A-OK says the man

Hello again and welcome back to the blog on this especially good Tuesday. It’s been an exceptionally good day so far, although I woke up far too early and now feel like it’s 2 AM (it’s only 8:30 PM). The weather was perfect, Arsenal strolled through their match and won by a score of 5-1 and then this evening I saw a headline which made me reach for my mouse like it was made of solid gold “Margaret Thatcher admitted to hospital”. Whilst I immediately hoped it would be a one-way trip it turns out she just has the flu, however I have to confess it did get my blood racing for a short while. Hopefully things will turn out for the best and she won’t recover. If that sounds a bit bitter you didn’t spend your crucial years living under her disgusting leadership in the UK.

Enough of that, there will be plenty to say when the time comes and I’ve certainly been extremely patient. I thought we should get on to an edition of video clash as it’s been quite a while since I looked for the latest and greatest. I’m not in Blue Peter mode and have nothing prepared in advance so with some luck there should be some good stuff just based on the law of averages. As ever if you have seen any clips before forgive me although I’m sure you won’t have seen them all.

The Clash as animated characters, wasn’t that Gorillaz? I really don’t know which aspect of this is saddest? The fact that teenagers and young adults now pretend to play guitar or drums via their Xbox/PlayStation, or the fact that these videos are then uploaded to YouTube for public consumption or probably the fact that I’m showing you this on the ClashBlog tonight. Probably a bit of all three when it comes down to it and I realise somebody might tell me that Guitar Hero is really good fun and perhaps introduced you blah blah blah, but you know what I don’t really care. Go and buy a real guitar, bass drums or keyboards… failing that get some mates who can play and try your hand at singing and if none of the above are options for you I can save you the cost of the game and recommend half a dozen CDs you really should own instead. As for the video, the Strummer character in a white suit with a white hat is the pick of the bunch (oh wait…it’s not even a bloke). But the whole thing is a travesty.

Should I Stay or Should I Go cover version – Well this is exactly what I’m referring to above and bless these lads who may be 14 or 15 for having a go at the Combat Rock track. Even a bit ahead of their time they managed to incorporate keyboards to the song giving it their own distinct flavour. Plus check out that backdrop, after being knocked sideways by all the Gorillaz stage majesty of late it’s nice to get back to basics. My only complaint is those little yobs down the front aren’t paying enough attention. There is also a definite Brian May perm on stage but we will let that be. I can’t tell you much more about the video, I had guessed due to the baseball cap wearing drummer that it might be in the States but it shows how 1990s I really am as it was shot in Italy and the backdrop was my clue. The school event (I’m guessing) was filmed in Brescia. Bravo lads!

Joe and Paul interview in New York 1982 - I’ve seen this clip before in pieces but not the complete version which is featured here in extremely good quality. The interview took place in 1982 and offers Strummer with his kiss curl an extended chance to talk about the shows at Bonds, playing live with The Clash plus this and that. Paul meanwhile looks bored for the most part but extremely comfortable. The interview is good but I struggle to get past the interviewer’s haircut although she does seem genuinely interested in the band and had done a bit of homework to her credit. Great clip and definitely worth a watch, the newscast is called Live at Five and I’m sure someone will know what network it was on.

Coma Girl….done differently – Whatever you do make sure you give this video more than 20 seconds, make sure you ignore the fact it looks like he’s been locked in a storage locker and found amplifier microphone and make sure you disregard the fact that these he’s either quite large or his ukulele is smaller than average. Ignore all that and you hear a pretty fair (vocally at least) rendition of one of Joe Strummer’s last great tracks and this chap’s gravelly voice is more suited to interpreting Joe than Springsteen is in my humble opinion. I can’t comment on the ukulele, I don’t play one and have never tried but for some reason I like this video all the same. I hope the guy got out of the locker. Incidentally it looks like he might have smashed up his wrist trying to escape. He’s from Tacoma, Washington…that’s all I’ve got.

That’s all for now…I did stumble on another but want to save it, it’s that good…seriously.Have a splendid Wednesday. Tim.

Oh wait…one bonus video…not Clash related but worthy due to it’s brilliance…watch it full screen. You’ll be glad you bothered.

Good afternoon to you, thought I’d add a wrinkle by loading a new post at a strange time of day. Its October and I feel reckless so things like this just might happen from time to time. I also have great confidence that Arsenal will win tomorrow at the bus stop in Fulham and thus not ruin my weekend, i.e. I may as well write in happy and optimistic mode. I watched that video from yesterday 3 times in the last 36 hours also and if that doesn’t make you feel a bit peppier about life then there’s something wrong with you. It also reminded me that the issues of 1980 are not significantly worse than they are today, if at all (disastrous economies dominating the world, Russians occupying Afghanistan, racism, unemployment and jingoistic fear of terrorism although the proponents then were from across the Irish Sea and not the back alleys of Luton or Riyadh). Which was sort of what I wanted to write about briefly today but first…that landmark I mentioned yesterday.

