Ongoing History Daily: The Clash reunion that never was

May 30, 2023 Alan Cross 0 Comments 0 min read

The Clash never really properly broke up. After releasing an album called Cut the Crap in 1985, they just sort of faded away, evaporated, without so much as a press release. For the next 17 years, right up until Joe Strummer died on December 22, 2002, promoters tried to entice The Clash back together.

In 1998, a promoter offered The Clash one million pounds to play two performances at the V Festival the following year. To that promoter’s surprise, Joe invited him round the house to have a discussion. But as soon as he arrived, Joe admitted that he’d called the meeting on false pretenses. Instead of a Clash reunion, Joe wanted to talk about playing live again but with a new band and with this promoter as his manager. And that’s what happened.

The reunion shows never happened and Joe went on to be in his last band, The Mescaleros.

Alan Cross

is an internationally known broadcaster, interviewer, writer, consultant, blogger and speaker. In his 40+ years in the music business, Alan has interviewed the biggest names in rock, from David Bowie and U2 to Pearl Jam and the Foo Fighters. He’s also known as a musicologist and documentarian through programs like The Ongoing History of New Music.

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