Week Eleven - Countdown to BIFF

This week's countdown song, London Calling, is by the British punk rock band, The Clash. It was released as a single from the band's 1979 double album London Calling. This apocalyptic, politically charged rant combined the band's famous reggae basslines with punk electric guitar riffs and vocals. The urgent first chorus finds Joe Strummer snarling his way through a grim little warning: "The ice age is coming" . . .  The second chorus adds another cataclysmic possibility to Strummer's list of worries: a nuclear error, perhaps inspired by the recent meltdown at Three Mile Island. The line, "London is drowning and I live by the river" came from the belief in England that if the Thames river ever flooded, all of London would be under water.

Surprised? There you were - - just swinging to the beat, maybe not aware what the lyrics were all about!

Written by Joe Strummer and Mick Jones (1979)

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

Phony Beatlemania has bitten the dust

London calling, see we ain't got no swing

Except for the ring of the truncheon thing

[Chorus]

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 want to shout

But while we were talking - I saw you nodding out

London calling, see we ain't got no highs

Except for that one with the yellowy eyes

[Chorus]

The ice age is coming, the sun's zooming in

Engines stop running, the wheat is growing thin

A nuclear era, but I have no fear

Cause London is drowning, and I . . .  I live by the river

The ice age is coming, the sun's zooming in

Engines stop running, the wheat is growing thin

A nuclear era, but I have no fear

Cause London is drowning, and I . . . I live by the river

Now get this

London calling, yes I was there too

And 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 a'like, a'like, a'like . . .