I was aware a few weeks ago that soon I’d be posting my 500th story on the blog and thought to myself “must make an event of that one” – which categorically failed as this Wednesday just gone did mark the 500th update. (*I’m sure none of you had noticed either, but there we have it) 500 posts strong or in the vicinity of  37,000 words written in anger or peace, laughter or fury about the only band that matters. If you’ve been with us since the earliest days thanks for the loyalty and if you are newer to the blog please keep coming back and better still get involved if you like. Always happy to hear from you via the comments section or email. The blog is a bit like brushing my teeth or brewing coffee now, part of my routine and a good outlet to write, research and communicate with some great people about some cool stuff. If I get around to it I’ll do some sort of summary of the most popular posts in that time…or I might not. What I will say is thanks for continuing to share it with others, in September we again had the most visits in a single month that the blog has ever seen, not unreasonably beating the marks respectively set in August and July. So thanks…I appreciate it!!

The original 'Woody'

So back to my original intention of this post….I hope that most of you have had some exposure to Manic Street Preachers. Somehow the Welsh band have now been going for over 20 years (yes it is that long) and quickly found a niche market for their strident, political, energetic but also brilliantly creative music. For many in the press (and for fans alike) they filled in some ways the exact same void that The Clash had left wide open and nobody had properly filled during the 1980′s. Don’t tell me U2…just don’t get me started. What the Manics have done is not only create some of the best albums of the last two decades but also worn that heart on the sleeve with the concerns of our society and the refusal to just sit down and shut up…in the best spirits of The Clash. They also overcame something that would probably see most bands implode and admittedly it caused them time to take stock about continuing when founder member Richey Edwards went missing on Feb 1, 1995. He was never found and has been presumed dead for most of that time since, its one of modern musics biggest mysteries and I think just as significant a loss as Kurt Cobain of Nirvana less than a year earlier. I realise that’s a very debatable opinion but Manic Street Preachers are by far the better band (for me) and the apparent death of Edwards (although never confirmed) was one of those strange pieces of news that became so protracted you just reluctantly accept he must have died. Unlike the band I mentioned previously the Manics regrouped and have continued in releasing one great album after another for all these years since, although not as frequently as I would have liked. If you are new to the band I would suggest you start with 1994′s ‘The Holy Bible’ and then work backwards or forwards, I’ve just read reviews of the newest release ‘Postcards From a Young Man’ which was released 10 days ago and they are universally stellar. You can find out more about them via their official site if you need to but I’m really writing about what Nicky Wire of the band said a few days ago in an interview when discussing current events:

“The middle of the greatest economic recession ever witnessed and no guitar bands whatsoever who seem able to engage with that”     Nicky Wire

That sentence echoes exactly what I’ve heard Don Letts saying in recent months too, Damon Albarn has said similar things and I’m sure if you believe that music has more value than being the backing track to American Idol or X Factor then surely you can relate. In fact you probably wouldn’t be reading this blog if your place for music was just something that was on in the background during your latest Julia Roberts romantic comedy. Think about what Nicky Wire is saying though…and I’m sure there are lots of smaller bands, unsigned bands, garage bands that would disagree with him entirely. However we’re not seeing them or hearing them. I know music with some bite still exists and that music and politics don’t have to be the angular bedfellows that the popular press would have us believe. 30 years ago we had The Clash, but not just The Clash looking at the state of the world and the state of our culture. But we also had The Specials, The Beat, R.E.M., The Jam, Talking Heads and so many others who not only were able to ‘engage with that’ but staked much of their careers on it. Have the bands changed or has the audience changed? Does a 16 year old not want to hear songs that look at the disasters in Iraq and Afghanistan or the corruption of Wall Street, MPs or BP? Does massive immigration and poverty just breed anger and racism in 2010 rather than activism and ideas? Are we really that disengaged now – does music still have a part to play?

Woody Guthrie to Bob Dylan and on to Joe Strummer and Billy Bragg all wanted a reaction but most importantly sought desperately to spread some form of awareness. Joe Strummer wasn’t always right, God knows nobody can be but he was trying…genuinely trying. When I was 16 I thought Joe Strummer would lead us to the doors of Downing Street and get the change we sought. Five years later I thought Billy Bragg was going to do the same, five years on Bragg reminded his audiences he wasn’t going to change the world – we were. Indifference and apathy are as dangerous as corporations and politicians he pointed out, it took me until my late 20′s to work that one out. But now…in 2010, does anyone of a certain age think things have ever been as overtly shit, immoral and corrupt as they are today? Do we really think that sending young men and women off to a desert to die is securing anyone against anything? Do we even vote to say we disagree anymore? I hope we are at the nadir of apathy, I really do, surely we must be? Or is the biggest con of all convincing us en masse that Simon Cowell and ‘House’, American Idol and Grey’s Anatomy are the most important things going on around us? That these sings say more to us about our lives. Every once in a while like a tortoise having a rock thrown at us we come out of our shell and say how tragic the Tsunami/9-11/Haiti is and then we go back to our downloaded movies,  I-pods and our ridiculous phones to watch a video of a dog that can talk.

