The Clash
(Epic)
Let's face it: \Punk"" is now a pretty meaningless term. In the '90s, any new band with loud guitars, skateboard attitudes and snot-nosed vocals were labeled ""punk,"" and it's worse now. There was a time and place where that term actually meant something though, where being loud and angry sounded fresh, as opposed to sounding like a marketing strategy. But the punk phenomenon in its truest and rawest form was very short lived and after a mere few years dissolved as the two biggest British punk bands went separate directions. One, the Sex Pistols burned out but the other realized that in order to not do the same, they would have to evolve for their next album.
And so we arrive at the 25th Anniversary of The Clash's , one of the great albums of the '70s, that gets a well deserved royal treatment on the recently released three-disc Deluxe Edition. Interestingly enough, the release date coincided with that of Green Day's American Idiot, like , a post-punk album that deals with issues of disillusionment and isolation. The younger band and all '90s punks are still catching up with The Clash.
turned The Clash into the punk royalty because it wasn't punk in the narrow, conventional three-chord sense, but rather, in principle. The Clash had moved on, and in so doing proved they were genius song writers and masterful musicians. Singing songs of loneliness, betrayal and mature rebellion to a seamlessly blended tapestry of genres ranging from reggae to vintage rock to ska, cemented their stature in rock forever and produced one of their biggest hits, ""Train In Vain"".
The real treat on the Deluxe Edition is the ""Vanilla Tapes,"" a disc of rarities and demos, that until now was a highly sought-after rarity. It gives the listener an excellent perspective on how it all came together, and a fascinating glimpse into the embryonic stages of songs such as ""The Guns of Brixton"" (here called ""Paul's Tune"") and the title track. There are also songs that never made it onto the final cut of the album, among them the highly captivating and shockingly bluesy ""Walking The Sidewalk"", which even features a guitar solo, a trait guitarist Mick Jones wasn't exactly known for.
The bonus DVD is basically icing on the cake; among other things it shows that though The Clash had mellowed in the studio, they still weren't afraid to rock out on stage. Overall The Clash basically played what they felt like on , and, as is made clear on the documentary, this was the true punk rock: not having to dress or play music a certain way.
