Out of Control Tour
The Clash go Back to Basics - USA Spring Tour

none known

RECOLLECTIONS
(MSU Auditorium, East Lansing, MI, 5/10/84)

When my friends and I first heard about this gig, we were thrilled at the idea of seeing the Clash in such a small venue (especially since East Lansing, at that time, wasn't a real priority for most major bands).

Reports from the two-night stand in Detroit had been encouraging, although (perversely) Mick's absence had put the old uncertainty and riskiness back into the equation...which didn't faze us longtime fans.

My late compadre, Tony Salazar, summed up our collective consensus in some written recollections of his own: "I can't overstate how divided I felt when founder-guitarist Mick Jones was dumped, but as a Clash loyalist, I had to see them."

I don't recall who opened the show, but they didn't last too long, maybe 20 minutes (a common fate for anybody undertaking such a perilous assignment!).

Following the gonzo "hiphoppers, punk rockers pill poppers" intro, the one-two punch of "London Calling" and "Safe European Home" got matters off to their usual rousing fast start.

Contrary to most wriiters' claims, however, the band played a wide variety of songs: for me, what stands out is how the lesser-known material fared, such as a tough, taut "Know Your Rights," while Tony singled out "Straight To Hell" in his recollections as "far more haunting than its recorded counterpart").

Nick's guitar work proved a consistent highlight, as well as his gutsy delivery of "Police On My Back" (the only Sandinista! song, besides "Junco Partner," to be aired on this night).

We also agreed that Pete Howard's drumming seemed like the perfect mix of thunder and finesse (though it couldn't redeem a fairly perfunctory "Rock The Casbah," which -- in our ears -- lost something, without the bouncing piano part to drive it).

Nor did the band neglect the reggae touchstones that cemented its pioneering reputation; Paul's vocal and harmonica cameo on "Guns Of Brixton" impressed, as did a long version of "Armagideon Time."

The four new songs ("Are You Ready For War," "Sex Mad War," "Three Card Trick," and "In The Pouring, Pouring Rain") also sounded promising, well and truly in the Clash groove; "if they can get this on a record," we agreed on the ride back to Grand Rapids, "they'll prove all the naysayers wrong."

That didn't happen, of course, but we left the MSU Auditorium feeling invigorated by the blast of power and aggression that we'd just witnessed: make no mistake, this band could throw down with anybody.

My other lasting memory of this night is the chaos!  Ducking out for a mid-gig bathroom break, I heard a commotion in the lobby; when I ran out to see what happened, my friends told me that some guy had just run off, carrying a stack of T-shirts under his arms!

This was also the night of the missing money (I have a CREEM blurb from August '84 that puts the amount at $1,700).

I remember asking cohorts on the MSU Programming Board about it, long after the fact: according to them, somebody left the cash in a briefcase, which was promptly taken from a hallway backstage!  (You wonder if that earned the offender a one-way ticket to rock 'n' roll Siberia!)

I got the sleeveless T-shirt (two or three years later) for free from an usher who'd worked the gig on that night...I recently sold it on eBay for $30

