The Clash Live 1979

This page lists all known Clash gigs from 1979 with info. If you have any corrections please email blackmarketclash

Tours

Feb 79 - Pearl Harbour US Tour ...

Jul 79 - Finland + UK dates ...

Sep 79 - Take the Fifth US Tour ...

Dec 79 - Acklam Hall Secret Gigs ...

In the studio


Jan 6		Saturday Morning Show LWT
		The Clash interviewed by Elvis Payne for 'The Saturday Morning Show' on London Weekend (regional) TV on the ITV Network. Archived at BFI (restricted)
Jan		Recording Capitol Radio Two
		Studio - Wessex Capitol Radio Two Groovy Times Gates of the West I Fought the Law Line Up: Joe Strummer - vocals, guitar, Mick Jones - guitar, vocals, harmonica, Paul Simonon - bass, vocals, Topper Headon - drums, Producer - Bill Price, The Clash

Debut US Tour

Fresh from recording at Wessex Studios the Rude Boy overdubs and the Cost of Living EP The Clash tour the States for the first time in the now historic Pearl Harbour tour. A band with a mission to "resuscitate a barely breathing US rock scene", their target the "music to drive by" of Foreigner, Boston etc, etc.

Continuing problems with CBS meant they refused to finance a tour and their US CBS label, Epic reluctantly put up $30,000 and provided little promotion or back up. By way of illustration Epic called it the much less provocative Give ‘Em Enough Rope tour. Epic were horrified at the choice of Bo Diddley as support but The Clash united without Bernie and fired up were determined to do their first US tour their way. Rope had sold 50,000 copies already and 'The Clash' was then the largest selling US import.

Extensive archive of articles and magazines from the Pearl Harbour Tour period

Video and audio from the Pearl Harbour Tour period

Pearl Harbour Tour


Jan 31		Vancouver - Commodore Ballroom
		Vancover Interview with Topper and Paul
Feb 7		Berkely CA - Community Centre
Feb 8		San Francisco CA - Geary Temple (Fillmore)
Feb 9		Santa Monica CA - Civic Auditorium
Feb 13		Cleveland OH - Agora
Feb 15		Washington DC - Ontario Theatre
		Some footage of Bo Didley supporting
Feb 16		Cambridge MA - Harvard Square Theater
Feb 17		New York NY - Palladium
Feb 20		Toronto - The Rex Danforth Theatre
		Various interviews 26mins / 5mins / 6mins
Feb 23		English Civil War 7" single released

Nothing better to do

The Clash played two "secret" gigs played in the small Notre Dame Hall, off Leicester Square, central London. These were played either to trial new material before the Rainbow Theatre, Southall Defence Fund gig on the 14th July or simply as Joe says in the intro, because "they had nothing better to do". The band would then head off to FInland to play the Ruisrock Festival.

Extensive archive of articles and magazines from the summer of 1979

Video and audio from the summer of 1979

London dates and recording London Calling


Mar 6		London - Alright Now TV
Mar 31		London - Beaufort Market
May 7		Cost of Living 7" EP - release, re-release
May		Recording Vanilla, Vanilla demos
		May-July Studio - Vanilla, Relased officially on London Calling Deluxe Edition Vanilla demos (London Calling) Line Up: Joe Strummer - vocals, guitar, Mick Jones - guitar, vocals, harmonica, Paul Simonon - bass, Topper Headon - drums, Producer - The Clash. Source - Route 19 Revisited page 106
Jun 21+		New York NY - Peppermint Lounge - 21st / 22nd / 23rd
Jul 5		London - Notre Dame Hall ... secret gig
Jul 6		London - Notre Dame Hall ... secret gig
Jul 8		London Weekend Television - ROCK ATTITUDES
		The London Weekend Show. British bands in the USA.Janet Street-Porter, Paul Gambaccini, The Clash. BFI archive N-3742025
Jul 14		London - Rainbow, Southall Defence Fund
Jul 23		'The Clash' album (US) released
Aug 4		Turku - Ruisrock Festival
July		Recording London Calling
		Late July-August Studio - Wessex All London Calling tracks except "Armagideon Time" and "Train in Vain" Line Up: Joe Strummer - vocals, guitar, piano, Mick Jones - guitar, vocals, piano, Paul Simonon - bass, vocals, Topper Headon - drums, John "Irish" Earle - baritone and tenor sax, Ray Beavis - tenor sax, Dick Hanson - trumpet, Mickey Gallagher - organ, Bill Price - engineer. Guy Stevens - producer. Source - Route 19 Revisited (horn players per p. 154)
Aug 25		Derry - Punk Festival, Templemore Sports Complex

With London Calling only just in the can The Clash flew out to California to fulfil their last pre-Blackhill commitment at the Tribal Stomp Festival and leaving Bill Price responsible for the final mixes. Monterey was not part of the official Take The 5th Tour.

