"White Riot" is a song by English punk rock band

the Clash The Clash were an English rock band formed in London in 1976 who were key players in the original wave of British punk rock. Billed as "The Only Band That Matters", they also contributed to the and new wave movements that emerged in the w ...

, released as the band's first single in March 1977 and also included on their self-titled debut album.

Versions

There are two versions of the song: the single version (also appearing on the US version of the album released in 1979), was one of the first songs they recorded at CBS Studio 3 on

Whitfield Street Whitfield Street is a street in the London Borough of Camden that runs from Warren Street in the north to Windmill Street in the south. The street is crossed by Grafton Way, Maple Street, Howland Street, Wayland Street, and Goodge Street. Whitf ...

in Central London, after signing with

CBS Records CBS Records may refer to: * CBS Records or CBS/Sony, former name of Sony Music, a global record company * CBS Records International, label for Columbia Records recordings released outside North America from 1962 to 1990 * CBS Records (2006), founde ...

. However, when they were recording the debut album, they decided to use a demo version of the song that they had recorded earlier in 1976 at

Beaconsfield Studios Beaconsfield Film Studios is a British television and film studio in Beaconsfield, Buckinghamshire. The studios were operational as a production site for films in 1922, and continued producing films - and, later, TV shows - until the 1960s. B ...

in Buckinghamshire with Julien Temple. The rest of the demo tracks would eventually be released on the '' Sound System'' compilation album. The album version has a running time of 1:58 and starts with Mick Jones counting off "1-2-3-4". The single version begins with the sound of a

police The police are a constituted body of persons empowered by a state, with the aim to enforce the law, to ensure the safety, health and possessions of citizens, and to prevent crime and civil disorder. Their lawful powers include arrest and th ...

siren and has a running time of 1:55.

Composition

Lyrically, the song is about class economics and

race Race, RACE or "The Race" may refer to: * Race (biology), an informal taxonomic classification within a species, generally within a sub-species * Race (human categorization), classification of humans into groups based on physical traits, and/or s ...

and thus proved controversial; some people thought it was advocating a kind of

race war An ethnic conflict is a conflict between two or more contending ethnic groups. While the source of the conflict may be political, social, economic or religious, the individuals in conflict must expressly fight for their ethnic group's positio ...

. The song was written after Joe Strummer and bassist Paul Simonon were involved in the riots at the Notting Hill Carnival of 1976. In an interview with the New Musical Express in December 1976, Joe Strummer responded angrily to the suggestion that some people misinterpreted the “White Riot” lyrics as racist, saying, “They’re not racist! They’re not racist at all!”. Strummer pointed out that inner-city black youth were now fighting back against poverty and heavy-handed policing. “White Riot” was a call to arms to white youth to fight back in the same way and have, in the words of the song, “a riot of my own”. When

The Clash The Clash were an English rock band formed in London in 1976 who were key players in the original wave of British punk rock. Billed as "The Only Band That Matters", they also contributed to the and new wave movements that emerged in the w ...

played the

Rock Against Racism Rock Against Racism (RAR) was a political and cultural movement which emerged in 1976 in reaction to a rise in racist attacks on the streets of the United Kingdom and increasing support for the far-right National Front at the ballot box. Betwe ...

Carnival in Victoria Park, London on 30 April 1978 they finished their set with “White Riot”, accompanied by Jimmy Pursey (Sham 69) on vocals. Footage of this performance can be seen in the film

Rude Boy Rude boy, rudeboy, rudie, rudi, and rudy are slang terms that originated in 1960s Jamaican street culture, and that are still used today. In the late 1970s, there was a revival in England of the terms ''rude boy'' and ''rude girl'', among other ...

Sleeve

The single's cover photograph was taken by

Caroline Coon Caroline Coon (born 1945) is an English artist, journalist and political activist. Her artwork often explores sexual themes from a feminist standpoint. Coon had her first solo painting exhibition at The Gallery Liverpool entitled "Caroline Coon: ...

on 5 November 1976 at the band's rehearsal studio in Camden Town. The photo was inspired by real-life events where youths were randomly stopped and searched by police in the street. The original shot featured the phrase "Hate and War" on the back of Strummer's boiler suit, which was airbrushed for the released version and replaced with "1977".

Reception

The Clash performed "White Riot" in public for the first time when they played the

100 Club Punk Festival The 100 Club Punk Special (sometimes referred to as the 100 Club Punk Festival) was a two-day event held at the 100 Club venue in Oxford Street, London, England on 20 and 21 September 1976. The gig showcased eight punk rock bands, most of which ...

on 20 September 1976. "White Riot" is considered a classic in the Clash canon, although as the band matured, Mick Jones would at times refuse to play it, considering it crude and musically inept. Over two decades later, Joe Strummer would perform it with his band

the Mescaleros The Mescaleros were the British backing band for British singer, musician and songwriter Joe Strummer, formed in 1999, which issued three albums prior to Strummer's death in 2002. Many of the band members were multi-instrumentalists. The origin ...

