Everybody’s waiting for a Happy Monday or so the lyrics went so I’m going to do my best. Hope your weekend went well and you’re all recharged for another working week. I’ve got so much to do this week but an untold desire to do it so we’ll see if that lasts beyond Tuesday afternoon. Thanks for your responses to the ‘best of’ 2011 posts, I always find it remarkable that every single person I hear from who manages to briefly meet or be around Mick or Paul or in the case of last year Don Letts et al has nothing but good things to say about how friendly and accommodating the experience turned out to be. As you know I only had a short time with the two aforementioned during the tour with Gorillaz in October 2010 but the same sentiments would be attached. Friendly, patient and happy to be with people who essentially were complete strangers even if some strangely blog about them almost every day.

When everyone seems to say the same thing you realise that’s just the way Mick (especially as he’s been most active as far as touring etc) and Paul are. It’s good to read and hear and reaffirms that being ‘fans’ isn’t the one-way street it can often seem, they genuinely appreciate the support and interest as far as I can tell. Right then on to this morning’s post which will be very short as I’ve only got time to share a video which came to my attention via Gil W who not for the first time digs out some great stuff. Outside the UK you might not be familiar with the concept of a pantomime but every Christmas you’ll find them in towns throughout England (do the Welsh and Scottish do this…I’m not even sure) and they’ll be plays heavily reworked for slapstick comedy and strong audience participation. Often featuring celebrities in unlikely roles such as Aladdin or Dick Whittington they are a strange event which remain popular as part of the festive routine. So it was with Mick Jones’ daughter at the Portebello Panto production of Robin Hood this year and a certain someone makes an appearance as King Richard. Press play below for the rest….

The event was for a good cause with funds benefiting the Shepherds Bush Families Project deep in the heart of Clash territory. Mick obviously was having a good laugh with this but not sure it’ll rival the Shea Stadium version at any time.

The cause: Shepherds Bush Families Project works with families in severe housing stress, including those living in B&B hotels, hostels, refuges and living in temporary accommodation which are in unsuitable and affected by overcrowding and disrepair.

Thanks go to Roughler TV who chronicle a lot of cool stuff from Portobello, so check out their YouTube page to learn and see more. I’ll be back with more soon – Tim

Good evening, welcome back to the blog and I hope all is well in your corner of the world wherever that may be. I’ll start this post late tonight (Tuesday) and probably get it completed tomorrow by which point everyone in the UK will be halfway through the Justice Tonight tour with three nights still to come. Apparently it’s going to snow in England today so I hope that doesn’t impact anyone’s travel plans for the remaining three nights yet to come in London, Glasgow and Liverpool. More special guests are promised and I can now officially say I wish like mad that I was going to the Liverpool concert.

However I’ve been a bit busy so I need to backtrack a few nights and focus on events that took place on the second night in Manchester at The Ritz. From the early planning stages of the Justice Tonight tour it was clear that we were going to be in for something not only very special but also very different. Guest stars on tours seems like a very 1960′s thing which sadly (with the exception of many concerts in the obvious cities like London and New York) has for the most part stopped happening. Perhaps it’s due to a lack of camaraderie amongst musicians, or the lack of a ‘scene’ or it could just be because of money and politics. Whatever the reason it’s a pity it doesn’t happen more as it’s often a brilliant thing. This tour already had three elements that meant it would work, Mick Jones performing Clash songs, Pete Wylie and The Farm providing excellent ambassadorship for Merseyside and a cause that means something to the audience at the gigs and the musicians themselves. It’s those elements that have seen the list of special guest appearances swell and it looks to continue. So to Manchester….

ClashBlogger bias alert: When I look through my collection of music I’d argue that London and Manchester have been the two greatest cities for music over the 30+ years that I’ve been paying attention and buying music. A huge percentage of my favourite artists originate from one or the other or at worst the surrounding towns, it’s been that way for decades now and shows no sign of stopping. I’d give honourable mentions to Liverpool, Glasgow and Sheffield too but London and Manchester are top of that pile. London’s greatest band over that time of course has been The Clash whereas from Manchester you could make a good case for Joy Division/New Order, The Smiths, The Stone Roses or perhaps Oasis depending on your vintage. (I’d vote for James also but that’s for another post). When the lights went up at The Ritz rumours were already flying around that the gig would feature very special guest stars that were previously unannounced and so it was. I’d wager that few seriously expected to see Mick and Pete joined front and centre by another notable duo of guitarist and vocalist who wrote one of the best albums ever. As the lights rose there were Ian Brown and John Squire of The Stone Roses ready to launch into Bankrobber (after a snippet of their own work with Elizabeth My Dear).

