Wiki:
"The Clash then [1979] recorded London Calling ... the double album was a mix of punk rock, rockabilly, reggae, rock and roll, ska and other elements that recalled the band's earlier days, but also had greater maturity and production polish, and is regarded as one of the greatest rock & roll albums ever recorded. ...In late May and early June 1981, the Clash played a series of 17 shows at Bond's Casino in New York's Times Square.
The Clash planned to record and release a single every month in 1980. Their record label, CBS, balked at this idea, and these efforts resulted in the album Sandinista! [released December 1980]. Containing elements of rock, punk, reggae (including extended dubs), ska, jazz, and disco, unified by a heavily echoed sound, this 3-LP, 36-song album was their most controversial to date, both politically and musically."
The opening acts during their three-week residency were as eclectic as the band's repertoire: Grandmaster Flash & The Furious Five, Bad Brains, the Slits, Lee Perry, the Fall and the Dead Kennedys. All of the shows circulate; the June 9 was professionally recorded/broadcast.
22 comments:
The Clash - June 9, 1981
Bond's Casino, New York, NY
London Calling / Safe European Home / The Leader / Train In Vain / This Is Radio Clash / The Guns Of Brixton / The Call Up / Bankrobber / Charlie Don't Surf / The Magnificent Seven / Somebody Got Murdered / Police & Thieves / Clampdown / One More Time / Brand New Cadillac / The Street Parade / Janie Jones / Washington Bullets
Note: This is not the complete show. There were six other songs played:
White Man (after Train In Vain)
Corner Soul (after This Is Radio Clash)
Complete Control, Lightning Strikes, Ivan Meets GI Joe (after Bankrobber)
Broadway (after Charlie Don't Surf)
I will look around for the full show (the "Straight to Hell" boot), so click the box below to get emailed future comments and stay tuned!
Bond's was the site of famous clothing store in Times Square. It once had a neon waterfall on top of the store. It was the clothing-store equivalent of the old art deco movie palaces.
Here are some pics, which happen to be from David Byrne's blog.
interior
interior
And from a different site, the exterior.
The location later became a disco, then a restaurant (Bond 45), and many other things. But when this store closed its doors, it was huge news in NYC.
Great album, too. Sometimes a desert-island pick for me.
Who doesn't like The Clash?
I used to collect Clash bootlegs, and I still think the Bond's show might be the best (although I usually give the US Festival show the nod, simply because that one is just SO full of piss and vinegar). This is probably the Clash at their live peak, though.
I've written about my feelings re: Sandinista! before - it's unfocused, astoundingly self-indulgent, and contains some of the best songs they ever did. London Calling is either the 2nd best album of the 70s or the best album of the 80s (depending on which release date you go with).
Sad fact - Grandmaster Flash & The Furious Five were subject to racial slurs and audience abuse all throughout that set. That still astounds me - you'd think The Clash's fanbase in NYC would be more open-minded than that. Then again, The Who's fans were notoriously diffident to The Clash when they were the openers for the 1982 stadium tour, so who knows.
Great album, too. Sometimes a desert-island pick for me.
Oh duh, I meant London Calling.
I've written about my feelings re: Sandinista! before
Not here, though, right? ... Your Dylan blog looks interesting, btw.
unfocused, astoundingly self-indulgent, and contains some of the best songs they ever did
I have not listened to the entire three-record set in ages, but I do remember being bowled over by the sheer amount of material -- coming only one year after LC (and at such a low price!!). Not all of it appealed to me, but I was 17 then.
London Calling is either the 2nd best album of the 70s or the best album of the 80s
Hmmmmm. December 1979 is the 70s. ... So what's #1?
Grandmaster Flash & The Furious Five were subject to racial slurs and audience abuse all throughout that set.
I can only imagine how saddened and angry the Clash must have been. Did they only open once? If so, was that the reason?
Sick. The Clash are epic - thanks for this set!
LETS GO PIRATES!
Off subject......But on the way home I heard callers asking for Theo to trade for Texiera again......And I don't get it .....His power numbers have declined in the last 3 years and Yooks have been on the increase.....I just don't see this ever happening....People beleive he is Met or Yankee bound at the end of the season anyway.......
Another thing NESN has asked who is the First half MVP for the Sox and the choices include: Drew, Yook, Lowell, and Lester....How did Pedroia not make that short list. He is on pace to have over 200 hits we haven't seen that since Mo in '98
NICE. YANKS AND RAYS LOSING SO FAR.
Saw The Clash in 1980 at the Orpheum Theater in Boston. They were AWESOME - still one of the best shows I've ever seen.
Yanks and Fuckers both lose. Life's good.
Not here, though, right? ... Your Dylan blog looks interesting, btw.
Nah, it was on my Myspace page - I used to blog about certain songs I liked, and I mentioned Sandinista! in an offhanded way. I keep forgetting only like 4 people read it. :p As for my Dylan blog, thanks for the compliment, and it should get more interesting once the debut's done. Hope you didn't mind me linking without letting you know in advance.
I've only listened to Sandinista! all the way through once - the first time, and that was when I was still in college. It really does not hold up to repeat listenings. However, Lightning Strikes was, and still is, a song I'd put on repeat.
Re: Grandmaster Flash, the website you've linked to only has them opening once, so that's almost surely the reason. And yeah, I'm sure Strummer et al. were embarrassed as all hell by that. But holy hell, did they have some great openers! Bad Brains, the Slits, the Treacherous Three, the Fall...just wow.
Re: London Calling, I'd thought it'd come out in 1980 either here or the US, but I could be wrong. And the best album of the 1970s, an answer I'm sure will come as no surprise, is Blood on the Tracks.
Nice OT post! I once wrote an essay for school about punk rock misconceptions, and included how the birth of punk rock and hip hop were similar, in being working class music. Ska/reggae being similar too.
Hope I get a chance to listen to this sometime.
I liked London Calling, and bought Sandinista, but never listened to it all the way through at once. There may actually be some songs on it I never got to.
I never rated them quite as high as a lot of people, but then I'm a little older than most of this crowd. And I've never heard any live material by them, which is usually the way I really judge a band, so I look forward to checking this out.
but then I'm a little older than most of this crowd
Not older than some of us. :)
But what does age have to do with it anyway? People here praising The Clash are of a pretty wide age range.
And I've never heard any live material by them, which is usually the way I really judge a band, so I look forward to checking this out.
I'm the same way. They were a great live band.
There's a hidden message in this post.
Anyone notice which songs Allan linked to?
I confess I did not, until he pointed it out to me.
theres a japanese band that has totally consumed me.
there are called "Les Rallizes Denudes".
anyone who is into the velvet underground (they are dubbed the japanese velvets), jesus and mary chain, etc. this stuff is for you.
they exsisted in early '70s and were cloaked in mystery ever since.
if you read a bit about them, they were INSANE> members involved in red army plane hijacking, sick, sick, bastards.
but the music is good.
I would not say it's a message, per se, but more of a nod to what's going on at our house lately.
L: Actually, according to his profile, he is 3 years older than you.
Fans of Pearl Jam: Click here.
L: Actually, according to his profile, he is 3 years older than you.
Right. So he's roughly the same age as me, in the same age bracket as you, and younger than at least a few commenters.
Plus he went to see the Dave Matthews Band the other day, which is a newer band (at least chronologically, if not musically).
So age is no excuse!
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