Circling back briefly to last week’s discussion on Joe Strummer’s support for trans rights, I mention Joyce Carol Oates’ recent tweets on the subject, including her observations that (a) privacy concerns about spaces like restrooms and locker rooms have nothing whatsoever to do with the presence or absence of trans or nonbinary people, and (b) those who vilify trans and nonbinary people engage in the same sleight-of-hand that prejudiced people have always engaged in — they take a small number of random acts or (alleged) crimes and use them to slander an entire marginalized group. Well done, Joyce Carol Oates.
But then, because this is supposed to be a Clash-inspired podcast, it’s back to the music. I talk about a couple of other podcasts on the subject, including a 2021 episode of Tom Morello’s Maximum Firepower in which he and Antonino D’Ambrosio discuss the commonality between Johnny Cash and Joe Strummer and the Cash-Strummer cover of Bob Marley’s “Redemption Song.” From there, I talk about a 2019 episode of Consequence’s The Opus podcast titled “London Calling: Radio Clash’s Timeless Transmissions,” which provides an in-depth look at the album and the Clash’s greatness as a rock band, not just as activists who use the music as a vehicle for the message.
Finally, on the Great Artist, Good People segment, I take a listen to Ivan Julian’s new album, Swing Your Lanterns. Julian, a fixture in New York’s punk and post-punk scene, was a founding member of Richard Hell and the Voidoids and played with a number of great artists over the years, including one of my favorites, Garland Jeffreys (but Garland is a subject for an entirely separate episode). If you’re not familiar with Ivan Julian’s music, get the new album (it’s great!) and take a listen to the Voidoids’ Blank Generation LP.
So please give this week’s show a listen and share your thoughts in the comments. And as Joe always said, “Without people, you’re nothing.”
