Fighting rock fatigue with the Clash by Dave McCullough

Article published in Sounds, 17th July, 1982

The Clash | Armed Combat | Part 1 | WHERE TO start: okay, start with the Clash staying at Le Parc hotel in West Hollywood, one of the city’s plushest we were assured and even though situated just down the road from a whole series of suitably Clashesque, famous Tom Waits and Kerouac locales, surely an indication of the change the Mashers have gone through . . . all of a sudden.

Next I recall the first night we were in Hollywood, feeling fashionably jet lagged after an eleven hour flight stepping into the Clashmobile and seeing, apart from ‘keeper’ Ray at the wheel, a wild series of young men dressed in combat gear with shorn hair-looking cool, sure, but more the Clash of ’77 than the fashion idols of ’81.

Somethin’s goin’ on, and I knew it all along (see ‘Combat Rock’ review).

The Clash | Armed Combat | Part 1

More: at the Hollywood Palladium the Clash were unusually relaxed backstage. The shorter haircuts (I know this is stupid, but it means a lot to an old ‘punk’ like me), the bimbling around of this wet-behind-the ears KID, who was there with his sweet little wife and who resembles Norman Wisdom or Michael Crawford (even with the combat gear) – these little scenes of almost domestic bliss, with graffiti artist Futura with his ‘Kermit’ voice adding to the attraction and easy-goingness of things – it all spelt something that was obvious and wonderful and would have made the hardest hearted, punk rooted, Clash-cynic (they are legion!) crumble in a heap of hopeful nostalgia.

The Clash are back, maybe not with a bang but with an almost self-mocking whimper. Good news.

THE CLASH are steadily becoming huge in America; they sold out five nights at the Palladium where, for instance, the Jam struggled to sell out one. This is a horrible ‘business’ detail but I relate it as important, given the irrefutable Clash rejuvenation and, more to the point, the direction it’ll send them in.

It has the smell of more ‘exiles on main street’, the Clash becoming stars in the horrid Americas and old has-beens in the land of Our Boys. Bad? Not so bad, as we’ll later see.

Certainly at the Palladium the Clash played ‘live’ in equal measure as ‘Combat Rock’ has sharpened them up, made them all of a sudden alive again, on record. And they played almost exclusively only the first, and a bit of the second, album material!

The Clash | Armed Combat | Part 1

Nostalgia? it would make you (already flagged out flying) see a local quack. Thing is, as the layers of incredulous euphoria build up like some sort of crass cartoon ‘Heroes Back Again’ storyline — thing is, songs like ‘Career Opportunities’, ‘Janie Jones’, ‘London’s Burning’ et cetera, with ‘Safe European Home’ chipped in as the most contemporary thing around (it was blistering too), these songs were performed with the kind of fresh faced élan you wouldn’t have credited short of reincarnation.

The Clash are back-back to front, they are belying their own, so sought after destinies.

It is practically hilarious. How could it be otherwise (all good and great groups have big streaks of comedy down them; even the most serious, believe me), with the ‘Penguin’ figure of Bernard Rhodes employing the pathetic figures of backstage goils to fetch and carry drinks to him (and me asking him what his role now is with the Clash and him answering in Jewish, drunken indignation: I OWN THIS GROUP), or with legendary mentor, and ‘Travis’ voice-over star of ‘Straight To Hell’, Kosmo Vinyl swopping the normal chorus of the Supremes ‘Ill Be There’ for the (revealing?) lines of: “Bernard Rhodes ‘He’ll steal all your mon-see . . . ” Et cetera and so on.

The Clash | Armed Combat | Part 1

All this nonsense, and then having to join with the band in sneaking around Hollywood like criminals in order to avoid a So Many Million Dollar law suit that this old toad was going to slap on them for their using his TV advert in the centre of ‘Innoculated City’ (big black He Man, Ray featuring heavily in this).

All this, and the Clash at the top playing as hot as they did in punk days, but now with enough skill to send them (during ‘Murdered’) to heights of great BEAUTY now (Strummer turning round with a big broad smile for Chimes at one memorable, seething moment) — it’s enough to give you a heart attack.

