Redemption Song: The Ballad of Joe Strummer

I have read all the various Strummer biographies and found several of them quite good and entertaining. This one is by far the best. The others do a fair job of telling what Joe did, and when, and with who etc etc. But I dont feel they really told who Joe was. This one does. Redemption Song made me feel as if I really knew Strummer. This book, for me, changed Joe from being a kind of abstract musical legend and cultural prophet into a real human being with flaws and shortcomings and a real ego and temper. But it also reveals his innocence and kindness and good nature and humor. The downside is, Redemption Song made me miss him even more, because after reading this book I had much more of a sense of what we lost when Joe died. I felt like I had lost a friend.

I really enjoyed this book, it is a very honest and in depth look at Joe Strummer's life. What I found to be heart breaking was the amount he drank as a way to avoid the pain of his brother's death, and how it took him so long to come to terms with his own personal demons. A great read, but be ready.

The lead sheet that comes with this book says "The importance of the Clash to modern music is almost impossible to overstate." A strong statement, to be sure, but one that is hard to argue. And while the band was certainly not solely one man's vision, Strummer (nee John Mellor) was the captain of it's apocalyptic view. Salewicz, a longtime writer for England's New Musical Express (NME) is in a fortunate position to write this revealing, up-close-and-personal account of the frontman's life as he covered the punk revolution from it's inception in the UK as well as having been a longtime friend of the subject at hand. (He even wrote his obit for the Independent in London.) In his three years of researching the book, Salewicz leaves no stone unturned - interviewing all of Joe's main band mates, managers, A & R men, etc. as well as a multitude of friends, wives, lovers and professional cohorts - taking us through his early days with the 101'ers all the way to the band's final stadium shows with the Who and even past the last show with Mick Jones at California's famed 'Us' festival. What comes across is a man full of contradictions - a sometimes angry spokesman for the beaten down proletariat, a man who when approaching his 'wilderness years' remained full of self doubt, through to his rebuilding of position with the Pogues and finally his latest band the Muscaleros. As both a journalist as well as a close friend, Salewicz gives perhaps the best view yet into this conflicted soul who fronted what many consider to be the most important band in rock'n'roll. Cheeseburger! - Blog on Books

Wow, it seemed like I had this book on pre-order FOREVER. It was well worth the wait. After reading the book I'm glad it wasn't rushed out and can see why it took a long time to compile. This bio is a monumental project and certainly wasn't thrown together in haste. If I were hypercritical I might complain that there were times I found it hard to follow just who was being quoted, or if the author was simply relating his own experience, but I won't dwell on that. The subject matter is simply too precious and the anecdotes told just too special to quibble over the small stuff. Though Joe barely made it past 50, the book relates the experiences of many folks in Stummer's life and certainly has a huge amount of ground to cover. I just couldn't put it down. When I reached the end I felt almost as sad as the day...well, you know. If you are a fan of Joe Strummer, The Clash, punk rock or grew up through the late 70's-early 80's, you cannot and should not avoid this book!

This is an extremely well-written biography about an extremely important man who contributed so much to the history of punk rock and inspired so many other artists along the way. This book allows the reader to experience what it was actually like to be a part of Joe Strummer's life. Mr. Salewicz doesn't try to candy coat any aspect of any of the events that go on throughout this book. We are allowed to see the real Joe Strummer, both bad and good. I recommend this book to anyone, not just Clash fans.