Now’s not the time to launch into a history of The Stone Roses but I think many will agree that their debut album was one of the best things to happen since The Clash split up. Seeing those two share a stage with Mick Jones was like one of those gathering of heads of state photos except these are decent people. Ian Brown of course still can’t sing in tune but seeing him do this apeman shuffle along with John Squire adding to the guitar noise is one of those moments that will last forever in the memories of those lucky enough to attend. It also speaks volumes as to the importance of this tour, the cause itself and the relationships and respect commanded by Mick Jones and Pete Wylie. I’ve not found much in the way of interviews but I’ve a feeling many of these special guests have volunteered rather than being asked. Which tells you so much about The Hillsborough Justice Campaign.

Image courtesy John Johnson Photography - Three legends at The Ritz

Here’s a link to some great photographs of the pair of Stone Roses on stage taken by John Johnson, one of which I’ve borrowed above. I’m also overdue in pointing you in the direction of John Robb (I’m sure many of you have already been following it) and his excellent site and friend of the blog Louder Than War. John’s got my dream job, formerly a member of Membranes (you’ll need to be my vintage) and Goldblade John has gone on to become a successful writer and has authored a number of books before launching the frankly excellent Louder Than War site which focuses on music and the arts. If you don’t visit it often you should, it will remind you of the good old days of the UK music press when there was something to be said. John has been the MC of sorts on the Justice Tonight tour and has been maintaining a superb tour diary which you have to read. I wish he’d have told me I’d have been happy to tag along and proof read each article and help with the odd interview. Here’s where you can get current and I’m hoping to catch up with John for an interview after the tour is done.

I can’t not mention London and Manchester in a football context this morning either and I don’t need to explain our London superiority over our northern friends at City and United I’m sure. However this is really the time for football unity not division. (but losing at Basel…?)

Right then, I’ve got to run but will do my best to be back later today with the early news from the London concert which takes place in a few hours. Why the fuck am I sitting in Phoenix? Tim.

Good evening, how was your weekend? Bloody hectic one here but that’s alright it’s going to happen from time to time. On the plus side it’s been really cold and rainy most of the weekend which sounds a bit glum but when you live in a desert it makes a lovely change. The clouds were so low that the mountains to the NE vanished for two days and finally left today to reveal snow, if I liked snow I’d be more encouraged. With that said the best laid plans of getting the blog updated a few extra times this weekend fell to the wayside but I’ll surely get back on track tomorrow. There’s a lot to cover from the Justice Tonight tour but that needs to wait as The Clash time machine has thrown up something really brilliant this weekend.

On Friday I was made aware by a few people of some live footage of The Clash that was filmed in high quality but as it was super 8/cine film there was no sound. A number of people around the net and on If Music Could Talk started trying to work out which concert film was from. Luckily the uploader on Vimeo also added another file called ‘Manhattan 1979′ (linked) which I watched with some faint hope it would lend some clues. Initially it showed the World Trade Centre and various street scenes around New York and then some bounty – an early evening shot of the marquee at the New York Palladium advertising The Clash, Sam & Dave and The Undertones – Sep 20 & 21 and towards the end of the footage live action of Sam and Dave. Clash historians will know the second of those dates led to the famous incident between Paul Simonon and his bass that was captured by Pennie Smith and became the cover of London Calling. What wasn’t certain was whether the film on the other upload featured live footage from September 20th or 21st.

It was at this point where the community that surrounds The Clash went into overdrive and also impresses the hell out of me. Everyone wanted to know which songs were being performed and match the audio to the performance. After going through existing recordings and matching up what was happening on stage in terms of lead vocals, backing vocals and other indicators there were enough clues to match it up perfectly. I’d like to thank Dom who I’ve been in contact with, for painstakingly adding the audio to the super 8 film with all the cuts and edits included – I thank you.

What’s remarkable about Super 8 film is that although the technology is older than many of us, the quality of the film far surpasses much of what you see compiled these days via mobile phones or even the less expensive digital cameras with video capability. I’ve watched the tape below a number of times and although it’s often blurry and edited badly you certainly feel the energy of The Clash on stage and the chemistry of the band which was perhaps at it’s very peak in the late months of 1979. Thrilling to see and priceless in it’s rarity what we have is a new document that in addition to being 32 years old also captures the band on a night where Paul Simonon was going to create an unrehearsed image that has become as famous as the the album cover it graced, perhaps even more so. While there are no complete songs on the tape we have pieces of I’m So Bored With the U.S.A., I Fought the Law, Jail Guitar Doors, and English Civil War. Enjoy it – it’s brilliant. I’ll be back soon with lots more. Tim

(Full credit from the YouTube upload) – The Clash – 1979-09-21, at the New York City Palladium performing the songs I’m So Bored With the U.S.A., I Fought the Law, Jail Guitar Doors, and English Civil War. It is only short clips of the songs but great nonetheless. This concert was the same night Paul Simonon smashed his favorite bass guitar thus creating one of the greatest moments in rock and roll history ever captured, seen on the album cover of London Calling, and taken by photographer Pennie Smith. More info about this special gig, including the full setlist, can be found here: http://homepage.mac.com/blackmarketclash/Bands/Clash/reco…
The original source of this video was a silent Super 8 film camera. I layered the audio over it and synced it together.