(Album ©1979, Epic Records)
Today, among my favorite records is The Clash’s
London Calling. I didn’t hear the whole record until 1982, after the band’s next album (Combat Rock) came out, but I already knew who they were thanks to the two radio songs from this album – “Train in Vain” and the title track. Once I heard the whole record – whoa! Just about every song was amazing, and this is a double record. The band spanned so many styles and yet still sounded like themselves throughout, and they avoided the commercial gloss that finally crept into Combat Rock
This record justified The Clash’s nickname among the rock critics – “the only band that mattered”. It was raw and edgy and excellent from start to finish. I went to see them open for The Who at Shea Stadium in Queens, NY in 1982 and they were great. They opened with “London Calling” and it was intense, and it just got better from there. They released the full show in 2008 with a really crisp recording – take a listen.
And the most punk thing about this album may 
just have been that the album cover design was a straight rip off of Elvis’ debut record (shared here for comparison). Revisit it if you haven’t heard it in a while, or if you never listened all the way through, do so. You’ll be glad you did, even 40 years later.
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