The Clash : London Calling

Punk-Rock / United-Kingdom
(1979 - Sony Music)
Learn more

Lyrics

DISC 1 LONDON CALLING


1. LONDON CALLING

London calling to the faraway towns
Now war is declared, and battle come down
London calling to the underworld
Come out of the cupboard, you boys and girls
London calling, now don't look to us
Phoney Beatlemania has bitten the dust
London calling, see we ain't got no swing
'Cept for the ring of that truncheon thing

[Chorus 1]
The ice age is coming, the sun's zooming in
Meltdown expected, the wheat is growing thin
Engines stop running, but I have no fear
'Cause London is drowning, and I live by the river

London calling to the imitation zone
Forget it, brother, you can go it alone
London calling to the zombies of death
Quit holding out, and draw another breath
London calling, and I don't wanna shout
But while we were talking, I saw you nodding out
London calling, see we ain't got no high
Except for that one with the yellowy eyes

[Chorus 2] (x2)
The ice age is coming, the sun's zooming in
Engines stop running, the wheat is growing thin
A nuclear error, but I have no fear
'Cause London is drowning, and I live by the river

Now get this

London calling, yes, I was there, too
An' you know what they said? Well, some of it was true!
London calling at the top of the dial
After all this, won't you give me a smile?
London calling

I never felt so much alike (fading)alike alike alike


2. BRAND NEW CADILLAC

Driiiiiiiive!!!
Driiiiiiiive!!!

My baby drove up in a brand new Cadillac
Yes she did!
My baby drove up in a brand new Cadillac
She said, "Hey, come here, Daddy!"
"I ain't never comin' back!"

Baby, baby, won't you hear my plea?
C'mon, sugar, just come on back to me
She said, "Balls to you, Big Daddy."
She ain't never coming back!

Baby, baby, won't you hear my plea?
Oh c'mon, just hear my plea
She said, "Balls to you, Daddy."
She ain't coming back to me

Baby, baby drove up in a Cadillac
I said, "Jesus Christ! Where'd you get that cadillac?"
She said, "Balls to you, Daddy."
She ain't never coming back!


3. JIMMY JAZZ

The police walked in for Jimmy Jazz
I said, he ain't here, but he sure went past
Oh, you're looking for Jimmy Jazz

Sattamassagana for Jimmy Dread
Cut off his ears and chop off his head
Police came looking for Jimmy Jazz

So if you're gonna take a message 'cross this town
Maybe put it down somewhere over the other side
See it gets to Jimmy Jazz

Don't you bother me, not anymore
I can't take this tale, oh, no more
It's all around, Jimmy Jazz

J-a-zee zee J-a-zed zed
J-a-zed zed Jimmy Jazz
And then it sucks, he said, suck that!
So go look all around, you can try your luck, brother
ANd see what you found
But I guarantee that it ain't your day
Chop! Chop!


4. HATEFUL

Well, I got a friend who's a man
Who's a man? What man?
The man who keeps me from the lovely

He gives me what I need
What you need? What you got?
I need it all so badly

[Chorus]
Oh, anything I want he gives it to me
Anything I want he gives it, but not for free
It's hateful
And it's paid for and I'm so grateful to be nowhere

This year I've lost some friends
Some friends? What friends?
I dunno, I ain't even noticed

You see, I gotta go out again
Again? My friend
I gotta see that mainman

[Chorus](x2)

I killed all my nerves
My nerves? What swerves?
And I can't drive so steady
And already

I've lost my memory
My mind? Behind!
I can't see so clearly

[Chorus]


5. RUDIE CAN'T FAIL

Sing, Michael, sing-on the route of the 19 Bus
Hear them sayin'
How you get a rude and a reckless?
Don't you be so crude and a feckless
You been drinking brew for breakfast
Rudie can't fail

So we reply
I know that my life make you nervous
But I tell you that I can't live in service
Like the doctor who was born for a purpose***
Rudie can't fail

I went to the market to realise my soul
'Cause what I need I just don't have
First they curse, then they press me till I hurt
We say Rudie can't fail

We hear them sayin'
Now first you must cure your temper
Then you find a job in the paper
You need someone for a saviour
Oh, Rudie can't fail

We reply
Now we get a rude and a reckless
We been seen lookin' cool an' a speckless
We been drinking brew for breakfast
So Rudie can't fail

Okay!
So where you wanna go today?
Hey boss man!
You're looking pretty smart
In your chicken skin suit

You think you're pretty hot
In your pork pie hat
But...Rudie can't fail
Look out, look out...
Sky juice!...10 cents a bottle!

