As weve already established, the punk movement was rife with contradiction. And The Clash, despite being my favourite band of all time, provided us with many, many inconsistencies. Following on from The Pistols ousting of Glen Matlock due to his Beatles fixation, The Clashs paradoxical philosophy was glaringly visible in the lyrics to White Riot B-side, 1977. Despite the angry proclamation that there was no place for Elvis, Beatles or the Rolling Stones in 1977, Mick Jones guitar work on this track and their debut album, was, in fact, covered in the six-string hallmarks of a certain Keith Richards. The bands love of Mr Presley also later became evident in their slick visual reference to his self-titled record on the cover of their 1979 double LP, London Calling. But if that wasnt enough, the bands charisma-exuding front man, Joe Strummer, was another major contradiction in terms. Born John Mellor as the son of a Foreign Service diplomat, Strummer received a public school education and could easily be described as comfortably middle class. But, in his pre-Clash years, he re-branded himself Woody Mellor in homage to his political and musical hero, Woody Guthrie, a move which began his rejection of his fathers ideals and betrayed his fierce left-wing beliefs. After years of being known to everybody as Woody, Mellor settled on Joe Strummer as his musical stage name. This crude surname referred to his rudimentary rhythm guitar skills whilst Joe presumably reflected his desire to voice the disillusioned opinions and everyday realities of the average Joe. For a movement that was supposedly incited by tonnes of disaffected working-class teens, The Clash leaders position at punks forefront saw him eternally haunted by his privileged background and the critics who questioned his legitimacy because of it.
A 22 year old English Literature graduate from Birmingham. I am passionate about music, literature and football, in particular, my beloved Aston Villa. Lover of words and consumer of art, music is the very air that I breathe.
