Supported by Los Lobos

updated 18 Jan 02 - upgrade version 3.0 added
updated 7 July 2008 - added MASTER recording added & punters view (saw what was left of)
updated 12 April 2011 - added punters comments
updated July 2022 added review, added leghty new review (Tribune)
updated May 2023 added NME review





Audio 1 - extended upgraded vers.

Sound 3.5 - 82min - low - 23 tracks

Three Card Trick



Audio 2 - extended upgraded vers.

Sound 3.5 - 82min - boot cassette/m - 23 tracks

Three Card Trick



Audio 3 - MASTER

Sound 3.5 - 82min - master - 23 tracks -
Very good upgrade to MASTER - very clear

Three Card Trick



Sources

This is not only an upgrade in the sound quality but it is longer, though there are no new tracks. The old one was 72mins, and this is 83 mins. Similarly it has 23 tracks.

The first known gig circulating post Mick Jones' sacking. A reasonable recording, its clarity is spoilt by some mild distortion at the bottom end.

Some circulating tapes have only 22 tracks. Clampdown being the extra track. Interestingly Nick Sheppard sings Should I Stay or Should I go which would soon be dropped from the set.





Flyer





Upcoming Events, The San Francisco Examiner

Fri 6th Jan 1984





Passes





Sticker

I lived in San Francisco years ago, and went to the January 21,1984 Clash/ Los Lobos show at the SF Civic Auditorium.

I held onto a bunch of memorabilia from the old days and have a never used sticker that was being handed out to everyone that night. Do you have an interest in adding it to your collection?


Beth, Florida, USA <bfeldman1athotmail.com>





Tickets

Clash City Collectors | Facebook


Clash City Collectors | Facebook





San Francisco Civic Auditorium CA

https://www.sanfranciscoauditorium.com





memorable night

I attended the Jan. 21, 1984 concert in San Francisco.

It was memorable for several reasons, but the highlight for me was the stellar performance by opening act Los Lobos. I didnít know until today, over 25 years later, that it was the first Clash show after Mick Jones was sacked.

I have a few good pics Id like to send your way if you could use them. Best, Duffy Johnson, Albuquerque, NM

<titusalone77[a]yahoo.com>





Strummer looked resplendent

"With the rest of the band dressed in black, Strummer looked especially resplendent in his bright red sport coat and white trousers. Tie certainly did his part, rolling around on the stage, thrashing upside down on his back, his kicking legs the only part of his body visible above the surging mass in front of the stage."





a pretty good show

Saw what was left of The Clash in '84 at the San Francisco Civic... I remember it being a pretty good show but I was only 14 at the time and high on NoDoz so who knows! ;-) I also remember everyone being extremely aggitated and vocal to have to wait through the opening act (Los Lobos). Here's an old review of the show...





Setlist: ...

I was there too





Did you go? Comments, info welcome...

We are looking for scans - articles - tickets - posters - flyers - handbills - memorabilia - photos - comments / any info - you might have. Anything welcome.

Please email blackmarketclash or post on bmc facebook page.





NME Live! The Clash! Los Lobos! Malcolm McLaren! And more!

4 February 1984

Link





Clash City Showdown

Published 1 Dec. 2003 -
by Chris Knowles
pg 243





San Francisco, The Tribune, review

Sun Jan 29 1984





Embarrassingly Bad, Clash Should Give Up

The Sacramento Bee
Mon Jan 23 1984

By David Barton special to The Bee

SAN FRANCISCO ---





Fanzine - Beano San Fran Fanzine - Feb

Joe Interview Excellent - 6 pages





Village Voice review by Greil Marcus

31 Jan 84

'ish performance in the band's career with relative ease.

text verion below

The Clash, Live (01/31/84) | GreilMarcus.net
October 6, 2014 by GM Admin

THE CLASH, LIVE (01/31/84)

“This isn’t white reggae,” Joe Strum­mer shouted, introducing “Police and Thieves.” “This is punk and reggae. There’s a difference. There’s a difference between a ripoff and bringing some of our culture to another culture. You hear that, Sting?”

It has been almost eight years since the Clash formed in the wake of the early Sex Pistols’ performances. On January 21, six years and one week after the Pistols played their last show in San Francisco, the Clash were back in town, not “The Only Band That Matters,” but the only U.K. punk band left. “What we play now is what we can do,” Strummer had said in 1979. “It wouldn’t be fair to do ranting music because now we’ve mastered a time change. So there’s just no point.” “We started to think we were musicians,” he told reporter Joel Selvin two weeks ago. “When we made the first record we knew we weren’t. It’s a bad thing to think; it’s irrelevant, not to the point.”

