The Ice Age Is Coming…
...and the sun's zooming in! Yeah, that's right, the Clash's finest moment, London Calling, is 43 years old today. And it's aging beautifully.
The album marked a shift in musical style for the band. It documented their transition from a snotty guttersnipe punk band, to a slick rock 'n' roll band.
This, along with an updated image, showed the elder statesmen of rock that there were definitely new kids on the block. They could pen a shit-hot tune or two as well.
Winter 1979 saw the band returning from a USA tour pretty penniless. The band had also recently changed management. They had sacked Bernie Rhodes in late 1978 and put Melody Maker journalist Caroline Coon at the helm.
The genesis of the album began at Vanilla Studios in Pimlico early in the summer of 1979. The building was formerly a drive-in car repair shop. The band thought it ideal. It was there that they could lock themselves away and forge new musical ideas.
The recordings became famously known as the 'Vanilla Tapes' and almost never saw the light of day. A copy of the tapes was left on a tube train by Road Manager Johnny Green. Luckily, guitarist Mick Jones found a copy many years later at home. They were released as part of the 25th anniversary release of the London Calling album in 2004.
Above pic by Pennie Smith -
check out www.snapgalleries.com
L-R - Topper Headon (Drums), Joe Strummer (Vocals, guitar, Piano), Paul Simonon (Bass Guitar, Vocals), Mick Jones (Vocals, Guitar, Piano).
Work on the album itself started around July 1979 at Wessex Studios. Against the wishes of their record label, industry legend Guy Stevens was employed by the band as Producer. Folklore indicates that Mick Jones eventually took on the role with Engineer Bill Price.
Legend has it that Stevens rock 'n' roll craziness led to a few mad incidents during recording. This included pouring wine into the piano to 'make it sound better', and almost clobbering Mick Jones with a ladder.
Guy Steven's madness and spirit greatly infused the recordings and the finished product was declared a masterpiece in time. The band had produced enough material to deem the release a double album.
The Clash butted heads with their label once again when they insisted the album be sold for no more than £5 (imagine the furore in 1980 when they demanded the same for their subsequent triple album Sandinista!).
London Calling was proclaimed album of the 80's by Rolling Stone magazine (the album was not released until 1980 in the USA). It charted at number 9 in the UK album charts and made top 20 in many charts worldwide in 1980.
Pic by Pennie Smith -
check out www.snapgalleries.com
L-R Bill Price (Engineer), Joe Strummer (Vocals, guitar, Piano), Guy Stevens (Producer), Paul Simonon (Bass Guitar, Vocals), Topper Headon (Drums), Mick Jones (Vocals, Guitar, Piano), and label boss Mo Oberstein.
Why dontcha make yourself a cuppa and then have a listen to a few tracks?
The below track Train in Vain was written by Mick Jones and intended to be part of a flexi disc release by the New Musical Express. When that fell through the track was added to the album, but it was too late to list it on the sleeve. Train in Vain gave the Clash their first USA top 30 hit. The song has also been covered by many other artists since, including Annie Lennox and the Manic Street Preachers.
So happy birthday London Calling!
Man, I am so lucky to have been born when I was.
Laters!
The Attention Junkie