Well, this week-end is predicted to be 104ºF or higher, so I gotta get up early, get things done before I get cooked. Yes, you got it…it’s wake & bake week-end. I’ll be flinging dub all week-end & trying to sort this mess all out.
My last On-U Sound post was a shout out to friend Jonderneath, past master of the incredible Underneathica blog. We had fallen out of touch for a while but have recently reconnected. He is a dedicated Dub Fanatic, the only person I know who digs On-U Sound as much as I. I think we started sharing Dub treasures around the time I hooked him up with Savage Pencil presents Lion vs. Dragon in Dub & he returned the favor with DJ Kentaro’s Crucial Mix Pressure Sounds presents “Tuff Cuts”. When I posted some Little Axe, the deal was sealed.
Here’s a mix that Jonder prepared for our listening pleasure featuring Keith Levene.
I shouldn’t have to say, but for those who've been sleepin’ under a rock, Keith was a founding member of The Clash (he got Joe Strummer from the 101ers to join the group) & Public Image, Ltd.
He’s done much since, was a mainstay for years at On-U, so search him out if you like what you hear.
Unlikely Pub – Steel Leg vs The Electric Dread
Nuclear Zulu – New Age Steppers
Deep & Mintyful – Playgroup
Burn Up – Playgroup
Hoggs Might Fly – Playgroup
Bed Bound Saga – Machine Gun Hogg
Devious Woman – Singers & Players
Last Sane Dream – Creation Rebel / New Age Steppers
Chemical Specialist – Creation Rebel / New Age Steppers
Out & About – Dub Syndicate
Quit the Body – The Chicken Granny
Chant – PIL
Go Back – PIL
Lou Reed, pt. 2 – PIL
Stereotype – Mark Stewart
Wish – Cowboys International
Back too Black – Keith Levene
Sound Stage One – Keith Levene
Back on the Block – Jah Wobble & Keith Levene
Letter (Full of Tears) – Mark Stewart
So grab this, enjoy (as I almost always say), & thank Jonder.
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ReplyDeleteYou are too kind, my friend. I hope others will enjoy this as much as we do. I didn't know that Keith recruited Joe Strummer. I did know that Keith wrote Career Opportunities before he left the Clash. It is rumored that John Lydon is the singer on the Chicken Granny song, and Steel Leg is from an EP that "Stratetime Keith" did with Wobble around the same time that Adrian Sherwood recorded Vivien Goldman's "Laundrette" and "Private Armies" with Keith.
ReplyDeleteKeith & The Clash
ReplyDeleteIt kinda began with the London SS / Bernard Rhodes connection. London SS was managed by Bernard Rhodes, an off-&-on-again associate of Malcolm McLaren & a friend of the members of the Sex Pistols. Mick Jones was trying to get London SS going. He became friendly with Sex Pistols Glen Matlock & Steve Jones. They would assist him as he tried out potential new members. Among those who auditioned for London SS without making the cut were Paul Simonon, who tried out as a vocalist, & drummer Terry Chimes. Tipper Headon drummed with the band for a week, then quit. Fast forward...After London SS broke up in early 1976, Rhodes continued as Jones' manager. In February, Jones saw the Sex Pistols perform for the first time & that was it, At the instigation of Rhodes, Jones contacted Simonon in March, suggesting he learn an instrument so he could join the new band Jones was organizing.
Soon Jones, Simonon on bass, Keith Levene on guitar, & whoever they could find to play drums. were rehearsing. Chimes was asked to audition for the new band & got the job, although he soon quit.
The act was still searching for a lead singer. Rhodes had his eye on Strummer, with whom he made exploratory contact. Jones & Levene had both seen him perform with the 101'ers & were also interested. Strummer, for his part, was primed to make the switch as well. He too had seen the Sex Pistols & knew something was up,
On 30 May, Rhodes & Levene met with Strummer after a 101'ers gig. Strummer was invited to meet up at the band's rehearsal location on Davis Road. Rhodes gave Joe 48 hours to decide whether he wanted to join the new band that would "rival the Pistols". Within 24 hours, Strummer agreed. Strummer introduced the band to his old school friend Pablo LaBritain, who sat in on drums during Strummer's first few rehearsals with the group. LaBritain's stint with the band didn't last long (he subsequently joined 999), & Terry Chimes, whom Jones later referred to as "one of the best drummers" in their circle once more became the band's regular drummer.
After rehearsing with Strummer for less than a month, the Clash made their debut on 4 July 1976, supporting the Sex Pistols at the Black Swan in Sheffield. The band apparently wanted to make it on-stage before their rivals in The Damned, another London SS spinoff, made their own scheduled debut two days later. The Clash would not play in front of an audience again for another five weeks.
Levene was becoming disaffected with his position in the group. At the Black Swan, he approached the Sex Pistols' lead singer, John Lydon & suggested they get a band together if the Pistols ever broke up. In early September, Levene was fired from the Clash. Strummer claimed that Levene's dwindling interest in the band owed to his supposedly abundant use of speed, a charge Levene has denied. Levene & Lydon would form Public Image Ltd. in 1978.
Keith was also co-author of "What's My Name", which he wrote at the Black Swan show. It is on the Clash's first (1977) album. He is credited as co-author, but never appeared on any Clash recording.
Oops, it was "What's My Name" and not "Career Opportunities" (although KL says in this lengthy interview that he "wrote on all the tunes, not just one-third of one tune").
ReplyDeletehttp://www.furious.com/perfect/keithlevene.html
Thank you very much !
ReplyDelete