Good evening all, hope things aren’t too bad wherever you’re reading this. Been a weird sort of day but that happens eh? 2 hours until tomorrow so I’ll bank on that being a better one. Speaking of one better day I’d hate to be the poor chap who is having to sell this superb collection of Clash Merchandise on ebay. I’m sure he’s heartbroken not being able to keep hold of some of these rarities. To start with you’ve got an original framed Bonds poster in that radiant yellow and some other fine posters. Some rare vinyl, backstage passes and original t-shirts. All are worth a look and then an email to your most successful relative saying what a good boy/girl you’ve been this year and that Christmas is coming soon. I’ve never been a huge collector of memorabilia beyond records and cds and I do get a little green when I see a collection like this. I’ve got a framed photo of Joe  Strummer in my office – it was a cut out from a magazine…how punk is that? (incidentally I’ll have that Brixton poster if you are buying)

Some topics create so much obsession that they start to become a parody as soon as the box is opened up. Here’s one of the biggest of all time when it comes to any discussion of The Clash:  “Punk is dead / not dead / never died”

Why does this always come up? Why does their have to be a definite answer when I’m not even sure what the question is. Yahoo in their poppy wisdom had forded this river and asked the question for the 638th time. Well, let me clarify, they elected not to ask the question but to simply state “punk is dead”. Shit this could be a post all on it’s own couldn’t it? Yes…it will be when I’ve got typing fingers ready to go. Here’s my short opinion:

The punk ‘movement’ of 1976/7 is dead. Yes, soon after record companies were pushing each other over to sign every band with a sneer the movement evolved into something else. Punk music is not dead. What those records (not just 1976-1979) mean to me will never change, there have been a lot of records made in the same spirit of punk in the 30 years since also. It was the Punk ideal that created all the indie labels we took for granted ever since. It was the Punk ideal that led to that amazing post punk period of 1979-1984 where the quality and variety of music was outstanding. Moreover, how can you say ‘Punk is Dead’ when you can’t define when it really began. If you were 17 in New York in 1968, the Velvet Underground were punk. If you were 16 in Glasgow in 1984 The Jesus and Mary Chain were punk. If you were 15 in London in 2001 The Libertines were punk. It’s all a question of definition really. Is there music that charges you up and fills you with some fury? Do bands have something more to say than “a boy meets a girl, so what?” (McCarthy - though I’d love to claim that lyric). I considered myself a punk as a kid and I still do. I still don’t subscribe to suburban ideals nor conservative thinking. I still look twice at the kids with the challenging haircut. Did I ever wax on about how bloody brilliant McCarthy were…that’s a long post!!!

I still would rather you told me how you felt about something than be told how to feel. Punks not dead – if you were paying attention it becomes part of who you are. If a new song still excites you – if a social wrong still dismays you – if a hot debate still entices you and if you still like the beat of your own drum, then you were a punk and you remain one. There’s a little pub near me that’s where all the young local punks hang out. They were mostly born between 1987-1993 long after even the ashes of The Clash had cooled, but try telling them they aren’t punk. You can’t change when you were born. The only question is when they hit 30,35,40 do they hold onto most of those ideals? Change is apparently inevitable but in a sense I’m glad I can still relate to who I was at 15. I was angry with Thatcher, with Reagan, with the IRA and The British, I was putting my faith in Strummer and Weller. Later it was Morrissey and David Gedge, then Jarvis Cocker and Damon Albarn. Music has been my constant, I can’t apologize for that now.

On a very related note Bernard Rhodes and I keep exchanging pleasant emails, he’s reluctant to dig into the past and I’m too polite to insist. I would love to have him contribute to the blog – I’d love to hear just what it was like being at the beginning of The Clash and knowing you were key. Maybe tomorrow I’ll know what to ask him….

1. All the young dudes, punks not dead & long shadows
2. Why I’m glad The Clash never reformed
3. Happy Birthday Brother
4. Guildford, the birthplace of Punk? A Strangler speaks…
5. Years roll by…..
6. Simonon and Jones on a Gorillaz track recorded near Ladbroke Grove is denser than a dying sun.
7. What a great traffic system (Vol 3)