BBC plays unreleased version of "London Calling" by The Clash, found after tidy-up at Mick Jones's house!

The BBC showed images and unreleased music by the group The Clash, including an alternative version of "London Calling", on the "Newsnight" news program this Thursday. The unreleased recordings became known as the "Vanilla Tapes" and were recently discovered by guitarist Mick Jones when he was tidying his house. They were made weeks before the band officially began recording the album "London Calling" in 1979. Listen to an excerpt of the song The version of the album's title track is much lighter and swingier than the original, capturing a band's concern with experimenting with sonic possibilities.

THE CLASH AND REGGAE

The Clash was one of the most experimental bands on the punk scene. The band breathed Jamaican air on several occasions. Reggae and Ska are very present in several of its compositions, including the great cover "Police and Thieves" by Junior Murvin.

LOST ON THE SUBWAY

"They haven't been heard since the album was made. It's incredible," said the guitarist. It was believed that the recordings had been lost by the former roadie, a band assistant, on the London subway. Among the 21 songs are five unreleased tracks: "Heart And Mind", "Where You Wanna Go (Soweto)", "Lonesome Me", "Walking The Slidewalk" (an instrumental) and a version of the song "The man In Me", by Bob Dylan. Former band members, guitarist Mick Jones and bassist Paul Simonon, also spoke on the program about the re-release of the album "London Calling", which turns 25 on September 21. For the anniversary celebration, the release of CDs with the unreleased recordings and studio footage is also planned.

IMPORTANCE

Since its release, the album has been considered one of the greatest in rock history. Its enormous diversity of musical styles, ranging from rockabilly to reggae, passing through jazz, broke with the band's punk past and opened several possibilities for pop music in the following decade. In various opinion polls, it was voted the most influential album of the 80s, even though it was released in the previous decade. The lyrics reflect the anguish of the United Kingdom during the Margaret Thatcher period, and the cover, with the photo of Simonon destroying his instrument, is also considered one of the most famous of all time.

MULTIMEDIA

Click here to watch The Clash in the "Guns of Brixton" video.