Review Summary: Only half a recovery.
A Decade of Punk: The Clash in Six Chapters
An Account Dedicated to the Genius of Joe Strummer
Chapter V: The Clash Fail To Fully Recover
Taking a look at the career of The Clash up to the early 1980’s, they made it quite far, starting out as raw London punks, eventually moving on to create what is regarded as one of the greatest albums of all time by many, only to afterwards create an extremely inconsistent album that yet managed to be lauded by almost everyone. After
London Calling and
Sandinista! however, it was time to partly halt the experiments. 1982’s
Combat Rock maintains the habit of incorporating a variety of genres into the band’s sound, but is much more straightforward, and often seen as the band’s most commercial effort. This is not difficult to see why. Hit singles
Should I Stay or Should I Go and
Rock the Casbah are still recognizable today, the former having been used in many forms of media. It is often the song that The Clash are associated with by people who know only so little about the band, and what they actually were all about.
And thankfully,
Combat Rock had been cut down to only a single disc (or LP at its time), a great relief after the double and triple album, respectively, that came before it. That doesn’t mean it doesn’t share
Sandinista!’s inconsistency issue. In fact, in some ways, or perhaps better said, songs, it marks the same territory. The second half is especially a letdown, its material never really getting off the ground. Take
Atom Tan, on which the boys sound rather doubtful. At first, it seems like it is going to become a rehash of their early punk sound, but then nothing happens. There are no strong hooks, and there is no power. The atmospheric, jazzy almost-instrumental
Sean Flynn borrows from younger experiences, but really brings nothing new to the table either. Then there is an guest appearance: beat poet
Allen Ginsberg lends his voice on
Ghetto Defendant, but to say that it contributes heavily, or that it brings the song up to a somewhat better level is far from the truth. Even the often appreciated
Overpowered By Funk isn’t all that great, and basically consistent of, you guess it, funk jamming all the way through. It’s got no decent groove, and it just doesn’t fit as well as it should, which sums up what makes too much on
Combat Rock a disappointment.
Ironically, what saves the day are the more commercial songs, found mainly on the first half of
Combat Rock. Arguably the best effort is
Rock the Casbah, which builds on a dance tune. The song is very catchy, and while it may indeed sound commercialized, it shows at the same time that the formula could still yield its result: it’s yet another genre The Clash works with, it’s yet another winning moment for the band.
Should I Stay or Should I Go does nothing more than is implied by the name: pounding, catchy arena rock. A great song, but undoubtedly one of the most overrated moments in the band’s much greater catalogue.
Another highlight is the very political opener
Know Your Rights, supported by a strongly bouncing rhythm. Strummer highlights the song with his lyrics, sarcastically delivering critique on poor people’s rights, naming for example the right to free speech (as long as you’re not dumb enough to actually use it).
Straight to Hell is quite a different matter, and while it probably conjures up the image of something loud and rebellious, nothing is less true about it. It is the single moment where
Combat Rock relies largely on atmosphere and does not let down. As repetitive guitar and drums set the mood, it is really, and not the first time, that Strummer’s vocals, disjointed but effective, make it all worth the while. Finally,
Car Jamming is another one of many fine reggae efforts on the band’s part, and stands out because of its added spice of funk.
But of course, five great songs can’t save
Combat Rock. Very lucky the album is, because it doesn’t have horrible ‘songs’ to the likes of Sandinista!, or it would have suffered its very same fate, albeit in mini-form. The majority of the material just doesn’t get going well enough, and the classic line-up seemed like it began losing its charm in way too many places. It’s that kind of album that annoys you because of the potential it displays in many of its songs, but doesn’t spread it throughout its entirety. It is also the last passable Clash album, because the boys unfortunately never recovered from their bad start in the 80’s…
- Michael Geoffrey ‘Mick’ Jones ~ Guitars, Lead Vocals
- John Graham ‘Joe Strummer’ Mellor (R.I.P.) ~ Guitars, Backing Vocals
- Paul Gustave Simonon ~ Bass Guitar, Backing Vocals
- Nicholas Bowen ‘Topper’ Headon ~ Drums, Piano, Bass
Essential listening:
Know Your Rights
Should I Stay or Should I Go
Rock The Casbah
Straight to Hell
TO BE CONTINUED...
