I can’t believe Joe Strummer is dead. The Ramones were never a big deal for me, but The Clash . Music has been awful lately, and I find myself re-buying all the old vinyl I have buried in my closet. Last Christmas it was the UK version of The Clash, I bought one for my brother-in-law and had to pick up a copy for myself as well. Crazy coincidences – I was listening to Sandinista! when I picked up the latest (at the time) BNL CD. I popped it in and right there, on In The Car, is Steve talking about making out in the basement while taping the first three sides of Sandinista!.

I first heard The Clash because I was working in a supermarket during high school and someone played Lost in the Supermarket for me. I was hooked, starting with London Calling and working my way backwards and then forwards when Combat Rock came out.

I put on Sandinista! this morning while finishing up my Christmas presents for this year and let it play, not skipping over the silly songs like it is so easy to do with a CD, but letting it play just like I did back when I had it on vinyl and you couldn’t skip. It’s amazing how lyrics stay in your head, waiting to be retrieved after 20 years of being parked out on the back lot.