The Clash on the Clash: Interviews and Encounters (14) (Musicians in Their Own Words) - Hardcover

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 1613737459 ISBN 13: 9781613737453

Publisher: Chicago Review Press, 2017

Synopsis

The Clash thought they could change the world. They never did, but they created some of the greatest rock music of all time in the attempt.

Clash interviews were mesmerizing. Infused with the messianic spirit of punk, the Clash engaged with the press like no rock group before or since, treating interviews almost as addresses to the nation. Their pronouncements were welcomed but were hardly uncritically reported. The Clash’s back pages are voluminous, crackle with controversy, and constitute a snapshot of a uniquely thoughtful and fractious period in modern history. Included in this compendium are the Clash’s encounters with the most brilliant music writers of their time, including Lester Bangs, Nick Kent, Mikal Gilmore, Chris Salewicz, Charles Shaar Murray, Mick Farren, Kris Needs, and Lenny Kaye.

Whether it be their audience with the (mainly) simpatico likes of punk fanzine Sniffin’ Glue, their testy encounters with the correspondents of pious UK weeklies like New Musical Express, Melody Maker, and Sounds, or their friendlier but no less eyebrow-raising conversations with US periodicals like Creem and Rolling Stone, the Clash consistently created copy that lived up to their sobriquet “The Only Band That Matters.”

About this title

From the Author:

Sean Egan is an author and journalist who has interviewed members of the Clash, Fleetwood Mac, the Beach Boys, the Beatles, the Kinks, Led Zeppelin, the Rolling Stones, the Sex Pistols, the Velvet Underground, the Who, and many others. He is the author or editor of a number of books, including Bowie on Bowie, Keith Richards on Keith Richards, Fleetwood Mac on Fleetwood Mac, The Who on the Who, and The Clash: The Only Band That Mattered.

Review:

“The Clash on The Clash returns to the heady days of ’77, and confirms that the only English band that mattered made music, politics, and commerce matter like few others. Sean Egan’s excellent collection of interviews ranges from the early days to the aftermath, from the dubious recollections of original guitarist Keith Levene to expanded versions of Egan’s own 21st century interviews with the band members. Lester Bangs’s 16,000-word love letter to the Clash is a real gem. Guttersnipes rejoice!” —Randal Doane, author of Stealing All Transmissions: A Secret History of The Clash


“A bright garland of well-selected interviews strung out across the saw-toothed time-line of one of the most truthful—as well as one of the most self-deceptive—bands of all time. . . . What you have assembled here is the true and authentic voice of Radio Clash.” —Mike Laye, Clash photographer


"Throughout, Egan’s excellent annotations provide context and structure to the interviews and articles. Fans of music from the original punk rock era will enjoy this title."—Library Journal

About this edition

• Publisher: Chicago Review Press
• Publication date: 2017
• ISBN 10: 1613737459
• ISBN 13: 9781613737453
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 384
• Editor: Egan Sean