"Started out as one of the original Punk bands, became the best one of that lot, then set their sights on being a great rock band and live act, then made (arguably) the best rock record ever. All in about 40 months time. Not a bad bit of work... " - Anonymous YouTube poster
"Rock & roll is rarely as edgy, invigorating, and sonically revolutionary as The Clash." - Allmusic.com
"#1 Album of the 1980s; #9 of All-Time" -
Rolling Stone Magazine on the LONDON CALLING album.
""Always wear shoes that are good for running, and good for fighting." - Joe Strummer, when asked by Johnny Green why he was missing many teeth.
"The Only Band that Mattered." - Fans-given motto for The Clash.
"Perhaps rightly the Sex Pistols are intertwined with the legacy of Punk Rock, but The Clash not only lasted much longer and recorded several albums, but actually evolved in their music. The Pistols may be the poster child of the relentless rage and insane energetic attitude in their music playing of Punk Rock, but The Clash might be the one prominent group of the genre that actually fulfilled Punk's full potential" - Local DJ in East Tennessee.
Anyway, we count down from #15 to #1, where the tunes and their album of origin will be listed, and I'll give my arguments for their placements. Plus, I'll add Youtube music videos that will help jog memories, and help encourage people to totally attack my list.
MISSED THE CUT: A few, but not all, Tunes from The Clash that came close to making my list, but failed to make the cut.
The rest of the LONDON CALLING album
Somebody Got Murdered (SANDINISTA!)
Ivan Meets G.I. Joe (SANDINISTA!)
Know Your Rights (COMBAT ROCK)
White Riot (THE CLASH - U.S. Version)
Straight to Hell (COMBAT ROCK)
Now onto the SETLIST for THE CLASH!
(15) I Fought the Law (THE CLASH - U.S. Version) Originally recorded by Sonny Curtis of The Crickets in the 1950s, it was covered by the Bobby Fuller Four in 1965 where it was a Top 10 single hit. In 1978, The Clash found Fuller's cover in the jukebox at their recording studio and were inspired to create their own cover. Today it might actually be the more well-known version.
I Fought the Law (14) Lost in the Supermarket (LONDON CALLING) The very fundamental reason as to why fans of The Clash have stayed fiercely loyal, besides their great music, is probably because of the band's hard-worked relationship with their fandom.
Certainly their decision to make their landmark, legendary masterpiece double-disc album LONDON CALLING be priced the same as a single-disc album is an act that cost them alot of potential millions, but that wasn't what mattered to the band.
They wanted budget-prices for their high quality affordable to the people. Certainly how many of the major music acts would even dare to lose their precious Mercendes or $50,000 gold watches for their fans? Very very very few!
Anyway, the first song from the LONDON CALLING on SETLIST is this little diddle that Joe Strummer wrote about his very comfortable childhood upbrining in the suburbs, and about a protagonist that has lost the urge for life, except only for the cycle of materialism around him.
Lost in the Supermarket (13) I'm So Bored with the USA (THE CLASH) If LONDON CALLING is the evolving and polished creative energy of The Clash, then their own legendary self-titled debut album has its own raw, unclean attitude that typifies the Punk Rock movement of the late 1970s.
Listen to this song, and remember that it was originally written as "I'm So Bored with You" by Mick Jones (the band's love/relationship writer) before Strummer (the band's political commentator) slightly reworked the lyrics.
I'm So Bored with the USA