It’s enough to make you want to read on.

(THE INTERVIEW takes place, finally, much arguing later, in a hotel bedroom in the early hours — not my kinda thing. One had heard the Clash wanted to ‘do’ Sounds to get back to, gulp. ‘Street Level’, wanted Bushell or me. Strummer quite drunk, so am I.

A man is selling cars on LA late night telly, he is walking on to his car lot followed by a camel-America’s this kind of place. We turn the sound down.)

DMcC: I hear you started running.

STRUMMER: I do all my jogging in one go. I do a Marathon a year. It half kills me. I’ll practice before it in future. What de you think of Terry (Chimes)?

DMcC: He was the star of both shows. Seriously, he’s got that raw back-beat going again.

STRUMMER: I’m glad about that. It’s a hell of a thing, after five years, to come in . . . We’re used to playing really long sets you see, with everything ‘right’ down to the last second. Too long really . . . we know a hell of a lot of numbers. Maybe I could teach it all to Terry; given time.

DMcC: Will Topper Headon be back?

STRUMMER: Well . . . I don’t really think so. I think he’s getting something together himself right now. (Turns off cassette; tells me the story they want people to hear is that Topper left because he was politically out of key with the group, but that the real reason which I unfortunately have to break to Strummer’s been already leaked in Britain, is to do with nasty substances. And that Topper was sacked by Strummer personally.)

“It was terribly motional. A trauma . . . it’s horrible having to do. I thought Topper was really good. Man, was he talented! He could play synth, he could play bass, or guitar or piano – I just can’t do anything like that . . . We had to find a drummer within five days before this tour, FIVE DAYS!

The band couldn’t think of anybody except Terry. We just went therefore for what he knew, so we’re playing the old stuff on this tour. I . . . I still kinda like that old material.

The Clash | Armed Combat | Part 1

DMcC: It sounded really fresh. Any reasons for this?

STRUMMER: I think we’re really desperate, really hungry again. Cos Topper’s left and we feel vulnerable again. That adds a desperation, a franticness to everything and that feeds the old stuff really well.

I’ve been feeling pretty strange this tour. I’m getting older, but I don’t want to not confront that fact. I WANT to face it. The difference is, in the old days, nothing but the gig was important.

Sometimes on this American tour, and if you’d seen some dates YOU’D have said to our faces we were really poxy or something, you know, this ain’t so hot – I’ve had this strange feeling I’ve never had before. I couldn’t turn myself off during a performance.

I used to be one with the audience, but lately sometimes my mind’s been separate, it’s not been one with what I’ve been doing. Sometimes when I see the audience I’m not interested.

I see them slam dancing . . . We’re up here or our egos never forget that. You only get up on stage because you’ve a huge ego. I want everyone to be looking at us, and they’re into slam dancing, whatever.

I start thinking. What am I doing up here? I can’t my mind off that feeling. I’ve been feeling pretty weird.

DMcC: Maybe the Clash have stopped being a ‘protest band’ and started being a soulband, You said in the rap line tonight: ‘Don’t you realise there’s no answer?” That sums the change up, while making it clear that it, life is STILL a problem and a problem to be dealt with.

STRUMMER: Yeah, and it’s like we re coming to recognise certain limitations we’ve got, Like the political thing. They insist we’re Marxists ever here, they pulled the police guns out us in Atlanta. Somebody told the cops there was a Communist riot going on down town. And they freaked!

But, no, I’ve been on radio shows over here and they’ve asked me political questions I just haven’t had an answer for. What’s your great plan to save the world Joe? I dunno.

The Clash | Armed Combat | Part 1

DMcC: I read a yank paper that said, why do these fellas dress like they do if they aren’t Reds? Trouble is I see what they mean, is it just pure ego.

STRUMMER: Well you been watching Simenon . . . I’m certain he practices in front of a mirror! We’ve got to cope with how it’s changed for us. As I say, I’m getting older. The difference between the sort ‘youthful naivety’ we’re always accused of and . . . it’s strange still to be doing it, you know? I thought we’d have blown up somewhere back down the line. That’s what I’m trying to get at.

