I hope you don’t mind when I careen off into other music ‘news’ but I can’t help myself at times. I’ve been updating this section of the blog as I go and it’s worth a scan now and then. I think it’s only fair to post the good with the bad that makes the digital airwaves.

Now my bank is full...

You have to love Morrissey when he makes statements like this, it’s the combination of principles as a sock wrapped around the snooker ball that says -I’m not getting any cash from this. I wonder how well The Clash do from related reissue, repackage and the rest?

It’s only the last few years where I’ve been forced to accept that the hearing in my left ear is not the same as my right (ear that is). Hundreds of concerts over the years where I tended to go toward the front and left must have exposed that ear more than the other. My fears seem well founded especially when you add to the mix that I saw My Bloody Valentine many moons ago and this story comes out. How do you remember Clash concerts in terms of volume? I seem to remember it wasn’t sonic overload as a rule when I saw them. I do think concerts got louder in the 80′s (as I aged??) but that may have been the venues.

I often see what Clash related artwork is out there – so when I clicked on this

This one's a bit cheaper

London Calling. (Drawing on 120gsm paper)” Fine Art Print

I was expecting another image of Paul about to take out his frustrations on his bass….but not at all. Don’t worry it’s PG (just) and safe to visit.  No kidding check the URL. Maybe this could make the cover of another reissue?

Finally if you’ve got $350 sitting about and need an authentic (and promo) 1979 Clash tour shirt just check this ebay posting. Photo to the right features annoying tall Peter Crouch.

Tim

Right then, as promised the third and final post about Finsbury Park’s Rainbow Theatre and The Clash. Part 1 & 2 covered the venue itself in more detail and focused on the White Riot tour and the appearance in May ’77.

1977 was the year that the band took hold of the youth of a nation that just 12 months earlier had been oblivious to the seeds of this newest wave of music originating from London. With the debut album finding its way into houses and flats across the country the band (as would always be the case) didn’t stop and let the grass grow under their feet. Punk was now approaching it’s pinnacle in the UK as bands seemed to appear overnight throughout the land. Despite The Clash being only in their second summer they were already at the head of the movement, a movement they’d shortly break away from.

From the White Riot tour the Clash played a series of shows throughout the continent and returned to England Oct 10th. Amazingly just 10 days later they began the Out Of Control tour a further 31 dates right through to December. Near the end of the tour the Clash rolled back to London and had 3 consecutive nights at the Rainbow Dec 13-15. Just 7 months from playing the venue the simple fact that three nights were booked tells you all you need to know about the momentum of this very special year.

Tickets went briskly at just two pounds fifty, and the Clash were home and in residence. A Rat Scabies/Levene collective and Sham 69 offered support and expectancy ran high. The Clash relationship with fans  had grown all year and these shows were no exception. Championed now by (most) of the music press  the concerts had the expected edge of aggression and chaos but when a fan was being smashed about by security (been there!) the band halted playing entirely and dragged the battered kid onto the stage. The enemy wasn’t on the stage it was the staff at the venue and The Clash made it clear. The lad famously remained on stage for the final two songs of the night and offered vocals.

The tightness of the band was building after such a hectic year and Topper Headon was now most clearly a key member. Complaints about Strummer’s

At The Rainbow December '77

voice I think are unreasonable, he’d been on stage all year long and any weakness in vocal delivery was surely offset by his growing control as a front man. The fury of ’77 meant the band had to deliver again and despite an undercurrent of violence all three nights they managed just that. Elitists were already complaining about the largeness of the venues the Clash were so quickly filling as if wanting to see a band leading the charge that changed music as we knewit should be by invitation only. The debut album was now all but exhausted as were the band, but owning the Rainbow again was the dividend for a year of hard work.

The Rainbow, well it ceased hosting concerts just 4 years later in December 1981. It sat empty for 14 long years with sporadic small exceptions until 1995 when it was taken over by a Church. I remember being a well lubricated 21 year old in May 1989 celebrating Arsenal winning the league and buzzing around different pubs near the ground. My friend and I missed the last tube home and started walking down the Seven Sisters. We got to the Rainbow about 1am and both having been too young to have seen the Clash  in ’77 there but feeling blessed by our North London experience 12 years later and a bit drunk now decided instead to sing much of the first album into the warm night air as cars drove past heading to central London.

Tim

The Clash always had a special relationship with New York City. If they had a home away from London, Manhattan was it. I’ll dig deeper into the impact of the city on the band in future posts, for today I’d like to send huge appreciations to Tony who was kind enough to write the following account of The Clash in New York. (not changing font colour…you get it – no longer me starting…..now)

Having been to New York City several times and seeing even today the mark that The Clash left on the big apple, here is my take on their 4 gigs at The New York Palladium between February 1979 and March 1980.

