Tag Archives: the clash

Rare track – In the Pouring Rain by The Clash

pouring rain

Today’s unreleased gem rare track is from Joe Strummer’s hand and it was first taped with The Clash, it is the marvelous In The Pouring Rain. I noticed it when it appeared on the soundtrack of The Future is Unwritten, but I knew I had heard it before…

I dug through my old Clash bootlegs and found two of them with  different versions of the song. It exists in at least three kind of incarnations. I believed it was unreleased, but there was a soundtrack to the documentary about Joe Strummer and it is included (damn! he, he). It is hard to find, so I will post this anyway, but not as part of the Unreleased series.

In the pouring Rain (The Clash 1984, Cut the Crap line-up):

Recorded at the Paramount Theatre in Seattle in 1984, great quality! It was played both on the USA and European legs of the tour in 84.

This version is from one of my favorite Clash bootlegs, Give’em Enough Dope. The bootleg gets mixed reviews but I like it, the quality is way above average and the material is  excellent. The drumming is a bit sloppy on some tracks (Topper was deep into his  heroin addiction at this time and Joe shouts: “Come on you bastard! Stay with us, stay with us, keep going” . ) but the rest of the band keep it together.  But that was  the 81 Clash (the first part of the bootleg), now to the 1984 Clash…

give em enough dope

The rest of the CD is taken from various gigs in  1984. The Clash line-up  was Joe Strummer, Paul Simonon, Vince White, Nick Sheppard and Pete Howard. This is a line-up that is generally considered second class, don’t believe them,  if you listen to these songs you will understand they are plain wrong.  These songs are incredibly energetic and are performed with a tight professionalism. This lineup handles the old songs great, and the new tunes are great. The guitar playing is fantastic! The album,  Cut The Crap doesn’t do these guys justice. In The Pouring Rain is one of my favourite songs from  the band at this time. It is moving and has all the qualities of a classic rock song, and it’s criminal that this Clash lineup gets slated at all when this is what they did on stage. The song will amaze you.  Make sure you get hold of this bootleg just for this.

Continue reading

Today: Elvis Presley released “Elvis is Back!” in 1960 – 53 years ago

Elvis-Presley-Elvis-Is-Back

Recorded when Presley was 25, fresh off a two-year military stint and musically fit to burst, Elvis Is Back! might be the King’s greatest noncompilation LP: wildly varied material, revelatory singing, impeccable stereo sound.
~Will Hermes (rollingstone.com)

Released April 8, 1960
Recorded March and April 1960
Genre Rock and roll, rhythm and blues
Length 31:54
Label RCA Victor
Producer Steve Sholes and Chet Atkins

Elvis Is Back! is the fifth studio album by Elvis Presley, released on RCA Victor Records in mono and stereo, LPM/LSP 2231, in April 1960. Recording sessions took place on March 20 and April 3, 1960, at RCA Studio B in Nashville, Tennessee. It was Presley’s first album to be released in true stereo. It peaked at number two on the Top Pop Albums chart and is listed, along with his debut and From Elvis in Memphis, in the book 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die. It was certified Gold on July 15, 1999, by the RIAA.

Elvis Presely 1960

Reconsider baby ( extended sax version):

The first album by Presley after his military discharge from the army, the first day of its sessions were attended by the Colonel, his assistant Tom Diskin, and representatives from RCA in a show of interest regarding whether or not Elvis still “had it” after two years in uniform. His long-serving guitarist Scotty Moore, pianist Floyd Cramer, and drummer D. J. Fontana had returned, along with his back-up vocal quartet The Jordanaires, but the other musicians had only played on one previous session with Elvis. … Pressure aside, the sessions were successful, the album a highlight of the entire decade and a declared favorite by Presley regarding his own work. He moved beyond his standard rock and roll sound of the 1950s, combining doo-wop, gospel, blues, and even jazzy tones from his version of “Fever” following so close to that of Peggy Lee from 1958.

Personnel:

  • Elvis Presley - vocals, guitar
  • Scotty Moore - electric guitar
  • Hank Garland - guitar, bass
  • Floyd Cramer - piano
  • Bob Moore - bass
  • D. J. Fontana - drums
  • Buddy Harman - drums
  • The Jordanaires - backing vocals
  • Boots Randolph - saxophone
  • Charlie Hodge - guitar, vocals on “I Will Be Home Again”

Track listing – original album

Side one

  1. Make Me Know It (Otis Blackwell)
  2. Fever (John Davenport and Eddie Cooley)
  3. The Girl of My Best Friend (everly Ross and Sam Bobrick)
  4. I Will Be Home Again (Bennie Benjamin, Raymond Leveen, Lou Singer)
  5. Dirty, Dirty Feeling (Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller)
  6. Thrill of Your Love (Stan Kesler)

Side two

  1. Soldier Boy (David Jones and Theodore Williams Jr.)
  2. Such A Night (Lincoln Chase)
  3. It Feels So Right (Fred Wise and Ben Weisman)
  4. Girl Next Door Went A-Walking (Bill Rice and Thomas Wayne)
  5. Like a Baby (Jesse Stone)
  6. Reconsider Baby (Lowell Fulson)