no known recording

Any further info / reviews
appreciated

Mar 27		Nashville, TN,
		You list the Cut the Crap-era Clash as playing Knoxville on March 27 and Nashville on March 28, 1984, but in fact those two dates are reversed (corrected now)--I went to both shows, and the Nashville show came first. The Nashville show was much better, but was marred by a bizarre crowd incident--my friend Dave W. was involved. He was standing on the bleachers like everyone else, but some drunk sorority girl from Vandy kept kicking him in the back of his legs for half the Clash's set. He finally got fed up and kicked her back, and it sent her falling over. It broke her leg in three places, and show security immediately set after Dave, who had to flee immediately or get the shit knocked out of him. She was taken to Vandy hospital of course, and after hearing about her side of the incident, Joe Strummer and Paul Simonon paid her a visit in hospital before moving on to the show in Knoxville at UT Alumni Hall, a much smaller venue about 3 hours away by car. Tav Falco & Panther Burns did in fact open both shows, but only at the Nashville show were they the full line-up--they played a full opening set at Vanderbilt in the basketball auditorium, but by the time they played Knoxville, the second guitarist and the piano player had quit and--of all people--Alex Chilton was drafted in to play guitar in their place, even though it immediately became clear to the audience that Alex obviously did not know the songs at all. The "band" played about 6 songs in total, and the booing got so bad that the drummer stopped playing several times to smile and sarcastically blow kisses at the audience. GmbH Vince White describes this gig in his Clash biog, The Last Days of the Clash, page 109. He mentions an interview the band did for Channel 4 which appears on US TV that night.
Mar 28		Knoxville, TN, Alumni Memorial Gym on the University of Tennessee campus
		Clash in Knoxville, TN on March 28, 1984, at the Alumni Memorial Gym on the University of Tennessee campus. Opening act was Tav Falco and the Panther Burns, a rockabilly band from Memphis. They were booed off the stage after just a song or two. The band also played a show in Nashville, but I'm not sure if it was before or after the Knoxville concert. Whichever one was earlier was the opening date for the tour. Confirmed dates: Knoxville 27th, Nashville 28th from audience member.
Mar 30		Wdiz and Beach Club, Jai-Alai, Orlando FL
Mar 31		Sunrise, Fort Lauderdale FL
Apr 2
Apr 3		Fox Theatre, Atlanta GA
Apr 5		The Township, Columbia SC
Apr 6		Carmichael Auditorium, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill NC
Apr 7
Apr 8		GWU Smith Center, Hempstead, Washington DC
Apr 9
Apr 10?		Vassar College, Poughkeepsie NY
		Joe contracted syphillis and was treated at a local hospital.  It was in the newspaper the next day. I saved the article. The first song they played the floor monitors werent working so joe kicked them violently and one fell off of the stage. He had his newly cut mohawk.  I think the first song was know your rights.  The show had large video monitors behind them showing them in a car driving around NYC.  I bought a shirt there with 2 girls dancing on the front saying "jive after five" on the back said "steel jungle" 84 R & B showdown.  I still have it.  It was a good show overall despite the sound.  It was in the gymnasium at vassar college in poughkeepsie NY.  There wasnt an opening band.  If you want a scan of the article or tshirt let me know.
Apr 11		Palace Theatre, State University of New York at Albany, aka SUNY Albany
Apr 12		Expo, Portland ME
Apr 13		The Centrum, Worcester MA
Apr 14		Hofstra University, Long Island NY
Apr 15		St. Lawrence University in Canton, NY
		I saw the Clash perform at St. Lawrence University in Canton, NY when I was a mere 6th grader. That concert changed my life. I vaguely remember that it was a Sunday night in '83 or '84. I was also at that show. I had to google search it because, even though I remember it and it was awesome, there was a part of me that didn't think they could have possibly played there... Glad to know it was real - pretty damn awesome! danielle robarge
Apr 16		Rutgers University, New Brunswick, New Jersey
Apr 17		Civic Center, Providence RI
Apr 18		The Hopkins Center, Thompson Arena, Dartmouth College, Hanover NH
Apr ?		Rider College, Lawrenceville, New Jersey
		I remember seeing Clash 2 in the spring of '84 at Rider College in New Jersey. The band was awesome and I hung around afterwards and got everyone's autograph (including Vince) and spoke with Joe briefly. I asked him what was up with Mick and he replied "the hot news is that Topper is out of the band". I told him the new stuff was great and how I was looking forward to a new album and he replied with something to the effect of they were going into the studio after the tour. I remember waiting and waiting for the new album and rushing home with the 'This Is Englad' 12" (along with the 'Bottom Line' 12") and being worried that the production was a bit weird.
