This is the final "big" album from the 70s I am going to review and its a fitting one. I often feel like the 70s is that special-ED kid that everyone has to be nice to. "Oh, really? Tony, got his inspiration from that drawing you did?" and "Wow, you actually got 1 melody that I could put on my cellphone" are the sort of things you say to a 70s album. It's a time of so much experimentation, social conflict, and evolution in the studio--and, needless to say, major suckage. Dub is an interesting sound, but who the fuck wants to listen to it for longer than 4 minutes? Same goes for prog, krautrock, and early electronica. So here we are at the most beloved pop album of the era and, not so surprisingly, it can barely stack up against 2007's best. I don't feel the excitement of the time that appeals to people so much that they give this album "bonus points", but its hard to deny the sheer pop pleasure of many of these songs. It's filled with damn near classic material, but its still that 70s album that can't get to the finish line. I can look away as it stumbles on "Hateful" and "Wrong 'Em Boyo" but most of the 2nd half is disposable. I can't tell you what "Four Horsemen" sounds like other than boring. So I sum up the era with this: Even its masterpiece is a flawed classic. So let's tell our kids that the 70s sucked harder then the 80s and they might just be pleasantly surprised with many of these albums, instead of frustratingly let down. 70s albums are essentially homework that help you understand how we got to where we are, and, most importantly, to be grateful that we never have to go back.
By: Lonely_panda
Bursting at the seams with creative energy, the Clash's stunning 1979 double album more than made up for the artistic and commercial disappointment of its predecessor, 1978's tried-too-hard Give 'Em Enough Rope. With ex-Mott the Hoople producer Guy Stevens harnessing their sound as never before, the band yielded what proved to be the best work of their career. Bouncing from hard rock (the apocalyptic vision of the title track) to rockabilly ("Brand New Cadillac") to reggae ("Rudy Can't Fail") to pop (the Top 40 hit "Train in Vain"), the Clash knocked down all musical walls and, in the process, ended the argument over punk's viability worldwide.
A1 London Calling
A2 Brand New Cadillac
A3 Jimmy Jazz
A4 Hateful
A5 Rudie Can't Fail
B1 Spanish Bombs
B2 The Right Profile
B3 Lost In The Supermarket
B4 Clampdown
B5 The Guns Of Brixton
C1 Wrong 'Em Boyo
C2 Death Or Glory
C3 Koka Kola
C4 The Card Cheat
D1 Lover's Rock
D2 Four Horsemen
D3 I'm Not Down
D4 Revolution Rock
D5 Train In Vain
Inc We Are Vinyl download card.
We Are Vinyl hype sticker on shrink.
Colombia / Sony Music
Remastered 180 Gram vinyl