NEW YORK CITY'S LOCAL PUNK BANDS  HONOR JOE STRUMMER

Where: The Continental , New York

When: February 8, 2003

Legendary punk rock icon Joe Strummer died on December 22, 2002.
He was only 50 years old.

The singer/songwriter/rhythm guitarist for the guttural, fiery anthemic band The Clash became a major force in music and an inspiration for legions of disenfranchised and voiceless youth. The band mixed punk/reggae/rockabilly/funk/ska/rap and heralded in a new era for music with a decidedly political stance (and with beats you could dance to) when they formedin 1976.

Strummer was the ripe old age of 23 at the time!

On Saturday February 8, a bunch of local NYC bands (16 in all were scheduled)came up out of the shadows to coalesce at New York City's punk music venue, The Continental, in order to pay sonic homage to Strummer and The Clash in the only way they knew how:

.........WITH  GUITARS!

When Joey Ramone (of THE Ramones) passed away earlier in 2002, Strummer was quoted as saying..... "Joey was the grandfather of punk".

Well, according to the hoards and masses who jammed and crammed themselves within The Continental's dark and pseudo-hallowed walls, Strummer (and The Clash) were the true originators. While a Clash retrospective video played continuously throughout, a larger than life photo of Strummer bedecked the stage to remind everyone who and what the evening was about. It could have been a somber event, but the punks would not let that happen.

February 8 was a night to blow out the upset, a time to shout to the rafters and hear some kick-ass, hard-ass rock the way it was meant to be played.

The crowd itself was a glowing testament to the wide appeal of Strummer and the Clash, coming in all shapes, sizes, ages and hues. Leather jackets, pink spiked hair, 70s retro and 21st century mod.....all there without a care. Whispers were overheard remarking on all the Snotty college punk kids in the audience, and asking Who does that old geyser think he is?.

Despite the ill-advised appearance of a spontaneous mosh pit (Some Advice: 3 guys a pit does NOT make!), unavoidable crowd rudeness, pushing and outright hostility (some anonymous dude grabbed my notepad and threatened something potentially bad might happen to me because I flipped my long braids in his face whilest I banged my head to the head banging beats.

GEESH!..........Sorry, pal, but-- Chill the Fuck Out!).

All in all the night was a huge success on many levels.

And as the night wore on, the crowd size increased and the air thickened with the smell of cigarettes, beer, bawdiness, and punk rock brashness. It become more and more apparent that Strummer and The Clash were exceedingly more relevant than even the most ardent fan could have ever surmised.

LOUD, FAST RULES!

Audience shenanigans aside, the stage was where the real action was.

While some political statements made their way through the bombastic riffs and   amp feedback ("We Dont Want Bush's War!"
"The Biggest Fucking Gang We Know Right Now is the US Govt"), and though some bands neglected to clearly announce their band name (let alone announce what songs they were doing  === which is a no-no when a journalist is in the crowd trying to jot down essential details!), the evening was all about the music.

Relegated to performing only 3 songs per set, the musicians were forced to put their best showing out there in the most succinct, shortest span of time:

Like the best punk bands do every night.

This made for awesomely intense renditions of Strummer/Clash songs, including

London Burning,   White Riot,   I'm So Bored with the USA,

Tommy Gun, Garageland,  Remote Control,  I Fought The Law

Of special note- and in no particular order-:

èCharm School doing a scandalously muscular Should I Stay or Should I Go

 èDetox Darlings frontwoman Jenna belting out the same number moments later, while the guitarist's beret made me think Big Audio Dynamite had just been resurrected right before me eyes

 èNapalm Stars high-kicking, fuzz-guitar infused set and the heartfelt performance   of an original composition, scribed two days following Strummer's passing

èThe Bahamas ska-flavored/horn-aplenty Revolution Rock, proving that the lineage goes on and on..(cool shades, fellas!)

èThe Hypertonics providing their own unique twist on Strummer/Clash standards, making these songs their own and pumping up the early evening crowd with humor (they also grabbed two dudes from the audience to sing-along on stage=nice touch!)

èBeauty School Dropouts' meaningful and sweat-inducing set that included  the number, "What's My Name" and had the crowd shouting along to their own soon-to-be-released " I Dont Want To Do What I Dont Want To Do "   (come on everybody... sing along! You know you really want to!) 

èAnd SammyTown Jones (fea. PlasticEaters singer RobDaly on guest vocals) was powerfully invigorating as one of the last bands to take the stage, delivering rousing interpretations of  White Riot  and Capitol Radio (by this late hour, I was a complete mess! Totally rocked out!)

In the end, the night turned out to be a true tribute for a fallen hero.                   

Feb. 8, 2003 was not a night about loss nor was it a night to mourn Joe Strummer. It was instead an earnest vindication and celebration of his life and spirit: 

And a sincere tribute to the legacy of music he gave to us all.

a Roxanne Blanford exclusive

to learn  more about these bands and others, just contact me!