A HERO’S welcome awaited Joe Strummer when he took to the stage, the sort of spontaneous uproar that speaks volumes about the respect in which he is held in Edinburgh.

Such is the regard the capacity crowd has for the man that he could have turned in a mediocre performance and still left the stage triumphant.

But what ensues is one of the best 90 minutes seen in the Capital since Raith Rovers hosted Bayern Munich at Easter Road in 1995.

With a back catalogue that’s hard to top and a backing band firing on all cylinders, Strummer can hardly fail to entertain.

His familiar hunched posture and gnarled features are hardly those of a regular rock ’n’ roll frontman, yet somehow he manages to exude an authoritative charisma born from three decades without compromise.

Rather than the road-weariness you might expect of such a veteran, Strummer is obviously revelling in one of the most fruitful periods of a remarkable career.

Although the show begins in a subdued manner - with the po-faced tale of asylum-seeker’s woe that is Shaktar Donetsk, followed by the contemplative and life-affirming acoustic number X-Ray Style - it’s evident from the outset that Strummer is in fine form.

As the band let loose with a raucous rendition of the Clash classic Rudie Can’t Fail, the tempo begins to increase - yet this is no mere re-hashing of past glories.

The Mescaleros are an impressively solid outfit, drummer Luke Bullen and bassist Simon Stafford providing the perfect bedrock for guitarists Martin Slattery and Scott Shields.

Strummer’s longtime friend and musical sparring partner, Tymon Dogg, adds a new dimension to the Mescaleros, playing violin in unorthodox fashion and overlaying some tasteful classical guitar parts that occasionally look out of character with such rabble-rousing music, but always sound sublime.

It’s good to watch such a unified band at work and we’re treated to a couple of brand new songs.

Get Down Moses is a sprightly fusion of rockabilly attitude and Strummer’s patented Global-a-Go-Go take on ska, while one of The Clash’s earliest forays into reggae, Police and Thieves, is given an almighty crescendo by this formidable bunch of players. Perhaps the high point of the night, Police and Thieves illustrates just how comfortable Strummer is with his past, and how confident he is in the Mescaleros’ ability to improve on the old recordings.

Another cover soon follows, this time the Stooges’ signature tune 1969 - slightly re-written and refined, references to the USA changed to "the old UK".

Another new number, Coma Girl, confirms that Strummer has hit a rich vein of songwriting form, before he sends the crowd into pogo-dancing delirium with a typically vivacious take on the Sonny Curtis staple, I Fought the Law.

The opening chords and throbbing bass of the reggae-flavoured chestnut Bankrobber spark a stirring singalong from the crowd, and as the decidedly un-rock’n’roll hour of 10pm approaches there is time for just one more number.

You can almost lip-read as Strummer turns to Shields and says "White Riot" ... and sheer pandemonium is unleashed as the band pummel through The Clash’s high-octane calling card.

"Thanks for coming out tonight," Strummer says, genuinely grateful for the response of the crowd. He needn’t worry. The Joe Strummer of late 2002 is every bit as vital, vibrant and unmissable as the man who fronted The Clash in 1977. The crowds will keep coming out for many years to come.

From the November 12th, 2002 edition of the Edinburgh Evening News