Post by Fuggle on Aug 26, 2004 11:27:10 GMT -5
The Clash
If punk is about pushing limits, testing boundaries and changing the world, the Clash pursued this ideal with a conviction unmatched by any other band. With a sound and an ideology challenging well-worn beliefs, the Clash continually presented listeners with material designed to challenge its audiences views of the world.
Forming in London in 1976 in the blossoming punk scene, the Clash was one of the first-generation punk bands forming immediately in the wake of the Sex Pistols. Playing stripped-down rock inspired by the Sex Pistols’ rock’n’roll fury, the Clash soon established themselves as the Pistols’ only serious rival.
With simple three-chord progressions, the Clash’s sound was founded on punk styles of the Sex Pistols and the Ramones, though the foursome quickly developed its own distinct style. Instead of blaring guitars, the Clash offered the ear-shredding treble of lead guitarist Mick Jones laid over Paul Simonon’s pounding bass. With drumming more subtle but equally as powerful as standard punk rhythms, the Clash built a style with more self-control than their compatriots, though still fully harnessing the wild energy of punk.
The Clash’s ideological stance also contrasted their contemporaries. Rather than the silliness of the Ramones and the Damned, or the Pistols' stark nihilism, the Clash honed its lyrics to a much sharper edge, with an optimistic idealism contrasting the Pistols’ destructive bent. The Sex Pistols were content to destroy the status quo; the Clash’s vision stretched further, laying the groundwork for a new order rather than simply destroy it. Songs on the band’s self-titled debut lash out at their world with a precision unmatched by other bands: "London’s Burning" denounces the dead-end London’s culture had backed itself into; "White Riot," urges whites to stand up against the status quo.
As the punk gained speed, the Sex Pistols’ slowly self-destructed, becoming prey to the revolution they initiated. The Clash’s work continued to push the definitions of punk. Building upon reggae and early Jamaican ska, the band incorporated Caribbean aspects into its music, with dub-heavy bass and dropouts—sections where the guitars and vocals would abruptly drop out, leaving only the rhythm section. With "White Man in Hammersmith Palais" the band ventured into funk, and a cover of "Police and Thieves" demonstrated the Clash’s ability to reinvent reggae.
With the release of London Calling, the band had pushed punk in a hundred different directions. From the rockabilly cover of Vince Taylor’s "Brand New Cadillac," to the ska of "Wrong ‘Em Boyo," or "Spanish Bomb’s" classical guitar, the Clash proved punk was more than the simple "1-2-3-4! Go!" of its early days. Selected by Rolling Stone as the best album of the ‘80s (it hit shelves midway through December 1979) London Calling harnesses the Clash’s intensity and attitude to a wide variety of sounds, though each one bears the characteristic challenging ideology of earlier Clash songs.
The Clash would later take its eclectic sound to new frontiers with Sandinista!, a three-record LP fusing punk with dub, gospel, reggae and soul, as well as with its more conventional roots. Combat Rock continued this development, pulling the band’s sound into a tighter package with a stronger emphasis on rock.
After Strummer and Simonon ousted Jones from the group in 1984, the Clash attempted to carry on, though its efforts were a mere shadow of the original band. The post-Jones Clash released Cut the Crap in 1985 with a pair of new guitarists, though the album was a critical failure. Soon the remains of the Clash split; Cut the Crap was excommunicated from the band’s official discography, with all later retrospectives ignoring the Jones-less Clash.
Jones ventured into the world of samples and big back beats with numerous versions of Big Audio Dynamite (BAD to the hip), and continues to record. One of the first bands to feature sampling, BAD carved a name for itself independent of the Clash’s legacy.
The Clash:
Required Listening:
The Clash, 1977 (Epic)
London Calling, 1979 (Epic)
Combat Rock, 1982 (Epic)
Additional Albums:
Give ‘Em Enough Rope, 1978 (Epic)
Sandinista!, 1980 (Epic)
Cut the Crap, 1985 (Columbia)
Story of the Clash, Vol. 1, (compilation), 1988 (Epic)
Clash on Broadway (3-disc boxed set), 1991 (Epic)
Super Black Market Clash, (rarities), 1994 (Epic)
Big Audio Dynamite:
Required Listening:
This is Big Audio Dynamite, 1985 (Columbia)
Megatop Phoenix, 1989 (Columbia)
Additional Albums:
No. 10 Upping St., 1986 (Columbia)
Tighten Up Vol ’88, 1988 (Columbia)
The Globe (as BAD II), 1991 (Columbia)
Higher Power (as Big Audio), 1994 (Columbia)
F-Punk, 1995 (Radioactive)
Joe Strummer:
Walker Soundtrack, 1986 (Epic)
Permanent Record Soundtrack, 1988 (Epic)
Earthquake Weather, 1989 (Epic)
Havana 3 A.M. (featuring Paul Simonon):
Havana 3 A.M., 1991 (IRS)
If punk is about pushing limits, testing boundaries and changing the world, the Clash pursued this ideal with a conviction unmatched by any other band. With a sound and an ideology challenging well-worn beliefs, the Clash continually presented listeners with material designed to challenge its audiences views of the world.
