@@RockDaydreamNation I would put London Calling on top because of how diverse it is and also because it still has some raw punk feel in songs like Clampdown, Hateful and the title track. The debut album is a very close second though with its anger and immediate urgency(White Riot, What's My Name, I'm So Bored, Clash City Rockers) intermingled with a bit of reggae influence (White Man, Police and Thieves)pointing toward the future of the Clash's sound. Sandinista is third for me. I love this eclectic album for all of its filler and flaws. Songs like Charlie Don't Surf, Washington Bullets, Sound of the Sinners, Let's GO Crazy, the Street Parade, and Something About England totally mix things up. I put Give 'Em Enough Rope Fourth. Good solid punk album(Safe European Home, Guns on the Roof and Drug-Stabbing Time) but it seems to lack the mesmerizing moments of the others mentioned above. Combat Rock 5th....too produced and almost poppy and some throwaway songs too. If I ever hear Should I Stay or Rock the Casbah again it will be too soon. Of course Cut the Crap is last. Not as bad as many insist, still listenable and perhaps would have been ok without all the electronic percussion and effects. Bands rarely maintain their early form without their original members(the Church excluded). Hon Men: Black Market Clash has a few great songs on it like the cover of the instrumental Time is Tight and City of the Dead. Long live the Clash. Could there ever be a cooler name for a punk band?
Thanks for the great discussion guys! I tuned in live this morning. Fyi regarding spitting, I forgot to mention this to you: When I saw them in Edmonton on the Combat Rock Tour, there were volleys of spit hitting them from the crowd on the floor. They got quite upset about it at this point of their career and development. I remember they stopped playing and Joe Strummer exclaimed "If ya don't stop fookin' gobbin' on us, I'm gonna brain ya with me fookin' Telecaster!!! That put an end to it right quick lol.
That’s Gold...thanks for that one...I’m glad when I finally started to see punk gigs the spitting part was gone...it was moshing, stage diving and pogoing....
2 of my friends and I got to spend a couple hours hanging out with Joe and Mick after a show in ATL they were both super nice guys - even let us keep a wad of cash we found on the floor. Its easy for me to rank my fav Clash records because they go almost in release order starting with #1 The Clash and with the only change being flipping London Calling to 2 and Give em Enough Rope to 3. I found every record after Sandinista pretty bad. They are one of my top 10 fav rock bands of all time. Thanks Ray for letting us in backstage --->Ignore Alien Orders!
Great chat, guys! Sandinista! is such a perplexing album for me; it's got some of my alltime fave Clash tunes but it's also weighed down with lazy, half-baked dross that doesn't deserve to be on the same record. I also adore "This Is Radio Clash", which I consider almost a part of the album (even though it was released as a standalone single).
6. Cut the Crap 5. Sandinista! 4. Combat Rock 3. Give ‘Em Enough Rope 2. London Calling 1. The Clash Cheers from Noo Yawk, ova heyah. Rock Out & Punk On! Frog 🐸 On… in every lexicon! ~ Chauncey Marwood Oglethorpe III
The Clash 1. London Calling (1979) 2. The Clash (1977) 3. Black Market Clash (1980) 4. Combat Rock (1982) 5. Sandinista! (1980) 6. Give ‘Em Enough Rope (1978) Clash mark II 99. Cut The Crap (1985)
Thanks for the episode Peter. I have heard all the Clash albums once or twice but am not overly familiar with any of them. I should go back and listen to them again. Byron
Martin, I respect you but I only ever managed to get to track 5 of Cut The Crap. It's a terrible experiment. The bones need to remain buried. And, Peter, not only did the pots and pans come down, the whole kitchen went up in smoke.
Cut the crap is such a misunderstood album. They were doing that synth-punk thing so early on. The fact that some of that kind of music ended up being called "electro clash" is a beautiful thing!
As good as expected! I'm not a Clash aficionado, but I do like the odd Clash song. In my common theme, I love the songs for which there were videos on MTV (This Is Radio Clash, Rock the Casbah, Should I Stay Or Should I Go). I had a college friend who always told a story about partying with the Clash before they recorded the video for Rock the Casbah. I have no way to know if he was lying, but it's quite possibly true. He lived in Austin at the appropriate time and he was active in the Austin punk scene.
This is one band I never could get into.I've got London Calling and I can't get through it.But I love hard rock and prog so there is nothing that grabs me from the Clash
Fantastic episode Martin and Peter! I was looking forward to this one. Great analysis on Sandinista! as the Clash's White Album. In my opinion, it's messier and better than that Beatles album, which I really like. 1. London Calling 2. Sandinista! 3. The Clash 4. Give 'Em Enough Rope 5. Combat Rock (the new People Hall's Edition is interesting but not enough to increase the ranking) 6. Cut the Crap Thanks guys!
Great video about my favorite punk band!!! I first heard the Clash on the TV commercial for Levi's jeans, so I discovered them when they already broke up. Sandinista was in the stores for the price of a double-LP I think. IMO it's an example for what happened when a band wants too much. An honest 2LP set would've been better. London Calling (2LP) = masterpiece, but the 3LP - it was simply too much within such a short period of time.
