Back again….I may have missed a day right? Sorry about that – will do some double duty this weekend. Having heard the entire version of Plastic Beach instead of just a snippet, would you know it was Mick Jones / Paul Simonon playing on the new Gorillaz track if someone wasn’t telling you it was so? I think you can pull out Mick’s style from the song (linked in previous post) but not so much Paul. I do think the album is really good however. You never know with Damon Albarn, I think if anyone has got the potential to get the three members of The Clash together for some recordings it might be him, though Mick’s existing commitments might scupper that idea.

Just to cover old ground but as it’s coming up soon don’t forget that Strummerville will be fully represented at this year’s SXSW music festival in Austin. There are sure to be a number of articles / interviews and hopefully a bit more to follow, all the pertinent details are on the Strummerville site. I had hoped to make it over to Austin at least for the weekend but airfares seem to have doubled while I sat on the fence (apparently due to Spring break and the airlines seeing a chance to make a killing) so I will be reporting as best I can from here. The idea of driving 15 hours each way doesn’t have the same Kerouac appeal as it once did – and having seen New Mexico and heard about West Texas I think I’d lose my mind. One huge feature for Clash fans at the festival will be the Strummerville film – details from the site reproduced beneath:

On Friday 19th March ‘Strummerville – a film by Don Letts’ will premier at the Paramount. The film, directed by the London born, Grammy award winning filmmaker and artist Don Letts, captures the very essence of Strummerville. The film journeys through the past six months of the diverse Strummerville calendar, including interviews with the bourgeoning talents and the friends and family of Joe who work hard to keep the charity going. The documentary also includes unseen footage of Joe Strummer taken from Don’s personal archive. On the film Don says, “In a cultural climate that feels like punk never happened Strummerville (the film) serves as a timely reminder of a way forward. It worked back then and it can work again – and man it needs to!”

On to related ground, I’ve neglected (purely on accident) to write much about Los Mondo Bongo. Many of you will know the band features Pablo Cook who helped start the Mescaleros with Joe Strummer. His new band are currently touring the UK and feature Pablo plus bassist Derek Forbes (Simple Minds), guitarist Steve Harris (Gary Numan) and vocalist Mike Peters (The Alarm). The band are certainly their own unique thing and not just a ‘tribute act’ as they’ve been tagged -  but Pablo doesn’t disassociate from his time with Strummer. They also tend to play a few Clash/Strummer songs live – and do them justice! I promise I’ll write more on them because I’ve been waylaid so far. The video below should give you a taste as should this article in the Derby Telegraph.

“As a writer, it seems a bit odd, saying I’m paying tribute to my own songs. I’m just playing my tunes to people who appreciate Joe Strummer and The Mescaleros. We do a few Clash songs as part of the evening – to celebrate Joe. And to keep the flame alive is great for me.”

I really want to do this…..Do you have a Clash or B.A.D. or Joe Strummer ticket stub?? Email me if you do and can forward a photo or a scan…I want to feature them on the site, I do love ticket stubs. Right then…I’ve got to dash but here’s a song I keep listening to this week (and the video is really well done) Vampire Weekend’s ‘Giving Up The Gun’.

Fan and Mick.....(I owe a credit but can't determine source...sorry)

Hello all – I’ve only time for a short post today but it stands to reason that it’s a short video clip to go with it. I’ve got a few other little bits and pieces also so stick around after the video if you’d be so kind.

This video isn’t earth shattering (I wish it were)  – it’s no longer than a 25 second clip but there is more than a bit of a buzz for me knowing the two of them were putting down their guitar parts at the same place at the same time. It is something I’m sure Damon Albarn (who is my age) was very quietly and secretly just getting heaps of pleasure from, I mean he’s only human. Of course I refer to the Gorillaz new album on which they will feature and the fact that Damon’s project take video/music as art to the highest extreme it’s exciting to know a cameraman was there that day – i.e. we can almost surely count on seeing more in the weeks ahead when the album gets released. The clip is below -

In other news – I’m cold today for no apparent reason and pissed off that Arsenal bought no new players.

