The Clash-Live at Shea Stadium

Sony Legacy
2008

This show was recorded back on October 13th, 1982, when the Clash opened for the Who at New York's Shea Stadium on a rainy day as stated towards the beginning of the show. The Clash were riding on the success of their “Combat Rock” album plus the singles "Rock The Casbah" and "Should I Stay Or Should I Go." History tells us that ultimately the band were not far from some changes that would start to really shake-up and eventually lead to this band’s end. However you certainly wouldn’t know that from hearing this show. The Clash were very much a huge part of the punk rock movement that rose up in the mid-1970’s. By the early 1980’s music was rapidly changing once again and the Clash seemed to be at the forefront of these changes as well. Their music was a little smoother, but their attitude and dedication to their fans were still there plus they seemed to have gotten even tighter in their approach. There seems to almost be a sense of urgency to their approach here and I don’t know if that was due to the weather, anticipation or maybe it was ignited by the initial cat calls from the WHO fans. Whatever the motivation, the band seems spurred on from the get go as they plunge straight into their set. They never really let up and they crank out “London Calling”, “Police on my back”, “Magnificent Seven” and more with a relentless amount of energy. Some of their songs were more ambitious than others, but they seem handle everything they set their mind to and they seemed to get better as the night went along. This show has long been bootlegged and sought by collectors. Joe Strummer reportedly discovered these tapes during a house move so now we get an official release which allows us enjoy to enjoy the ferocity, diversity and instantly catchy approach of the Clash.