The Clash at The New York Palladium

The Clash and New York City were made for each other, Joe, Mick, Paul and Topper were brash, outrageous and furiously creative with thoughtful politically driven lyrics, the common theme being anti- establishment and looking at life through the eyes of the working class and how life really is for most of us, combined with their look and intense shows wjth Joe and Mick’s twin guitar attack, Pauls bass and Topper’s powerful drumming, the rebellious youth of Manhattan were crying out for something to cling onto and The Clash were definitely It.

Manhattan In the late 70’s and early 80’s was not the bullshit world of big retailers and corporate bigwigs that it is today, It was a gritty, crime ridden borough that was not pleasant to say to say the least.

FEBRUARY 1979

The Clash rode into the east coast on their ‘Pearl Harbour’ tour and played their first of four gigs at the New York Palladium, a sprawling old theatre located on the corner of 14th Street and Third Avenue, It was well established by early ’79 as a venue for punk bands to excite the gig going people of NYC, so it was ideal for The Clash on their first tour of the USA to leave an impression across the pond and they didn’t disappoint, spurred on by a manic crowd which included several ‘A’ listers including Scorsese, Bowie and De niro, they stormed onto the stage with nervous excitement and ripped through their set with manic renditions of 1’st album tracks coupled with tracks from the ‘Rope’ LP which blew everybody away, the sweat drenched punters went home from the Palladium in awe at witnessing the power of The Clash.

SEPTEMBER 1979

Back In the USA after spending the summer months touring England promoting the forthcoming ‘London Calling’ album, the band were beginning to slightly move away from their ‘punk’ period and were bringing ska, reggae and other styles of music Into The Clash locker, the Strummer/Jones lyrical partnership was beginning to really shine and they were confident and ready for a big stint stateside on the ‘Take the fifth’ tour.

Seven dates in and they were back in Manhattan, originally penned in for one date at the Palladium, It sold out in hours so a second date was added for the following night which also sold out more or less straight away. NY media were announcing the arrival of England’s finest with huge coverage across TV and radio, especially WNEW FM.

The first show was a treat for the fans, favourite 1’st album tracks such as White Riot, Janie Jones, Garageland, Police And Thieves were still played with gusto and attitude, the new tracks were also aired with the same ferocity that endeared everybody to them.

The gig from 21/9/79 is without doubt the band’s most famous performance for several reasons, It was recorded live by WNEW, which was not lost on Strummer who made several comments about this, the best being “This is radio WSHIT coming from New York City!” It is widely available on vinyl and cd in lots of forms, the most interesting version being the complete set with radio announcements before, during and after the gig. Thankfully all versions have superb sound.

The gig itself was powerful and intense, Mick’s guitar is overpowering at times due to him using an FX box which does ruin things slightly, various moments throughout the set more than make up for this though, the opening sequence of Safe European home, I’m so bored with the USA and complete control without a breath being taken are truly stunning moments of rock n roll history. Being an all seater venue, the band were determined to get everybody off their seats to spur them on which wasn’t happening to their satisfaction and at the end of the gig Paul was so pissed off with this he smashed his bass on the stage which was captured on the camera of Pennie Smith stage side, this great shot was to become the ‘London Calling’ cover. The show was over and everybody loved it, not their best show by any means but still good and remembered fondly by Clash fans everywhere.

March 1980

1980 began with The Clash playing there U.K. leg of the ’16 tons’ tour taking in 40+ dates all over Britain, without a break they flew stateside for the American leg and early March saw them back in NYC for their fourth and final gig at the Palladium, several years on the road were now making them confident and more refined on stage, they were now a real force live, a true rock n roll band but not forgetting their punk roots.

London Calling L.P. was the soundtrack in many streetwise clothes and record shops, so once again the show sold out immediately and the punters at this gig saw and heard the beginning of a new era of the band as the majority of the setlist was from L.C.

A slower paced beginning at the gigs now saw subtle changes in the songs live was very exciting as Mick’s guitar licks and Topper’s experienced drumming were shining through. For some reason, New York always brought the best out in them and this show is no exception, tight and together, little banter between songs, just a pure Clash show that was paced till near the encores when they just eased up a gear and finished manically with Tommy Gun and White Riot, four gigs at the Palladium in just over a year saw a lot of musical changes in the band but it was all good and once again the punters were well satisfied