Good evening, a lack of planning means that tonight’s post is short in depth but full on in terms of the sentiment behind it. I would have had it written for this morning but felt the Paul Simonon story from yesterday deserved pride of place for a few more hours.  I’ve written numerous times of how(I’ve spent the last few years trying to change my sentiment when it comes to finding some good in Joe Strummer dying so young. Trying to move from the senses of mourning, sadness and frustration (which definitely dogged me the first five plus years) to making the loss of Joe something more akin to celebration or at the very least inspiration. When all is said and done he was just a solitary bloke, a special one at that, but one bloke who cared a massive amount about his community and the world at large and managed to find himself to be in a position where he could try and drive change. He ended up heading a band that changed hundreds of thousands of people’s lives, not the first person to manage that and not the last. However I think when it comes to Clash fans above all other fans of specific bands something deeper and longer lasting resonated due to their music, their lyrics, their stance and their passion. There have been dozens of bands who perhaps made music just as good as The Clash, there have certainly been many bands who held wider appeal around the world, but in terms of impact – genuine life changing impact I don’t know if a band from that generation or since who managed to change so many people’s futures or simply attitudes as The Clash. Getting involved and doing it for yourself was never a very Rock and Roll approach before punk and perhaps only with the advent of affordable recording over the last decade has it become so since. The reason The Clash made such a difference was due to all four members but central to that fire was Joe Strummer.

If you ever saw Joe on stage you’ll know that he was born to lead that band, if you had any doubt about his sincerity it was immediately vanquished when Strummer led the band charging through their set. There are days when it seems an awfully long time ago but as soon as I hear a live recording I realise how lucky I was to have been impacted by this band. I can’t be bitter at his loss when the great thing was feeling involved from the age of twelve onwards. Therefore it’s a sad day today only on paper – as I wrote last week November 15th 2002, was that very special night when Strummer and Jones shared a stage one last time. Completely unrehearsed and fully unplanned but as natural and in sync as the 100+ brilliant songs the two composed between 1976 and 1982. Strange events happen to us all, a final phone call to a relative who was soon to pass, a chance meeting with a old friend to bridge a gap of too many years. Strummer and Jones were more than our generations Lennon and McCartney and while everyone has rightly mourned Joe these nine years since I’m not sure how often we stop and think about how it must have impacted Mick, Paul, Topper and Terry. It’s a fair case to argue that these four working together brought out the very best in one another, despite the fighting and struggles. Each of them know that the chemistry they had with Joe and Mick writing was lightning in a bottle. In hindsight the band should never have split up, they would have beaten all-comers in the 1980′s,  but I don’t think you could even beg for five better or more unique and masterful albums released at breakneck pace. At the heart of that was Strummer/Jones and I will forever be thankful that they shared a stage that final time. I think they both had some unfinished business there and although that reunion lasted less than a quarter of an hour it must have been something they both reflected on long and hard after the fact.

So nine years on from the unofficial closing of the story of Mick and Joe I think it’s only right to celebrate it for what it was – it was magic, it was trans-formative and like all great art it can last forever. Moreover I can’t imagine the story of The Clash without that remarkable night at Acton Town Hall. If you were there I’m sure your memories of it would be hugely enjoyed by everyone who reads this blog – the ratio of people who were there that night (I don’t think that hall holds more than 500) compared with who would have liked to have been would be absurd. Anyway, I know I rambled and repeated some of last weeks thoughts but keep Novemeber 15th on your calendars for the years ahead. Two dear friends finally got together on this night again in 2002 at last,  they easily bypassed all the years that had gone and together did what they did best one last time. Definitely an anniversary to celebrate.

If you ever want to visit the scene of that special night – stay tuned, I’m going to be add Acton Town Hall to the Clash locations series soon. I know Pete (a major friend of the blog and myself) lives nearby to Acton High St – he might even recommend a decent pub or place to grab a curry.

For tonight – and with a huge tip of the cap to Alan Miles I suggest you watch the film below if you haven’t seen it before and purchase a copy if you don’t have one. Part 2 is here and part 3 here. Enjoy it but better still make sure that you also celebrate it. Also, tomorrow should mark the 800th post on The Clash blog so come and join me for an octopus or spider themed update.

The Last Night London Burned

Monday night it is then, I’m about ready to chuck on a CD and let sleep wash over me which is pretty pathetic seeing as it’s not even 8pm yet as I write this. In fairness last night was an up and down affair and I think I’ve got a cold of sorts. Actually change that, I think it’s just all the dust in the this dusty desert oasis known as the Sonoran desert. When I watched Lawrence of Arabia there was no mention of dust? I can’t recall the ancient Egyptians struggling to complete the pyramids due to dust. So why then does this particular desert have so much bloody dust then? Because they’ve built too much is why – and as soon as any winds comes along the air quality would put a Chinese metropolis to shame. Right then, enough complaining, in between my sneezing a short link to the big story of the day that I’m sure you’ve seen doing the rounds.

Not only did Paul Simonon spend some time on a Greenpeace ship earlier this year in the Arctic (cool enough) but he also managed to get himself arrested when he and the crew ventured onto a giant oil rig off of the coast of Greenland which resulted in him spending two weeks in jail (bloody cool), remarkably none of his colleagues realised the true identity of Simonon as he went undercover/incognito throughout the ordeal as he had posed as a cook on the boat (cool for Simonon, less cool for his Mumford and Sons loving shipmates not spotting him, nobody else sounds like Paul). I don’t know whether the Mumford & Sons analogy is correct but I’m just basing this on the video below released by Greenpeace. So it turns out that the association between Greenpeace and The Good, The Bad and The Queen concert last week ran a lot deeper than the 40th Anniversary and the London arrival of Rainbow Warrior III. Obviously Simonon’s association and convictions run so much deeper than a concert, but for him to take part in what looks like an undercover role of his own volition with Greenpeace earlier in 2011 is rather unique. It all sounds a little like espionage coupled with the arrests and jail time being very heavy consequences for the events based solely on the video comments. I remember a few people (you know who you are) blurting negative comments about Simonon’s involvement with Greenpeace saying the organisation was full of flaws when his association and the recent concert was announced a few months ago. At the time I felt that to be really harsh and the development of this story shows that Paul sees this a very much more than name dropping and a photo opportunity. As if the coolest bass player ever needed more ammunition to convince the doubters.

