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46 of 46 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Strummer does it again!!, October 22, 2003
Joe's passing was one of the hardest days of my life. I've never met someone as truly dedicated to his art as Joe. So, when it was announced that there would be one last cd released by Joe Strummer and the Mescaleros, I was unbelievable happy. Sitting on pins and needles, I finally heard the cd. I was truly amazed. After Joe's last brilliant cd, "Global A Go-Go", I wasn't sure what to expect. The world music isn't as prevalent on this new cd, "Streetcore". However, the cd still delves into a variety of music: rock, folk, blues, hip hop, reggae...it's all here in true Strummer style. Joe was lucky to have had Mick Jones as his songwriting partner during the days of the Clash. He was blessed twice, because Martin Slatery and Scott Shields were the perfect complements for Strummer's writing. "Coma Girl" is as good a song as Strummer has ever released. Great melody and a good rockin' song. I would have loved to have seen him play this song live. "Get Down Moses" is another fun song with elements of reggae and hip hop. "Long Shadow" was a song written for Johnny Cash. A very poignant song. It was written about Cash's legecy, but fits Strummer's just as well. It was recorded with Beck's guitarist, Smokey Hormel. Joe's version of "Redemption Song" is amazing. His vocals are truly awesome. I would never say anyone could sing it better than Bob Marley, but Joe does a damn good job. "Midnight Jam" is a really cool song that's mostly an instrumental. Joe passed on before he was able to add lyrics to the song, but it was too great of a song not to add, so Slattery and Shields added it to the cd. "All In A Day" is a great rocking song. When I read the liner notes, I was half expecting to see it listed as a Jones/Strummer song. It definitely sounds like something that Big Audio Dymanite would have put out back in the days when they were good. One note about the cd packaging. It's done in such a way that I was reminded of the packaging of the Clash's "Sandinista". Lots of little quotes and, as one other reviewer said, "half thoughts", that are very much something that Joe Strummer was known for. His wife, Lucinda, even has a little "Thank You" section in the liner notes which is really sad. This last cd by Joe Strummer and the Mescaleros is, in my opinion, the best one of the three on Hellcat Records. It takes the best elements of the first two cd's and melds them together. If we're lucky, Hellcat will be able to release a live cd by Joe and the Meskies. If not, I think this is a great place to end an amazing career. Godspeed, Joe. And, thanks for the memories!
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14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Fitting End to an Amazing Career, July 11, 2004
When I think of post-humously issued albums I inevitably think of Nirvana's Unplugged in New York. That album reminds me of a funeral procession, and I can't help but think back on how great Kurt Cobain was as a person and as a musician. What surprises me about Joe Strummer's last album is that it's the complete opposite of Nirvana's. This album is a celebration of life, and while I can't help but feel sad about Joe Strummer's passing this sadness is my own and not his. Listening to it is like witnessing the prodigal son returning home. For his last few albums Joe Strummer had delved into world beat, eschewing his rock roots, and while I feel those albums were successful, I also believe that his return is even more triumphant. Streetcore is a return to rock in many ways, but Joe doesn't ignore the vast amount of influences such as reggae, dub, blues, and folk. If anything these influences are just integrated better. Every song is strong on this album, and even the acoustic numbers pulse with life. Perhaps a little older, a little wiser, and a little more laid back, but Joe never gave up living beyond the status quo. This album didn't make me want to go back and relive London Calling for the one-thousandth time, instead it made me want to hit play again. Now when I think of post-humously issued albums, Joe Strummer's finale has a place right next to Kurt Cobain's.
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16 of 17 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
"You cast a long shadow, and that is your testament...", November 8, 2003
When I first heard the news of Joe's death -- a heart attack ultimately attributed to a congenital defect -- just two days before Christmas last year, I was in too much shock (and denial) to cry. In January, when I read Rolling Stone's loving but brief tribute, I teared up as the reality of his passing sank in. In February, I got choked up during the Grammy Awards as Elvis Costello, Bruce Springsteen, "Little Steven" Van Zandt and Foo Fighters frontman Dave Grohl sang "London Calling," which Joe originally wrote and performed in 1979 as a member of the British punk band the Clash. In March, I damn near lost it during VH1's broadcast of the Rock 'n' Roll Hall of Fame inductions when former Clash bassist Paul Simonon called Joe "my big brother." Meanwhile, the news that a posthumous Strummer CD was in the works made me extremely happy.I was finally able to buy a copy of Streetcore -- the third and final album by Joe and his ever-evolving backup band, the Mescaleros -- a couple days ago. Even if I hadn't found myself in a moment of personal turmoil that day (which I won't go into here), my first listen to this album still would have been a very emotional experience. Just hearing Joe's voice, sounding so strong and vital, on the upbeat, insanely catchy opener "Coma Girl" brought tears to my eyes -- it hit me that Joe would never be making another record. But further spins of the entire album made me realize that, as with any artist's final album, you should just enjoy the music and not torture yourself wondering what more the artist could have given us. Luckily, even with only 10 tracks, there's plenty to enjoy here. "Coma Girl" ROCKS! It was a great choice for the opening track *and* the lead-off single, and it may be the catchiest thing he's written since his days with the Clash. Joe and company slow it down on "Get Down Moses," the closest this disc comes to pure reggae, but Joe sounds as passionate as ever. "Long Shadow" is a stripped-down folk number originally written for country legend Johnny Cash, but Joe may as well be singing about his own considerable legend: "Crawl up the mountain, to reach where the eagles fly / Sure, you can glimpse from the mountain top where the soul of the muse might rise / And if you put it all together, you won't have to look around / You know you cast a long shadow on the ground." "Arms Aloft" and "All in a Day" are just fun, catchy arena-size rockers. "Midnight Jam," a mostly instrumental track with some spoken voice-overs by Joe ("This is London calling!"), and the spacey, meditative "Ramshackle Day Parade" sound like they could have come from the Clash's experimental epic Sandinista! (1980). The ballad "Burnin' Streets" is a mournful rewrite of the fast-and-furious Clash classic "London's Burning" (1977). Joe's cover of Bob Marely's folk ballad "Redemption Song" is moving and surprisingly beautiful, a tribute to a great man by another great man. Streetcore comes to a close with a sweet, gentle country-style cover of Bobby Charles' "Silver and Gold (Before I Grow Too Old);" it's hard not to be heartbroken when the disc ends with Joe rasping, "Okay, that's a take." Joe had no way of knowing that Streetcore would be his last record, and in that sense, it's closer in spirit to Kirsty MacColl's Tropical Brainstorm (2001) than to George Harrison's Brainwashed (2002) or Warren Zevon's The Wind (2003). All four albums are excellent, but while Zevon and Harrison got a chance to say goodbye to people, reflect on their lives, and ponder the afterlife (with a few moments of levity, such as Harrison's "Rocking Chair in Hawaii" and Zevon's "The Rest of the Night"), MacColl and Strummer were both cut down suddenly, and their final discs offer only a quick snapshot of where they were in their lives and what sorts of things they were thinking about. In Strummer's case, he was still (as always) passionate yet very thoughtful, and he apparently died a happy, well-adjusted family man. Kudos to Martin Slattery and Scott Shields, two of Joe's Mescaleros, who produced and arranged this album after his passing, and to Joe's widow, Lucinda Mellor, who helped coordinate the project. (Her brief "thank you" notes are especially touching.) They worked through a great deal of personal grief to put together this final gift for his fans, and I think it embodies everything for which he would have wanted us to remember him. My heart goes out to his wife and daughters, his friends, and his bandmates. Thank you, Joe, for the music!
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