The Clash and New York City were made for each other, Joe, Mick, Paul and Topper were brash, outrageous and furiously creative with thoughtful politically driven lyrics, the common theme being anti- establishment and looking at life through the eyes of the working class and how life really is for most of us. Combining their look and intense shows with Joe and Mick’s twin guitar attack, Paul’s bass and Topper’s powerful drumming, the rebellious youth of Manhattan were crying out for something to cling onto and The Clash were definitely it.
Manhattan In the late 70’s and early 80’s was not the bullshit world of big retailers and corporate bigwigs that it is today, It was a gritty, crime ridden borough that was not pleasant to say to say the least.
FEBRUARY 1979
The Clash rode into the east coast on their ‘Pearl Harbour’ tour and played their first of four gigs at the New York Palladium, a sprawling old theatre located on the corner of 14th Street and Third Avenue, It was well established by early ’79 as a venue for punk bands to excite the gig going people of NYC. Therefore it was ideal for The Clash on their first tour of the USA to leave an impression across the pond and they didn’t disappoint. Spurred on by a manic crowd which sported several ‘A’ listers including Martin Scorsese, David Bowie and Robert Deniro, they stormed onto the stage with nervous excitement and ripped through their set with manic renditions of tracks from their debut album coupled with tracks from the ‘Rope’ LP which blew everybody away. The sweat drenched punters went home from the Palladium in awe at witnessing the power of The Clash.

SEPTEMBER 1979
Back In the USA after spending the summer months touring England promoting the forthcoming ‘London Calling’ album, the band were beginning to slightly move away from their ‘punk’ period and were bringing ska, reggae and other styles of music Into The Clash locker. The Strummer/Jones lyrical partnership was beginning to really shine and they were confident and ready for a big stint stateside on the ‘Take the fifth’ tour.

Seven dates in and they were back in Manhattan, originally penned in for one date at the Palladium, It sold out in hours so a second date was added for the following night which also sold out more or less straight away. NY media were announcing the arrival of England’s finest with huge coverage across TV and radio, especially WNEW FM.
The first show was a treat for the fans, favourite 1st album tracks such as White Riot, Janie Jones, Garageland, Police And Thieves were still played with gusto and attitude, the new tracks were also aired with the same ferocity that endeared everybody to them. The gig from 21/9/79 is without doubt the band’s most famous performance for several reasons, It was recorded live by WNEW, which was not lost on Strummer who made several comments about this, the best being “This is radio WSHIT coming from New York City!” It is widely available on vinyl and cd in lots of forms, the most interesting version being the complete set with radio announcements before, during and after the gig. Thankfully all versions have superb sound.

Clash at the NY Palladium 3-80 image by Bob Gruen

The gig itself was powerful and intense, Mick’s guitar is overpowering at times due to him using an FX box which does ruin things slightly, various moments throughout the set more than make up for this though, the opening sequence of Safe European Home, I’m so bored with the USA and Complete Control without a breath being taken are truly stunning moments of rock n roll history.

Being an all seater venue, the band were determined to get everybody off their seats to spur them on which wasn’t happening to their satisfaction and at the end of the gig Paul was so pissed off with this he smashed his bass on the stage which was captured on the camera of Pennie Smith stage side, this great shot was to become the ‘London Calling’ cover. The show was over and everybody loved it, not their best show by any means but still good and remembered fondly by Clash fans everywhere.

March 1980 (note featured video on the right was from 3/80)
1980 began with The Clash playing there U.K. leg of the ’16 tons’ tour taking in 40+ dates all over Britain, without a break they flew stateside for the American leg and early March saw them back in NYC for their fourth and final gig at the Palladium, several years on the road were now making them confident and more refined on stage, they were now a real force live, a true rock n roll band but not forgetting their punk roots.
The London Calling LP was the soundtrack in many streetwise clothes and record shops, so once again the show sold out immediately and the punters at this gig saw and heard the beginning of a new era of the band as the majority of the setlist was from the new album.
A slower paced beginning at the gigs now saw subtle changes in the songs live was very exciting as Mick’s guitar licks and Topper’s experienced drumming were shining through. For some reason, New York always brought the best out in them and this show is no exception, tight and together, little banter between songs, just a pure Clash show that was paced till near the encores when they just eased up a gear and finished manically with Tommy Gun and White Riot, four gigs at the Palladium in just over a year saw a lot of musical changes in the band but it was all good and once again the punters were well satisfied.

Thanks again Tony, it’s a great journey through a period of the band’s history where change was so rapid that it is amazing to revisit.