London Calling opens with the brash anti-’60s title track and lead singer/guitarist Joe Strummer spews forth the classic line Phony Beatlemania has bitten the dust.

The album also showcased Strummer and lead guitarist/vocalist Mick Jones’ transformation into formidable songwriters. Death or Glory, The Guns of Brixton and Hateful displayed the duo’s niche for straight hard-core punk and made them a force to be reckoned with.

Though the majority of the 19 tracks on the album are true to the punk spirit, songs such as Rudie Can’t Fail and Lost in the Supermarket were as much pop music as anything at the dawn of the MTV era.

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The two vocal approaches of Strummer and Jones were a brilliant contrast. Strummer was more punk, singing like he was spitting out teeth, but Jones’ soft voice was pure pop.

And it is proven on the Top 40 hidden track hit Train in Vain. Jones emerges as the crooner of the mighty Clash (All the times that we were close/I remember these things the most).

With the exception of Never Mind the Bollocks, London Calling marks perhaps the finest moment in the late 70s punk revolution. The Clash may have broken up a few albums later, but do not expect a reunion tour to demoralize the music it created. The Clash are beyond that.