The Clash formed in 1976 and was part of the first wave of British punk. "London Calling" was from their third album of the same name released in 1979. I can't say that I was a big punk rock fan, but The Clash was a band that had to be taken seriously by anyone who was a fan of rock 'n' roll, especially in the mid to late 1970s when radio was pretty much taken over by soft rock and disco. I wasn't a big concert goer but I actually saw The Clash perform at the University of Penn's Ice Skating Rink in 1982. This would have been while they were touring to promote, what was their biggest selling album, Combat Rock. It was a strange concert. The stage was at one end of the rink. There was a floor placed over the ice for the audience. There was no seating. Even though this was in August, it was freezing cold in the place. At 31 years of age, I'm pretty sure I was the oldest person in the place. The opening act was a very forgettable reggae band. I remember one of the people with me saying, after their 10th or so song, "Is this the only song they know?" But The Clash was great. I can probably attribute at least some of the tinnitus that I suffer from today from that concert. Turn up your computer speakers and listen.
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