White Riot Tour with the Jam, Buzzcocks, Slits and Subway Sect -previously listed as the Polytechnic

updated 5 Sept 2008
updated 25 December - punters comments added

Video - Filmed by Students

From the owner of the video
"The Clash footage is from The White Riot Tour, the entire Brighton gig, including the full Clash set. I am still hoping to get a DVD out this year - but their are a lot of parties involved to get clearance from."

"There still are plans for a commercial release and I am in discussion with a production company, it's just taking a long time to get all the clearances. It's not just the Clash of course, there's the Slits, Subway Sect and Buzzcocks too.

Almost all the members from those bands have OK'd on principle the release, a few are very hard to track down, and some have passed-on and I am having to deal with Estates. Joe's has OK'd it but I haven't been able to make direct contact with Mick, Paul or Topper. I've have handled a lot of archive material in the past and always want to release officially, it ensures greater distribution and that Artists get paid for their Art. It is B&W, features an entire set - London's Burning (how timely), 1977, I'm So Bored With The USA, Hate & War, 48 Hours, Denny, Police & Thieves, Capitol Radio & 7 more, including White Riot of course. There were 3 camera, edited live and an ambient mic. The sound is pretty good, good enough for a sound recording too. I'm sorry I can't send you a copy, I'll trade direct contacts for the missing 3 for a DVD of some of the set and I'm sure at release time we can work together to promote each other. It is amazing!"

"I remember watching a black & white video of the White Riot Sussex University gig in Brighton a week after the event, it was shown between bands at a gig in the basement of the art college, I have often wondered if this video is still around, I guess it was shot by an art student as part of a course,  vidoes of other punk gigs in Brighton existed from the time, I remember watching the Damned & Adverts soon after their gig there." - D (2005)

"I just got a Dvd off someone who said he had some footage of The Damned from University of Sussex Brighton in 1977.

Thought he got the wrong year but it was correct and it also has one track by The Slits one by Subway Sect two tracks by The Adverts and The Damned Fan Club, Sick Of Being Sick, Stretcher Case, New Rose then The Clash; Capitol Radio, Protex Blue, Cheat, Remote Control, White Riot, Police And Thieves.

Joe says White Riot in Sussex University before they start the song also the back ground is the same for The Slits,Subway Sect and The Buzzcocks (Buzzcocks I was given 2 Songs on Dvd).

The Damned and Adverts footage is totaly different background and the drum kit is on a round riser". M (2008)

"If its from the one i have been given its a two track preproduction copy (Capital Radio and White Riot),basically i was sent a copy and asked to pass it on to Mick, Tops etc, (Tops loved it BTW and Mick was very interetsed to know it existed plus Robin loved it as he's in most of it behind Micks amp) to probe the possibility of a commercial release as its the complete Clash show plus most of the Slits,Buzzcocks and Subway sect, a three camera shoot by the students all shot in glorious black and white , the sound is very good as well.
As far as i know had this turned up before they decided to release the Shea cd things could have been very different ,so don't expect an official release any time soon although there was talk of like Rat Patrol says a grey area release of some kind unless they have done it already ..........perhaps Klam can tell us , in any case its a fantastic piece of film and one that must see the light of day soon." Steve (2008)

Satch's discussion on the video

to follow - video shots below

The Clash show was booked as a Polytechnic show, but actually took place at Sussex University due to demand; that's why you don't see it listed as such in the White Riot tour ads & so on. I actually bought the last two tickets! The footage was screened live while the show was going on,on closed-circuit TV screens around the venue, in the bars and so on; at the age of 18 I'd never seen anything like that before & it was certainly a rarity in 1977.

The previous week I'd been to my first punk gig, The Ramones & Talking Heads at Eric's in Liverpool but I still didn't really know what to expect. The hall had big glass windows at the stage end which meant that being summer the Slits essentially went on in daylight, despite the backdrop screens; I seem to remember we had to wait a pretty long time for Clash stage time to make sure it was properly dark by the time they got on. The Jam had dropped off the tour a few dates before, so it was the Slits, the Subway Sect & the Buzzcocks before the Clash. You can see photos of The Slits set in Caroline Coon's 1988 book and some of them & The Clash (in colour!) in The Punk Rock Movie; it's been a long time since I've seen that, so I think it's the clips where Joe has the red shirt on. Or maybe green; getting old!

Unsurprisingly it was a fantastic night. I was already a big Clash fan & it was unbelieveably thrilling to see them in person, the first time of many. The song I especially remember is Garageland, Joe crouching down to sing it. They were loud, fast & just brilliant.

But we know that, don't we?

How fantastic to see those screengrabs; it really does bring it all back. This I have to see; I've been playing it in my head for 30 years...