[*Doctor Alimantado]


6. SPANISH BOMBS

Spanish songs in Andalucia
The shooting sites in the days of '39
Oh, please, leave the ventana open
Fredrico Lorca is dead and gone
Bullet holes in the cemetery walls
The black cars of the Guardia Civil
Spanish bombs on the Costa Rica
I'm flying in a DC 10 tonight

[Chorus]
Spanish bombs, yo te quiero infinito
yo te quiero oh mi corazón
Spanish bombs, yo te quiero infinito
yo te quiero oh mi corazón

Spanish weeks in my disco casino
The freedom fighters died upon the hill
They sang the red flag
They wore the black one
But after they died it was Mockingbird Hill
Back home the buses went up in flashes
The Irish tomb was drenched in blood
Spanish bombs shatter the hotels
My senorita's rose was nipped in the bud

[Chorus]

The hillsides ring with "Free the people"
Or can I hear the echo from the days of '39?
With trenches full of poets
The ragged army, fixin' bayonets to fight the other line
Spanish bombs rock the province
I'm hearing music from another time
Spanish bombs on the Costa Brava
I'm flying in on a DC 10 tonight

[Chorus]
Spanish songs in Andalucia, Mandolina, oh mi corazon
Spanish songs in Granada, oh mi corazon


7. THE RIGHT PROFILE

Say, where did I see this guy?
In Red River?
Or a place in the sun?
Maybe the Misfits?
Or From Here to Eternity?

Everybody say, "Is he all right?"
And everybody say, "What's he like?"
Everybody say, "He sure look funny."
That's...Montgomery Clift, honey!

New York, New York, New York, 42nd Street
Hustlers rustle and pimps pimp the beat
Monty Clift is recognized at dawn
He ain't got no shoes and his clothes are torn

I see a car smashed at night
Cut the applause and dim the light
Monty's face is broken on a wheel
Is he alive? Can he still feel?

Nembutol numbs it all
But I prefer alcohol

He said go out and get me my old movie stills
Go out and get me another roll of pills
There I go again shaking, but I ain't got the chills

Arrrghhhgorra buh bhuh do arrrrgggghhhhnnnn!!!!


8. LOST IN THE SUPERMARKET

[Chorus]
I'm all lost in the supermarket
I can no longer shop happily
I came in here for that special offer
A guaranteed personality

I wasn't born so much as I fell out
Nobody seemed to notice me
We had a hedge back home in the suburbs
Over which I never could see

I heard the people who lived on the ceiling
Scream and fight most scarily
Hearing that noise was my first ever feeling
That's how it's been all around me

[Chorus]

I'm all tuned in, I see all the programmers
I save coupons from packets of tea
I've got my giant hit discotheque album
I empty a bottle and I feel a bit free

The kids in the halls and the pipes in the walls
Make me noises for company
Long distance callers make long distance calls
And the silence makes me lonely

[Chorus]

And it's not hear
It disappear
I'm all lost


9. CLAMPDOWN

Hey, hey!
Ooh!
The kingdom is ransacked
The jewels all taken back
And the chopper descends
They're hidden in the back
With a message on a half-baked tape
With the spool going round
Saying I'm back here in this place
And I could cry
And there's smoke you could click on

What are we gonna do now?
Taking off his turban, they said, is this man a Jew?
'Cause they're working for the clampdown
They put up a poster saying we earn more than you!
When we're working for the clampdown
We will teach our twisted speech
To the young believers
We will train our blue-eyed men
To be young believers

The judge said five to ten, but I say double that again
I'm not working for the clampdown
No man born with a living soul
Can be working for the clampdown
Kick over the wall 'cause government's to fall
How can you refuse it?
Let fury have the hour, anger can be power
D'you know that you can use it?

