Search - Clash :: Give Em Enough Rope

Clash's only disappointment, but still good

08/20/1999

(4 out of 5 stars)

"When all the other major British punk bands died in 1978 and were replaced by tepid New Wave, CBS (the Clash's label) tried to push the band into the US market whether they liked it or not. They shipped the band to New York and set them up with Sandy Pearlman, a metal producer w/ a commercial track record.The result is not nearly as good as it could have been. First of all, Pearlman hated Strummer's voice and buried it disastrously low in the mix. Secondly, he packed the sound with distortion, booming drums, and overdubbing, making all the songs sound similar and muddying the impact of the Clash's considerable guitar fury. Thirdly, the lyrics Strummer wrote are histrionic, cranky and soaked in melodrama: it looks unkindly on British punk, their own career and certainly the world at large.The situation the Clash were in was not a pleasant one -- they were being accused of selling out and of being phonies, and being pushed into a clean sound they loathed. The music falls apart under the war between producer and band.That said, some of the songs are fantastic, and would have been truly world-class with better production: "Safe European Home" is a great mixed paean to Kingston, "Tommy Gun" is a chilling take on terrorism, "Drug Stabbing Time" has an undeniable rock groove and "Stay Free" is a world-class romantic history of the band by Jones along the lines of "I'm Not Down" on London Calling.All in all, worth a listen (especially at only $9.50) but it's a bit of a letdown."

The clash fall just short of perfection

09/09/1999

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Many of the tracks on "Give 'Em Enough Rope" are true punk classics. Tommy Gun, Drug-Stabbing Time, English Civil War, and Safe European Homes are all powerful commentary on 1970s politics, not to mention powerful, intelligent songs. Julie's in the Drug Squad is an entertaining change of pace and Stay Free, despite how close it gets to being poppy (if it had a chorus, I think it could have been a hit), is possibly my favorite Clash song. However, I must say that the rest of the album, while still good, is not as explosive as the songs previously mentioned. Those remaining songs lack that special something that makes me sit up and take notice of most Clash songs. But, in a time when record companies were molding "punk" to be the next big moneymaking deal, the Clash showed how strong and rebellious punk could be."