If he stayed, there would be trouble. So he went, and now it's double. Joe Strummer, guitarist, vocalist, and songwriter of the Clash, died yesterday at age fifty. Not may details yet, but the apparent cause is of a heart attack.
"The only band that matters," the Clash had a political edge that put them on a different plane than most of the other punk bands of the late '70's or early 80's, and the politics came from Strummer.
Strummer also took the band beyond the basic three chord pounding of other punk groups by adding a Reggae beat and a world-music outlook. Check out the albums "London Calling" ('79) or "Sandanista" ('80) to see what I'm talking about.
Tuesday, December 24, 2002
About Me
- Ken Goldstein
- Santa Cruz Mountains, California, United States
- By day I consult to local nonprofit agencies. When there is actual spare time I make videos, music, and write cultural and political rants and occasional fiction. My other interests include food, travel, books, and movies.