I have described myself, for those who do not know me, as a punk rocker in ingenue's clothing, so rarely do I look the part. In reality, my morals, ideals and worldview are a harmonious pairing of the punk ethos and my hippie upbringing.It just so happens that I prefer to make my way through life looking like a retro starlet, when at all possible.
As they have with so many others, The Clash helped me find my moral footing. It is impossible to listen to their music--which remains relevant, transcendent and original--without thinking about the meaning, tone and impact of the words. As the lead singer, Joe Strummer was much more than the face of the band: he was the lyricist, and it was his pissed-off, compassionate ethics of inclusion that formed the heart of their gospel.
I have no idols;rather, I have guides. They helped me, when younger, to identify what is important in this world, and their individual fights armored me with the right set of tools to go forth and make the kind of difference that I want to make, in my own way. My mother, George Bernard Shaw and Joe Strummer are the examples that I refer and return to with greatest frequency.
I was driving to work on 23 December 2002, listening to my favourite alternative station, the same as I did every commute. Ten minutes into my drive--perhaps fifteen, I can never be sure--I heard the announcement: Joe Strummer was dead. Suspected heart attack. Only fifty years old. I wept, and I am unashamed to say that I wept until my face was raw. It was a gut reaction; it took over and inhabited my body, with no conscious thought on my part.
It was not for the death of an admired celebrity that I wept. It was for the passing of a great man--a flawed man--who spun his natural genius, and compassion for all that this world contains of injustice and beauty, into a web, steel-strong, of tireless dedication, righteous anger and, loudest of all, buoyant hope.
"Raise a toast to Saint Joe Strummer/I think he might have been our only decent teacher"-Craig Finn
PUNK ROCK SUNDAY IS A NEW COLUMN ON 1000 FOLLIES SO BE SURE TO CHECK BACK WEEKLY.
No comments:
Post a Comment