Unglued Reviews

Despite the appearance of the cover of my copy, this is not a posthumous release by the late frontman of “the only band that matters”, The Clash, but rather a soundtrack to Julien Temple’s 2007 documentary about this legendary and charismatic punk rock warlord.

The track selection draws heavily on the songs Strummer programmed as host of his own radio show on the BBC World Service between 1999 and 2002, and the compilers have also used archives of the broadcasts to have Joe back-announce many of the songs, giving this collection a very intimate feel. The songs reflect Strummer’s voracious appetite for music of all kinds, ranging from early rock ‘n’ roller Eddie Cochrane’s Nervous Breakdown through Nina Simone covering the Bee Gees’ To Love Somebody to Ernest Ranglin’s Minuet.

But for fans, it’s the inclusion of two previously unreleased demos for tracks from The Clash’s first album that will be most exciting, as well as the never-officially recorded live track (In The) Pouring Rain (although it should be noted that the latter dates from the post-Mick Jones, post-Topper Headon incarnation of the band). There’s also Rachid Taha’s world music cover of Rock The Casbah, the non-album Clash single Armagideon Time, and Strummer rarities Omotepe (from the Walker movie soundtrack) and Trash City (recorded with short-lived outfit Latino Rockabilly War for the Permanent Record movie soundtrack), plus a couple of cuts recorded with his last band, the Mescaleros. An eclectic tribute to a great man.

Owen Heitmann