Terpsmcfee t1_j94t3yj wrote on February 19, 2023 at 6:13 AM

This song is proof they could produce in nearly any genre!

This is straight up power pop, Train In Vain is an infectious pop song if there ever was one, not as “big” as “Rock The Casbah” but a pop song. London calling has: pop/power pop, punk, ska, rockabilly, rock n roll! I think the only thing missing is marching band music.

Alway’s in the top 50 lists of greatest albums of all time for good reason. The Clash were @ the height of creativity for them at the time.

A greatly influential band that left a mark on music, the only band that mattered!

Here’s a tidbit Joe Strummer and the band demanded that “London Calling” be priced as a single album although it was a double record set and won! How many artists/bands would fight their own record company over retail pricing?

teuchter-in-a-croft t1_j95l7qc wrote on February 19, 2023 at 12:30 PM

The only band that mattered? Whilst a jolly good band to listen to, not many of their tracks are bad, I even like ‘This is England’ however for anyone to say they were the only band that mattered I think is giving them a status higher than they deserve. There’s no doubting there impact but there are others that we’re just as influential with even less pretentious posturing than others from the same scene (Billy Idol??)

To be honest, being at the start of it I thought the whole scene was contrived and full of bullshit. But I consumed a lot of substances and partied hard for a long time. What’s not to like?

DDZ13 t1_j9753tz wrote on February 19, 2023 at 7:42 PM

"The Only Band That Matters" was a slogan for them. You See it on T Shirts and stickers etc. It's not really meant to be taken literally, just a memorable phrase to give props to The Clash. I think their manager or somebody came up with it early in their career and it stuck. I'm sure others here would know more.

teuchter-in-a-croft t1_j9a3af9 wrote on February 20, 2023 at 12:18 PM

How old are you my friend. I’d hazard a guess not as old as me. I was merely saying, perhaps in a manner you disproved of, that whilst the band were good, their first album, like many other bands of their ilk, were blisteringly brilliant. I don’t think that any of them managed to reproduce the initial fire that their first albums conveyed.

I saw many bands around that time, the only thing about the Clash that struck me was they were at the very least, true to their word. Each one of them were skilled musicians with Topper being my second favourite. Mick Jones was more influential to me and I still watch what he’s doing now. Paul, some brilliant bass licks and Strummer, well he was Strummer. But like I said, they were just a band, I’m not sure Joe would be that happy about being put on a pedestal.

And as I said I found the whole scene contrived. Are you from the UK? When you see records being sold by bands with ‘punk’ names yet last week you saw them play and they all had long hair, that’s when anyone should think that this is just another cash cow for someone.

I withdraw from the fashion punk think and became more aware of things that were talked about in hushed tones. Politics, mainly but a lot of other things were part of my change in life. The bands I listened to were not fake or false, they did have something apt to say and they said it quite vigorously.

Then my children were born and I devoted myself to them and their wellbeing. They were all that was important to me and I tried to teach them what I knew. Now they’re all grown up with kids of their own I’m still the same as I was when I was a young teenager being thrown off stage by my mates. That doesn’t happen now, it would probably kill me, but I still get out there to see bands, although my musical tastes have changed yet again. I’m never stuck in a rut, the Ruts were very good by the way.

So where was I going with this? I dunno, maybe it was if you’re a young lad from USA and you’re saying what you’re saying, I’d say you have a lot to see and hear before you can say that. But if you’re a sixty year old punk from West London and have driven up and down the Westway and have very tenuous links to the (very tenuous) I’d say, they were good, but there were better.

Bearing in mind, that you have your opinion and I have mine. I’m in no way trying to change your mind, I’m just saying I don’t agree that they were as good as you think. It’s not an attack on you, I’m not attacking the band, they made a splash and at the time I hoped it would of been bigger. But as they say, things change, maybe if Joe was still here they’d of got back together. I’d of hated that, nothing worse than see someone like the Rolling Stones at 86 still singing some of their great songs.

Oh well, toodle-pip old boy, I’m off to get a cucumber sandwich and a drink of lemonade.

Edit - I do like Train In Vain, I’m sure the Bosstones did it as well, a good version as I recall

DDZ13 t1_j9b347c wrote on February 20, 2023 at 5:00 PM

You seemed confused when the other person referred to The Clash as "the only band that mattered". You contradicted it in a way that suggested you weren't familiar with that slogan. And now after skimming the 8 paragraphs you just wrote I'm still not sure if you are aware of that slogan's existence and relative popularity. My age or where I'm from is irrelevant to this point. Either you are familiar with the slogan or you're not. It doesn't matter if you personally agree or disagree with it, it was just a slogan.

teuchter-in-a-croft t1_j9cr0fh wrote on February 20, 2023 at 11:35 PM

Alright mate, you do you. I knew what the Clash were about, the slogan is well known even to me. That still doesn’t change my opinion, they weren’t the best and thinking about it all this crowing about them makes me think they were pretty lame really. I was merely enquiring out of curiosity, but you want to go all James Bond on me, that’s fine. It’s not like I wanted to take you to dinner or anything, at the time it seemed relevant. But much like this conversation it’s now become irrelevant. Much like the Clash are.