Apr		University of Massuchusetts, Dartmouth MA
		"First i would like to say the clash made my whole entire life. My parentss owned a restaaurant for 20 years in the 80's we spent moost of our time going to clash concerts in the northeast. I have to share this story for once in my life, The clash was playing one night at u mass dartmouth, my gran worked there and was called to the reheresal site t here was a blood drive and the boys were rehearsing . me gran was called to step it down a bit , she walked on stage and told mick jones to keep it doen and the had a cuppa with the rest of the band, she being english an all with the boyz as thy were from the same stock. Had. a grand time and it is something i will never forget that me grand told the Clash to be quiet!! buttheyhada cuppa and laughed"
Apr 21		see illegible poster
Apr 22		The Spectrum, Philadelphia PA, USA
Apr 24		Rochester The War Memorial
Apr 25		The Agora, Hartford CT, USA
Apr 26		Stony Brook University Gym, New York
		Hi, great site. I attended the first Pier 84 show, and both the Hofstra University and Stony Brook shows. The 2nd Clash were excellent, I was crushed when that Jose Unidos record came out, it was beyond disappointing. Anyway I hope to write some recollections for you of the shows soon, as they were all amazing in their own way. Thanks, Ed Fingerling" "I was at the 1984 Stony Brook University show--I was the 14 year old kid sitting on the speakers right off stage" Brian Vince White describes arriving in New York in his Clash biog, The Last Days of the Clash, page 118 "1984 in Stony Brook. That show sucked big time, they came out (minus mick - this was lawsuit time or something) and then played like 2 or three songs and walked off - they never came back, all my friends were furious, i was like, "yeah mee too, fuck joe strummer," and as we were filing out of the gym we walked past the stage and i was like "oooh joe strummer was drinking out of thissee here solo cup!!" I grabbed it and slugged down the rest of his beer." Julie "I attended the 1984 Clash show at Stony Brook University and it was nothing like what was described. I remember being thrilled that I would be able to see them in such a small venue. I also remember going to buy tickets and the gathering crowd was very excited to be able to go see The Clash show. The night of the show, the crowd was loud and rowdy. At the time, this college had the reputation of being a liberal hotbed and being very open minded. Unfortunately most of this "liberal" crowd expected Mick Jones and The Clash from Combat Rock and so they were a little let down. Despite all this it was a rocking show as the guitars were cranked up. I can't recall the setlist but they played a wide selection of songs. My friends who were not Clash fans thought that they put on a good show. Joe looked very cool in his mohawk and was quite the showman.The Clash were definitely there for more than 3 songs!" Gene
Apr 27		Colgate Uni, Hamilton New York
Apr 28		Buffalo, New York
Apr 30		Toronto Maple Leaf Gardens, Canada
May 2		Montreal Forum, Canada
		I still have mixed feelings about the May 2, 1984 Montreal Clash Mack II gig. Joe had this white suit and Paul wore camouflage trousers. The other guys ? Can't remember, except they looked punk. Pete messed up at least three times, which got Joe very irritated. Maybe it was just a bad day... It was an all-seated floor, but when Joe told the crowd to get up and dance, it was a rush to the stage that made the Forum bouncers very scared ! The cops were called in and one punter stole a police cap and gave it to Joe, it was hilarious ! As for the setlist ? I remember they played In the Pouring Rain and Sex Mad Roar, among others. BtT
May 3		Ottawa Civic Centre
		supported by the Wise Guys. tics $12.50
May 4		Physical Auditorium Complex (PAC) University of Waterloo Campus in Waterloo, Ontario
May 5		Detroit Fox Theater
		Vince White describes these gigs in his Clash biog, The Last Days of the Clash, page 140
May 6		Detroit Fox Theater
May 8		Hara Arena, Dayton OH
May 9		Veteran’s Memorial Hall, Columbus OH
May 10		East Lansing, Michigan State University
May 11		Cleveland Public Hall
May 14		Mecca Auditorium, Milwaukee WI
May 15		Civic Center, Saint Paul MN
May 16		Civic Center, Des Moines IA
May 17		Aragon Ballroom, Chicago IL
		Vince White describes this gig in his Clash biog, The Last Days of the Clash, page 148
May 20		Davenport Masonic Hall, IA
May 21		Kiel Opera House, Saint Louis MO
May 22		Kansas City Starlight Bowl, MO
May 23		Omaha Music Hall,NB
May 25		Denver Red Rocks, CO
May 27		Salt Lake City Exhibition Hall, UT
		Vince White describes these next few gigs in his Clash biog, The Last Days of the Clash, page 159
May 29		University of Oregon, Eugene OR
		The Last Days of the Clash, page 161
May 30		Paramount Theater, Seattle WA
May 31		Vancouver PNE Coliseum, B.C.
		the promoter gave this number: For more information please contact: Eliot Hubbard (212) 975-5051 ...ticket