London Calling is really what immortalized The Clash. Even if they grew to be as great a punk rock act, at best they would have been remembered as a Ramones without it. I personally love their other works, but yeah, it's all London Calling for me. Then perhaps s/t followed by Sandinista.

Lets change it to Best Clash album other then London Calling.

I'll take Sandinista! by a nose over the debut.

I'm surprised by the lack of votes for Sardinista!

But the debut is what got me into punk and music all together. One of the angriest albums ever that isn't terrible (any metal band can make an angry album).

London Calling is a very, very strong album and I could easily see it being voted the best. London Calling I always considered an "Art/Punk", still sounding quite angry but the whole album was a diverse and intelligent record. Clampdown and the title track are my favorites. Both are in my top 25 albums. :)

I'm surprised at the lack of votes for the debut album. For me, it's one of the few times when a band's most influential album is also its best.

Listen to the vanilla tapes as they show how one idea molded into another and how song ideas flow and change and become something else.
Great recordings.
All the Clash's best work was done within a few short months in Vanilla studios.
I am not knocking their later stuff where they experimented even with rap but it aint for me.
I agree with the Clash album too.
Just London Calling is iconic with so many great songs and energy.

London Calling for me as well.

agree completely. . as much as i love the debut and give em' enough rope . .. i just think that objectively london calling is their best. . . it's a perfect album. . and it IS one of the best albums of all time . . . EASILY!

same here

Only one vote for 'Give Em Enough Rope'?

I voted "London Calling", But their second album is very close behind. "Safe European Home" is probably my favorite Clash song.

Sitting here in my safe BOSTON home
don' wanna go back there again!


What about stay free?

They wrote that song about Jamaca when they kept getting death threats and had to keep giving money to the local rasta's.
They thought it was all going to be ganga and sun then they heard about how the stones had to pay off local rastas all day long and they were locked in their studio too scared to go out.
By the way how much do forum mods get paid?

Not much.

*lights cigar*

What the owner Stelios Lopodopulous wants is people like me who know so much about music!

When I was debating MacClaren the forum had it's record number of viewers ever ever ever!

But I gotta tell you Stelious before you hire me I don't work cheap!!!!


Listen to the vanilla tapes as they merge well known songs and make new ones from others.

Who?

Everybody loves a circus.

that's right!
They come to be entertained and learn from masterminds like me.
People like to find out new things and have their minds opened up don't they?
If I can supply them a little fun along the way then what a great way for them to learn.
Thank you for your good words.
I appreciate your good words of support and I am sure Stelious can get away from his other projects and interests and appoint me high moderator quite soon.
I will introduce a catholic music section then you'll know what a circus it will be.

I joke of course.

Fut the wuck?

They may also come and be entertained by Alfred's off the cuff flippant but yet humourous in his own profane way too!
It takes all types, the serious, the flippant and the entertaining knowlegable writers such as myself.

Choose life right track.
Stay away from those joyriders and hoodies.
Choose life like you are doing RT. Keep it up.
Choose a toaster and a pair of shoes and a video rental and a nice winter coat to watch it in!

"If we can make people laugh we're willling to be the world's clowns because we think it is a bit serious right now and a bit intellectual"
John lennon.

Keep up that spirit RT and keep choosing life.
Go to the Working mans club and drink and play bingo, choose life.

I am definitely in the minority here, but I need to say SANDINISTA. For starters, that record was extremely brave, not only from the content of the album (nearly every musical style you can imagine, including Dub, Reggae, Classical), plus the fact that the band dared release a 3 record set, of completely original material.

Yes, LONDON CALLING has some of their most memorable moments, but SANDINISTA really allowed the band to mature beyond anything they had previously done.

London Calling is a stone-cold masterpiece. Clash at their best.

