The Clash

This is a top ten album for me, no question. I love every track. It's iconic and genre-defining. I've got nothing else. It's just everything I want from a punk album ... of from any album really.

One of the greatest punk albums ever created. Also one of the best debuts ever. I’ve listened to this record countless times and it really makes me feel like I’m in London in the 70s. Joe Strummer’s snarling, angry voice perfectly compliments Mick Jones sweet melodic vocals and the playing is the right balance of melodically interesting and aggressive. No secret that the Clash are one of my favorite bands. Favorite song(s): Police and Thieves, Janie Jones, London’s Burning Least favorite song: Deny, I guess

Yankee detectives are always on TV. The killers in America work seven days a week. When I saw the Clash, the second song they played was I'm So Bored With The USA. Etched in my memory is Joe Strummer singing while one hand pressed against his cheekbone and temple as if the state of things his lyrics described was so sickening it was giving him a headache. He couldn't play guitar with one hand covering his face but a Clash concert was never about the guitar playing was it? Listen to the bass playing on Hate And War. Not too shabby given Paul Simonon didn't know how to play the instrument when they got to the studio. The cover versions in this and the US version of the album give some hints of where the band was musically with Police and Thieves being a Reggae song and I Fought the Law being Rockabilly / Country. Yeah their later albums are arguably better as they embraced ska, et al, understood their instruments more fully and had more than 4K to spend recording and producing. A quieter version of Career Opportunities was redone on a later album, (Sandinista?) but I still prefer the raw version. This raw version of The Clash has a place in The Clash's top shelf and played a lead role in shifting music from the ugly rut it was in. A bonus for those who like this LP is that you will never have to make that grunting noise we all make when we first hear elevator music versions of songs we like.

Absolutely essential album if you are a punk fan. Takes the lyricism, attitude, and social conscience of the Sex Pistols and ups the musicianship by about 400%. Top tracks for me include Janie Jones, I'm so Bored of the USA, and White Riot but there's not a dud on here. This will never be out of my listening rotation.

One in the punk rock firmament. How could I not love the shit out of this album. The A side just comes out with so much panache and energy, it's infectious. The B side is equally solid. Love the hell out of it.

I remember being 18 and sitting in the back of a Volkswagen beetle, a bit drunk and possibly a bit high, driving at night through the back roads of the NSW southern highlands with some new friends that I did not actually know very well. I had very little idea of where I actually was or even where we were going. “What’s this?” I asked of the music blasting out of the tape player., “The Clash” came the reply. “OK” I thought and settled back in to listen. I think it was London Calling (“Piece of piss, next one’s a triple”), which is still my favourite Clash album. That said, I was never fanatical about The Clash. There are many people that I respect and admire who definitely bought into the cult of The Clash (The Best Live Band in The World! The Last Gang in Town! The Only Band That Matters! Rebels With A Cause), but I never did. I tried, believe me. I wanted to fall in love with Joe Strummer, last true rock star, real champion of the people, prophet of the oppressed, speaker of truth to power, and his gang of genuine punk rockers I felt somewhat uncool and déclassé for not being hip to their jive. I certainly felt it during that car ride. And then I read Marcus Gray’s Last Gang in Town: The Story and Myth of the Clash, which was eye-opening. It embraced the complexity of The Clash. They were all those things that people lauded them for, but also not. Joe Strummer was a champion of the real people, but also a bandwagon-jumper, elite public-school boy and the son of diplomat. The band was equally motivated by shagging models and doing coke in the back of the limo as they were in tearing down capitalism (maaaaan!). I found it easier to understand why I had always been a little suspicious of their role as saviours of rock and socialist champions (unwarranted? unwanted even?). They were a chaotic and ambitious band, with limited and slippery grasp on the political realities they were trying to express. But it was reasonably heartfelt, most of the time, but just the well-intentioned and poorly considered proclamations of mere musicians. In the words of Scroobius Pip: “The Clash? Just a band”. But on this record, there is a genuine anger. Strummer might not have grown up in the tower blocks of South London, but he channels it brilliantly. He may have been jumping onto the punk bandwagon, but he did so quickly and powerfully that he helped establish the blueprint for English punk rock. The lyrics are striking and incisive, generally avoided polemic, there are some cracking tunes, and the whole thing rocks hard. There were more inventive albums to follow, but this is the one where they aren’t distracted by every idea that flits by. It’s focused and intense and energizing to listen to. Janie Jones, I’m So Bored with the USA, White Riot, Career Opportunities and the cover of Police & Thieves are all highlights, but there aren‘t many dead spots on the record. They were a tight live band and could smash it out in the studio. I think Strummer matured as he aged, and regretted losing sight of the vision that they laid out on this first album. I was genuinely moved by the way Marcus Gray reports him as looking back on the Clash’s career and saying that ‘we blew it’. I was going to give this three stars, but have managed to convince myself that this is four star record.

