London Calling

London Calling, the third studio album from the English rock band the Clash, came out as a double album in the UK on 14 December 1979 via CBS Records, and in the US and Canada the following January on Epic Records. The band recorded it with producer Guy Stevens at Wessex Sound Studios in London over five to six weeks starting in August 1979, after a management change and a stretch where songwriters Joe Strummer and Mick Jones had struggled with writer’s block. The album bridges a traditional punk rock sound with a new wave aesthetic, showing the band’s growing interest in styles beyond punk—reggae, rockabilly, ska, New Orleans R&B, pop, lounge jazz, and hard rock. Its lyrics tackle social displacement, unemployment, racial conflict, drug use, and the responsibilities of adulthood.

The album reached the top ten in the UK charts, and its lead single “London Calling” became a top 20 single there. Worldwide, it has sold over five million copies, and it earned a platinum certification in the US for one million sales. Critics praised it widely at the time, and it has since been named one of the greatest albums ever. On Rolling Stone’s list of the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time, it ranked number 8 in the 2003 and 2012 editions, and number 16 in the 2020 edition. In 2010, the Royal Mail issued a UK postage stamp featuring its cover as one of ten classic album covers from British artists.

On their second album, *Give ’Em Enough Rope* (1978), the Clash had already started moving away from pure punk. While touring the US in 1979, they chose supporting acts like rhythm and blues artists Bo Diddley, Sam & Dave, Lee Dorsey, and Screamin’ Jay Hawkins, as well as neotraditional country artist Joe Ely and punk rockabilly band the Cramps. This growing fascination with rock and roll shaped the direction of *London Calling*.

After recording *Give ’Em Enough Rope*, the Clash split from manager Bernard Rhodes, which forced them to leave their rehearsal space in Camden Town. Tour manager Johnny Green and drum roadie Baker found a new spot, Vanilla Studios, tucked in the back of a garage in Pimlico. The band arrived there in May 1979 with no new songs ready for their third album. Strummer and Jones had not written a new song in over a year; their recently released *Cost of Living* EP included a cover and three songs all written more than a year earlier.