"Combat Rock" by The Clash - classic or dud

i don't like "london calling", i like "...enough rope"

Wow, seven posts in and no Clash haters. Raggett must not be up yet.

a good alb is indeed a good alb. even if its 'yuppie' (whatever that means).

LONDON CALLING has become one of those albums that people go out and buy because they're told to, not because they necessarily are moved by the music therein. That's not the Clash's fault, it's Jann Wenner's fault.

(b) You know what I'm getting at. LONDON CALLING has been so deified that it's become a rather stodgy standby that people arbitrarily pick up because they're constantly informed that it's a MUST-HAVE, just like DARK SIDE OF THE MOON and fuckin' SGT. PEPPERS. I still love it, but you know what I'm getting at.

also, Jesse: read yr bit in No Depression, good stuff.

Of course it's great that people are buying LONDON CALLING, but I guess I just don't like seeing it being put in a fuckin' museum.

But it looks like this thread has since changed directions.

Combat Rock = Straight To Hell and Casbah and, erm, not a lot else. But those two are as good as anything they ever did.

2) Lots of discussions here seem to be implicitly about canonization, while trying to knock other popes' hats off.

I was on the phone, dammit. Oh, and fuck the Clash and everything they stand for and ever were, including this album. There, happy? ;-)

COMPLETELY ANNOYED RANT STATEMENT OF THE DAY: I can name at least fifteen Manic Street Preachers songs I would rather listen to than anything by the Clash. And this includes an album cut from Know Your Enemy called "Intravenous Agnostic," which I don't think even the Manics obsessives like.

I was kind of pissed off at Richey today when he forgot and left whipped cream on my Frappucino. It's all good though. He says hi.

You make this sound like a bad thing!

As for Richey, I want all the cultists to know that I dug him up from his grave, and fucked him. His skeleton.

(RED: "Listen you yellow-bellied sonofabitch...")

*emo*

And you only got sloppies with Richey. Erlewine was there first.

An unfortunate skin condition, that. Use some Bactine.

Erlewine was there first.

"Icky!"
"DOUBLE ICKY!"

'that sounded all misogynistical 'n' shit'
'like, yeah, what's up with that?'

"Camera one... camera two!"

The songs most people like are the songs I like. The songs most people dislike are the ones I dislike. Wow!

Oh but Nate this tells us so much more about you than about the Manics
OR the Clash.

haha sorry, I'll stop.�

This was a really good tape to have when my brothers and I were being driven all around Wyoming and Montana and Idaho by my mom and her boyfriend for two months. We used to turn up the Sony boombox in the back seat and rock out. We had to turn it down when the bad words came on, though, or my mom would remember that it was her boyfriend's turn to play HIS music and then it'd be Red-Headed Stranger by Willie Nelson. Which I also now love. But not as much as Combat Rock. All of it.

Ha ha ha - but seriously folks - look at all the above posts - everyone mentions a different song they like from CR. It can't be a dud, can it? London Calling kicks it's ass, but I like Combat Rock just fine.

combat rock is simply the natural progression.

as someone who first found about the clash through the great chorus "should i stay or should i go......" on the radio durring 7th grade....well i am glad they got that exposure. this album rocks....it's no london calling but then again an apple ain't an orange

And basically the rest of it too, in spite of myself.

Could be right about this - it may actually have been why I first purchased it. I was a few years too young to be into the Clash at the time, after all. But it is a blast from start to finish - I just played it the other day, and it holds up and then some.

not live stuff

Good. The ‘82 live recordings with Terry Chimes are awful. He was hapless when attempting any post-debut songs. An official release of the Us Festival set might be nice — Pete Howard was as adept a replacement for Topper as they could have hoped for — but that can be easily found on youtube.

Apparently, Tory Crimes has found fulfillment as a chiropractor.

The debut is a classic in spite of the fact the drums are pretty damn dull

Announcement's probably later today - here's the vinyl edition:

Originally released in May 1982, ‘Combat Rock’ is the final Clash album by Joe Strummer, Mick Jones, Paul Simonon and Topper Headon. It contains two of the band's best-known songs, 'Should I Stay Or Should I Go' and 'Rock The Casbah'. Now reissued in a special edition 180g 3LP, with 12 extra tracks! Returning to London after 17 shows at Bond's Casino in New York in 1981, the band rehearsed and recorded at The People's Hall in London and from there embarked on a tour of East and Southeast Asia, as evidenced by the cover image. The songs on ‘The People’s Hall’ cover the period from what was their last single Radio Clash to the release of Combat Rock, including unreleased and rare versions. It also includes rare images of Pennie Smith and an essay on Tom Vague’s Frestonia story.

http://www.clashcity.com/boards/download/file.php?id=8978

One of the extra tracks is likely the alternate version of "Rock the Casbah" with Ranking Roger of the (English) Beat.

