(4.5 stars) You gotta hear this one...
finulanu | Here, there, and everywhere | 04/26/2008
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Pick this up right away if you're a fan. It's an archive release taken from four different years and three entirely different periods of the group's career that still has the coherency of old-school live albums that are devoted to the preservation of a single concert. See, no matter what phase they were at in their career, the Clash were vital and energetic and enthusiastic and just so alive. Everything on this album is taken at a slightly faster pace than on the original versions, and while these songs for the most part sound a lot like their counterparts, somehow tracks like "What's My Name", "Complete Control", "Know Your Rights", and "Capital Radio One" sound better live than in the studio. Hell, maybe "(White Man In) Hammersmith Palais" does. I'm not sure. I know that song is totally awesome, though. And so is "The Guns of Brixton", though I think this version is disappointing compared to the original. The hypercharged "London Calling" is slightly disappointing, too, but by no fault of its own. It's just that... well, have you heard the original? I think this version of "Train in Vain" is just bad, which is a shame because I love the original. It's too disco for me. Now, if they made it funk, I'd probably like it, because I love funk and hate disco. Oh, and speaking of funk, they play "The Magnificent Seven", but I'm not a fan of this version. I don't know why, either. I just don't. Despite those minor complaints, though, the sheer energy of this thing alone is enough to make it an essential purchase for any Clash fan, and besides, what's two weak songs out of seventeen? There are also a couple songs here that you can't get anywhere else, other than on Black Market Clash or Super Black Market Clash. I get the two confused. "City of the Dead" is a cool, hyper-energetic punk rocker, and "Armagideon Time" is a similarly excellent reggae song that sounds like it was a Sandinista! outtake. At least this arrangement does. Is that Mikey Dread (the reggae singer) on Sandinista! on vocals? He's got a sweeeet accent, whoever he is. Really fits the evil mood of the song. This thing is so cool I don't even know how to describe it..."