My sincere thanks to Robin at Greenpeace for the extra information and his insight beneath, you can read much more about the tale here on the Greenpeace Blog.

“We thought this is a story you guys might be interested in. Today Greenpeace revealed that Paul Simonon, former bassist for The Clash, went undercover on the Greenpeace ship Esperanza earlier this year during its campaign against Arctic oil drilling. During his time on the ship Simonon’s identity remained a mystery, known to his fellow crew members as simply ”Paul the assistant cook”. The current The Good, the Bad and The Queen member was amongst a team of 18 activists who scaled an oil rig in the Arctic demanding to see the Cairn Energy’s oil spill response plan.

Simonon and his fellow protesters were eventually arrested by Greenland police and thrown into jail for two weeks where Paul continued to cook for his fellow inmates!”

Ahoy mates, thanks for stopping in at the blog (Paul should’ve been wearing his Gorillaz gear). Also, consider this, if Bono or Chris Martin or any one of a number of ‘activist rock stars’ had a similar experience do you think for a split second that the story would have been kept under wraps until after the associated concert for Greenpeace? Of course not. That speaks volumes. Video to follow – have a good one. Tim

Stories from the Rainbow Warrior: Jailhouse Rockstar (That’s the Greenpeace headline, I’m innocent of such cold puns)

Greenpeace is an independent global campaigning organisation that acts to change attitudes and behaviour, to protect and conserve the environment and to promote peace.

It comprises 28 independent national/regional offices in over 40 countries across Europe, the Americas, Africa, Asia and the Pacific, as well as a co-ordinating body, Greenpeace International.

Good morning to you, it rained all night here so the air has a nice and fresh quality rarely associated with the desert. Lovely. This won’t be a long post therefore as I need to fuel up on coffee and then take the bicycle out and get some exercise or at the very least go and walk the Clash Blog dog (written earlier, completed this evening). Kim just bought the dog a red wool jumper, I don’t know about that. I noticed on yesterday’s post a glaring error and normally if I make a mistake or don’t fact check I’m corrected rather quickly by readers, this time though, nothing. The title of the post yesterday referenced Paul performing once again with The Good, The Bad and The Queen which I abbreviated to TGTGaTQ in the post headline which means nothing at all, brilliant. A schoolboy error and once I’m shocked to have got away with. What next? Mike Jones, Joe Strimmer, Paul Simon, Tipper Headon? Perhaps I’m getting senile after all, I noticed yesterday I’m struggling to remember lyrics from songs more often than once before.

Old songs are what brought me to today’s post also as I was listening to Madness while working in the ‘garage of fear’ yesterday sorting through a ridiculous mountain of stuff. I know that The Specials and The Beat are the two bands from that genre that I’ve returned to more often over the years but for a good spell during those first 3 or 4 albums especially I was essentially mad about Madness too. I liked the fact that they were from north London and although they were hugely successful (in Europe if not North America) you always sensed that it hadn’t gone to their collective seven (and then six) heads. Madness as a live band were never going to be as fiery as The Clash or attract quite the same element as The Specials but they were the best band imaginable if you were a teenager racing down cider and planning to dance badly for an hour and a half.

Madness live in Australia, 2009 (Image courtesy TrentSC on flickr http://www.flickr.com/photos/trentcsc/with/3450776465/)

To the casual fan who bought the singles and the average observer Madness were seen as a good times for everyone pop band who merged ska, sixties R&B and classic skinhead moonstomping into the ‘nutty sound’. If you weren’t paying attention you might have missed that they had a lot to say as well. Suggs’ lyrics were sharp and observational as the band developed that looked at politics, homelessness, poverty and many inner city issues that the band were in tune with. What was most telling was that the moment the band decided to get far more ‘serious’ in tone on their final album proper the sales dried up and they split up essentially, returning as ‘The Madness’ later on. Subsequently they’ve reformed a few times and continue to tour to great acclaim for the most part.

I’m only nattering on about Madness as Suggs took part in the Quietus (one of my favourite music blogs – bookmark it if you can) ongoing series of ‘my favourite 13 albums of all time’. His selections overall are rather great in my opinion and happily features the debut album by The Clash. What makes the series so interesting is rather than just a list of albums and a sentence about each the artist gives a lengthy explanation as to why he or she chose it. The Clash notes in particular are really interesting but all are worth a read as it describes the impact of The Clash on him, his band and the scene at large. I’d have loved to have been a bit older and kicking around Camden Town in those years. Here’s a link to his thoughts about the Clash album and also one for the entire list. What artists would make your thirteen best albums?

But I always had a soft spot for The Clash, because they had the reggae thing, like us, and there was a bit of soul in their music, for want of a better word. Joe Strummer definitely had a bit of soul in his voice. Every fucking track on that album’s brilliant, but my favourite’s ‘London’s Burning’.        – Suggs of Madness on the Clash

Right, I’ve got to get ready for a busy Monday so we’ll talk soon, don’t forget to stay current via Facebook, Twitter get the RSS feed  thanks for your support and sharing of the blog. Tim