Earthquake Weather poll

[NoMoreHugh]

Also King Of The Bayou should have been the opener to the album. Gangsterville just gets me down such a bad choice for a single and opener i find that song so confusing.

[Heston]

Considering that beloved Joe Strummer fans are voting on this poll i think the result speaks for its self and an honest reflection as well . I haven't voted but if i did it would be poor to good.

That being said, I think the choices of singles were strange, which probably didn't help that album -- to me, Shouting Street was the obvious choice, because it's the least cluttered, most straightforward song of the bunch, and would have made the best intro to what is, from my perspective, a mixed bag.

Yep totally agree with you there Shouting Street would have been a good choice. I would have liked to have seen Sleepwalk released as i like that song but unfortunately it has an appalling delivery on the vocals. If ever a song needed a good clarity of wording its this one. I mean the song has a good sense of sensitivity but is mumbled all the way through as if he doesnt give a damn about the song. Strange

I think Joe sings it well enough, the murky production is the problem.

[Marky Dread]

The tracks from Permanent Record are so much better than EW as the tracks have room to breathe. EW just sounds too cluttered up with words. There are some good songs on EW and it could've been a damn fine album but Zander's guitar sound is all wrong and they should've gone for the less is more route. Island Hoping is beautiful and works best for me.

[101Walterton]

The tracks from Permanent Record are so much better than EW as the tracks have room to breathe. EW just sounds too cluttered up with words. There are some good songs on EW and it could've been a damn fine album but Zander's guitar sound is all wrong and they should've gone for the less is more route. Island Hoping is beautiful and works best for me.

Agreed in all points plus overall poor sound production.

[Low Down Low]

I accept the criticisms of EW as valid but for all its flaws I'd still have it comfortably ahead of PR. Actually, I don't really get the widespread love for Permanent Record. I like Nothin about Nothin, but its hardly vintage Joe. Neither Baby the Trans or Trash City ever did much for me, though lots of people have the latter as their favourite post-Clash Joe tune. I think i'm in the minority here, though.

[Heston]

I accept the criticisms of EW as valid but for all its flaws I'd still have it comfortably ahead of PR. Actually, I don't really get the widespread love for Permanent Record. I like Nothin about Nothin, but its hardly vintage Joe. Neither Baby the Trans or Trash City ever did much for me, though lots of people have the latter as their favourite post-Clash Joe tune. I think i'm in the minority here, though.

Nothing from EW or PR is up there with his Meskies or Clash stuff for me. I don't think his heart was in it and he needed a good melody writer like Mick.

[Low Down Low]

I accept the criticisms of EW as valid but for all its flaws I'd still have it comfortably ahead of PR. Actually, I don't really get the widespread love for Permanent Record. I like Nothin about Nothin, but its hardly vintage Joe. Neither Baby the Trans or Trash City ever did much for me, though lots of people have the latter as their favourite post-Clash Joe tune. I think i'm in the minority here, though.

Nothing from EW or PR is up there with his Meskies or Clash stuff for me. I don't think his heart was in it and he needed a good melody writer like Mick.

Very true, though I'd ascribe it to a lack of confidence rather than a lack of heart. EW suffers because there's too much going on and it lacks focus. I think it's wordy, because it's Joe's first major release in more than half a decade and the ideas are tumbling out of him, he has so much to say and there just isn't enough quality control. All told, I think it's a pretty decent result for where he was at around that time.

The Mick question is an interesting one. No doubt Mick was a great tunesmith, superior to Joe in that respect, but I think Joe, ultimately, was moving in a different direction, which would take years to come to fruition. He would still have made some great music with Mick alongside him, but I think I prefer the way things worked out in the end.

[coffeepotman]

From what I remember his live show at the Palladium in NYC to promote EW was pretty poor, I was very disappointed, and the Clash songs he did were very weak.