Full album from youtube:

Wikipedia

Elvis Is Back represents a peak in Elvis’ career, when his maturity and confidence led to a control and focus in his music. Like the pre-army Elvis recordings, this album offered an eclectic collection of musical genres, from a sentimental duet with Charlie Hodge called ‘I Will Be Home Again’ to the gritty ‘Reconsider Baby’ with a bluesy sax solo by Boots Randolph. Once again, Elvis’ talent for unifying disparate styles of music resulted in an innovative and successful album..
~ elvispresleymusic.com

Playlist of the day:

Other APR-08:
Continue reading

Today: Joe Ely is 66

joe ely

The Road Goes On Forever:

From Wikipedia:

Born February 9, 1947 (age 66)
Origin Lubbock, Texas, United States
Genres Americana, Texas country, country rock, progressive country, outlaw country, alt-country, heartland rock, Tex-Mex
Occupations Singer-songwriter, guitarist
Instruments Vocals, Guitar
Years active 1970–present
Labels MCA, Hightone
Associated acts The Flatlanders, Los Super Seven
Website JoeEly.com

Joe Ely (born February 9, 1947, Amarillo, Texas, United States) is an American singer, songwriter and guitarist whose music touches on honky-tonk, Texas Country, Tex-Mex and rock and roll.

He has had a genre-crossing career, performing with Bruce Springsteen, Uncle Tupelo, Los Super Seven, The Chieftains and James McMurtry in addition to his early work with The Clash and more recent acoustic tours with Lyle Lovett, John Hiatt, and Guy Clark.

Ely w/Joe Strummer:
joe strummer joe ely

Box Cars (Live 1980):

Ely w/ Bruce Springsteen:
Joe Ely Bruce Springsteen

Joe Ely, Bruce Springsteen & Alejandro Escovedo – Midnight Train:

Album of the day

From Lubbock to Laredo (2002)

joe ely from lubbock to laredo

Other February 09

Continue reading

Today: Joe Strummer passed away in 2002 – 10 years ago

Joe_Strummer_1_blur

“We aren’t particularly talented. We try harder!”
― Joe Strummer

“Authority is supposedly grounded in wisdom, but I could see from a very early age that authority was only a system of control and it didn’t have any inherent wisdom. I quickly realised that you either became a power or you were crushed”
― Joe Strummer

As frontman and main songwriter of the Clash, Joe Strummer created some of the fieriest, most vital punk rock — and, indeed, rock & roll — of all time. Strummer expanded punk’s musical palette with his fondness for reggae and early rock & roll, and his signature bellow lent an impassioned urgency to the political sloganeering that filled some of his best songs.
~Steve Huey (allmusic.com)

The Edge inducts the Clash Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductions 2003:

Johnny Cash & Joe Strummer – Redemption Song:

From Wikipedia:

Birth name John Graham Mellor
Born 21 August 1952
Ankara, Turkey
Died 22 December 2002 (aged 50)
Broomfield, Somerset, England
Genres Punk rock, alternative rock,world
Occupations Musician, songwriter, radio host, actor
Instruments Vocals, guitar, piano, bass
Years active 1970–2002
Labels CBS, Sony, Hellcat, Mercury
Associated acts The 101ers, The Clash, The Latino Rockabilly War, The Pogues, The Mescaleros
Website strummernews.com

John Graham Mellor (21 August 1952 – 22 December 2002), best remembered by his stage name Joe Strummer, was a British musician who was the co-founder, lyricist, rhythm guitarist and lead vocalist of the British punk rock band The Clash. His musical experience included his membership of The 101ers, Latino Rockabilly War, The Mescaleros and The Pogues, in addition to his own solo music career. Strummer’s work as a musician allowed him to explore other interests, which included acting, creating film scoresfor television and movies, songwriting, radio broadcasting, and a position as a radio host. Strummer is one of the iconic figures of the British punk movement.

joe-strummer-120817

The Clash – White Riot Live (1978 Victoria Park London):

clash white riot

 

White Riot” is a song by English punk rock band The Clash, released as the band’s first single in 1977 and also featured on their debut album. There are two versions: the single version (also appearing on the US version of the album released in 1979), and a different version on the UK album. According to their respective label copy the single version is 1:58 in running time while the UK album version is 1:55.

Strummer and The Clash were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in January 2003. In his remembrance, Strummer’s friends and family have established the Strummerville Foundation for the promotion of new music, and each year there are many festivals and both organised and spontaneous ceremonies worldwide to celebrate his memory.

Joe-Strummer

“If I had five million pounds I’d start a radio station because something needs to be done. It would be nice to turn on the radio and hear something that didn’t make you feel like smashing up the kitchen and strangling the cat.”
― Joe Strummer

Here is an amazing version of “I Fought The Law”:

 I_fought_the_law

I Fought the Law” is a song written by Sonny Curtis of the Crickets and became popularized by a cover by the Bobby Fuller Four, which went on to become a top-ten hit for the band in 1966 and was also recorded by the Clash in 1979.

Album of the day:

Joe Strummer & the Mescaleros - Streetcore (2003):

strummer streetcore

Other December 22:

Continue reading

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...