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Monday, January 08, 2007

What's my name? Joe Strummer


I recently wrote a blog about an early clash concert I attended in Belfast during my mid teens and decided on a follow up regarding the main man Joe Strummer. It was the year 1989 and the venue the bacchanal on Clairemont Mesa blvd. A smaller club that is now a pc store or something like that as it was located in one of those monstrous strip malls. Not a very flattering ending for this club considering some of the great shows that graced its stage. Devo, Alien Sex Fiend, Flock of Sea Gulls, Killing Joke and those are some of what I just saw there. Many more classic acts such as Ray Charles and Joe Cocker, I am sure many more could give input here. But one of the most memorable was of course Joe Strummer. The Modus operandi for me in those days was to buy a bottle of liquor in the store next to the club (now a Cingular outlet) and head across the street to the Burger King (the only place still there) order a coke, small fry and make a stiff drink for sporting a good buzz before the concert. It was on this occasion that this ritual paid off and not just in the obvious monetary terms. While sipping our beverages (Jeff W was with me) Joe Strummer walked in for a pre-show meal. At this time I believe he was claiming to be a vegetarian so I was a little surprised to see him with a whopper hanging out of his mouth as I asked him for his autograph. We exchanged some minor conversation mainly if he had been banned from playing Belfast because he wore a H Block tee shirt (maybe a blog about that someday) he replied with something to the effect of “not really” signed my paper and I let him be. I put that autograph somewhere so safe I never found it again, this is one of life’s regrets, if I only I had that now I would frame it. When he got up to leave we asked him if he was about to go on (in other words do we need to chug) and he replied "na lads take your time it will be a while" . If you have ever been to this club you would know that it would be quite hard to be more than 20 feet from the stage. Joe Strummer a true punk legend almost on par with the likes of Bowie or such in such an intimate place as this. The clash could fill quite sizable venues in their heydays. Anyway he was on tour to promote a solo album "Earthquake Weather”. Not a bad album and you could certainly feel his clash roots. But it was just one album as a solo artist so what did you think he had to fill the rest of the set with? You got it classic Clash numbers. I was unbelievably presented with the opportunity to see Joe Strummer perform all early clash songs standing six feet away from him. Protex blue, what's my name, garage land and London calling just to tickle you a little. Just 4 years previous I saw him at the back of a large hall too intimidated to make my way to the front, to now shaking his hand and watching him play 6 feet away. The night did not go without a glitch. After the third song the power went off to the entire grid in the surrounding area and we ended up standing outside for almost 2 hours. By 12:30 am it still was not back on and I was sure it was going to be canceled. But just before 1am the power was back and he was back playing for another 1 1/2. Truly magical… Of note the place was not even sold out. I suppose this was a good thing for me, but quite surprising. I guess most people have heard of the clash but know little of who the singer is… Anyway enjoy the video




Type rest of the post here

3 comments:

Elsa Martinez said...

The imagery of running into (at Burger King, no less) not only a teenage idol of yours back in Ireland but also a virtual punk legend is SO COOL!!!!

asterion said...

I was at that show. It was on Tuesday Night November 21st. I am right now looking at my old ticket stub and the little Joe Strummer black "lapel Pin" of Joe that I bought at the show, the silhouette of him from the earthquake weather cover. I try to tell people about the Bacchanal and how it was so "tight". I remember the folks spilling out into the night after the lights went out and some fights going on one fella got a beer bottle cracked over his skull and it broke not the bottle. I remember them playing Ride your Donkey, man I was six feet off the ground that whole show.Joe and the band were friggin great.I have read that Eddie Vedder was there that night.

AndyNawabi said...

I was also at that show, and yes, the lights went out and everyone had to step out of the club. I was standing literally a few feet from Joe Strummer on the stage when this all went down, and all of a sudden, lights out. I remember everyone scrambling to see what was happening and at that moment decided I would jump on the stage and grab a piece of memorabilia. Well, I just found that piece of memorabilia today, tucked away in the Earthquake Weather album in my storage, I had Joe Strummers set list that he kept taped to the mic stand.

I remember grabbing the set list and jumping straight off the stage and back into the crowd where everyone started making their way to the front door at the request of the club. I folded it up, stuffed it in my jacket, and went out front with everyone, incidentally meeting Joe Strummer and his band mates out front. Eventually they restored power and everyone got to go back in to finish the show. The funny thing was, when they started to play again, Joe had no idea what had happened to his set list!