We had that poster in the basement of the record store I worked at in college. Man, does that bring back memories.

I think it's still folded up in my copy of the album!

Tracklist leaked:

http://www.clashcity.com/boards/download/file.php?id=8982&t=1

(A little disappointing they'd leave one vinyl side without any real content. I guess that means the CD edition doesn't fill out the second disc either.)

Long Time Jerk was the B side to . . . Rock the Casbah?

Forgot, there was going to be a separate standalone release like a single, so that's where the Ranking Roger version of "Rock the Casbah" will probably go. (One of their social media accounts referenced it yesterday.)

Futura 2000!

Some titles I've not seen before.. "He who dares.." ?

Actually that single is probably going to be a Ranking Roger single - both sides uploaded to YouTube!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=69zglj8jYNA

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w6LwhvZJtR4

And they're up for sale.

Only two unreleased songs; I don't think I need this.

I actually think the stronger vocal on the Combat Rock version of "Know Your Rights" make it preferable to the longer version from Rat Patrol (if that's what they're using here in the bonuses).

The Ranking Roger single is cool, but otherwise yeah, pretty disappointing if you already have Sound System. Obviously there are the bootlegs but what hasn't been officially released is generally taken from crummy sources.

Its cool the Ranking Roger stuff is standalone - thats what I'm mainly interested in re:this set. Honestly surprised theyre doing that rather than including it as a sweetener in a deluxe package

Some more info, what's here includes a version of ‘Know Your Rights’ "recorded at The People’s Hall on The Rolling Stones‘ Mobile Studio, previously unreleased instrumental ‘He Who Dares Or Is Tired’, ‘Futura 2000’ (an unreleased original mix of ‘The Escapades of Futura 2000’)"

I've never owned the album on vinyl, happy to have this version.

Apparently Sony has approached the surviving members of the Clash many times about various ideas for reissues, but they rejected nearly every single one. For example, the band seriously considered a Sandinista! deluxe set, but they ultimately passed on the idea because they didn't think there was enough worthy bonus material. Sony apparently wanted a big box set for Combat Rock or at minimum a deluxe set with Rat Patrol, but they could only get the band to do this smaller issue. As mentioned before, the band really doesn't want to put out Rat Patrol now that Joe is no longer around to give his approval. Mick wasn't kidding when he said many times that he wanted Sound System to be the final word, so we're lucky to get this. I guess it's more of a release for people who don't own this stuff already or who don't want to get something as large and expensive as Sound System (or simply want this stuff on vinyl).

Is Sound System even still in print? A lot of those pricey/exhaustive 'Complete Albums' sets from the '10s have gone OOP.

I didn't realize what a good package Sound System was until like 5 years too late

If I ever see one used in the wild, I'll probably pick it up and dump all regular Clash CDs that I've had since HS

Is Sound System even still in print? A lot of those pricey/exhaustive 'Complete Albums' sets from the '10s have gone OOP.

It looks like it's still available brand-new. Merchbar and Amazon are two that pop up when I did a quick search - goes for like $150-$250 depending on the merchant.

It is a GREAT looking package, but if you already have the albums on CD (like I did), it may seem pretty redundant and less convenient since each CD actually mirrors the original vinyl (so London Calling is spread out over two discs instead of one and Sandinista! on three instead of two). I know it's remastered, but I thought it was a little bright for my tastes and kind of preferred the sound of the old CD's I already had on hand. DVD's awesome though.

(not saying you should buy from Amazon, but if they have it in-stock, surely other people will)

I like that it restores the UK tracklisting of the OG s/t

For sure. The UK version and London Calling may very well be my two favorite records of the '70s.

I grew up on the US track listing and still think it's better, but I own this box and that has the UK version in it.

Have the Clash ever had a proper Past Masters-style compilation of all the previously released singles, b-sides etc? I had the impression that whatever was out there (like Black Market Clash) was incomplete.

I think the box is p comprehensive except a few dub mixes and alternates

Have the Clash ever had a proper Past Masters-style compilation of all the previously released singles, b-sides etc? I had the impression that whatever was out there (like Black Market Clash) was incomplete.

They did that giant 19CD box of all their singles in 2006. The label sent me one; I kinda wish I still had it.

Have the Clash ever had a proper Past Masters-style compilation of all the previously released singles, b-sides etc? I had the impression that whatever was out there (like Black Market Clash) was incomplete.

