So I finally got to see The Clash in New York! 24 years after being denied attendance of their show in Bern, Switzerland, by parents and teachers (which in hindsight, didn't turn out to be such a bad thing, cause they just kicked out Mick Jones and it wasn't that good anyway), I've seen them all. Mind you, not together. My brother an me went to one of Joe's last shows with the Mescaleros at Irving Plaza, about a year before he died. Then, last year, an astounding Paul Simonon lent his full credibility to Damon Albarn with The Good, The Bad and the Queen. Now, Mick Jones played Irving Plaza, standing on the same stage from which Joe belt out a last "I fought the law". Now, Mick was in the best of moods, helped by the trusty guitar of Tony James and a couple of shots of whiskey, I guess, but all the merrier. James was Billy Idols sidekick in Generation X, the first punk poppers, and then briefly had success with the rather embarrassing Sigue Sigue Sputnik. He must have a flair for unusual names, Mick and Tony's band thus is called Carbon/Silicon - why, nobody really knows, at least it's easy to google. They didn't play any clash songs, except for a bit of "Police on my back" mixed into one of their new songs. The pieces are pretty nice pop rock tunes, especially memorable was "The Global War on Culture" and those moments when Jones and James showed off on guitar. Mick was, after all, the best punk guitar player. But with The Clash it's a bit like with the Beatles: Just like McCartney solo always lacked that shot of bitter Lennon, Mick's boyish singing lacks the bite of the Strummer.
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