The voices in your head are calling
Stop wasting your time, there's nothing coming
Only a fool would think someone could save you
The men at the factory are old and cunning
You don't owe nothing, so boy get running
It's the best years of your life they want to steal

You grow up and you calm down
You're working for the clampdown
You start wearing the blue and brown
You're working for the clampdown
So you got someone to boss around
It makes you feel big now
You drift until you brutalize
You made your first kill now

In these days of evil presidentes
Working for the clampdown
But lately one or two has fully paid their due
For working for the clampdown
Ha! Gitalong! Gitalong!
Working for the clampdown
Ha! Gitalong! Gitalong!
Working for the clampdown

Yeah I'm working hard in Harrisburg
Working hard in Petersburg
Working for the clampdown
Working for the clampdown
Ha! Gitalong! Gitalong
Begging to be melted down
Gitalong, gitalong
(Work)
(Work)
(Work) And I've given away no secrets - ha!
(Work)
(Work)
(More work)
(More work)
(Work)
(Work)
(Work)
(Work)
Who's barmy now?


10. THE GUNS OF BRIXTON

When they kick at your front door
How you gonna come?
With your hands on your head
Or on the trigger of your gun

When the law break in
How you gonna go?
Shot down on the pavement
Or waiting on death row

You can crush us
You can bruise us
But you'll have to answer to
Oh, the guns of Brixton

The money feels good
And your life you like it well
But surely your time will come
As in heaven, as in hell

You see, he feels like Ivan
Born under the Brixton sun
His game is called survivin'
At the end of the harder they come

You know it means no mercy
They caught him with a gun
No need for the Black Maria
Goodbye to the Brixton sun

You can crush us
You can bruise us
Yes, even shoot us
But oh-the guns of Brixton

When they kick at your front door
How you gonna come?
With your hands on your head
Or on the trigger of your gun

You can crush us
You can bruise us
Yes, even shoot us
But oh-the guns of Brixton

Shot down on the pavement
Waiting in death row
His game is called survivin'
As in heaven as in hell

You can crush us
You can bruise us
But you'll have to answer to
Oh, the guns of Brixton


11. WRONG 'EM BOYO

Stagger Lee met Billy and they go down to gambling
Stagger Lee throwed seven
Billy said that he throwed eight
So Billy said, hey Stagger! I'm gonna make my big attack
I'm gonna have to leave my knife in your back

Why do you try to cheat?
And trample people under your feet
Don't you know it is wrong?
To cheat the trying man
So you better stop, it is the wrong 'em boyo

You lie, steal, cheat and deceit
In such a small, small game
Don't you know it is wrong

Billy Boy has been shot
And Stagger Lee's come out on top
Don't you know it is wrong
To cheat the trying man
To cheat Stagger man
You'd better stop
So you must start all over again-all over again
You got to play it, Billy, play, you got to play it, Billy, play
And you will find it is the right 'em boyo

But if you must lie and deceit
And trample people under your feet
Don't you know it is wrong
It is the wrong 'em boyo


12. DEATH OR GLORY

Now every cheap hood strikes a bargain with the world,
Ends up making payments on a sofa or a girl.
Love 'n hate tattooed across the knuckles of his hands,
Hands that slap his kids around, 'cause they don't understand how,

Death or glory, becomes just another story.
Death or glory, becomes just another story.

'N every gimmick hungry yob digging gold from rock 'n roll,
Grabs the mike to tell us he'll die before he's sold,
But I believe in this and it's been tested by research,
He, who fucks nuns, will later join the church.

Death or glory, becomes just another story.
Death or glory, becomes just another story.

Fear in the gun-sights,
They say lie low,
You say ok,
Don't wanna play the show,
Now all you're thinking
"Was it death or glory now?"
Playing the blues of kings,
Sure looks better now.

Death or glory, just another story?
Death or glory, just another story?

From every dingy basement, on every dingy street,
Every dragging handclap over every dragging beat,
It's just the beat of time, the beat that must go on
If you've been trying for years, we 'ready heard your song

Death or glory, becomes just another story.
Death or glory, just another story?

We gonna march, a long way,
Fight, a long time,
We got to travel, over mountains,
Got to travel, over seas,
We gonna fight, your brother,
We gonna fight, 'til you loose,
We gonna raise, trouble,
We gonna raise, hell.

