The Clash : NPR

From The Archives: The Clash Talks 'Sandinista!'

The Clash's 1980 album Sandinista! is perhaps the most politically charged in the band's discography. Courtesy of the artist hide caption

toggle caption

Courtesy of the artist

From The Archives: The Clash Talks 'Sandinista!'

February 7, 2018 • To commemorate International Clash Day, NPR revisits a 1981 archival interview with Joe Strummer and Paul Simonon.

From The Archives: Celebrate International Clash Day With A 1981 Clash Interview

11:40

Guest DJ Lily Allen

February 22, 2007 • British singer Lily Allen writes infectious, bouncing pop music with wickedly biting lyrics. Lily Allen chats with All Songs Considered host Bob Boilen and shares some of her favorite music.

Guest DJ Lily Allen

Listen

Download
Embed <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/15960733/15960736" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">

The Clash, Lorraine Hunt Lieberson, Laura Veirs

October 5, 2004 • Guitarist, actor and author Guy Davis; A radio tale from bluesman Dave Alvin; Seattle singer/songwriter Laura Veirs; Bach cantatas from Lorraine Lieberson and more.

The Clash, Lorraine Hunt Lieberson, Laura Veirs

Only Available in Archive Formats.

Tijuana's Daughter: Guest DJ Ceci Bastida

Mexican singer Ceci Bastida. Courtesy of the artist hide caption

toggle caption

Courtesy of the artist

Tijuana's Daughter: Guest DJ Ceci Bastida

August 6, 2015 • The prolific musician joins Alt.Latino to discuss her life and times with Tijuana No! and Julieta Venegas, as well as her solo career.

Tijuana's Daughter: Guest DJ Ceci Bastida

Listen · 40:50 40:50

Download
Embed <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/423355654/429783998" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">

Novalima blends Afro-Peruvian folk music with electronic beats. Courtesy of the artist hide caption

toggle caption

Courtesy of the artist

Nonstop Grooves With Guest DJ Novalima

July 2, 2015 • On Alt.Latino, the band spins music and discusses mixing electronic beats with Afro-Peruvian folk.

Nonstop Grooves With Guest DJ Novalima

Listen · 36:10 36:10

Download
Embed <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/419482663/419490889" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">

The Clash. Courtesy of the artist hide caption

toggle caption

Courtesy of the artist

XPN

October 11, 2013 • The group's surviving members visit WXPN's studios to discuss the development and evolution of their image. The former bandmates also discuss the recent release of Sound System, a 12-disc box set.

The Clash On World Cafe

17:10

Embed <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/232046017/231950980" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">

Joe Strummer performs with his solo project, The Latino Rockabilly War, in 1989. The Clash frontman died of heart failure in December 2002. Mark Baker/Sony Music Archive/Getty Images hide caption

toggle caption

Mark Baker/Sony Music Archive/Getty Images

Music Articles

Joe Strummer's Life After Death

December 20, 2012 • They were called "the only band that matters." In the late 1970s and early '80s, The Clash pioneered punk rock — then went on to expand its possibilities in witty songs that critiqued the world. Strummer, the group's lead singer and songwriter, died 10 years ago this week.

Joe Strummer's Life After Death

Listen · 7:20 7:20

Download
Embed <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/167651279/167684005" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
Transcript

World Cafe

Carbon/Silicon: Clash Guitarist Returns

XPN

June 26, 2008 • The punk rock legends in Carbon/Silicon — Mick Jones from The Clash and Tony James from Generation X — have been offering their garage-rock inspired music for free online long before Radiohead's pay-what-you-wish release. Hear an acoustic session with the band.

Carbon/Silicon: Clash Guitarist Returns

Listen

Download
Embed <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/18189749/91872220" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">

Music

A 'Redemption Song' for The Clash's Frontman

July 14, 2007 • The Clash was sometimes called "the only band that mattered." They mashed reggae, R&B, and rockabilly into classic three-chord punk rock. Chris Salewicz's Redemption Song: The Ballad of Joe Strummer offers an extensive biography into the band's enigmatic frontman.

