Mescaleros

July 1979 � July 1981. Two years of infantry hell thanks to PW Botha. National Service they called it....hmmm....I spent my time trying to undermine the system, spending about 15 months in the Nam "operational area". My diaries from that era are terrifying; how I coped I just do not know. If you think that at that time I was reading books like the "Lord of the Rings" trilogy, "Contact", "Space", "Wuthering Heights" and "The 1001 Nights of Jean Macaque", I now understand just how desperately I was trying to escape. Yes.

What I do know is that certain musicians (both solo artists and groups) helped me to cope...to escape the reality of where I was and what was going on around me. Wow...in those days before the Walkman, I had to beg and borrow portable tape recorders from the cunts with wealthy parents who could afford to buy them nice toys, and slink off into dark corners to listen to stuff on my own...NO ONE appreciated my taste in music. After all, I was just a Fokken Kommunis and a Kafferboetie who listened to Kaffermusiek. Yeah � I even had to steal batteries from our military radios to indulge in my musical escapism.

Some of those memorable artists and groups were Frank Zappa, David Bowie, Marley and Tosh, The Selecter, The Specials, The Jam, Elvis Costello, Joe Jackson, Madness, Blondie, The Sex Pistols, Ian Dury & The Blockheads, The Pretenders and two new bands called Echo & the Bunnymen and U2. One of them that really stood out there was The Clash...waaaahh!!!...I was absolutely absorbed in their mélange of reggae, rockabilly punk, funk, and even disco. During my last stint on the "Grens" I became one with what I believe was their pinnacle...their masterpiece � "Sandiniasta". I now 4 copies of "Sandinista" � two on CD and two on vinyl (one of the latter never opened as I wanted to preserve it in pristine condition). For 36 tracks on 3 LP�s the band tackled everything in sight, including waltz, gospel, disco, children's ditties, pop, funk, reggae, dub, punk, delicate instrumentals, psychedelic explorations and rock. It blew me away and the lyrics...!! The lyrics!!! The lyrics!!!!

The Sandinista track "The Call Up" (played in a funeral dirge) really struck a chord up at Mpacha in the Caprivi Strip towards the end of my two years:

Joe Strummer was a wordsmith of the highest calibre, and I can still repeat just about every word of every song.

For the last 6 months of my army days, and throughout the entire 7 years of my university career that followed, I carried a photocopy of the lyrics around with me. Sad but true! Actually, a few months ago back in South Africa I found my university work folder...and the lyrics were still there! It was a sad day for me when The Clash threw in the towel in the late 80�s.

Living in London in 1989-90, I was lucky enough to make it to a Joe Strummer concert with my mates Eduard and Mark Murray. Yeee-haa!!! He played a brace of old Clash songs and it was great to see the guru in action..."Earthquake Weather" was a good but undersold album. For me, Strummer then disappeared into obscurity for ten years... until 2000 when I caught him on Jools Holland�s TV show with his new group, The Mescaleros. The live set was OK, but didn�t really impress me at the time.

Fast-forward. Earlier this week I was killing time in the FNAC record store on the Champs Elysee in Paris. It was after midnight and I was aimlessly browsing...and then I heard it! The unmistakable voice, intonation and lyrics...yup...Joe Strummer was being piped through the store�s system, and it was new stuff that I did not know. It took me a while but I eventually found the CD: Joe Strummer & the Mescaleros: "Global A Go-Go". Last night I played it for the first time...and then played it at least 5 times more, pouring over the full lyric sheet (a-la The Clash). Wow!! What brilliant stuff! The eclectic mix of musical styles is outstanding and the lyrics are as masterful as ever, reflecting the same concerns that have always inspired Strummer�s music. I got to bed close on 04h00 this morning...with a broad smile on my face.

Advice: get online, spend the US$ 13.99, get the album, settle down with a bottle of whisky and the lyric sheet...and enjoy!! One of the best albums I have listened to in years. Really.

Alles van die Beeste, MAlfaRK

P.S. No, I am not earning a commission from Hellcat Records!! ;-)

  If you would like to read all of their lyrics, take a look at the excellent "Complete Clash Lyrics Page"

  Tragically, Joe Strummer died of a heart attack on December 22, 2002, eleven months after this was written. I hope he got to read it...