Classic and essential. Intelligent, snarky punk.

They have some good songs but they're not on here, and it's all just british yelling over mediocre rock imo

Simply nothing here that I enjoyed, even a little bit

Clashic album

One of the most important bands in rock & roll.

The only album that matters

The only band that matters. If I was told I could only listen to one album for the rest of my life it could well be this one

This is an outstanding album, really one of the best debut albums I’ve ever heard. It’s a pretty perfect punk album, better than practically anything their peers would produce. The Clash is the best that genre ever produced, but you can already hear them straining against the borders of punk. The lyrics are smarter, and there’s a pop sensibility (their secret weapon) that’s undeniable here. The band is surprisingly melodic when they feel like it, which elevates these songs to another level entirely. Don’t get me wrong, they’re as angry, irreverent, rowdy and pissy as the rest of them. Their energy is insane. They burn through 35 minutes of songs like a freaking brush fire. The album hasn’t aged in 40+ years really. The youth, urgency, the raw passion, all still as vividly on display as ever. And it’s still incredibly listenable, a true classic. The Clash has one album that’s even better than this one (you all know it), but no matter, this one is an easy 5. Fave Songs: Janie Jones, Police & Thieves, Remote Control, Garageland, I'm So Bored with the USA

An apathetic vocalist backed by dull music.

Greatest album ever made

Classic album, first albums by the Clash, Jam, Damned and Pistols all 5 star efforts.

Probably the best "classic" punk album. Just behind London Calling and maybe Sandinista for me. 9-10/10 1. Remote Control 2. Police & Thieves 3. London's Burning

I wasn’t a fan of The Clash when I first heard their early singles. Strummer did not thrill me as a front man like Rotten did. I was besotted with The Sex Pistols & then pretty quickly moved onto new wave bands like Costello & The Attractions & later The Pretenders. I pretty much ignored The Damned & The Clash. Until the release of London Calling, released in the last month of the 70’s, when, all of a sudden the band started doing tunes, not so much just anthems. All of a sudden they seemed like a different band. Then in the early 80’s I became friendly with young blokes who adored the band, & Strummer particularly, as much for their politics as for that early sound. And that’s when I heard this album a lot & started to appreciate its highlights. And there are plenty. Janie Jones kicks the album off at lightning speed. I’m So Bored With The U.S.A. seems to use a riff very similar to the opening of The Pistols’ Pretty Vacant(Glen Matlock always said it was inspired by hearing ABBA’s S.O.S) which was recorded a month before the Clash song. White Riot is probably the standout. It was also their first single, based on Strummer’s recollections of the famous Notting Hill riots of 1976. It moves at a furious pace. I love the lyrics to Career Opportunities & the song about condoms, Protex Blue. And Garageland is a good closer. And, of course I’ll be forever grateful for The Clash introducing me to Junior Murvin’s Police & Thieves, one of the 70’s greatest reggae tunes. The version here doesn’t compare with the original, but the content fits so well with the rest of the album.

I like the Clash

Estamos en una época de crisis. Puntualmente, en Latinoamérica. Y más específicamente, en Argentina. Y siempre ante las crisis, el arte ha planteado respuestas. El punk fue en su momento eso: una vanguardia, una crítica desde un sonido nuevo, una estética que abrazaba a la clase trabajadora, a los invisibilizados por el sistema. Añoro que, como fue en su momento con el género y con The Clash, esta época permita las condiciones para un neo-punk, una fusión musical o, quién te dice, un género nuevo. Ah, y éste disco es un caño.

This is one of the greatest rock albums of all time. All killer, no filler.

