REBEL RECOLLECTIONS (TAKE ONE)
I've been lucky enough to see Joe Strummer live at four phases of his career and have strong impressions of each one.
Although I missed the classic Clash when the COMBAT ROCK (1982) tour took them to Grand Rapids, Michigan, I vowed to see them next time. Unfortunately, that wouldn't be till two years later, when the Clash Mark II played on May 10, 1984, in East Lansing, at Michigan State University.
I can't overstate how divided I felt when founder-guitarist Mick Jones was dumped, but as Clash loyalist, I had to see them. Although I missed Mick and the songs that he put his stamp on ("Stay Free," "Train In Vain," and the newly-ironic "Should I Stay Or Should I Go?"), lead singer/spokes-bloke Joe Strummer carried himself well.
From bootleg audio and videotapes, I expected the first song of the night to be "London Calling," and indeed it was, which felt so formal that I thought I was standing for the national anthem.
However, Joe and the band -- founding bassist Paul Simonon, new guitarists Nick Sheppard, and Vince White, and not-as-new-as-them, but drummer par excellance Peter Howard -- pushed out some of the best, if not always the best-known songs in their repertoire, with gusto.
It may have been the moment, but I was pleasantly surprised by how well COMBAT ROCK's songs fared. "Know Your Rights" -- stiff on the album -- was actually convincing, and the moody, mournful "Straight To Hell" sounded far more haunting than its recorded counterpart. The new songs that they played, "Are You Ready For War?", and "In The Pouring, Pouring Rain," showed promise. The new Clash carried themselves capably. Maybe there was something to this.
Alas, it was not to be, and a Clash fan, I had to suffer another kick in the teeth when the band fizzled out in early 1986, including fossilized versions of those new songs on their flagrantly-named final album, CUT THE CRAP (1985).
(TAKE TWO)
In 1987, Joe was deputized to fill in for an ailing Shane McGowan, of the Pogues, and their US tour brought them to Detroit. I was only a casual Pogues fan, but as a devoted Clashophile, I had to go. It was at some rundown club, and a bit rough, too; the audience was particularly rowdy.
A couple of glasses flew at the stage, but didn't faze the band. A huge mountain of a bouncer kept three-quarters of the audience from rushing the stage, while three of his mates kept the other folks at bay.
Onstage, Joe was very much the sideman, while tin whistle player Spider Stacey took Shane's vocals. Joe had shed his obnoxious orange Mohawk haircut, and humbly lent his rhythm guitar skills to the musical stew. However, three-quarters of the way through, Joe came from nowhere on center stage, and treated us to "I Fought The Law," and "London Calling."
Careful not to overshadow his fellow Pogues, he wasn't crazed, but the audience's energy kicked up a notch, gleefully howling along and pointing their fingers at him as they bellowed every word. Afterwards, he went back to the side of the stage, and the Pogues continued, energized by this jolt of adrenaline from one of Britpunk's most galvanizing performers.
Eventually, Joe got around to making his first solo album, EARTHQUAKE WEATHER (1987), and while it didn't sell nearly as many copies as COMBAT ROCK had done, I knew the best way to judge the songs was to see Joe live, and get the real deal.
It was 1989, in Detroit once again, and Joe now had a four-piece band, including guitarist Zander Schloss and ex-Red Hot Chili Peppers-not-yet-Pearl-Jam-drummer Jack Irons. Joe started off with the final Clash single, "This Is England," which came off as a revelation after being stripped of the embalming synthesizers and drum machines which robbed the song of its emotional depth. Even more during Joe's solo version of "Sightsee MC" (cowritten with reconnected ex-Clashmate Mick Jones), which had more its recorded counterpart's hiphop effects, but yielded more substance.
Of the new material, "Dizzy's Goatee" and the traditional "Ride Your Donkey" promised funky fun, with a different energy from 1977 -- though Joe did trot out Clash standards like "I Fought The Law," "Brand New Cadillac," and "Police And Thieves," which glowed with a popping solo by shaven-headed bassist Lonnie Marshall (clad in a Jimi Hendrix T-shirt). Intriguing stuff, but where would Joe take it?
(TAKE THREE)
The answer didn't come for almost another ten years, between a series of cameos and one-off projects, including "Rockin' World" (for the "South Park" CHEF AID album), and compiling songs for the GROSSE POINTE BLANK soundtrack album (1997). Finally, one could hear "Rudie Can't Fail" (The Clash), "Blister In The Sun" (Violent Femmes), and "Absolute Beginners" (The Jam) on prime-time TV commercials for the film. But, again, where was Joe?
Sure enough, I opened my paper this spring, and found out that Joe and his band, The Mescaleros, were gracing Chicago's Cabaret Metro. (CHAIRMAN'S NOTE: I'm sure that Tony is referencing Joe's 7/99 show, for reasons that will become clear shortly.) Like Pavlov's dog, I ran out and bought a ticket. I'm happy to report that, once again, disappointment did not bite me back.
The night's first song was, appropriately enough, called "Diggin' The New," a supercharged thumbs-up to Britain's exploding dance scene ("You've gotta live in this world, for diggin' the new"); Joe alternated material from his new effort, ROCK ART & THE X-RAY STYLE (Hellcat: 1999) with a Clash classic.
"Yalla Yalla," the upcoming, Middle-Eastern-flavored single, proved to be yet another standout; of course, we got Clash standards like "I Fought The Law," and "Brand New Cadillac," but the night's biggest surprise was a successful stab at -- of all songs -- "Rock The Casbah." Where the '84 Clash's rendition had suffered without the recorded version's bouncy, proto-boogie piano lick, the Mescaleros' keyboardist made up for that omission 15 years later -- complete with a salute to its composer, fallen Clash drummer Nicholas "Topper" Headon.
Strummer had the right amount of chutzpah to play "London Calling" as the special song of the night, and the final encore, too; what balls! That's the spirit sorely missing from all too many musicians -- cheeky, gutsy, and satisfying.
Clash Book Dispatches
To find older entries, simply click the "Archive" button, and follow the links from there. Also, please note: in light of the Clash II book announcement (see "Communiques"), the author reserves the option to hold back entries for different projects.