The 101ers

This collection of demos and live tracks by the band Joe Strummer formed before the Clash is saved from mere historical interest by "Keys to Your Heart," as perfect and rocking a pop song as the man ever wrote. The rest of the album is pint-fueled R&B; engaging enough on its own, but made special by that voice.

A peek at Joe Strummer's sturdy pre-Clash band in the mid-seventies, Joe Strummer led the
101ers, a gritty, R&B-heavy band of pub rockers who eventually became one of London's
top good-time acts. The 101ers allegedly took their name from the number of their West
London squat, but it might as well have been for the education they delivered night after
night: This is Rock & Roll 101. Collected from three demo sessions and several live... More >