Of course I know these legendary chaps. In reading about this album, I saw that a different version was released in the U.S. I listened to all the extra songs, and it turns out many of my favorite tracks were only on the US release. Guess it pays to be American sometimes. "Clash City Rockers" is a classic favorite for me, due in no small part to a Tony Hawk game. Overall, I think these are some solid punksters. The album feels unfocused, but that's punk for you. I'm looking forward to hearing better work from these guys, I'm sure London Calling is on this list. Favorite tracks: Clash City Rockers, Complete Control, I Fought the Law, What's My Name. Album art: Black and white band photo, nothing special. They look like cool guys though. I love the jagged bordering and the font for the band/album title. 3.5/5

Pretty good album. Still finding the vocal melodies. Good guitar tones, but the drums sound is lack luster. Multiple interesting bass lines.

This is the music I don't mind listening to between the music I want to listen to.

Really thought I was going to hate this album but it ended up being an okay listen. Although I'm not discovering my favorite new artists with this app regularly, I do like that it's changing some of my preconceived notions I have about some artists (for good and bad in some cases)

Keine emotionale Beziehung zur Musik

Shite!! I now have headache!!

The debut record and already the first masterpiece by The Clash (a.k.a. the only band that matters).

I really like the singers voice

An excellent album.

A fantastic debut. Much different from other punk of the day. A faster blueprint of what’s to come

cool

This is chock full of bangers: I'm So Bored of the USA, White Riot, Hate and War, London's Burning, Career Opportunities. Some less notable tracks as well, but the highs are very high.

Everything you’d want from a punk album

Love it. Classic British punk

Yeah

Uuh! Noni sitä hyvää brittipunkkia. Tai siis tää bändihän on räkärokkista jossa on ska-poljentoa aika tiukasti. Mut tää eka levy on kyl viel aika raakaa ilmaisua. Seuravilla levyillä perkeleesti enemmän sit jamaikaa. Tykkään kyl todella paljon. Jotenki tarpeeks lyhyytä ja selkeetä ja silti on hyvää melodiaa ja kunnon paatosta. Luultavasti yksi eniten muhun vaikuttaneita punk-julkaisuja. Top kybään menee täs kategorias. 5/5

Really cool album more straight punk rock than their later releases.

I've just about wanked myself dry. What a fuckin' masterpiece. Let's 'av it large.

Another great classic-one of the foundations of punk. Reminds me to mention the punk history bit Fred Armisen did on Jimmy Fallon. Definitely worth a watch.

Brilliant attitude, all snarl and anger, punks that could play and with something to say. An impactful and powerful debut, quite extraordinary as it shook up the music scene. And London’s Burning is one of the finest tracks to ever come out of the UK.

nigg

Punk en estado puro. Muchas veces escuchado

I don't normally fuck with Brit Punk. but The Clash and this album Fuck.

bueno

banger.

Hard to find any faults, a pretty perfect debut. Perhaps only a 9 out of 10 for their somewhat clodhoppy reggae cover.

Another no brainer 5 star album.

Best of 70's. Instant clasic. To ten records for me

Best of the best. Incredible musicians and Joe Strummer's political convictions. The very best punk has to offer.

Somehow, I'd never listened to this. Really liked it; raw punk, but with cerebral credibility.

It's the best.

Punk music done right, I wanna be in a grimy venue drinking a PBR tower.

Njihov najbolji album meni

I'm a sucker for the Clash.

Álbum de estreia, mas já bastante elogiado. Nunca tinha escolhido o álbum pra ouvir de verdade. Me surpreendi. Lendo as letras, vi que é uma banda bastante rebelde e com um estilo de rock bem alternativo. Quero conhecer mais.

Classic Punk. Timeless.

Love the clash and their grit

The best of the early punk albums.

que banda maravillosa que es the clash no puedo creer, me disfruté el álbum de principio a fin totalmente

First wave punk GOATs.

Fantastic debut album from "the only band that matters". The songs are simple and catchy; they haven't yet reached the peak of their creative powers that they would achieve with London Calling.

Nice and raw.

i just can't stay in my seat listening to this. Epic. Foundational. A must have in everyone's collection

A choppy, snarling snapshot of the frustrations of working class kids. Nervy, vital energy and charging, relentless rhythms.

My first time hearing all these songs. Makes me want to riot or something.