A 'Redemption Song' for The Clash's Frontman

Listen

Download
Embed <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/11927463/11960688" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
Transcript

Review

Music Articles

Music Review: 'Streetcore' from Joe Strummer

November 12, 2003 • The posthumous album from Joe Strummer, a leader of The Clash, reflects many elements of his career, with a mix of rock and reggae influences. Strummer died last December at age 50, and members of his final band, the Mescaleros, helped to finish Streetcore. Chris Nickson has a review.

Music Review: 'Streetcore' from Joe Strummer

Listen

Download
Embed <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/1503693/1503694" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">

Music Articles

The Clash

March 11, 2003 • Reporter Ashley Kahn pays tribute to the band The Clash, inducted Monday night into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. The band's first recordings were 25 years ago. The honor is all the more poignant since bandleader Joe Strummer died this past December.

The Clash

Listen

Download
Embed <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/1188589/1188590" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">

Music Articles

Rock historian Ed Ward continues his look at "The Clash"

Fresh Air

June 30, 2000 • Rock historian Ed Ward continues his look at "The Clash."

Rock historian Ed Ward continues his look at "The Clash"

Only Available in Archive Formats.

Music Articles

Rock historian Ed Ward

Fresh Air

June 29, 2000 • Rock historian Ed Ward begins his two-part series on the British punk band, "The Clash."

Rock historian Ed Ward

Only Available in Archive Formats.

Music Articles

Tribute to Punk Rocker Joe Strummer

December 23, 2002 • Joe Strummer, singer, guitarist and songwriter for the highly influential British punk rock band The Clash, died Sunday at the age of 50. The Clash is commonly credited with adding a more political and musical dimension to the 70s and 80s punk rock movement.

Tribute to Punk Rocker Joe Strummer

Only Available in Archive Formats.

Real Media

Music Articles

'Clash' Frontman Joe Strummer Dies

December 23, 2002 • British punk rocker and The Clash frontman Joe Strummer dies at his farmhouse at age 50. Strummer came of age in a hard-living milieu where people died young, but no one expected it in his case. NPR's Neda Ulaby reports.

'Clash' Frontman Joe Strummer Dies

Listen · 3:36 3:36

Download
Embed <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/889094/889095" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">

'London Calling,' Repurposed As A Tourism Jingle

Courtesy of the artist

The Record

'London Calling,' Repurposed As A Tourism Jingle

July 30, 2011 • The apocalyptic punk song is Britain's unlikely soundtrack for early coverage of the 2012 Olympics.

'London Calling,' Repurposed As A Tourism Jingle

Listen · 4:12 4:12

Download
Embed <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/138828051/138849352" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
Transcript

Unimedia/Getty Images

All Songs Considered

You've Never Heard 'London Calling'?!

February 11, 2011 • It's hard to imagine what it was like to hear groundbreaking albums for the first time, when they were released 30 or 40 years ago. In this recurring series, we try to capture that wide-eyed awe by having our interns review some of the classics they've never heard before.

Accessibility links

From The Archives: Celebrate International Clash Day With A 1981 Clash Interview

Guest DJ Lily Allen

The Clash, Lorraine Hunt Lieberson, Laura Veirs

Tijuana's Daughter: Guest DJ Ceci Bastida

Nonstop Grooves With Guest DJ Novalima

XPN

The Clash On World Cafe

Joe Strummer's Life After Death

XPN

Carbon/Silicon: Clash Guitarist Returns

A 'Redemption Song' for The Clash's Frontman

Review

Music Review: 'Streetcore' from Joe Strummer

The Clash

Fresh Air

Rock historian Ed Ward continues his look at "The Clash"

Fresh Air

Rock historian Ed Ward

Tribute to Punk Rocker Joe Strummer

'Clash' Frontman Joe Strummer Dies

'London Calling,' Repurposed As A Tourism Jingle