a bad person?    

If it does, I'm a bad person too! There's an albums-worth songs of theirs that I've really grown to love, but I've never warmed to either Strummer or Mick Jones - they just don't seem like very nice or likeable people from what I've seen and read. Joe Strummer especially is a bit of a fraud really (public school boy from a nice family playing the rebel). And to get to the best songs, there's a lot of posturing and crap to wade through. So I've never felt like I 'connect' with them in the way I do with other bands. I know a lot of people think they're the mutts nuts though!

[Ferryman]

Phew, it's not just me then. I never liked Joe Strummer and as a middle class kid like him I found his posturing a bit hard to take (mind you I didn't go to private school like he did...). They did some classic work but like you I never connected with them.

[Gritter]

You guys are both bad people! (I surely jest). I understand if you don't like their music but no need to get personal! So what if John Mellor was a privileged youth. Just because one's parents have money shouldn't make one unaffected or excluded from writing about shit that is going on in one's country. He was educated and spoke for the people...does that make him a fraud? John created a persona that was Joe Strummer. He had conviction, talent, fought the good fight and looked damn cool doing it. The Clash took punk to the masses, weren't afraid to take chances and never allowed themselves to be pigeon-holed as punk rockers. They have influence countless bands and Topper Headon is one of rock music's most underappreciated drummers. Just listen to the drumming on The Clash, Give 'Em Enough Rope and London Calling. Mick Jones is one of the most tasteful lead guitar players in rock and Nobody but Nobody ever looked as cool playing the bass as Paul Simonon.      

 ....and that's all I have to say about that.

[Greeny]

Topper's very underrated. So is Paul Cook in the Pistols. Topper had to be much more versatile as the Clash evolved musically though. Budgie in the banshees is another cool tub thumping mofo too!

[Ferryman]

You guys are both bad people! (I surely jest). I understand if you don't like their music but no need to get personal!

Maybe it's because we are Brits Sandy, we're often suspicious of people with an "agenda".... The trouble with the Strummer persona for me is that the somewhat "mockney" down with the people approach grated a bit when I always knew he was a middle class kid like me. But that's just me. It's absolutely true The Clash were a very influential band and they certainly matured beyond the initial three-chord punk thing to bring in other styles and influences. Personally I felt more affinity with the Damned, who came from the same roots as The Clash (the London SS).

Nobody but Nobody ever looked as cool playing the bass as Paul Simonon.

You've clearly never seen me playing bass......














...... because I can only serve to confirm that statement!