GUNS OF BRIXTON DEPOT

Once chance viewing of the Clash's "Guns of Brixton" and I had the song going in my head for two days. Damn good song it is, the first Paul Simonon wrote for the band, off their clusterfuck of a third LP, London Calling. I remember being as jacked up at that song as I was bewildered by "Train In Vain", the latter because it was so un-Clash-like. There were a couple reasons why "Guns of Brixton" stood out. One, the first verse: "When they kick at your front door, how you gonna come? With your hands on your head or on the trigger of your gun?" Whew, badass or what? Reminiscent of rude boy era reggae. I'm not about gun culture, but, really, how many of us that go apeshit for "Johnny Too Bad" have ever walked around with a ratchet [knife] in their waist? You don't have to live it to recognize the baddass quality of it. 

Speaking of reggae, the second reason I dig that particular song is that it's the closest the Clash ever really got to reggae. Sure, they did a cover of Junior Murvin's "Police and Thieves", the Maytals' "Pressure Drop" and Willie Williams's "Armageddon Time" and made a gallant attempt with their own "White Man (In Hammersmith Palais)", but "Guns of Brixton" had that stand your ground feel.

I went looking for an mp3 of it, to no avail, but came across some other stuff and I'm not about to let my scavenging go to waste.

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Listen:
The Clash - Guns of Brixton (streaming) YouTube
The Clash - Guns of Brixton (live) mp3 at Review Stalker
The Clash - Return to Brixton (streaming) at YouTube Version
The Slickers - Johnny Too Bad mp3 at Snuthing Anything
Junior Murvin - Police and Thieves mp3 at Snuthing Anything
Willie Williams - Armagideon Time (streaming) at YouTube
Covers:
Jimmy Cliff - Guns of Brixton (streaming) at YouTube
Nouvelle Vague - Guns Of Brixton mp3 at Ze Happy World according to UU
Calexico - Guns of Brixton mp3 at Turntable Kitchen Go there to get it
Arcade Fire - Guns of Brixton at Turntable Kitchen Ditto. But this one sucks.