___________________________________________

The Clash - London Calling (1979) * * * * *

best tracks: guns of brixton, rudie can't fail, london calling, clampdown

One average London day, vocalist and guitarist of the pub-rock act The 101’ers formed one of the greatest British bands to ever walk the earth. The Clash.

London Calling marked the point when Punk Rock became less about the music, and more about the attitude. Attitude long outlived the musical style- thanks to The Clash influencing the generations for a massive thirty years after its release in 1979. The Sex Pistols kick started the craze of Punk with ‘Never Mind the Bollocks’, but only made it recognisable as a genre. Without The Clash, there would be no Punk-Rock movement.

Rarely do they miss the top three marks when it comes to ‘The Greatest British Albums of All Time’ despite having very few albums and few years active for such an inspirational band, they prove that to make an impact you don’t need to be round for long. Making music for just as long as the likes of The Beatles shows how truely great The Clash are.

The Clash have influenced an impressive list of impressive acts: The Beastie Boys, The Cramps and The Specials to name a few, showing they deserved to win the ‘Inspiration Award’ and be named 30th in the list of ‘The 100 Greatest Artists of All Time’.

Lyrics are where front man, Joe Strummer shows his true genius. Although Guns of Brixton was written by Bassist, Paul Simonon, it would not have made the album without Strummers encouragement. “You can crush us, you can bruise us, but you’d have to answer to oh- the guns of Brixton” refers to the riots that took place in Brixton. The band were first doubtful of the lyrics but it made it to the album and became one of the stand out tracks. Simple guitar and drum beats make this track different from the rest of the album. The basic beats force you to listen to the lyrics rather than the music, whereas the other London Calling songs have strong music and weaker lyrics. The vocal performance comes across as ‘I really can’t be bothered’, but as always, The Clash make it work.

Perhaps The Clash’s best known song ‘London Calling’ has a strong meaning; expressing concerns about the government and current events. “London is drowning, and I live by the river” lead to the construction of the Thames Barrier, seeing as most of London is built around the Thames, if it were to flood, most of London would ‘drown’. "Now don't look to us, all that phoney Beatlemania has bitten the dust” refers to band struggles and arguments with record labels, as well as being in debt and various other struggles. London Calling shows a more promising vocal performance, ranging from whispers to shouts and calls. Joe shows more emotion through this track, “But while we were talking I saw you nodding out”- sung with expression and a range of pitches makes it much more interesting to listen to. Strong bass lines and drum performances secure the fact that this song is most defiantly a ‘keeper’.

The track, London Calling, covers many controversial topics like politics and arguments, perhaps putting itself out as the one that allows more people to relate- being the perfect track for the album title.

On paper, Jimmy Jazz should never have worked. Recorded with clinking glasses in the background, slurring half the lyrics and weak instrumentals make this track sound like drunken karaoke. The out of place “wahooo”’s and what seems to be an attempt of the alphabet “zzjazzzzzzjazzjazz” from Strummer doesn’t help this songs sound at all. But with the help of some trumpets, The Clash, once more seem to pull it together and make it work brilliantly; perhaps the catchiest tune on the record.

Some narrow minded people may hear the sound of The Clash and compare it to drunken lairy young lads. While appreciative music followers hear the sound of Joe Strummer as a unique and timeless noise for all to be inspired by.

The Clash are no Bob Dylan when it comes to album recordings. Their six studio albums and eleven lives are no match to Bob’s grand total of sixty-one studio recordings, compilations and live recordings. But I see nowhere near as many people buying, talking about or even listening to his albums compared to the loyal Clash fans that have stuck by the master piece since its release and introduced it to younger generations. The amazing amount of influencing and the amazing record that is the legendary London Calling could sure give Mr. Dylan a run for his money.

The Clash – London Calling. British master piece. Undoubtedly five stars.

(this was my english coursework. i'm quite proud so i thought i'd share)