Search - Clash :: The Singles (CD version)

When something is complete and isn't complete

Anthony M. Kaczynski | Boston, MA United States | 11/21/2006

(3 out of 5 stars)

"I grew up on these singles; I had 85% of them in vinyl upon release, particularly the early ones. The excitement around a new Clash single was intense for me, and they always delivered the goods, so I won't argue the artistic merits of this stuff. It sounds phenomenal in this configuration, and pretty much always will. What I am completely disappointed in is the lack of detail in what basically is a coffee table edition (supposedly definitive) of these great singles. In the vinyl version of "The Cost of Living EP," Strummer goes on a great improv rant for about 30 seconds after "Capital Radio 2" over the backing track to "I Fought The Law," nattering on about how he is Eraserhead and he will rub you out, and then sums it up by screaming "this is the COST OF LIVING EP!!!!!" Where is it? "Capital Radio" peters out to a close, no Eraserhead, no final words from Joe, nothing but the deafening silence of feeling hosed by a multinational corporation. Small trifle, yes, but at this price???? I bought this thing for completeness, and complete control should have been the order of the day. Love the music though, it's absolutely forever. RIP, Mr. Strummer."

Not all available elsewhere

Charles King | U. of Nebraska at Omaha | 05/31/2007

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Not to be confused with the one-disc, 18 track collection "The Singles," this is a box set that collects the Clash's UK singles on 19 individual discs that are designed to look like black vinyl. Since it includes not just the original B-sides of the vinyl singles, but also alternate B-sides from releases in different markets, the total length and track listing is quite considerable, 67 tracks total. Since the ordering follows the UK singles releases, not the US ones, there are a few oddities that may seem a bit humorous. For example, "Train in Vain," one of the biggest US hits, is included here only as an alternate B-side to the "Bankrobber" single.



I shouldn't need to tell serious Clash fans that this set has a lot of fine material. Still, I should say that for anyone who is just looking for a career-retrospective of the Clash, you might find the CLASH ON BROADWAY box set, or even THE ESSENTIAL CLASH more user-friendly than the 19 disc format here. The real audience for this set is the Clash completist, who really wants to have the total recorded works of the Clash on CD.



It is true of course that some of the tracks are available elsewhere, and certain tracks may appear on as many as five other discs. Collectors can expect some duplication. Still, it is not true, as an earlier posting implied, that all of this is available elsewhere. I have tried to compile a list of what is distinctive about this set.



(1) The "Capital Radio EP" was a free vinyl giveaway distributed by New Musical Express magazine. It included an interview conducted by Tony Parsons on a moving train. A few minutes of this was included on the STORY OF THE CLASH compilation, but not the two part, 12 minute version included here. The instrumental "Listen" plays through part of the interview, but to hear it without the talk, you have to get SUPER BLACK MARKET CLASH.



(2) The live version of "London's Burning" from the "Remote Control" single was once released on CD on a disc called 1977 REVISITED: CRUCIAL MUSIC, but that has been out of print for years, so it is only currently available here.



(3) This set includes a pair of "dub" remixes of "Armagideon Time, "Justice Tonight" (running time: 4:09) and "Kick it Over" (4:44), presented as two separate tracks from different single releases. That is a little different from the combined "Justice Tonight/Kick it Over" track on SUPER BLACK MARKET CLASH (8: 53) and even more different from the earlier 7:00 version of "Justice Tonight/Kick it Over" on BLACK MARKET CLASH.



(4) "Rockers Galore...UK Tour" is a reworking of "Bankrobber" with Mikey Dread singing new lyrics about touring with the Clash. This is not the same track as "Robber Dub" on SUPER BLACK MARKET CLASH, which lacks the Dread vocal and lyrics.



(5) "Radio One" from the "Hitsville UK" single is a fun Mikey Dread composition with Dread on vocals. The lyrics complain about the lack of reggae music on the BBC.



(6) This set has two single re-edits of "The Magnificent Seven" from the 7" single (3:39) and the 12" single (4:30). Both of these are shorter than the version on the SANDINISTA album (5:29). The longer 12" version is available on the single-disc THE SINGLES CD, but the 7" version is only available on CD here.



(7) There are also two versions of the instrumental "The Magnificent Dance" from the 7" (3:35) and 12" (5:36) singles. The longer version is on SUPER BLACK MARKET CLASH, but the shorter one is only available on CD here.



(8) "Outside Broadcast" is a jaw-dropping variation of "This is Radio Clash" with mostly different lyrics that reference everything from "The Lion Sleeps Tonight" to "Lord of the Dance." Truly unique and a highlight of this set.



(9) "Radio 5" is a dub remix of "This is Radio Clash" with lots of rap style record scratching. It is more conventional than "Outside Broadcast," but worth a listen.



(10) "Long Time Jerk" from the "Rock the Casbah" single runs 5:08, almost twice as long as the version on SUPER BLACK MARKET CLASH (2:57).



(11) "Inoculated City" from the "Should I Stay or Should I Go Single" incorporates a radio commercial about toilets into the middle of the song. Either this is the original radio commercial that the "Flushco" company sued to have removed from the US release, or it is a substitute commercial that was only on the UK single. Either way, it adds a more satiric tone to the song than is found on the version on the US release of COMBAT ROCK



(12) "Straight to Hell" appears here in its short single version, running only 3:51. That is shorter than the version that appears on COMBAT ROCK (5:33) and the still longer version on CLASH ON BROADWAY (6: 50). I am not sure longer is better. I rather like the shortest version.



(13) and (14) The 12" single of "This is England" included two tracks that are only available on CD here, "Do it Now" and "Sex Mad Roar." I think these are better than several of the tracks that did appear on the CUT THE CRAP album.



Obviously, some of the above are only slight variations of familiar tracks, but there are also interesting rarities like "Outside Broadcast" and "Sex Mad Roar." The set goes a long way toward making all the previously uncollected Clash tracks available, though there are still a few exceptions. Around the time of the STORY OF THE CLASH release, the Clash put out a CD-single called "Back to Brixton" that contained three remixes of "The Guns of Brixton" that are not included here. Also, the discography of CLASH ON BROADWAY lists a B-Side called "Radio 6." If that is not a misprint for "Radio 5," then it is missing here.

"