One of my all-time favorite concert memories was seeing The Clash live. It was so good that my memories of the event are indelible. It was a stadium show in Buffalo, NY at Shea Stadium, in support of their Combat Rock tour, in support for The Who. We all told our parents we were sleeping at each other’s house and only one of us had a driver’s license (more on that later). When we got there, we went to the nearby 7-eleven and noticed it was completely gutted and there was nothing in there but beer, pop and cigarettes. Since we knew we could bring beer into the stadium but only in plastic containers, we bought 2L pop bottles and quickly replaced the soda with beer and headed in. David Johansson (New York Dolls) opened, followed by Eric Burdon, then The Clash followed by the headliners, The Who.
We were up close to the stage when the first few chords of London Calling hit. Joe Strummer running out on stage sporting a full Mohawk wearing combat fatigues screaming. It was exciting, intense, and terrifying. We were giddy. The Clash hated playing the stadium shows as they felt it lacked the intensity and intimacy of small venues.
I wish I was there!!!
Wish I was there again!