Clash on Parole Tour
Supported by The Specials & Suicide

updated 12 Feb 2012 - new recording surfaced
updated Dec 2023 added mindless violence letter
updated Feb 2024 addd comments

Audio

A new recording has surfaced - details to follow.

Soundcheck - 04 Train Kept A-Rollin
(Johnny Burnette & the Rock & Roll Trio)

Set - 02 Tommy Gun

Sound quality

...a new tape has surfaced, complete set of the Clash show at Crawley leisure centre where Alan Vega got a punch in the face etc.. Skinheads rioted etc.......

it also includes part of the soundcheck including a complete version of "all night long" the Chuck Berry/T Bone Walker tune (i think) and the Jimmy Pursy rant at the end at the skins..... a very good recording.......fairly standard set list for the tour but really interesting for all the reasons stated.

Johnny Green says he trapped Micks fingers here

Johnny Green says he trapped Micks fingers here and that after a trip to the hospital they all headed for the next venue which was Southampton. A Riot of Our Own p96. (This must be the Crawley date as it is a full days ride from Dunfermaline).

Ticket

one of the scariest experiences of my life

mretrain - Re: Crawley July 1978

I was actually at this gig, and it was one of the scariest experiences of my life. I'd been at the Glasgow Apollo show a few days beforehand - probably the best I ever saw them play - & was hitchhiking down to Brighton to see some friends when the band (in Bernie's car with the CLA5H numberplate) passed me in a service station just outside Birmingham. Looked up where they were playing that night, saw it was Crawley which is kind of on the way to Brighton & made a detour.

It seemed to be the first time that skinheads made a major reappareance & there were little groups of them wandering through the hall all night randomly attacking people they didn't like the look of. Managed to avoid that at the gig & afterwards but having sneaked back to the station after the show was confronted by a large group of Teddy Boys also looking for a fight. Happy days..

Alan Vega was actually attacked on stage with a chain & had his nose broken; memory tells me that the ever-charming Jimmy Pursey hopped on stage & ranted to the effect of "He might be fucking shit but you don't have to break his fucking nose" but the tape may tell me different!

Blinding version of Police & Thieves/Blitzkreig Bop too...

A gig I won’t forget great music, and a lot of fighting

Keith Osborn - Clash on Parole

A gig I won’t forget great music, and a lot of fighting, managed to survive it by getting backstage. Anyone have any photos from that night

Clash on Parole Tonight is the 44th Anniversary of the Clash playing Crawley Sports Centre on this the 8th of July 1978 on the Clash on Parole Tour, Thanks to Adey Read for sharing his photo of his ticket. This gig was marred with loads of violence from the start to finish, Skinheads wanting to kick everybody's head in & our lot doing lots of running

Clash on Parole This a ticket for The Clash for the infamous Crawley Sportscentre gig. Suicide were support, and it is the concert at which chains were thrown at Alan Vega the singer of Suicide. Also of note was the first band on, called The Coventry Automatics, who became The Specials. This apparently was the gig that inspired ‘Ghost Town’

Clash on Parole A particularly violent evening, according to what I was able to read it, where Alan Vega in duet with Suicide obtained as only sway in the crowd only a punch down at the bows !!

Problems with skinheads

A Riot of Our Own p96. .. after the gig we started towards Three Bridges Rail station, we'd heard we could get a train back to London from there.

After ten minutes walk we encountered a group of punks walking back towards Crawley; a large group of skinheads had collected at Three Bridges station waiting for *us*. We walked back with them and hung around near the gig - after a while the sounds of trouble and sure enough the skins had gotten tired of waiting and were now back in Crawley causing problems. My mate and I managed to get to the venue where the crew were loading out. We expalined what was happening and asked them for a lift back to London [with Johnney Green & Co]; we were dropped off on Streatham High Rd and walked home to Balham." Steve

Confirm story re skinheads (from Croydon). Me and my friends ran across railway sidings at 3 Bridges to escape. The Specials were then known as the Coventry Specials. This is the gig where the skin jumped on stage and lamped Alan Vega from Suicide. Colin

NME - T'zers
Trouble at Crawley gig

8 July 1978

Link

Record Mirror CRAWLEY LETTER VIOLENCE

22 July 1978

Link

Jimmy Pursey of all people standing in the centre of the stage pleading for peace

THE CLASH ON PAROLE | Facebook

this story i found...wow;...from a fan ///

"I saw them a few times in London in 1978, some good, some bad, but I was at the infamous Crawley gig that same year, which Jerry Dammers later claimed inspired him to write "Ghost Town". I think I read that in an interview in Mojo or somewhere.

