Anyone seen that new Clash CD. "Essential Clash" I think it's called. Just
another Clash comp with nothing new offered. They claim it has an
alternative version of "Clash City Rockers", but I heard it at a Tower
listening post and it sounded like the original version. Good thing about
this comp is that it seems to have been compiled by a true Clash fan and not
someone who tossed a bunch of their biggest hits together. It's heavy with
their great older songs (although they should have included the edgy "What's
My Name" and omitted "Hate and War", a song the Clash never liked and didn't
want on the first album") and their great later songs (like "Ghetto
Deffendant" and "Atom Tan"). I still think Magnificent Seven and Rock the
Casbah are throwaway disco pop songs they made for the money but the younger
Clash fans seem to like them. At least they didn't include the absolutely
useless "Know Your Rights".

I bought a homemade CD called a year or two ago called "Clash Live Rarities"
that's filled with cool cover songs they did in concert like "Blitzgreig
Bop" and "Harder They Come" as well as their song that never made it on
their first album, something with "The Flies" in the title. And it's a nice
treat to hear the original version of "I'm So Bored With the USA" called
"I'm So Bored With You", even though dear Joe does as good a job of
remembering those lyrics as he did remembering the lyrics to USA. I'd have
to think this CD covers their entire career, as early as before they got a
record deal all the way forward to them inviting Allan Ginsberg up on stage
to recite some words behind their music. Of course the problem is the whole
thing sounds as if it were record by some Radio Shack cassette recorder.
Voices from the audience are heard and some songs are cut off. Just really
rag-tag and home made with horrible sound, but a must for any insanely
obsessed fan like moi. :) Look for it on Ebay if you're interested. That's
where I found mine.

Take care!

Les