The Rise and Fall
of the Clash
Director:
Danny Garcia
Year: 2012
Rating: 5.0
From 1979 to 1982 The Clash made three of the greatest
albums in rock history - London Calling, Sandinista and Combat Rock - and
then fell apart. Nothing the individual band members were involved in after
that held a flame to those three albums. When I began watching this documentary
it hit me that their last real album (not including Cut the Crap without
Mick Jones) was over 35 years ago. How quickly time passes but also how well
these three albums have held up unlike so much of the other punk music being
made at the same time. I play Sandinista a lot and it always feels fresh,
innovative, edgy - so much better than what I hear today from groups. But
like most bands - other than perhaps the Rolling Stones and The Grateful
Dead - personal frictions and drugs drove the band apart - first the drummer
Topper Headon was asked to leave, then the main songwriter Mick Jones was
fired from his own band and suddenly - duh - they had no one who could write
a good song and they pulled the plug in 1985.
For me this documentary spent way too much time - about half the 90 minute
running time discussing the period after Jones was fired and there was no
more good music. And very little time on the Rise part of the title - nothing
about their backgrounds, how they came together, their first two lesser known
albums, their politics which is an essential part of their music, the rawness
and anger in the sound. It basically comprises of a bunch of people talking
about the personnel issues in the band and with their manager who was a complete
ass-wipe than talking about the music. And speaking of their music, there
is very little of it probably due to licensing costs but it seems silly to
have a documentary on them and barely play any of their songs. The only original
member who appears on camera to talk is Mick Jones - Strummer is of course
dead - but I assume the other two did not want to take part. Still what a
great band they were for those too few years.