We gonna fight, your brother,
Raise, hell.

Death or glory, becomes just another story.
Death or glory, becomes just another story.

Death or glory, just another story?
Death or glory, becomes just another story.


13. KOKA KOLA

Elevator! Going up!
In the gleaming corridors of the 51st floor
The money can be made if you really want some more
Executive decision-a clinical precision
Jumping from the windows-filled with indecision

I get good advice from the advertising world
Treat me nice says the party girl
Koke adds life where there isn't any
So freeze, man, freeze

It's the pause that refreshes in the corridors of power
When top men need a top up long before the happy hour
Your snakeskin suit and your alligator boot
You won't need a launderette, you can send them to the vet!

I get my advice from the advertising world
Treat me nice says the party girl
Koke adds life where there isn't any
So freeze, man, freeze

Koka Kola advertising and kokaine
Strolling down the Broadway in the rain
Neon light sign says it
I read it in the paper-they're crazy!
Suit your life, maybe so
In the White House-I know
All Over Berlin (they've been doing it for years)
And in Manhattan!

Coming through the door is a snub nose 44
What the barrel can't snort it can spatter on the floor
Your eyeballs feel like pinballs
And your tongue feels like a fish
You're leaping from the windows-saying don't
Ayaiiiiirrrghhh! *@!!*@!!*!
Don't give me none of this!

I get good advice from the advertising world
Treat me nice says the party girl
Koke adds life where there isn't any
So freeze, man, freeze
Hit the deck!


14. THE CARD CHEAT

There's a solitary man crying, "Hold me."
It's only because he's a-lonely
If the keeper of time runs slowly
He won't be alive for long!

If he only had time to tell of all of the things he planned
With a card up his sleeve, what would he achieve?
It means nothing!

To the opium den and the barroom gin
In the Belmont chair playing violins
The gambler's face cracks into a grin
As he lays down the king of spades

But the dealer just stares
There's something wrong here, he thinks
The gambler is seized and forced to his knees
And shot dead

He only wanted more time
Away from the darkest door
But his luck it gave in
As the dawn light crept in
And he lay on the floor

From the Hundred Year War to the Crimea
With a lance and a musket and a Roman spear
To all of the men who have stood with no fear
In the service of the King

Before you met your fate be sure you
Did not forsake your lover
May not be around anymore


15. LOVER'S ROCK

Yeh, you must treat your lover girl right
If you wanna make lover's rock
You must know a place you can kiss to make lovers rock
'Cause everybody knows it's a crying shame
But nobody knows the poor babie's name
When she forgot that thing that she had to swallow

You Western man, you're free with your seed
When you make lovers rock
But woops! there goes the strength that you need
To make real cool lovers rock
'Cause a genuine lover takes off his clothes
And he can make a lover in a thousand go's
An' she don't need that thing that she had to swallow


16. FOUR HORSEMEN

Well they were given the grapes that go ripe in the sun
That loosen the screws at the back of the tongue
But they told no one where they had begun-four horsemen

They were given all the foods of vanity
And all the instant promises of immortality
But they bit the dust screamin' insanity!-four horsemen

One was over the edge, one was over the cliff
One was lickin' em dry with a bloody great spliff
When they picked up the hiker he didn't want the lift
From the horsemen

But you!
You're not searching, are you now?
You're not looking anyhow
You're never gonna ride that lonely mile
Or put yourself up on trial
Oh, you told me how your life was so bad
An' I agree that it does seem sad
But that's the price that you gotta pay
If you're lazing all around all day
Four horsemen coming right through
Four horsemen and they're pissing by you
They make you look like you're wearing a truss
Four horsemen and it's gonna be us

Well they gave us everything for bending the mind
And we cleaned out their pockets and we drank 'em blind
It's a long way to the finish so don't get left behind
By those horsemen

And they gave us the grapes that went ripe in the sun
That loosen the screws at the back of the tongue
But we still told nothing 'bout what was to come
Four horsemen


17. I'M NOT DOWN

If it's true that a rich man leads a sad life
N' that's what they from day to day
Then what do all the poor do with their lives?
Have nothing to say on judgment day?

