Stealing all transmissions
Subtitle: a secret history of the Clash
By: Randal Doane ; foreword by Barry "The Baker" Auguste
Contributors: Auguste, Barry the Baker, writer of accompanying material
Publisher: PM Press
Published: 2014
Language: eng
Number of pages: 160
ISBN-13: 9781629630298
Subjects: Rock music; Analysis, appreciation; Clash (Musical group); History and criticism; Punk rock music
Other titles: Secret history of the Clash
Description: Stealing All Transmissions is a love story. It's the story of how the Clash fell in love with America and how America loved them back. The romance began in full in 1977, when select rock journalists and deejays aided the band's quest to depose the rock of indolence that dominated American airwaves. This history situates the Clash amid the cultural skirmishes of the 1970s and culminates with their September 1979 performance at the Palladium in New York City. This concert was broadcast live on WNEW, and it concluded with Paul Simonon treating his Fender bass like a woodcutter's ax. This performance produced one of the most exhilarating Clash bootleg recordings, and the photo of Simonon's outburst that graced the cover of the London Calling LP was recently deemed the greatest rock 'n' roll photograph of all time. The book represents a distinctive take on the history of punk, for no other book gives proper attention to the forces of free-form radio, long-form rock journalism, or Clash bootleg recordings, many of which are now widely available on the web. This story, which takes its title from the 1981 single Radio Clash, includes original interviews with key figures from the New York punk scene.
Notes: Includes bibliographical references and index.
Table of contents: title: Foreword. Everybody hold on tight!; title: Prelude. Paul Simonon wields a mighty ax; title: Revolt into style : new sounds in New York and London; title: From Sgt. Pepper's to Born to run : the rise of free-form radio; title: 1977 : clamor, exposure, and camraderie; title: The good, the bad, and the ugly; title: Rebel waltz with the general, and free-form faces the music; title: London calls, New York answers; title: Clash in Hitsville/WPIX's train in vain; title: Afterword. All that is solid melts into air.