Where are all the protest singers and will anyone still listen to their songs?

Tuesday afternoon and I am extremely happy, if you happen to be a supporter of Tottenham Hotspur you might not be quite happy as me today then again the ratio of Spurs supporters who know how to operate a computer is quite low so I’m sure not many of you are reading the blog. You probably gathered that Arsenal snuck past Tottenham today by a score of 4-1 and to be honest that really flattered Tottenham. I’m also happy that a large storm is supposed to drop temperatures from the current 105f down to 72f in the next eight hours although I’ll believe when I see it. Thanks again for visiting the blog and spreading the word which has resulted in more visits than ever in recent weeks with September looking to continue the upward trend experienced since we came back online in June.

some young skinheads

Today’s post is more about the era and environment in which The Clash blossomed than about the actual band themselves. As I write the blog I’m often surprised at how many strange little things I’m able to remember from 25 or 30 years ago but the videos I’ve been watching the last few nights have reminded me of just how much I forgot about England in the late 1970s and into the 1980s. Many of you that read the blog are near my age of 43 or indeed a few years older, but I also know that a good percentage of you are in your 30s, 20s or teens. There’s also the obstacle of the readership being scattered all over the world when trying to relate to you what London or England was like 30 years ago. While numerous excellent books about punk and The Clash exist and we can review countless interviews from back in the day sometimes just seeing images once again brings the vivid memories flooding in as the recesses of your memory bank poke you as if to say ‘yes it’s all in here you just need to dig a bit deeper’.

Many of you probably know who Alan Davies is, the standup comic and writer turned actor/television personality has been in the public eye in the UK for many years if less well-known overseas. You might know him from Jonathan Creek on the BBC or from his stint as resident panelist on QI the Stephen Fry hosted quiz game on the same network. His sense of humor is intensely funny to me and is also more deeply appreciated for being a serious Arsenal fan the same time, as he hosts a weekly podcast about the club is often hilarious. His most recent production is called ‘Teenage Revolution’ and the first two episodes (of three I believe) have already aired in the UK on Channel 4 but happily have also been uploaded to YouTube, the program was based on his book of the same name.

Alan Davies meets Paul Weller

Davies is almost the same age as me, just 18 months older and his memories of growing up on the fringes of London in the 1980s drew a parallel to much of what I saw and conveniently might have filed away. I manage to remember most records I purchased and concerts I saw but so much of the periphery is forgotten to a certain extent until nudged back into view by programs such as this. It’s not earth shattering but is good television and as a documentary it does a great job of weaving together his personal recollections with video footage and photographs of his youth all the while mirrored by a soundtrack which as you would expect contains plenty of punk, two-tone and post punk music which adds a lot to the visuals. The Britain that he remembers is long gone which is both good and bad, although the underlying boredom of suburbia will probably never change for young teens who live in the same streets where he grew up.

The episodes are full of glimpses of the big and small themes that drove a teenager to frustration or participation depending on the individual. These were the days of CND and Greenham Common, Section 28, Apartheid, Margaret Thatcher and trade union strikes and Miner’s Strike activism. It was an era of protest unlike anything seen in Britain since. Two themes that run deeply through the videos are the importance of music coupled with the class system and racism that he rightly points out was so ingrained in British culture at that time. Davies has a passion for The Jam which plays a pivotal part in a scene where he finally gets to meet Paul Weller and have his copy of ‘All Mod Cons’ signed by the singer after waiting 30 years for the opportunity. Lots of great footage of punks and skinheads and the scourge of society that was the National Front and the divisive messages that they delivered. Other great scenes include record shopping, apologizing for the transgressions of his own youth and not so subtle reminders that the education system has changed greatly since we went to school. Funnily enough Epping Forest College which is featured in the program was about fifteen miles away from where I grew up.

If you haven’t seen it and and want a non-sensationalist recollection of England at the same time The Clash were at their height I’d recommend putting aside some time to view the links beneath. If nothing else it will stir your memories and provide some good laughs as well. All videos courtesy of Channel 4.

Episode 1 – Part 1 Growing up

Episode 1 – Part 2 Record Shopping and The Jam and meeting Paul Weller (as featured below)

Episode 1 – Part 3 Racism and the NF

Episode 1 – Part 4 Debden Skinheads

You can find all the rest on YouTube with little effort and should see the next episode uploaded soon. Here’s the Billy Bragg one…

Oh, did I mention that Arsenal absolutely stuffed Tottenham earlier on?