Fair enough your point for being open minded to new approaches in a bands talents but MAN you can't beat London Calling. Not a bad song on the album.
If this were a horse race we'd be only taking bets on each way.
I would put their first album second.
Man zekethefreak you'd freak me out to honestly prefer samba rap to Brand new Cadilac!
And Hatefull.
And Right profile....and and
Fair play to you to evoke debate but man you are out on a limb....so far out you must be on something and I don't mean the stuff they sell in camden market stalls that contains guarana or gingseng my freaky friend.
More tea vicar
one lump or two
ah ha ha

London Calling is the type of Album that just makes you not depressed no matter how depressed you are.
When I was in halls of residence I used to play rudie and hatefull full blast and noone complained at all because they loved the songs.
The songs are like positive and make you happy and brew the coffee and take on the world.
If I were a doctor I wouldn't prescribe anti depressants I would prescribe coffe and london calling honestly!
It makes you want to do things instead of moping.
I love four horsemen the best.
Makes me think of this twat where I used to live. Thats the price you gotta pay....
brand new cadilac too.
she said
Balls to your daddy....she aint coming back to me
That album is so good.
It simply pisses from a great height on pretty much everything else.
I liked it at 13 and still love it today as much.

That's a hard one. I'm going to lean towards Sandinista! London Calling got me into the band, but Sandinista was really different. It has a lot of different styles, but still represents a Punk attitude.

Haha London Calling and The Beach Boys are the strongest antidepressents known to man...or beast.

I say London Calling because of its diversity and branching off into other genres of music, but its actuakky not possible to rate your fav. Clash album. All of then are excellent in their own right! ever check out Joe Strummer and The Mescalleros? (i reccomend you do if you already havnt)

i say the london calling album because they use every instrument in that album but they already do that in most of their albums

I am finding myself being drawn more and more to Sandinista. A huge sprawling lovely mess.

i never got round to buying that, but tbh the concept of the album most appeals to me at the moment. Straight cop. Radio Clash ftw :D

i listened to Combat Rock recently (first time in about five years probably) ... not good. I actually used to think that song witht the Taxi Driver monologue was the shizzle.. :(

'Straight To Hell' is still a fantastic track though.

straight to hell was doing alot actually... i love the effects on it. That captain beefheart song aswell. big lol's everytime.

*goes to d/l sandinista*

This is maybe the wrong forum, as only their first two albums were punk.

Anyway, London Calling for me.

London Calling had punk songs on it, but yeah, there wasn't a whole lot after that really had much punk about it.

Straight To Hell is a really good song.

I like Combat Rock... but then again, I am a flaming Clash fanboy. I'll never like it as much as Give 'Em Enough Rope but I think the amount of experimentation is just about right. The first half is fairly strong, the second half is a bit dry and Death is a Star is a pretty cool way to close the album IMO. I'll never understand all the the criticism this collects... especially the accusations of selling out.

Interesting choice for a fave Clash album, I think if I had come to 'Give Em' first it would have been my favourite too.

As for the accusations of the Clash selling out I think I properly outgrew the Clash when I found out Joe Strummer was a private schoolboy faking the accent. And generally the lack of coherence to the left wing rhetoric he spouted... That Tom Snyder interview didn't do them any favours either.

Didn't the sellout accusations mainly come from their musically narrow-minded peers though?
The other major punk movers stayed within the confines of punk philosophy and imploded, whereas the Clash were always more politically minded (oh they loved that communist-chic) and demanded a larger audience.

Don't get me wrong though I think the Clash have been instrumental in at least opening the eyes of millions with their ham-fisted politicizing (and great music, duh) down the decades...
But maybe the purists are angry that they had a questionable image-change in the 80's, if they had carried on who knows where the greasy pinko-rocker/military-chic look could have taken them... You would hope at least a dub album and perhaps a full-blown Funkadelic freakout?

The Clash will always get nuff respec from me still, but more for nostalgic reasons than anything else.

I still haven't downloaded 'Sandinista!' yet, so this is subject to change.

Without looking in this thread, I already knew London Calling would blow everything out of the water. And I was right, and it deserves too. One of the greatest of all time.

The Clash ;)

I'm not big on Punk music, but I like The Clash...

''London Calling'' is probably their best album, followed by their self-titled debut album.

Both albums contain the most essential Clash tunes.

London Calling definitely. One of my all time favorites. Self-titled is brilliant as well, but overall I don't think it's close to London Calling.

Other than 4 or 5 tracks, Give 'Em Enough Rope is a weak album in my opinion. Sandinista! had plenty of weak tracks, but it was long enough that it had enough amazing ones to balance that. Combat Rock is pretty good as well.

Cut the Crap...well, that was plain terrible. However, listen to the demos. 10x better than the actual release with the stupid synths and stadium chants.

London Cumming.

London Calling for me. It's an essential album of such rare quality

Brilliant