The Clash - Invidious

The Clash

The Clash were an English rock band formed in London in 1976 as a key player in the original wave of British punk rock. They have also contributed to the post-punk and new wave movements that emerged in the wake of punk and employed elements of a variety of genres including reggae, dub, funk, ska and rockabilly.

View channel on YouTube

Switch Invidious Instance

Videos

Shorts

Releases

Playlists

Posts

The Clash

Inside 'Lost In The Supermarket'.

It’s commonly misinterpreted that Mick Jones wrote this song because he is on lead vocals, but it was written by Joe Strummer. The night before recording the track, Topper Headon had gone to see Taj Mahal play and his drummer played a lot of snare beats on his floor tom, which inspired the sound on the track.

The song explores modern consumerism and the loneliness of urban life, using the supermarket as a metaphor for a commercialised society that promises happiness through conformity, but ultimately leaves people feeling empty. Mick Jones said: “I always felt that he [Joe Strummer] was talking about me growing up, even though I didn’t grow up in the suburbs. It touched me on a personal level and everybody thought I’d written it because I sang it.”

Photos by Bob Gruen

1 week ago | [YT] | 1,726

View 58 replies

The Clash

The Clash, pictured by Sheila Rock at Rehearsal Rehearsal studio on Chalk Farm Road, Camden in 1976.

2 weeks ago | [YT] | 2,711

View 36 replies

The Clash

30 August 1976, Joe Strummer and Paul Simonon were under the Westway on Portobello Road during the Notting Hill Carnival when clashes broke out between police and the crowd.

The unrest came amid heightened tensions over police harassment and treatment of the Black community. Joe and Paul participated in the riot, while recognising that it was primarily a Black British protest against police oppression. The following day ‘White Riot’ was written.

Photos taken during the riot were later used by the band. Images taken by a Spanish photographer Rocco Macauley, where used on the back cover of the debut album as well as they cover of ‘Black Market Clash’."

1 month ago | [YT] | 2,377

View 41 replies

The Clash

The story behind The Clash's London Calling album cover.

The Clash's bass player Paul Simonon was captured slamming his Fender guitar into the stage at the band’s New York gig at the Palladium in September 1979. Simonon said he destroyed his guitar in frustration when the concert bouncers prevented audience members from standing up, limiting the interaction with the audience that The Clash gigs were famed for.

In a 2011 interview, Simonon said, “Looking back now, I wish I had lifted my face up a bit more.” British photographer, Pennie Smith, who took the photo while travelling with The Clash on their US tour, initially didn’t want the image to be used as the album cover because it was out of focus and blurred. However, Joe Strummer, the band and graphic designer Ray Lowry disagreed and believed it would serve as an excellent album cover.

The London Calling cover is a deliberate homage to Elvis Presley’s self-titled debut album, released in 1956 and the first rock'n'roll album to top the US Billboard Album charts. This was The Clash’s way to signal a new, chaotic punk revolution, mirroring the impact Elvis had on rock'n'roll in the 50’s. Simonon said “When that Elvis record came out, rock’n’roll was pretty dangerous. And I suppose when we brought out our record, it was pretty dangerous stuff too.”

In 2002, Q magazine recognised the photo as the greatest rock and roll image of all time.