Quote of the Day- Sid Vicious

The late punk rocker Sid Vicious (1957-1979), of The Sex Pistols, predicted he would not live to be 25. And, he did in fact die at age 21. His life was the subject of the 1986 feature film "Sid and Nancy" by English director Alex Cox. Gary Oldman played the title role in the film.

The lead singer of The Sex Pistols, Johnny Rotten, is amazingly enough still alive. Their most-recognized song is the immortal anthem "Anarachy in the UK."

We thought with the recent unfortunate riots in London, which makes one recall the turbulent punk rock period of the 1970s which produced the like of The Sex Pistols and The Clash (we will quote the late Joe Strummer on our other blog "Politics, Culture and Other Wastes of Time" today), we would quip Vivious, the epitamy of an out-of-control rock n roller:

"American audiences are just the same as any other audience. Except a bit more boring."

Happy Joe Strummer Day...Long Live The Clash!

On this date in 2002, Joe Strummer, the lead singer of The Clash who was also an accomplished actor passed away at age 50. He will never be forgotten and neither will his music. Check out a live performance of "Clash Radio" which was taped for "The Tom Sydner Show" in 1981 if you get the chance.


SIDEBAR: I found a new copy of The Clash's release "Combat Rock" at CD Alley in Chapel Hill, NC, for a reasonable price a few weeks back. It's the one with "Rock the Casbah" and "Should I Stay or Should I Go," which reminds me I need to go to my mom's 70th birthday party!

Yet Another Quote of the Week?!- Joe Strummer

The liberal blogger Arianna Huffington maintains that bloggers are ones who suffer from Obsessive Compulsive Disorder. She may have a point as this is the fourth quote I've used this week?!

Today, we go with Joe Strummer, who was the subject of our last "Dead or Alive" entry. Alas, the frontman for the punk band The Clash is no longer with us as Strummer died on Dec. 22, 2002.

But, there are apparently efforts to recognize Dec. 22 of this year as "International Joe Strummer Day," which happens to be my mother's 70th birthday.

I'm not sure if she is familiar with The Clash, which "Rolling Stone" called the 30th best music artist of all time, but perhaps we can play "London Calling" at her birthday party though I'm not sure her friends from church would approve!

Here is the quip we selected from Strummer, who was also a great actor who appeared in the 1989 Jim Jarmusch film "Mystery Train," which was filmed in Memphis, Tenn.:

"What I like most about playing America is you be sure you're not going to get hit with a full can of beer when you're singing and I really enjoy that."

Dead or Alive (7 of 12) Joe Strummer

Today's 'Dead or Alive' segment focuses on Joe Strummer, the lead singer of the punk rock band The Clash which lasted for a surprisingly short time (1977-86), yet their impact is undeniable. "Rolling Stone" proclaimed that The Clash was the 30th greatest rock artist of all time.

Strummer was born in Ankara, Turkey- of all places on Aug. 21, 1952. He was the son of a British diplomat.

I first became familiar with the band when I was 13 in 1983 when their music video "Rock the Casbah" was in high rotation on MTV.

The band's great hits include "Rudie Can't Fail," "Lost in the Supermarket," "Train in Vain (Stand By Me), "Should I Stay or I Should I Go," and their political anthem "London Calling," the title track of their 1979 smash album.

"Train in Vain (Stand By Me)" was recently featured in the soundtrack of the summer's indie hit film "500 Days of Summer."

The Clash was known for being 'a bit left of center,' and the band is credited with making punk music more political. Though the band sold lots of records, they never quite managed to become a political band which merged well with the mainstream that U2 has turned into though they were played on the radio more often than the 1990s left-wing American band Rage Against the Machine.

Strummer was joined by the likes of Mick Jones, Keith Levene and Terry Chices in creating the band's unique sound which featured a range of musical influences, including reggae!

The album cover to "London Calling" is now going to be on a British postage stamp.

Strummer was also a good actor, though he has appeared in only a few films, including "The King of Comedy," "Straight to Hell" and "Mystery Train," which is my favorite Jim Jarmusch film.

The band has many admirers, including my friend Todd Ristau who oversees a stage company in Roanoke, Va., called Studio Roanoke.

And, The Clash has been inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland.

Though it does not include The Clash (I believe), the documentary "Kill Your Idols" about the New York punk scene in the 1980s is airing on The Sundance Channel this month.

I will conclude this entry with a great quote from Strummer who perhaps saw where the future of rock and roll was headed long before he left the stage:

"I think we're going to have to forget radio and just go by word of mouth."