I've been beat up, I've been thrown
Out but I'm not down, I'm not down
I've been shown up, but I've grown up
And I'm not down, I'm not down

On my own I faced a gang of jeering in strange streets
When my nerves were pumping and I
Fought my fear in, I did not run
I was not done

And I have lived that kind of day
When one of your sorrows will go away
It goes down and down and hit the floor
Down and down and down some more
Depression
But I now there'll be some way
When I can swing everything back my way
Like skyscrapers rising up
Floor by floor, I'm not giving up

So you rock around and think that
You're the toughest
In the world, the whole wide world
But you're streets away from where
It gets the roughest
You ain't been there


18. REVOLUTION ROCK

Revolution rock, it is a brand new rock
A bad, bad rock, this here revolution rock

Careful how you move, Mac, you dig me in me back
An' I'm so pilled up that I rattle
I have got the sharpest knife, so I cut the biggest slice
But I have no time to do battle

Everybody smash up your seats and rock to this
Brand new beat
This here music mash up the nation
This here music cause a sensation
Tell your ma, tell your pa everything's gonna be all right
Can't you feel it? Don't ignore it
Gonna be Arl-right

Revolution rock, I am in a state of shock
So bad, bad rock, this here revolution rock

Careful how you slide, Clyde, all you did was glide
And you poured your beer in me hat
With my good eye on the beat, living on fixation street
And I ain't got no time for that


19. TRAIN IN VAIN

Say you stand by your man
Tell me something I don't understand
You said you love me and that's a fact
Then you left me, said you felt trapped

Well some things you can explain away
But my heartache's in me till this day

[Chorus]
Did you stand by me
No, not at all
Did you stand by me
No way

All the times
When we were close
I'll remember these things the most
I see all my dreams come tumbling down
I won't be happy without you around

So all alone I keep the wolves at bay
There is only one thing that I can say

[Chorus]

You must explain why this must be
Did you lie when you spoke to me

Did you stand by me
No, not at all

Now I got a job
But it don't pay
I need new clothes
I need somewhere to stay
But without all these things I can do
But without your love I won't make it through

But you don't understand my point of view
I suppose there's nothing I can do

[Chorus]

You must explain why this must be
Did you lie when you spoke to me?

Did you stand by me
Did you stand by me
No, not at all
Did you stand by me
No way
Did you stand by me
No, not at all
Did you stand by me
No way


DISC 2 - THE VANILLA TAPES (BONUSDISC ON THE "25TH ANNIVERSARY LEGACY EDITION")


1. HATEFUL

(See lyrics on track 4)


2. RUDIE CAN'T FAIL

(See lyrics on track 5)


3. PAUL'S TUNE

(Instrumental)


4. I'M NOT DOWN

(See lyrics on track 17)


5. FOUR HORSEMEN

(See lyrics on track 16)


6. KOKA KOLA, ADVERTISING & COCAINE

(See lyrics on track 13)


7. DEATH OR GLORY

(See lyrics on track 12)


8. LOVER'S ROCK

(See lyrics on track 15)


9. LONESOME ME

I've been left with nothin'
No one's lovin' me
I'm so down not hopin'

Oh lonesome me
Your heart is like a diamond
Still know your perfume
But you went and left me, now I aint got you

I've been left with nothin'
No one's lovin' me
I'm so down not hopin'
Oh Lonesome me