To a happy, not quite sold-out crowd of perhaps 7,000, the Clash played ranting music. Keeping Strummer’s promise to Selvin, they “went back to where we went wrong, and then forward again.” Against an industrialist backdrop and eight television sets flashing images of present-day social disaster, Strummer shook, scowled, smiled, and sung as if he and his audience had a life to make within a world they had already lost.

With guitarist Mick Jones kicked out for delusions of grandeur, the Clash is now Strummer, original bassist Paul Simmonon, drummer Pete Howard, rhythm guitarist Vince White, and lead guitarist Nick Sheppard—the latter both 23-year-old “ex-punks.” The band is ragged, Shep­pard plays too many Mick Jones licks, and such rock-star flimsy as leaps from the drum riser or floodlights in the crowd’s face is still part of the show. Yet I have never seem Strummer more exhilarated, or more convincing. In 1978 in Berkeley, “I’m So Bored with the U.S.A.” was a gesture of contempt to a bourgeois audience; this night it was offered to the audience as their own, and they took it. Some of our culture to another culture.

Strummer performs not as a star but as a man who feels lucky to find himself on a stage facing people who want to hear what he has to say. The band tries to keep up with him. Maybe they won’t—and maybe Mick Jones’s Clash, which he is now trying to book, will supercede Strum­mer’s. But I doubt it. Jackie Wilson died on the day of this show, and in times gone by the Clash donated $6000 to his care. This Clash, I would guess—the music said so.






The Clash revitalise image

Stanford Daily - gig review

Link






New Clash lacks some of the old fire

The San Francisco Examiner

Mon Jan 23 1984
By Philip Elwood - Examiner

Written by Philip Elwood

About four years ago the Clash, a British punk rock quartet invaded our shores via recordings and a concert tour. Already famous in the punk-underground for their dedicated political and social rebelliousness and the urgency of their powerfully rhythmic music, they enjoyed a most successful 1980-1982 period.

Local appearances in their early U.S. days at the Berkeley Community Theater and at the Kezar Pavilion were sensational examples of what many thought to he the most exciting and provocative turn rock music had taken since its heavy electrification in the mid-1960s.

By last year the Clash had suffered from internal differences over both musical and philosophical direction, and leader-vocalist-guitarist Joe Strummer let it he known that a new Clash ensemble, this time a quintet, would pick up where the original group had left off.

On Saturday at the overcrowded Civic Auditorium (I seldom get fearful and claustrophobic in jammed arenas, but I was on this occasion) we had a chance to hear the "new-old" clash. There were three guitarists, bassist Paul Simonon (with Strummer the only original Clasher) and drummer Pete Howard plus 10 dangling, smallish video screens and a massive sound system. Nick Sheppard and Vince White were the new guitarists.

Joe Strummer has a stronger lead role in the Clash
It was a good concert although hardly of the gutty, bombastic style of old. Strummer assumed even more of leadership role than was his earlier wont and had trouble at times keeping up the frantic pace always associated with the clash. In his rhythmic guitar-playing lead, In his shouted, strident vocals and in his non-stop commentary, Strummer often becomes incoherent.

They began with "London Calling" and ended about 75 minutes later with "Jamie Jones," the third encore. In between, "Police and Thieves," "Rockin' the Casbah," [sic] "Police on My Back," "Brand New Cadillac," "Guns of Brixton", (Simonon vocal) and others came across quite well. The video screens (all the same images) projected a variety of still and motion pictures of, usually, some significance to the players and listeners - war movies, police activities, defiant placards, etc. Strummer's concern for the British black population and for their reggae and hi-life music is particularly evident in the Clash's music and in his socio-political commentary.

The sound system, though excellent for those jammed on the main floor, was muddy for the thousands upstairs.

Record producer, anthologist, comic and interlocutor Malcolm McLarenren conducted a lively dance set on stage (with many splendid local acts) before the Clash's appearance.

The evening began with a short performance by the Los Lobos band.





'New' Clash Plays Some Old Favorites
For S.F. Faithful

San Francisco Chronicle , January 23, 1984

Written by Joel Selvin

Far away from those rocky shores, that scepter'd isle the Clash calls home, in the relative obscurity of San Francisco, the prelates of punk faced the most potentially ticklish performance in the band's career with relative ease.

If the group bombed, who would know back home?