. The B-side of the single was "1977", a non-album track. This song was along similar lines to "White Riot", suggesting that the music of

Elvis Presley Elvis Aaron Presley (January 8, 1935 – August 16, 1977), or simply Elvis, was an American singer and actor. Dubbed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, King of Rock and Roll", he is regarded as Cultural impact of Elvis Presley, one ...

the Beatles The Beatles were an English rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the most influential band of all time and were integral to the developmen ...

, and

the Rolling Stones The Rolling Stones are an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1962. Active for six decades, they are one of the most popular and enduring bands of the album era, rock era. In the early 1960s, the Rolling Stones pioneered the g ...

was no longer relevant. Writing for '' Melody Maker'' in November 1976,

described the song as "played with the force of an acetylene torch". On its release in March 1977, the '' New Musical Express'' declared, “‘White Riot’ isn’t a poxy Single of the Week, it’s the first meaningful event all year … The Clash aren’t just a band, and this is more than just a single.” '' Billboard'' described it as "the most controversial song the Clash ever did". In March 2005, ''Q'' magazine placed "White Riot" at number 34 in its list of the 100 Greatest Guitar Tracks.

In popular culture

The song is featured in the soundtrack for the game ''

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''.

Cover versions

The song was covered by Clash contemporaries Sham 69. The punk rock/Oi! band Cock Sparrer also did a live cover version of the song, which even appeared on their ''The Best of Cock Sparrer'' and ''England Belongs to Me'' albums. The Mekons' first single, "Never Been in a Riot" was a response to "White Riot". The song has been covered by, among others, hip-hop/punk rock band

the Transplants The Transplants are an American punk rock/rap rock supergroup. They formed in 1999 when Tim Armstrong (of the bands Rancid and Operation Ivy) played his friend and roadie Rob Aston some beats he had made using Pro Tools and asked Aston if h ...

, rock/folk/carnival band Camper Van Beethoven, punk rock band Anti-Flag, Rise Against, Cracker,

the Bad Shepherds The Bad Shepherds were an English folk music, folk band, formed by the comedian Ade Edmondson, Adrian Edmondson in 2008. They played folk punk songs with traditional folk instruments. The band primarily consisted of Edmondson (vocals, mandolin ...

alternative rock band

Audioslave Audioslave was an American rock supergroup formed in Glendale, California, in 2001. The four-piece band consisted of Soundgarden's lead singer and rhythm guitarist Chris Cornell with Rage Against the Machine members Tom Morello (lead guitar) ...

, and the

Angelic Upstarts Angelic Upstarts are an English punk rock / Oi! band formed in South Shields in 1977. AllMusic calls them "one of the period's most politically charged and thought-provoking groups". Angelic Upstarts Biography AllMusic. accessed 3 July 2006 T ...

. The American Celtic punk band Dropkick Murphys have covered the song live, one recording of which is on their ''The Singles Collection: Volume One'' album. It was also performed by

Rage Against the Machine Rage Against the Machine (often abbreviated as RATM or shortened to simply Rage) is an American rock band from Los Angeles, California. Formed in 1991, the group consists of vocalist Zack de la Rocha, bassist and backing vocalist Tim Commer ...

at their free concert in Finsbury Park and at Download Festival in June 2010. Punk rock band Rise Against covered the song during their shows at the

Reading and Leeds Festivals The Reading and Leeds Festivals are a pair of annual music festivals that take place in Reading and Leeds in England. The events take place simultaneously on the Friday, Saturday and Sunday of the August bank holiday weekend. The Reading Fe ...

in 2011 after vocalist Tim McIlrath made a speech about the London riots of 2011.

Personnel

Joe Strummer John Graham Mellor (21 August 1952 – 22 December 2002), known professionally as Joe Strummer, was a British singer, musician and songwriter. He was the co-founder, lyricist, rhythm guitarist and co-lead vocalist of punk rock band the Clash, ...

– lead vocal, rhythm guitar * Mick Jones – lead guitar, backing vocal * Paul Simonon – bass guitar, backing vocal * Terry Chimes – drums

Charts

Notes

References

* * * * * * * {{Authority control 1977 debut singles The Clash songs Songs written by Mick Jones (The Clash) Songs written by Joe Strummer 1977 songs CBS Records singles Race-related controversies in music