The Clash
Black Market Clash

THE REVIEW

<< Usually Joe would sit at a typewriter and I would sit across from him. Once he had written something, he passed me the paper and I would come up with a melody. When the first line was done, he would pass me another script.>> (Mick Jones)

What prompts me to write a few words about this record is simply a matter of affection combined with an appreciation for those less well-known works which nevertheless include tracks of certain value that, with the times being what they are, might have only seen the light of day in some celebratory box set of what was once a golden career. The career of The Clash, which began in the second half of the '70s, had already been marked by those first three chapters of a discography that in the years to come would continue to offer much both qualitatively and quantitatively.

The mini collection in question (remember we're talking about a 10" re-released the following year as a 12") presents us with b-sides and rare tracks, necessary outlets for a band great in its own way and deserving to be known not just for the headline albums on which its entire popularity depended. The dynamism of "Capital Radio One" and the urgency of "The Prisoner" forge ahead, following the impression of the debut, where tight rhythm and nervous lyrics sealed their winning combination. It is hard to remain indifferent to the purely underground reference of "City of the Dead" and to "Pressure Drop" from the repertoire of the Jamaican Toots and the Maytals (who recorded it in 1969), a reggae with rock features capable of saying much about the youthful musical influences of Strummer & Co.. Incorrigible teenagers inspirations also surface in a respectful if not indispensable version of "Time is Tight" by Booker T and the M.G.'s, showcasing considerable maturity with the biting irony of "Cheat" that takes us back to the English debut but was left out of the US version.

An irrepressible passion of Joe Strummer and Mick Jones for the state of liberation they found in Caribbean sounds, which led them to politically side with the Jamaican community settled in London. Meanwhile, the interest in these sounds led the two musicians to a proliferation of tracks with that magical offbeat rhythm, which are worthily represented here like the enchanting "Armagideon Time" also present in an instrumental version under the title "Justice Tonight/Kick It Over" or "Bankrobber/Robber Dub" edited here as a single track without penalizing the fluid continuity.

The vinyl in question is the first release of the '80s, positioning itself as a trait d'union between that manifesto named "London Calling" (December 1979) and the unmissable "Sandinista" (December 1980), not with the presumption of being considered indispensable but resulting more as a stimulating compendium of those tracks that over the years might have remained a treasure for a few aficionados. Tracks less raw but just as restless and edgy, capable of always keeping alive the flame of a burning legend in the making.