After Tusk and Shadows and Light, you’re probably hoping for some brevity from the album club this week.
Unfortunately, if this is the case, you are going to be disappointed because this album clocks in at 2 hours and 24 minutes long, although I am offering an abridged version as an alternative to the full 36 track triple album for those who haven’t got the time or inclination to listen to the whole thing.
Sandinista! Is The Clash’s follow up to the brilliant London Calling. I love both albums but they are very different from each other and it took me a long time to fully appreciate Sandinista! - you could call it a grower but it needs several years I would say.
Sandinista! is frankly a big sprawling mess of an album with tracks shooting back and forth between different musical styles including rap, rockabilly, reggae, calypso, gospel, dub, disco, punk, folk-punk and bizarrely, children singing covers of old Clash tunes. Not a dissimilar concept (apart from the kids singing) to the eclectic mixture of genres that Joe Strummer later played on his BBC radio show “London Calling”. The collision of musical styles is obviously intentional but it can be off-putting initially. Having said that, I now think it’s the reason I enjoy the album so much. I don’t ever seem to get bored by it.
I will warn you now that there are some tracks on the album that even I don’t particularly like (Mensforth Hill and the kids singing Guns of Brixton and Career Opportunities spring to mind). But there are loads of fantastic songs on the album if you take care to find them. You could even play the game where you create your personal favourite 12 track single album out of the triple vinyl or double cd full album. A bit like you can with the White Album!
As I said, you don’t have to listen to the whole album. CBS issued a very limited edition one LP version called Sandinista Now! which is much more immediate. There’s no filler and the running order of the tracks has been chosen so that they fit together better than on the full album. The track listing of Sandinista Now! is:-
Police on my back
Somebody got murdered
The call up
Washington bullets
Ivan meets GI Joe
Hitsville UK
Up in heaven (not only here)
The magnificent seven
The leader
Junco partner
One more time
The sound of sinners
If you only listen to the abridged version, please say so in your comments.
I will post links for grooveshark later. Can somebody please post a spotify link?
Unfortunately, if this is the case, you are going to be disappointed because this album clocks in at 2 hours and 24 minutes long, although I am offering an abridged version as an alternative to the full 36 track triple album for those who haven’t got the time or inclination to listen to the whole thing.
Sandinista! Is The Clash’s follow up to the brilliant London Calling. I love both albums but they are very different from each other and it took me a long time to fully appreciate Sandinista! - you could call it a grower but it needs several years I would say.
Sandinista! is frankly a big sprawling mess of an album with tracks shooting back and forth between different musical styles including rap, rockabilly, reggae, calypso, gospel, dub, disco, punk, folk-punk and bizarrely, children singing covers of old Clash tunes. Not a dissimilar concept (apart from the kids singing) to the eclectic mixture of genres that Joe Strummer later played on his BBC radio show “London Calling”. The collision of musical styles is obviously intentional but it can be off-putting initially. Having said that, I now think it’s the reason I enjoy the album so much. I don’t ever seem to get bored by it.
I will warn you now that there are some tracks on the album that even I don’t particularly like (Mensforth Hill and the kids singing Guns of Brixton and Career Opportunities spring to mind). But there are loads of fantastic songs on the album if you take care to find them. You could even play the game where you create your personal favourite 12 track single album out of the triple vinyl or double cd full album. A bit like you can with the White Album!
As I said, you don’t have to listen to the whole album. CBS issued a very limited edition one LP version called Sandinista Now! which is much more immediate. There’s no filler and the running order of the tracks has been chosen so that they fit together better than on the full album. The track listing of Sandinista Now! is:-
Police on my back
Somebody got murdered
The call up
Washington bullets
Ivan meets GI Joe
Hitsville UK
Up in heaven (not only here)
The magnificent seven
The leader
Junco partner
One more time
The sound of sinners
If you only listen to the abridged version, please say so in your comments.
I will post links for grooveshark later. Can somebody please post a spotify link?
