On Tue, 13 Apr 1999, Jerry Curry wrote:
> The Clash did absolutely nothing for me. I NEVER understood the critic's
> fascination with this group and I absolutely never understood my cohort's
> slavish devotion to them either. They always sounded like a second-rate
> bar band to me. Always liked that they wore their politics on their
> sleeve but I found their relative degree of "punkness" to be rather tame.
> So, they failed me as a pop band and from the other side, as a punk
> band. Not musical enough and too safe & staid, at the same time.
> I won't even mention the vocal quality.......ugh!
Ya know, a few years ago I would've given Curry a good thrashing for the
above remarks, but I have to admit their music has not aged well. Yeah,
their politics were generally admirable, but smart politics don't
necessary equate to good songs -- most of Strummer's lyrics now sound
unbearably awkward and painfully obvious to these ears, and later Clash
albums like Sandinista and Combat Rock are unlistenable. As for the Clash
vs. Jam matchup, I'm pretty indifferent nowadays -- for a band who loved
soul so much, The Jam were pretty damn soulless. Of all the early British
punk bands, I think the Pistols have aged the best.--don