Outside of the cynical scrutiny of the British press and fad-conscious, trendy English music scene - where the Clash may already be somewhat old hat - the group could comfortably get away with the introduction of what amounts to a whole new band, in front of a nearly sold-out San Francisco Civic Auditorium Saturday, full of California teens primed for the concert by harmless radio hits like "Rock the Casbah" and "Should I Stay Should I Go," rather than the leftist revolutionary rhetoric of "Guns of Brixton" or "White Riot."

These recently acquired fans would seem the least likely to be overly sensitive about the absence of guitarist Mick Jones, whose tough swagger and thinly veiled insolence lent so much character to the band. In his place, bandleader Joe Strummer introduced two semi-professional young British guitarists, Nick Sheppard and Vince White. Neither proved exceptional at the Civic. Far from it, in fact. Even keeping their guitars in tune proved a problem for these green additions to the world's most famous punk rock band. Nor did they show any particular skill in their brief, awkward attempts at vocals.

But the question of technical excellence matters more with other bands than with the Clash, who are the rock world's equivalent of political propagandists who spray-paint leftist slogans on walls in Berkeley.

With the rest of the band dressed in black, Strummer looked especially resplendent in his bright red sport coat and white trousers. tie certainly did his part, rolling around on the stage, thrashing upside down on his back, his kicking legs the only part of his body visible above the surging mass in front of the stage.

The program mixed familiar Clash pieces with new songs headed for the band's next album (to be recorded following the current tour). All the inevitable cornerstones of Clash concerts were present and accounted for - "London Calling," "Police and Thieves," "I Fought the Law," "White Riot" and "Rock the Casbah" in a mysteriously perfunctory rendition - but a great deal of the show was anchored on material the audience never heard before, such as "We Are the Clash," "Sex Mad War" and others which, in the great Clash tradition, were barely decipherable in live performance.

With the two new guitarists fumbling to keep up, the band never struck any rhythmic gold until late in the concert, ironically, during a bass and drums break in "Police and Thieves" when Strummer had sent one of the guitarists offstage, presumably to tune his instrument. Between drummer Pete Howard and bassist Paul Simonon, the two musicians worked up a chugging, bumping interchange that rumbled agreeably through the hall.

In introducing the number, Strummer delivered one of his trademark tirades on culture and the folk process in popular music. "This is punk meets reggae," he explained, "not white reggae. We add some of our own culture to it, so this is no ripoff. I'm talking to you Sting," he shouted, referring to the vocalist-songwriter for the Police, whose work has sometimes been accused of misappropriating Jamaican rhythmic ideas.

What's a Clash Concert without a few polemics? It helps lend a little of the delicious flavor of an anti-war rally to the proceedings and underlines the band's commitment to political struggle and rock-scene infighting. "We do have a culture," Strummer informed the crowd, "and I'm quite sure it's not Van Halen."

Actually, the band's first commitment is to rock and roll and all that it encompasses -- passion, guts, loud guitars, angry songs, anti-social attitudes and, perhaps most of all, spectacle. Helping to provide, a bit of spectacle at the Civic was Malcolm McLaren, the redoubtable manager of the defunct Sex Pistols who can always be counted on in such matters.

McLaren, hands thrust deep into the pockets of a trenchcoat, briefly preceded the Clash by supplying calls to a tape of his punk rock meets-square dance disco hit, "Buffalo Gals," while a handful of local break dancers flipped, twirled and threw their bodies around onstage, like fish out of water.

Opening the show was Los Lobos, a dream garage band of four Mexican-Americans from East Los Angeles who play like 1965 in San Bernardino. Between this lesson in Chicano rock history, McLaren's demonstrations of contemporary street life and Strummer's own lectures on art, politics and culture, the audience could at least go home feeling educated, if not entertained.





The Clash Official | Facebook

The Clash San Francisco 1984 - search results | Facebook


Marlon Daranciang I was there!





Extensive archive of articles, magazines and other from the UK and European dates on the Out of Control Tour to California, January, February 1984

Archive - Adverts - Snippets - Official Press Releases - UK Articles - US Articles - Fanzines - Mick sacked - Books, social media - Photos - Posters - Passes - Memorabilia - Video and audio





Setlist

1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23

London Calling
Safe European Home
Know Your Rights
The Dictator
We Are the Clash
The Guns Of Brixton
Rock the Casbah
Sex Mad War
Spanish Bombs
Should I Stay or Should I Go
I’m So Bored with the USA
Police and Thieves
Clash City Rockers
Police on My Back
Clampdown
I Fought the Law
White Riot
Tommy Gun
Three Card Trick
Brand New Cadillac
Garageland
Koka Kola
Janie Jones



