In Memory of Greatness

It's hard to believe that on this day four years ago, we lost one of the most important figures in rock'n roll history. Sure The Beatles matter. so does Elvis. But the only band that ever did "matter" was The Clash.

I still have this memory of being seventeen years old in the back seat of my parents' car...we're on our way to do some christmas shopping and my dad says to me "Hey Meg, who was the punk band that covered 'I Fought the Law'?" I responded, "The Clash, why do you want to know?" My dad said "I think somebody from that band died." I asked if he knew who it was and he didn't. (figures!) I thought to myself "Please don't let it be Joe. Let it be Mick or someone else in the band." I'll be honest, I'm not much of a Mick Jones fan... sure big audio dynamite is cool, but Joe Strummer is cooler.

When I got home from christmas shopping that afternoon, I turned on the TV to CNN and it was confirmed that Joe died of a heart attack. I cried. My mother thought I was being melodramatic, but she never grew up listening to The Clash and didn't understand the possibility of a Clash reunion. (Since the Smiths are never going to reunite, my hopes were for a Clash reunion!) My parents now try to be hip and claim that they listened to The Clash back in the early 80s, which cracks me up very much, because I know that they didn't listen to them until I started listening.

To say the least Christmas 2002 was a blue one. I couldn't believe that one of my heroes had died. Losing Joey Ramon was tough as it was, but losing Joe Strummer was even worse.

To make things even more difficult, we lost him right before the Iraq war. I still wonder what sort of music he would have made during the times of the Iraq war. If The Clash had reunited, what would have happened? It's hard to tell. I have a feeling Mr. Strummer would have given Blair and Bush a serious piece of his mind.

The Clash was one of those bands that got me into punk rock when I was 10 or 11 years old. For me, my idea of punk at the age of 10 was The Clash, Sex Pistols and The Ramones. I remember hearing "London Calling" when I was in the 6th grade and it changed my life. Punk rock and the whole d.i.y. asthetic to make possitive change in the world is what saved my life and turned me towards being an activist and being politically active. I have always looked up to Joe Strummer because he wrote clever, passionate songs and had the guts to say things that not many people had the guts to say.

Even though Mr. Strummer is gone, we still have the music thank god! Not to mention, his passion for humanity and music is still around. This video for his cover of "Redemption Songs" sums it up I think.



Now don't mind me, but I'll be decorating my family's christmas tree while blasting London Calling very loudly.

PS- This past summer when I got my new golden retriver puppy, I named him Rudy after the ska reference and two of my favorite songs "A Message to You Rudy" by Dandy Livingstone (later covered by the Specials) and "Rudy Can't Fail" by The Clash. His full registered name with the AKC is Rudy Vennett Strummer. (and yes I call him Rude boy sometimes)