The Singles which should have scooped up the rest (for those who already have Super Black Market Clash), but I think it's missing a few things. "This Is England" would have been damn welcome and would have saved one the troubled of getting Cut the Crap.

I watched The Rise And Fall Of The Clash documentary the other day, detailing the decline years in more detail than I'd realised anyone (including Jones, the CTC line-up) had ever gone on record to describe. Bleakly fascinating. Understood why they'd want to airbrush away the utter farce that was Mk II more than previously

It felt at the time, and still seems now, as though Strummer had a nervous breakdown.

the utter farce that was Mk II

Except their post-Mick/pre-Crap shows were largely received positively. iirc, there was eager anticipation, based on the live shows, for the new studio record. After the disappointment of Crap it was suddenly, “Why’d they carry on without Mick?”

Same thing happened with the post-Moon Who: the ‘79-‘80 tours were almost universally praised, and built up expectations for a dynamite studio album. After two disappointing records, the retrospective view then became, “They shouldn’t have continued without Moon.” But no one was saying that during the tours.

I saw the pre-Crap show at Red Rocks. It was good, but I can't honestly say it was the Clash.

I really like the stuff Strummer co-wrote on BAD'S No. 10, Upping St.. Given that he also produced that album, I think they could have gone on to make more vital music, but I imagine there was just too much stress on that band for lots of reasons, and simply going on hiatus then re-grouping isn't that easy.

Yeah, I remember the sense of optimism around that album and the Strummer/Jones rapprochement that preceded it, but I think Strummer was pretty much done being "Joe Strummer of the Clash" at that point.

Joe actually asked Mick to rejoin the Clash after Crap flopped, but Mick was happy in B.A.D., and he, Joe, and Paul got on far better as friends (they’re all in the “Medicine Show” video) than as bandmates.

Yeah, they're the cops, right?

Yeah, and they all shoot at each other which…I suppose is one way of working through their issues.

Everything I've seen on video documenting Mk II just looks completely bizarre, especially their image and Joe's behaviour and presence in general

Regarding the 19 cd singles set.

There is a promo version which has all the tracks on 4 CDs. I have one, it's certainly handy and it wasn't that expensive (when I got it, anyway)

oh for a big fat 12" of those ranking roger versions.

That acetate of the single LP version of Fort Bragg is now on YouTube as one continuous listen. (You can still get the original streams from the old auction link, but this may be more convenient for some who want to listen to it.)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v0dqKsYRRIc

Again, edited down from Mick's original proposed double LP mix (i.e. his mixes as Glyn Johns wasn't involved yet), it was more or less done behind his back, though the result feels more like a balanced compromise than Combat Rock. Not necessarily "better" than Combat Rock, but at least this version kept Mick's original mixes.

I actually think the changes made to "Know Your Rights" and "Should I Stay or Should I Go" under Johns's direction improved both of those tracks. I kind of miss the opening percussion intro on "Rock the Casbah" - it would've been a nice segue on the album - but otherwise it's difficult to distinguish Johns's version from Jones's. For all I know, they're actually the same mixes, just with the intro cut out of Johns's. Bob Clearmountain's 12" mix (also on Sound System) is far more different.

Also it sounds like Johns took out a lot of Jones's wonderfully spacey guitar overdubs on "Inoculated City," especially during an extended sound collage break that was severely truncated (to the track's detriment IMHO - that was most of its charm).

Apparently there were two bonus tracks on this new reissue that Mick wanted to include but couldn't. Here's what was reported on the Clash message board by someone who knows Mick:

The record company wouldn't pay to clear the samples for the extended Inoculated City. Mick would have included the "final" version from Electric Lady, dated February 2nd, a couple of days after the Rat Patrol acetates were cut.

They didn't include Cool Confusion because Mick doesn't like the recorded version. There's an earlier more rhythm-based demo, more like he wished they'd done it, but they couldn't locate the one with Joe's vocals. Guessing maybe the instrumental is what's on Hell W10?

my ps here to a thread that truly covers it all is weak, buuut...

ha i only just ripped that acetate versh of rat patrol, that's interesting enough. entertaining. seems to me that the garage-y sound in that mix of _should i stay..._ is what i had understood they wanted that song to be, even with cod spanish or whatever. also finally got to hear the 2000 flushes commersh again that was on my 1983 cassette lol

also interested me to read all this ^^^^ discussion on an album i didn't care too much about, it turns out so rich in v worthwhile content. imo.

Some days it Combat Rock my favorite Clash record. And having its evil expansive twin in Rat Patrol makes it even better.