Extensive archive of articles, magazines and other from the Out of Control Tour to California, January, February 1984

Archive

Adverts

Snippets

Official Press Releases

UK Articles

US Articles

Fanzines

Mick sacked

Books, social media

Photos

Posters

Passes

Memorabilia

Video and audio



There are several sights that provide setlists but most mirror www.blackmarketclash.co.uk. They are worth checking.

from Setlist FM (cannot be relied on)

from Songkick (cannot be relied on)
... both have lists of people who say they went

& from the newer Concert Database and also Concert Archives

Also useful: Ultimate Music database, All Music, Clash books at DISCOGS

Articles, check 'Rocks Back Pages'





Stream, download, subscribe

Stream and download The Clash here:
https://TheClash.lnk.to/BestOfAY

Subscribe to The Clash’s YouTube channel:
https://TheClash.lnk.to/YouTube_Subsc...


Follow The Clash:

Official website - https://www.theclash.com/
Facebook -
  / theclash  
Twitter -
  / theclash  
Instagram -
  / the_clash  


Follow The Clash on :

Twitter: http://bit.ly/I0EsOs
Facebook:
http://on.fb.me/1eQ196D
Subscribe to our channel to watch more:
http://bit.ly/1jY5CFd



Out of Control Tour USA
January 1984


ARTICLES, POSTERS, CLIPPINGS ...


A collection of
• Tour previews
• Tour posters
Interviews
• Features
• Articles
• Tour information

A full archive of any articles, interviews, reviews, posters, tour dates from the first part of the Out of Control 84 tour of the USA can be found here






VIDEO AND AUDIO

Video and audio footage from the tour including radio interviews.




BOOKS


The Last Days of the Clash

Vince White describes this gig extensively in his Clash biog, The Last Days of the Clash





We Are The Clash: Reagan, Thatcher, and the Last Stand of a Band That Mattered


By Mark Andersen, Ralph Heibutzki
reference Stockton, Long Beach and San Diego
Review here
Archive PDF




Return of the Last Gang in Town,
Marcus Gray

Click to read






Passion is a Fashion,
Pat Gilbert

Click to read








Redemption Song,
Chris Salewicz

Click to read








Joe Strummer and the legend of The Clash
Kris Needs

Click to read







The Clash (official)
by The Clash (Author), Mal Peachey

Click to read


Other books



I saw The Clash




Wikipedia - band mambers

Wikipedia - The Clash

Search all of facebook

Search all of Twitter

Search for a local library

Search auction site

Search flickr

Search Instagram

Search the internet

Search The Internet Archive
A complete treasure trove of archive of audio (official, unofficial), readable books, magazine


Magazine searches

UK newspaper archive

English Newspapers

The Free Library

Rocks Back Pages

Creem Magazine [US]

Rolling Stone Magazine

Record Mirror [UK]

Rockscene Magazine [US]

Boston Rock [US]

Internet Archive

British Library [UK]

Washington Digital Newspapers

Search CD & LP

Nothing Else On Flickr
Large catalogue of music magazines

Fanzine searches

UK Fanzines

Slash Fanzine [US]

No Mag Fanzine [US]

Damage Fanzine [US]

Dry zines Fanzine [US]

Memorabilia search

Auction sites

Great for rare sales such as posters & tickets

Bonhams

Gotta have rock and Roll

Worthpoint

Omega

The saleroom

We buy rock n roll

Sothebys

Facebook Concert Memorabilia

Photos.com
includes images

Heritage Auctions
Past - Current

Image search

Getty Images The Clash here
Need to vary search and year

The Clash Art for Sale - Fine Art America
Collection of Clash images, need to vary search and year

Rock Archive Photos

WireImages here

Brixton Academy 8 March 1984
ST. PAUL, MN - MAY 15
Other 1984 photos
Sacramento Oct 22 1982
Oct 13 1982 Shea
Oct 12 1982 Shea
San Francisco, Jun 22 1982
Hamburg, Germany May 12 1981
San Francisco, Mar 02 1980
Los Angeles, April 27 1980
Notre Dame Hall Jul 06 1979
New York Sep 20 1979
Southall Jul 14 1979
San Francisco, Feb 09 1979
San FranciscoFeb 08 1979
Berkeley, Feb 02 1979
Toronto, Feb 20 1979
RAR Apr 30 1978
Roxy Oct 25 1978
Rainbow May 9 1977
Us May 28 1983