Another I loved before this, but tried to listen to 'properly' again when it came up. Sounda like it was recorded fast and cheap (which it was), and only hints at the variety of styles and influences they would explore on later records. Some of these songs are all time punk classics, and it's the debut album by one of my favourite bands, so it's got to be another 6 star album!

Nice!

Rarely does a day go by that at least one song by The Clash doesn't show up in my day to day. This was their first album released in the UK, but the second released in North America, if memory serves. This album is a lot more raw and a lot less polished than later releases, but even this early album contains a good number of their classic songs that they'll be forever known for. Songs of protest will always catch my attention and my interest. So yeah, no brainer I'm down with The Clash.

One of the best debut albums of a rock band — a classic. 45 years later and its energy hasn't dampened at all. It still rocks. The "Noo-whooa-ohh!" vocals that come in at 1:44 on "Janie Jones"?! So good. Listening to this for the first time in years, I paid more attention to the social and political lyrics that mostly went over my head when I was a teenager. This is actually my first time listening to the UK version of the album. I've always listened to the US version. (Both CDs were options at Best Buy when I bought it in high school and I had to make a decision.) The US version cuts a few songs and adds a few more so it was cool to hear some of these tracks for the first time. On the other hand, a few of my favorites are missing from the UK version. "I Fought the Law," "(White Man) In Hammersmith Palais," and "Jail Guitar Doors" are all incredible songs. I didn't realize they were singles that weren’t recorded at the same time as the original album.

An easy 5. Always preferred London Calling but difficult to compare to as they're so different.

Own the album. Own the shirt. Totally my thing

top 10 album for me. My favorite Clash album even more so than London Calling. One classic song after another. I have both the British version as well as the American version I slightly prefer the US version for its inclusion of Complete Control and Clash City Rockers, though the sequencing is better on the British version because of the sequencing. But these are quibles, either versioin is a 5 star album in my books

Great album

8 fucking stars. This album is a sonic attack on assholes and sitting still.

Aww brilliant end to end but I’m biased. From the machine gun drumming of Janie Jones to the snotty chants of Garageland it’s such a great debut while signposting the great things this band was to become. It’s not London Calling - and it’s not comparable because it’s a completely different gente - this is the Clash at their most punk - but every ratatat beat and every riff and every bass line and every Strummer bark and Jones yap is glorious.

This is the album that made punk real. Gave it substance, weight, import. Showed what a great punk band could be. I go back and forth ad to which one is the definitive version ; the blue US version or the green original British version. The US version has more great songs...White Man in Hammersmith Palais, Comete Control, Jail Guitar Doors, Clash City Rockers, but the British version opens with Janie Jones, one of the greatest album openers of all time. Whatever version floats your boat there's no denying that what we have here is a 5 star album

5 all day long

One of the easiest 5 stars I’ll give. A great punk album, every song is amazing.

Fabuloso

Punk rock warlords. Classic debut album. It’s not perfect, but it was clear from the beginning that the Clash was so much more than just a punk band. 5 stars.

The first punk album i fell in love with - absolute perfection

This was an easy listen, love the clash!

El millor disc del punk, i un dels grans discos de la història. Allunyats de la broma que representaven els Pistols, tot aquí és música. Cançons perfectes, diferents estils, lletres compromeses. Encara haurien d'evolucionar a encara millor, però ja seria en un altre estil. El punk rock primitiu però poderós i intel.ligent del seu disc debut no ha estat mai igualat

Excellent record, never gets boring.

Rating: 9/10 Best songs: Janie Jones, What’s my name, Cheat

All time classic

Loads of raw energy.

Very Cool!!!

Key punk debut album. Best Tracks: I'm So Bored With the U.S.A., White Riot, Career Opportunities,

Cool songs!

just my style

Easiest 5 ever, probably one of the top 10 albums of all time

Obviously a seminal album

So great... a favourite, knew the songs, but had never listened to the album together before.

The brilliant simplicity of the entire album, belies the complexity of it's appeal. The sound is visceral, the lyrics have depth and a purpose, and it is all exactly what it needs to be without any fluff or pretense.

an old favorite

Great punk rock!

Raw and catchy! Police & Thieves is one of my favorite tracks. It has that playing in the garage and jamming out feel.