- London Calling is the third studio album by English punk rock band The Clash. It was released in the United Kingdom on 14 December 1979 by CBS Records, and in the United States in January 1980 by Epic Records.[1] London Calling is a post-punk album that incorporates a range of styles, including punk, reggae, rockabilly, ska, New Orleans R&B, pop, lounge jazz, and hard rock.
The album's subject matter included social displacement, unemployment, racial conflict, drug use, and the responsibilities of adulthood.[2] The album received unanimous acclaim and was ranked at number eight on Rolling Stone's list of The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time in 2003.[3] London Calling was a top ten album in the UK, and its lead single "London Calling" was a top 20 single.[4] It has sold over five million copies worldwide,[3] and was certified platinum in the United States.[5]
isn't it though? It's such a fantastic album, all the way through. Even Train In Vain, right camarillobrillo? -It is definitely the most played-out of all the tracks on LC, but if you had heard it for the first time ever, right now... would you like it?
It's not a bad song. It's just a cigarette burn on an otherwise beautifully woven tapestry. It doesn't fit. It's an afterthought single crammed in at the last second. Not trying to be a snob about it. It's just a weak song at the end of a powerful album. Revolution Rock is a far superior swan song."Train in Vain" was added after the deal for The Clash to write a song for an NME flexi disc fell through, and as Mick Jones commented, "The real story on 'Train in Vain' is that originally we needed a song to give to the NME for a flexi disk that NME was going to do. And then it was decided that it didn't work out or decided the flexi disk didn't work out so we had this spare track we had done as a giveaway. So we put it on London Calling but there wasn't time because the sleeves were already done." The result of its late addition was that it was the only song without lyrics printed on the insert, and was not listed as a track, although its presence is announced as the title and position on the original vinyl record was scratched into the vinyl in the needle run-off area on the fourth side of the album.
I listened to this again recently for the first time in a long while, fantastic album.
Yes, it is definitely in my top 10 (I think). It's been a long time since we've done a top 10 albums. I'm going to do it right now. Post to follow. edit: I did Top 5 and it didn't make the cut... definitely top 10 though. Probably even top 5, but I'm not changing it.
Perfect album if you lose Train In Vain. I await everyone's pitchforks.