Croydon skinheads had arrived en masse to take on the Crawley skinheads; god only knows why. Suicide opened the show. After a few songs one of the skinheads climbed on stage and battered Alan Vega to the floor. I seem to remember a bicycle chain being involved, but I might be wrong on that one....it was a very long time ago.

That was the end of Suicide's set. Next up, and clearly terrified, were the Coventry Automatics, who went on to change their name to The Specials.They played their set as fast as possible and got offstage as quickly as they could.

Finally, The Clash arrived and the place erupted into a seething mass. Later in the show, I moved to the back and was standing at the top of what Americans call bleachers, opposite the stage.

Suddenly, in what felt like a slow-motion sequence I can still see in my head, the crowd parted like the Red Sea and a lone skinhead ran across the room, from left to right, followed by about twenty more. The first guy slipped and fell and the others were on him in a second. I remember seeing him get kicked in the head, blood spurting out all over the floor before he was dragged outside screaming by the mob. I was nearly sick.

The band was aware of a problem about the whole evening, and had watched this particular event take place in front of them. It put them off a bit, but they got back on track eventually.

Things seemed to settle down and they finished the set as normal. Waiting for the encore, things turned ugly again with mass brawls in the middle of the room, security trying to keep people off the stage, glasses flying everywhere and lots of frightened people around the edges.

Finally, just when it looked like an actual riot might break out, they came back on but with Jimmy Pursey of all people standing in the centre of the stage pleading for peace. He was just about the worst choice for a peacekeeping mission at that time (he was widely viewed as a dickhead and very much 'second division') and it seemed to get worse.

They played White Riot, with Pursey singing badly, at about 100 mph and ran offstage. The house lights came on immediately, the doors were opened and the police arrived in numbers.

There were skinheads everywhere that night, so getting home was scary, but memorable. We got home by climbing over fences and through people's back gardens. Those were the days, eh?"

After the gig there was a fight outside with some Hells Angels same skinheads

Alexis Korner - Saw them on that tour at Crawley. Suicide was the support band, for some reason they (suicide) weren’t appreciated by the crowd & a riot kicked off.

They were all skinheads. I was on the train with them going back to London. The railway police were waiting as they ripped the train apart. They lined everyone up on the platform, searched everyone. Those with weapons were arrested & anyone not arrested had their bootlaces from their Doc Martens confiscated. LOL!!

From what I remember, after the gig there was a fight outside with some Hells Angels & then the same skinheads battered a bunch of Teds/Rockabillies in the tunnel on the way to the station. I thought it was all pretty exciting & just part of the package. I guess having been to about 20 odd Sham 69 gigs I was kinda numb to things kicking off.

I seem to spend the whole of that night running, very scary times indeed

Martyn Bizat The incident where the guy got chased out was due to him knocking a skin taking photos was right infront of me I had white ish jeans on they got covered in blood I didn't get touched the skins took care of me as I was only 15

Robin Tate I just remember I seem to spend the whole of that night running, very scary times indeed

Barry Rutter I was there too and it's a great description. Bloody scary night.

Roddy Byers Yep then we got attacked outside the Clash,s Hotel by Rock,a,Billies! Heavy Gig!

Graham Andrews Great line up.remember pursey coming on for white riot and I think Steve jones played too.the people I was with were given a wide berth by the boneheads.

Tim Rylah The bloke from suicide got punched in the face after the 1st number!

Russell Keeley I was there it’s was my 16 th and taped it full of grief with croydon skins

Dave Ralf Extremely violent gig but wouldn't have missed it for anything. 14 years old and my 2nd Clash gig.

Andrew Lambirth - I saw them at Crawley Sports Centre. Suicide were not appreciated by many in the audience…everyone loved the Coventry Specials

Blackmarketclash | Leave a comment

Photos, Crawley

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BACKSTAGE

Setlist

1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18

Soundcheck Strummer speaking into mic Complete Control Tommy Gun Train Kept a Rollin Set List Complete Control Tommy Gun Cheapskates Jail Guitar Doors Drug Stabbing Time Clash City Rockers White Man Capital RadioPolice and Thieves Blitzkreig Bop English Civil War Safe European Home What's My Name London's Burning Garageland I'm so Bored with the USA Janie Jones White Riot Jimmy Pursey ranting at the crowd

bold indicates on video - Rude Boy DVD