London Calling (song)

Infobox Single
Name = London Calling


Artist = The Clash
from Album = London Calling
B-side = "Armagideon Time"
Released = Start date|1979|12|7 (U.K.)
Format = 7" single/12" single
Recorded = August-September 1979, November 1979 at Wessex Studios
Genre = Punk rock
Length = 3:19
Label = CBS 8087
Writer = Joe Strummer and Mick Jones
Producer = Guy Stevens
Certification =
Last single = "Groovy Times"
(1979)
This single = "London Calling"
(1979)
Next single = "Clampdown"
(1980)
Misc = Extra musicsample
filename = London Calling.ogg
title = London Calling
format = Ogg
Type = single"London Calling" is a song from the double album "London Calling" by the U.K. punk rock band The Clash; it is also the album's first track. This apocalyptic, politically charged rant features the band's famous combination of reggae basslines and punk electric guitar and vocals.cite book
last=Gilbert
first=Pat
title=Passion Is a Fashion: The Real Story of The Clash
origyear=2004
accessdate=2007-11-20
edition=4th edition
year=2005
publisher=Aurum Press
location=London
isbn=1845131134
oclc=61177239
pages=pp. 233, 235, 238, 257, 260, 267 ] cite web
url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio2/soldonsong/whatson/londoncalling.shtml
title=BBC - Radio 2 - Sold On Song - Brits25 - London Calling
accessdate=2007-12-31
format=SHTML
work=Radio 2, Sold On Song
publisher=bbc.co.uk
quote=a) Taken from the Clash's stunning 1979 double album, London Calling, the single showcased the bands' trademark fusion of reggae bass lines with punk guitar and vocals.
b) Reaching number eleven in December 1979, the song was the only track to be released as a single from their acclaimed London Calling album. ] cite web
url=http://wc02.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=33:lvse4j672w4e
last=Guarisco
first=Donald A.
title=London Calling - The Clash - Song Review
accessdate=2008-01-15
publisher=allmusic.com ]

Writing and recording

The song was written by Joe Strummer and Mick Jones. The title alludes to the BBC World Service's station identification: "This is London calling ...", that was used during World War II, often in broadcasts to occupied countries.cite web
url=http://www.songfacts.com/detail.php?id=2527
title=London Calling by The Clash Songfacts
accessdate=2007-12-31
format=PHP
publisher=songfacts.com ]

The lyrics reflect the concern felt by Strummer about world events with the reference to "a nuclear error" to the incident at Three Mile Island, which occurred earlier in 1979. Joe Strummer has said: "We felt that we were struggling about to slip down a slope or something, grasping with our fingernails. And there was no one there to help us."

The line "London is drowning" / "And I live by the river" comes from concerns that if the River Thames flooded, most of central London would drown, something that led to the construction of the Thames Barrier. Strummer's concern for social violence is evident through the lines "we ain't got no swing/ except for the ring of that truncheon thing". This is perhaps a reference to the London riots at the time. Social criticism also features through references to the effects of casual drug taking: "we ain't got no high / except for that one with the yellowy eyes".

The lyrics also reflect desperation of the band's situation in 1979 struggling with high debt, without management and arguing with their record label over whether the "London Calling" album should be a single or double album. The lines referring to "now don't look to us" / "All that phoney Beatlemania has bitten the dust" reflects the concerns of the band over its situation after the punk rock boom in England in 1977 had ended. While many took the line as a slam against the Beatles, another interpretation, offered at the time the song was released, suggested that this line referred not to the Beatles, but to the Broadway production, "Beatlemania," which advertised itself as "Not the Beatles, But an Incredible Simulation." Hence, the line castigated late 1970s culture for its lack of substance, such as consuming "phoney Beatlemania," essentially a simulated, rather than actual, experience.

Musically, the song is far removed from their earlier style of frenzied punk rock I-IV-V-I chord progressions, as best exemplified on songs like "Career Opportunities" and "I'm So Bored with the USA". The song is in a minor key — something The Clash had rarely used before — and the inherent dirge-like, apocalyptic feel is intensified by Topper Headon's martial drumming without backbeat, in perfect synchrony with staccato guitar chords; Paul Simonon's haunting and pulsating bass line; the group's deliberate, mid-tempo pace; and Strummer's icy lyrics and baleful delivery. Strummer's wolf-like howls or perhaps Rooster-like crows, during the instrumental break, further fuel the atmosphere of desolation and paranoia implied throughout the song.Or|date=February 2008 Like many of the tracks on "London Calling" — including "The Card Cheat", "Revolution Rock", and "Jimmy Jazz" — the song doesn't end by resolving strongly to the tonic or fading out, as most rock and roll songs do. Instead, it breaks down eerily, with Joe Strummer's cryptic last words "I never felt so much a-like..." echoing over Pete Townshend-inspired Morse code feedback (the characters spelling out S-O-S).

"London Calling" was recorded at Wessex Studios located in a former church in Highbury in North London. This studio had already proved to be a popular location with The Sex Pistols, The Pretenders and the Tom Robinson band. The single was produced by Guy Stevens and engineered by Bill Price.

Reissues

The single has several issues, all with different covers. Four are from 1979 (catalog number: 8087; S CBS 8087; 128087; S CBS 8087). In 1988 was released a special limited edition box set containing three tracks, "London Calling" in the side one, "Brand New Cadillac" and "Rudie Can't Fail" in the side two, a poster and two badges (catalog number: CLASH B2). Two were released by CBS Records in 1991 (catalog number: 656946; 31-656946-22) both with "Brand New Cadillac" in the B-side, the second one has an additional track in the side two "Return to Brixton (Jeremy Healy 7" Remix)(see the table below). [cite web
url=http://rateyourmusic.com/artist/the_clash#Single
title=Albums by The Clash - Rate Your Music
accessdate=2008-01-15
publisher=rateyourmusic.com ]

Notes

References

*
*
*
*
*
*