It’s pissing down with rain again – seems to be a weekend thing around here. Just two quick things and then should be back with a Clash Cup pairing later this evening.

I wrote a few days ago about a photo exhibit in Toronto of concert photography (Toronto Calling) which includes some great pictures of Joe Strummer amongst others. Steve was kind enough to write in to provide some more background to that story – and there’s also been a new article about the exhibition in the Toronto Star that he found. So..over to Steve:

I didn’t know if it was okay to post directly to the ClashBlog so I thought I would just send you the link this way. This is a review of that photo exhibit currently on display in Toronto. Interestingly they point out that Joe wasn’t in a good mood the night of the Clash’s first show in Toronto. He always seemed to be a bit grumpy when he performed here with the band. At another show at Toronto’s CNE you could tell he wasn’t feeling well or clearly did not want to be here (unfortunately Toronto wasn’t considered a major stop in those days for bands ready to conquer America). There is a great footage of his backstage indifference captured by the program The New Music (I sneaked backstage for one show by literally walking in backwards and can attest to his behaviour. The New Music, by the way, was a great weekly program that extensively covered music in the 80′s. It was hosted by J.D. Roberts (who went on to become John Roberts of CNN!).

In any case, Joe did an about face when he got older. He adored the crowd when he returned with the Pogues and when he was with the Mescaleros it seemed he had become comfortable with his role as, I dare say, an icon. I met him a couple of times in the years just before his death and he was funny, happy and accommodating. He signed every autograph and posed for every picture. The best image I have of him in my mind is him walking down Yonge St. in Toronto for an appearance at radio station CFNY. He was all dressed in black with his guitar slung over his shoulder. When he got to the studio some fans were waiting. One shoved a book in front of him and Joe said: “I’m going to write my own book about the Clash one day. I’m going to call it a bunch of fuckin’ goofs!” at which the crowd burst out laughing. Because he was late for the appearance, the DJs were adjusting their scheduling so, with some time to kill, Joe took his guitar out of his case and started busking on the street. Fantastic. During the recording of the show he played a few songs. During the commercial break I asked him for his guitar pick. He gave me one, but I asked him to give me the one he just played with so he handed that one over. After the taping of the show he hung around and talked to everyone who was there until only he and his record company rep were left. They then went next door to Starbucks for a coffee.
But I digress.

Here is the link to the story.

Keep up the great work. I look forward to reading the blog every day. One more thing, this spring brings the Specials, Echo and the Bunnymen, The Beat, and Public Image to town on various nights.

Thanks so much Steve – great stories you have to share and thanks for letting me indulge them further via the blog itself.

So what to do on a rainy day like this? I’ve watched some football from England, had far too much coffee and listened to some old Joe Strummer London Calling radio broadcasts, I wish we had more of those to enjoy. The link I’ve mentioned before but if you have never listened to Strummer’s stint as a BBC DJ I encourage you to take some time and bookmark this page!

I’ve got football later in the mud, in the meantime have a look at this - Pressure Drop, the play. I heard about this a few months ago – Billy Bragg is going to be in a play that is ostensibly exploring what it means to be English in contemporary Britain. That said I’m sure it expands far beyond that and might be fascinating, Bragg wrote a fascinating book a few years ago with the lofty ambition of studying that same topic. In a country (like so many in Europe) that straddles the thin line between the extreme right and the extreme left – the conversation is a natural one to be having. I find especially interesting what Billy wrote about the pressure to renounce being English.

“There are plenty of things that I’m ashamed of that England did. And there are plenty of things that we do now that I’m ashamed of. But to renounce that part of my identity which I define as English would be to surrender to the bigots on the right and to the cynics of the left. Instead, I’m determined to engage with both sides and to challenge their perceptions of what it means to be English”  (Billy Bragg)

Finally, I bought more new music yesterday (as usual). We’ve talked about Gorillaz enough this week so I’d suggest you listen to the new Editors album ‘In The Light and on This Evening’. Here’s the link to ‘Papillon’

See you later…and thanks for dropping in – my thanks again to Steve.