Forming in London in 1976 in the blossoming punk scene, the Clash was one of the first-generation punk bands forming immediately in the wake of the Sex Pistols. Playing stripped-down rock inspired by the Sex Pistols’ rock’n’roll fury, the Clash soon established themselves as the Pistols’ only serious rival.
With simple three-chord progressions, the Clash’s sound was founded on punk styles of the Sex Pistols and the Ramones, though the foursome quickly developed its own distinct style. Instead of blaring guitars, the Clash offered the ear-shredding treble of lead guitarist Mick Jones laid over Paul Simonon’s pounding bass. With drumming more subtle but equally as powerful as standard punk rhythms, the Clash built a style with more self-control than their compatriots, though still fully harnessing the wild energy of punk.
The Clash’s ideological stance also contrasted their contemporaries. Rather than the silliness of the Ramones and the Damned, or the Pistols' stark nihilism, the Clash honed its lyrics to a much sharper edge, with an optimistic idealism contrasting the Pistols’ destructive bent. The Sex Pistols were content to destroy the status quo; the Clash’s vision stretched further, laying the groundwork for a new order rather than simply destroy it. Songs on the band’s self-titled debut lash out at their world with a precision unmatched by other bands: "London’s Burning" denounces the dead-end London’s culture had backed itself into; "White Riot," urges whites to stand up against the status quo.
As the punk gained speed, the Sex Pistols’ slowly self-destructed, becoming prey to the revolution they initiated. The Clash’s work continued to push the definitions of punk. Building upon reggae and early Jamaican ska, the band incorporated Caribbean aspects into its music, with dub-heavy bass and dropouts—sections where the guitars and vocals would abruptly drop out, leaving only the rhythm section. With "White Man in Hammersmith Palais" the band ventured into funk, and a cover of "Police and Thieves" demonstrated the Clash’s ability to reinvent reggae.
With the release of London Calling, the band had pushed punk in a hundred different directions. From the rockabilly cover of Vince Taylor’s "Brand New Cadillac," to the ska of "Wrong ‘Em Boyo," or "Spanish Bomb’s" classical guitar, the Clash proved punk was more than the simple "1-2-3-4! Go!" of its early days. Selected by Rolling Stone as the best album of the ‘80s (it hit shelves midway through December 1979) London Calling harnesses the Clash’s intensity and attitude to a wide variety of sounds, though each one bears the characteristic challenging ideology of earlier Clash songs.
The Clash would later take its eclectic sound to new frontiers with Sandinista!, a three-record LP fusing punk with dub, gospel, reggae and soul, as well as with its more conventional roots. Combat Rock continued this development, pulling the band’s sound into a tighter package with a stronger emphasis on rock.
After Strummer and Simonon ousted Jones from the group in 1984, the Clash attempted to carry on, though its efforts were a mere shadow of the original band. The post-Jones Clash released Cut the Crap in 1985 with a pair of new guitarists, though the album was a critical failure. Soon the remains of the Clash split; Cut the Crap was excommunicated from the band’s official discography, with all later retrospectives ignoring the Jones-less Clash.
Jones ventured into the world of samples and big back beats with numerous versions of Big Audio Dynamite (BAD to the hip), and continues to record. One of the first bands to feature sampling, BAD carved a name for itself independent of the Clash’s legacy.
The Clash:
Required Listening:
The Clash, 1977 (Epic)
London Calling, 1979 (Epic)
Combat Rock, 1982 (Epic)
Additional Albums:
Give ‘Em Enough Rope, 1978 (Epic)
Sandinista!, 1980 (Epic)
Cut the Crap, 1985 (Columbia)
Story of the Clash, Vol. 1, (compilation), 1988 (Epic)
Clash on Broadway (3-disc boxed set), 1991 (Epic)
Super Black Market Clash, (rarities), 1994 (Epic)
Big Audio Dynamite:
Required Listening:
This is Big Audio Dynamite, 1985 (Columbia)
Megatop Phoenix, 1989 (Columbia)
Additional Albums:
No. 10 Upping St., 1986 (Columbia)
Tighten Up Vol ’88, 1988 (Columbia)
The Globe (as BAD II), 1991 (Columbia)
Higher Power (as Big Audio), 1994 (Columbia)
F-Punk, 1995 (Radioactive)
Joe Strummer:
Walker Soundtrack, 1986 (Epic)
Permanent Record Soundtrack, 1988 (Epic)
Earthquake Weather, 1989 (Epic)
Havana 3 A.M. (featuring Paul Simonon):
Havana 3 A.M., 1991 (IRS)