Photoshelter here

Sep 11, 2013: THE CLASH (REUNION) - Paris France 2 IMAGES
Mar 16, 1984: THE CLASH - Out of Control UK Tour - Academy Brixton London 19 IMAGES
Jul 10, 1982: THE CLASH - Casbah Club UK Tour - Brixton Fair Deal London 16 IMAGES
1982: THE CLASH - Photosession in San Francisco CA USA 2 IMAGES
Jul 25, 1981: JOE STRUMMER - At an event at the Wimpy Bar Piccadilly Circus London 33 IMAGES
Jun 16, 1980: THE CLASH - Hammersmith Palais London 13 IMAGES
Feb 17, 1980: THE CLASH - Lyceum Ballroom London 8 IMAGES
Jul 06, 1979: THE CLASH - Notre Dame Hall London 54 IMAGES
Jan 03, 1979: THE CLASH - Lyceum Ballroom London 19 IMAGES
Dec 1978: THE CLASH - Lyceum Ballroom London 34 IMAGES
Jul 24, 1978: THE CLASH - Music Machine London 48 IMAGES
Aug 05, 1977: THE CLASH - Mont-de-Marsan Punk Rock Festival France 33 IMAGES
1977: THE CLASH - London 18 IMAGES

Photofeatures

Any further info, articles, reviews, comments or photos welcome.

Submit an article here

We are looking for scans - articles - tickets - posters - flyers - handbills - memorabilia - photos - comments / any information - you might have.

Please like and post on our Facebook page or alternatively email blackmarketclash

You can also follow us on Twitter
We also have a Clash Twitter list
of other notable Clash Twitter accounts here

Blackmarketclash Links
Extensive links page can be found here with links to web, twitter, Facebook, traders etc..

Guitars 101

If Music Could Talk
The best Clash messageboard and which also has links to downloads on its megalists

www.Blackmarketclash.co.uk
Go here for uploads and downloads. It's not a massive space so its on an as and when basis.

Also go to 101 Guitars for downloads

For the more ambitious, create a DIME account

Contact your local library here and see if they can help.

If you are searching for articles in the USA - DPLA Find the local US library link here

WorldCat? - find your local library Link

British Newspaper Archive - United Kingdom Link

Newspaper ARCHIVE - USA+ Link

Historical Newspapers - USA & beyond Link

Elephind.com - international Link

New York Times - USA Link

Gallica - France - Not very helpful Link

Explore the British Library Link

Trove - Australia National Library Link

The Official Clash
Search @theclash & enter search in search box. Place, venue, etc

The Official Clash Group
Search @theclashofficialgroup & enter search in search box. Place, venue, etc

Joe Strummer
And there are two Joe Strummer sites, official and unnoffical here

Clash City Collectors - excellent
Facebook Page - for Clash Collectors to share unusual & interesting items like..Vinyl. Badges, Posters, etc anything by the Clash.
Search Clash City Collectors & enter search in search box. Place, venue, etc

Clash on Parole - excellent
Facebook page - The only page that matters
Search Clash on Parole & enter search in the search box. Place, venue, etc

Clash City Snappers
Anything to do with The Clash. Photos inspired by lyrics, song titles, music, artwork, members, attitude, rhetoric,haunts,locations etc, of the greatest and coolest rock 'n' roll band ever.Tributes to Joe especially wanted. Pictures of graffitti, murals, music collections, memorabilia all welcome. No limit to postings. Don't wait to be invited, just join and upload.
Search Flickr / Clash City Snappers
Search Flickr / 'The Clash'
Search Flickr / 'The Clash' ticket

I saw The Clash at Bonds - excellent
Facebook page - The Clash played a series of 17 concerts at Bond's Casino in New York City in May and June of 1981 in support of their album Sandinista!. Due to their wide publicity, the concerts became an important moment in the history of the Clash.
Search I Saw The Clash at Bonds & enter search in red box. Place, venue, etc

Loving the Clash
Facebook page - The only Clash page that is totally dedicated to the last gang in town. Search Loving The Clash & enter search in the search box. Place, venue, etc

Blackmarketclash.co.uk
Facebook page - Our very own Facebook page. Search Blackmarketclash.co.uk & enter search in red box. Place, venue, etc

Search all of Twitter
Search Enter as below - Twitter All of these words eg Bonds and in this exact phrase, enter 'The Clash'

www.theclash.com/
Images on the offical Clash site.
http://www.theclash.com/gallery

www.theclash.com/ (all images via google).
Images on the offical Clash site. site:http://www.theclash.com/