Otherwise a few short snippets so your trip today was worth more than a 20 second video clip:

Most Def blog gives us his take on The Clash and more specifically the relative importance of London Calling. No updates from the Carbon Silicon site since before Christmas after promises of more contact from TJ – hoping we’re not slipping back into a silent spell lads? Quick moment of silence please as today marks the 15th anniversary of the disappearance (and presumed passing) of Richey Edwards of Manic Street Preachers. One of those strange sad tales that never will provide a conclusion to be understood. I will say that from 1992-1995 the band provided some of the greatest music of that decade and were amazing to see perform live, if you’ve never invested time with them I encourage you to do so when you can.

Speaking of anniversaries North London’s own John Lydon turned 54 – if you feel like spending some time with him and his videos here’s an easy link to save on typing. One of these days I’m going to write about him at length…I just need to find the right tact.

Finally – song of the day that I felt like sharing – Spoon “Sister Jack” - a reason to like Texas….now how often do I write that?

Sorry for hasty post and somewhat over dramatic blog post title- talk soon I hope!

Alright then back again and I’ve no dreams to share with you this time, actually I had a crap night’s sleep so a dream would have been rather welcomed. Just a few things tonight for you to ponder – a bit of news, a great review of Sandinista! and a few snippets. I’m constantly astounded by how many songs by The Clash get covered by other artists, I could feature a new one every day on the blog and still we’d never catch up – they get added to the various audio and video sites constantly. Some are good…some are bad….many are interesting and usually I can make my mind up on where I stand.

In this case though I keep changing my mind. Nouvelle Vague are more of a musical collective than a band, to date they have used in excess of 30 musicians and vocalists but the nucleus of this french band remain the same. If you haven’t heard of them their currency is cover versions – almost exclusively cover versions of punk, post punk and ‘new wave’ songs. Some of the tracks I’ve really got a lot of time for especially the covers of songs where the original vocalist guests with them. Namely their version of ‘All My Colours’ by Echo and The Bunnymen featuring Ian McCulloch of course (slowed down but simply sumptuous) and ‘Our Lips are Sealed’ by Fun Boy Three with Terry Hall guesting. That said Terry Hall could show up in our kitchen and I think dinner would taste better. Staying on task, Nouvelle Vague have been around since 2004 and have three albums under their belt. Artists covered include those mentioned above plus XTC, Depeche Mode, Bauhaus and The Violent Femmes. You get the idea. They’ve also now covered ‘The Guns of Brixton’ and being a band with a rotating cast I’ve seen/heard versions now with three different vocalists both male and female. It’s a cover version but does manage to reinvent the song to a somewhat sultry stroll. I’ve liked it on a Monday and resented it the next day but wanted to get your take on it. The version below is live and for the purist I’ve a link to the studio version also….perhaps they should have invited Paul.

My verdict, they have done a number of covers that I really think are worth seeking out or buying the album would be even better but I don’t think The Guns of Brixton is their best or most innovative effort. Incidentally they are out on tour around the States from now until February 20th, if they were coming to Phoenix I’d go along so if you do drop me an email.

I’d like to say thanks to a friend of the blog that we’ve linked to before, Mike who writes for the Houston Examiner. Now from what I can tell his gig is writing restaurant reviews but he manages to slip in his thoughts about music from time to time and specifically The Clash. I won’t steal his thunder but I will implore you to follow this link and read his thoughts about two of the greatest albums of our times. Mike asks this fascinating question which I know has its merits: (read the whole article for context)

“If London Calling might be considered the greatest album, as I believe it is better than the ones ahead of it on Rolling Stone’s list, and if Sandinista! is better in edited form, might not it be considered the best album of the rock era?”

Also Prez Obama gave his state of the union speech tonight…rather good stuff but still so much work to be done. I did like these words especially which should remind someone of these careerists what being a politician is supposed to be about in a democracy – no matter what side of the aisle you sit on.

“Just saying no to everything may be good short-term p olitics, but it’s not leadership. We were sent here to serve our citizens, not our ambition”                                    President Obama,  Jan 27

Finally, a word about Scotland. Pound for pound has any nation produced more brilliant bands than our friends to the North? I’ve always had a very affectionate space in my record collection for bands from ‘up there’ and it took this article to remind me that the quality of bands from Scotland remains intensely good. The Scotsman list their greatest Scottish bands of the decade – Mogwai, Belle and Sebastian and Idlewild just for starters – ensure you read on and research them all. I can’t even list the number of acts fully or partially Scottish that have made me a happier man. Don’t forget Joe was half Scottish also (before anyone starts getting all English on me!) which he seemed to feel was a large factor in who he became as a man.

Cheers…