Oh lonesome me
Oh poor poor me
Oh the pain
Oh lonesome me
Oh


10. THE POLICE WALKED IN 4 JAZZ

Police walked in for Jimmy Jazz
I said, "He ain't here, but he sure went past"
Oh, you're looking for Jimmy Jazz
Satta Massagana for Jimmy Dread
Cut off his ears and chop off his head
Police come look for Jimmy Jazz
So if you're going to take a message across this town
Maybe put it down somewhere over the other side
See it gets to Jimmy Jazz
So tell me now!
The police came in, they said, "Now where's Jimmy Jazz?"
I said, "Hm, he was here but, um, he said he went out"
Who you're looking for? Jimmy Jazz, Jazz, Jazz, Jazz
Satta Massagana for Jimmy Dread
Cut off his ears and they'll chop off his head
Oh you're looking for Jimmy Jazz, Jazz, Jazz, Jazz
What a relief!
I feel like a soldier
Look like a thief!
Police come a-looking for the Jimmy Jazz
He came in and he went past
Oh, you're looking for Jimmy Jazz
In fact, don't you bother me, not anymore
I can't take this tale, oh, no more
It's all around, Jimmy Jazz, Jazz
J-a-zee-zee, J-a-zed-zed
J-a-zed-zed, Jimmy Jazz
And then it sucks, he said, suck that!
So go look all around, you can try your luck, brother
And see what you found
But I guarantee you that it ain't your day, your day
It ain't your day
Chop! Chop!


11. LOST IN THE SUPERMARKET

(See lyrics on track 8)


12. UP-TOON

(Instrumental)


13. WALKING THE SIDEWALK

(Instrumental)


14. WHERE YOU GONNA GO (SOWETO)

(Instrumental)


15. THE MAN IN ME

Ooo...

La la la...

The man in me will do
Nearly any task
And as for compensation
There's a little he would ask
Take a woman like you
To get through
To the man in me

Storm clouds are raging
All around my door
I think to myself I might not take it anymore
Take a woman like your kind
To find
The man in me

But oh,
What a wonderful feeling
Just to know that you are near
It sets my a-heart a-reeling
From my toes
Up to my ears

The man in me will hide sometimes
To keep from bein' seen
But that's just because he doesn't wanna
Turn into some machine
Take a woman like you
To get through
To the man in me

Ah la la...


16. REMOTE CONTROL

Who needs remote control
From the Civic Hall
Push a button
Activate
You gotta work an' you're late

It's so grey in London town
With a panda car crawling around
Here it comes
Eleven o'clock
Where can we go now?

Can't make a noise
Can't get no gear
Can't make no money
Can't get outta here

Big business it don't like you
It don't like the things you do
You got no money
So you got no power
They think you're useless
An' so you are - puuuuuuunnnnnk!

They had a meeting in Mayfair
They got you down an'
They wanna keep you there
It makes them worried
Their bank accounts
That's all that matters
And you don't count

Can't make no progress
Can't get ahead
Can't stop the regress
Don't wanna be dead

Look out' those rules and regulations

Who needs the Parliament
Sitting making laws all day
They're all fat and old
Queuing for the House of Lords

Repression - gonna start on Tuesday
Repression - gonna be a Dalek
Repression - I am a robot
Repression - I obey


17. WORKING AND WAITING

(Instrumental)


18. HEART AND MIND

My mind say stop, my heart say go
My heart say kill, my mind say no
I dont know which way should I choose?

But I know a man, hes my friend
But he steals from a family of friends
But I could never tell that man goodbye

I got a heart, I got a mind
But I cant keep callin' time
I got a heart, I got a mind
But I cant keep callin' time

Its the same for everyone
Stuck between the right and wrong
But you just gonna tell ya which way

Someone comes and someone kills
Someone chews a lot of pills
But you can put your self up to say so

You got a heart, you got a mind
But you cant keep callin' time
You got a heart, you got a mind
But you cant keep callin' time

If only I could keep my heart and mind in tact
But sometimes someones wise
Sometimes I want [Incomprehensible]

I got a heart, I got a mind
But I cant tell love apart
I got a heart, I got a mind
But I cant tell love apart

Heart, I got a mind
But I cant keep callin' time
I got a heart, I got a mind
But I cant tell love apart

Its very difficult

We got the keys to your heart
I got the keys, keys to your heart, heart
And I got em on my chain, on my chain

I got the keys to your heart, heart
And I got em on my chain, on my chain
I got the keys, keys to your heart, heart
And I got em on my chain, on my chain

[Incomprehensible]

I got the keys, keys to your heart, heart
And I got em on my chain, on my chain
I got the keys, keys to your heart, heart
And I got em on my chain, on my chain
On my chain


19. BRAND NEW CADILLAC

(See lyrics on track 2)


20. LONDON CALLING

(See lyrics on track 1)


21. REVOLUTION ROCK

(See lyrics on track 18)


lyrics added by Eitrops - Modify this lyrics