DMcC: You’re here because you enjoy it still . . .

STRUMMER: I do, but I can’t still shake the feeling off, Why am I doing this still?

DMcM: I don’t think the audience tonight understood a word you were saying. Though, the energy was enough in itself. You seem to deal now in beauty too – an awkward kind of beauty.

STRUMMER: You know Bob Dylan came to check us out? Imagine that! Even though we weren’t good on the night, it was weird thinking Bob Dylan was out there. He’s said to have been recording rock ‘n’ roll again the very next morning. CBS have said that.

Me and Kosmo are the only two that really like Dylan. Like Simenon thinks he’s a hippy . . . But imagine, the very next day! Some of the lyrics that guy’s written in his time . . .

DMcC: Is there a conscious pun in the title ‘Combat Rock’?

STRUMMER: Definitely there is. It’s a sort of drunken in-joke of the band’s. I mean we know we’re a rock band now, and we know also that rock’s unfashionable. But I meant it seriously at the time . . .

DMcC: America’s your big influence and your big problem.

The Clash | Armed Combat | Part 1

STRUMMER: It’s true, the USA is our one big influence. But in order to survive we have to spend more time here. Even people like the Jam are coming here now. To survive you have to. Which means you get terribly influenced by the place.

Our album was recorded here and it has that huge American influence all through it . . . but I’m not sure if it’s good.

If anybody asks me where I’d like to live I wouldn’t hesitate, it’s London. This time America’s been really different because all the romanticism has gone. First two times I came with heedfull of Kerouac and Tom Waits and Woody Guthrie —that’s all out the window now.

I see America as ugly, plasticated, horrific all the same from New Jersey to wherever. That Zappa song about American TV, “let the sludge pour out of your TV set”, that’s what it’s like. Thank God for English TV . . .

England’s given us the big brush off, we know-that. We probably wouldn’t have had to come here if it hadn’t. Even so, I want to live in London. not in love this place AT ALL. But It’s good in a way; I mean, I have to live somewhere where I can be free to walk around.

‘I’m sure Paul Weller‘d get people shrieking at him when he walks down the street. But I can live quite freely in London. I don’t want to be ‘one of those faces’ and that’s why I can’t stand LA ‘cos I can’t walk about.

I think if we’d really made it, we’d have had it. We’ve always seemed to be struggling. Like we got this British tour; and it ain’t sold out, we have to really struggle to sell it out! That’s a fact of life. I’m glad of that, I’d hate to feel we’ve really made it. I like to feel we’ve a constant struggle on our hands.

Though it was a great feeling to be Number two for a week in good ole Britain, you know?

The Clash | Armed Combat | Part 1

DMcC: Would you appear on TOTP now?

STRUMMER: No I wouldn’t. I don’t think that programme has an effect on the people the Clash reach. I’m still hopeful TOTP isn’t the be all and end-all of British TV. And I still can’t get Ready Steady Go out off my head . . .

There’s no thrills in Britain but it’s somehow an amazingly creative place. Everything seems to Start Off there musically. I mean, I ask around here, who’s the new Doors and they look back at me dumb. There’s no one here . . .

WHILE IN LA, the TV stations were buzzing with news of Hinckley’s trail. There was also an attempt to organise a petition to have Martin Scorsese stand trial, presumably for inciting loonies to shoot important people, because of the content of Taxi Driver, the movie that’s influenced ‘Combat Rock’ and current Strummer thinking.

Strummer’s even (almost) perfected the De Niro Mohican hairstyle. He looks genuinely wild.

STRUMMER: That’s more Clash Americana, the Taxi Driver bit. Kosmo gave the Travis speech one day and I just could not get it out of my head. It’s so true for this place . . .

DMcC: It’s a fitting symbol for the Clash turnaround.

STRUMMER: We’re always trying to kick off what we’ve always been because that, that means Clash destruction. I want to be creative. And I don’t want to be everything I ‘have to be’. It’s like Hendrix refusing to do his old songs — and they didn’t like that.