"Earthquake Weather" Review

EARTHQUAKE WEATHER - Epic EK 45372: Gangsterville; King Of The Bayou; Island Hopping; Slant Six; Dizzy's Goatee; Shouting Street; Boogie With Your Children; Leopardskin Limousines; Sikorsky Parts; Jewellers & Bums; Highway One Zero Street; Ride Your Donkey; Passport to Detroit; Sleepwalk. (45:21 minutes)

Personnel:Strummer, vocals, rhythm guitar, piano; Zander Schloss; lead guitar, banjo, velah, Spanish guitar, organ, vocals; Lonnie Marshall, bass guitar, piano, high vocals; Willie MacNeil, drums (cuts 2,3,5,7,8,11,13,14); Jack Irons, drums (1,4,6,9,10,12)

FOUR STARS

Earthquake Weather is Joe Strummer's first album since Cut the Crap was released in 1985. The founder of The Clash has kept busy since then, touring with The Pogues, co-writing a few songs with former Clash member Mick Jones (who now heads up Big Audio Dynamite), performing in Alex Cox's film Straight to Hell, and working in the now-completed Jim Jarmusch film Mystery Train.

With Earthquake Weather, Strummer delivers an interesting and mostly pleasing mix of punk, funk, reggae, and soul sounds, beginning with "Gangsterville," a punk-rocking anthem of late 1980s angst in which Strummer tells us who is really in charge, since most of us are unwilling to make the hard choices that influence our daily lives: "Final decisions are made by the club/And implemented by the shadow of a glove." Strummer's passionate vocals and violent chord changes are joined by the crafty electric guitar riffs of Zander Schloss for a combined effect not unlike a live high-voltage line jumping around during a severe thunderstorm.

The lighthearted "Island Hopping" relieves the punk tension of the opening cuts and sets the stage for the excursions that follow: the jazzy "Dizzy's Goatee" (which celebrates the spirit of Dizzy Gillespie and Charlie Parker); the happy, all-out rocker, "Shouting Street"; the funky "Boogie With Your Children" and "Sikorsky Parts"; the talking blues of "Leopardskin Limousines"; and the rolling reggae tune, "Ride Your Donkey."

The most pleasant surprise on this album is the guitar playing of Schloss. Schloss demonstrates his flexibility by switching styles from song to song and reacting to Strummer's vocals with arrangements that strengthen the mood of each song. Accentuating Strummer's vocals is no doubt challenging: a marathon runner participant, Strummer infuses his music with a very physical element, frequently sounding like he is out of breath and running for his life - or pleading desperately for someone to listen and act to change the injustice in our society. At any rate, Schloss knocks off some crisp and complex arrangements that are very effective catalysts, particularly on "Passage To Detroit" and the soulful final cut, "Sleepwalk." The bass and drum playing are also solid, and Lonnie Marshall belts out wonderful, high vocals on "Boogie With Your Children."

Hard-core Strummer fans are sure to be happy with the punk and garage rockers that are sprinkled across the album, and the un-decideds and curious will find a balance and proportion in the mix of songs here not found Strummer's previous album. Strummer now has a band that can complement his songwriting as well as push the energy up a few levels. (reviewed on CD)

Johnson, Tim Downbeat Magazine February 1990