The ooficlal opening night of the "Take the Fifth" 2nd US Tour was at Saint Pau. Fifth as in Amendment but from Boston onwards it was literally true; with Mickey Gallagher playing keyboards. The Tour would build on the low key success of the earlier Pearl Harbour tour and despite mixed audience and US media responses Johnny Green wrote it was the tour when it felt like The Clash were really starting to take off.

Cartoonist Ray Lowry along for the ride wrote the tour proved that "Americans do care about rock'n'roll rather than rock music; if The Clash packed it in tomorrow we'd lose the sole living evidence that rock'n'roll aspires to be anything more than blind escapism".

Extensive archive of articles and magazines from the Take the Fifth Tour period

Video and audio from the Take the Fifth Tour period

The Clash Take the Fifth Tour


Sep		London - Notting Hill (Secret gig)
Sep 8		Monterey CA - Tribal Stomp Festival
Sep 12		Saint Paul MN - Civic Centre
Sep 14		Chicago IL - Aragon Ballroom
Sep 17		Detroit MI - Masonic Temple
		FM radio interview 54mins
Sep 18		Cleveland OH - Agora [DId this take place?]
Sep 19		Boston MA - Orpheum Theater
		FM radio interview 39mins
Sep 20		New York NY - Palladium
Sep 21		New York NY - Palladium
		... includes the soundcheck
Sep 22		Philadelphia PA - Walnut Street Theatre
Sep 25		Montreal - St Denis Theatre
Sep 26		Toronto - O'Keefe Centre
		Snippet from City Limits Two minutes of Tommy Gun live at the O'Keefe plus interview [w/ Pennie Smith?] about torn out seating. 35min
Sep 28		Worcester MA - Clark University,
Sep 29		Maryland MD - Uni of Maryland, Ritchie Coliseum
Oct 2		Atlanta GA - The Agora
Oct 4		Austin TX - Armadillo Club
Oct 5		Houston TX - Cullen Auditorium
Oct 6		Dallas TX - Palladium
Oct 7		Lubbock TX - Rocks Club
Oct 10		San Diego CA - The Golden Hall
Oct 11		Los Angeles CA - Hollywood Palladium
Oct 13		San Francisco CA - Kezar Pavilion
Oct 14		Portland OR - 'a local theatre'
Oct 15		Seattle WA - Paramount Theater
Oct 16		Vancouver - PNE Pacific National Exhibition

Two secret gigs, hastily arranged for Christmas and Boxing Day 1979 were held for a combination of reasons; to thank their patient fans, as a warm up for the Kampuchea benefit performance on the 27th at the Hammersmith Odeon and because as Mick said no one in England has anything to do over the Christmas holiday.

Kosmo is reported in Bob Gruen's book (which includes a number of photos from Acklam Hall, see below) as giving the reason that the Westway to the Clash is what Trenchtown was to the Wailers a physical and spiritual place, so the idea to play at Christmas was to do something for the community from which they came. It was home, Mick Joe and Paul all walked from their places to gig.

Extensive archive of articles and magazines from late 1979

Video and audio from late 1979

Christmas dates


Nov 5		Recording London Calling b sides
		November 5-12 Studio - Wessex Armagideon Time Train in Vain Line Up: Joe Strummer - vocals, guitar, Mick Jones - guitar, vocals, harmonica, Paul Simonon - bass, vocals, Topper Headon - drums, Mickey Gallagher - organ, Guy Stevens - producer. Bill Price - engineer.
Dec		Unknown interview with Joe
Dec		BBCR1 Tommy Vance, John Tobler with Mick/Paul 6m
Dec		BBCR1 John Tobler with Mick 18mins
Dec 7		London Calling 7" single released
Dec 7		London Calling 12" single released
Dec 14		London Calling double album released
Dec 25		London - Acklam Hall ...secret xmas gig
Dec 26		London - Acklam Hall ...secret gig
Dec 27		London - Hammersmith Odeon
		...Concert For Kampuchea two tracks officially released with better sound
Dec 31		London - 'Ladbroke Grove All Stars', Tabernacle