{"id":7424,"date":"2025-12-15T12:44:53","date_gmt":"2025-12-15T12:44:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/musictechohio.online\/site\/an-audience-with-paul-simonon-the-clash-152529\/"},"modified":"2025-12-15T12:44:53","modified_gmt":"2025-12-15T12:44:53","slug":"an-audience-with-paul-simonon-the-clash-152529","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/musictechohio.online\/site\/an-audience-with-paul-simonon-the-clash-152529\/","title":{"rendered":"An Audience With The Clash\u2019s Paul Simonon: \u201cI\u2019m the Clint Eastwood of bass playing!\u201d"},"content":{"rendered":"
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This article was originally published in Uncut Take 261 (February 2019)<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Click here to subscribe to Uncut<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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This article was originally published in Uncut Take 261 (February 2019)<\/strong><\/p>\n

It\u2019s strange to be meeting Paul Simonon within a few steps of the Westway, the London flyover that looms so large in Clash lore. Coincidence \u2013 or maybe serendipity \u2013 has brought him back here, to Damon Albarn\u2019s studio, where much of The Good, The Bad & The Queen\u2019s new album was recorded. \u201cIn some ways it\u2019s very familiar because I used to go to school round here, but the area\u2019s changed quite a lot,\u201d muses Simonon. \u201cA lot of people have been priced out. This part [Latimer Road] is alright because it hasn\u2019t really changed, but Ladbroke Grove, Portobello Road, I don\u2019t recognise it, other than shapes of buildings and stuff. The personality has shifted and I don\u2019t like it.\u201d<\/p>\n

These days, Simonon is usually to be found at his painting studio in Paddington, which he describes as \u201ca bit like Steptoe & Son \u2013 an old mews house, a bit run-down, wooden floorboards, gas lamps, pretty old-school.\u201d He\u2019s currently working on a number of satirical \u201cbreakfast paintings\u201d in which newspaper headlines have been altered to give an alternative slant on current events, as well as a series of night paintings: \u201cThey\u2019re as moody as this album, come to think of it!\u201d<\/p>\n

Despite his parallel art career, Simonon is happy to be back in the fold of a touring band. \u201cWhen you\u2019re working on your own it\u2019s difficult, because I\u2019m quite a hard taskmaster. Most of the art I\u2019ve done, I think: could do better. Music is a different thing because it\u2019s a shared experience. But I get the same satisfaction when I feel I\u2019ve offloaded something, whether that\u2019s on to a piece of paper or canvas or into my bass-playing.\u201d<\/p>\n

Before The Good, The Bad & The Queen you hadn\u2019t made music for years. How did Damon persuade you to come back?
Rhys Williamson, via email<\/strong><\/p>\n

I\u2019d met Damon once before, at Joe Strummer\u2019s wedding reception. Chrissie Hynde instigated a group hug between me, Strummer, her and Damon. Then maybe a year later I got this message from Damon asking if I\u2019d like to meet up and maybe chat about doing some music. It did impress me that when Tony Blair got into power, Damon was invited to the opening party at Number 10 but turned it down, saying he wished the comrades to have a lovely party. That would have been my outlook. Anyway, that encouraged me to meet Damon. He played me a few things and we chatted \u2013 we had a lot of interests in common, we both were fascinated by English history and music hall \u2013 and within months we were recording an album.<\/p>\n

What\u2019s it like being part of a rhythm section with the great Tony Allen?
Graham Stephens, Kettering<\/strong><\/p>\n

It\u2019s very difficult! It\u2019s like somebody giving me rollerskates \u2013 and I can\u2019t rollerskate at all. When I first started working with Tony, he said, \u2018Whatever you do, don\u2019t follow me\u2019, because he does so many things on the drums, he\u2019s almost like an octopus. My style is quite simple insofar as I see it like dance steps when I\u2019m playing the bass, it\u2019s where you can put your feet. I\u2019m almost like the Clint Eastwood of bass playing! Richard Burton said that when he did Where Eagles Dare<\/em> he was really shocked because Clint Eastwood was taking lines out of the film. Most actors are trying to get as many words in as possible and suddenly there\u2019s this guy taking words out. So that\u2019s my approach, to not overdo it.<\/p>\n

How did you get Tony Visconti on board with the new album?
Russell Gilhooly, Charlton, London<\/strong><\/p>\n

Originally we had this idea of doing a London theatrical project. Instead of Flanagan and Allen it would be Simonon and Albarn. Eventually Damon said to me, \u2018We need to get a producer, otherwise this record will never come out.\u2019 Tony was quite hard to get hold of, it took me about a year to track him down. It\u2019s interesting because I didn\u2019t realise he was a bass player and I didn\u2019t realise he\u2019d worked with African drummers before, so it worked out quite well. He chucked magic dust everywhere and it all came to life.<\/p>\n

Is working with Damon at all similar to working with Joe Strummer, or is it a completely different thing altogether?
David Durling, via Facebook<\/strong><\/p>\n

It\u2019s a difficult one that, because working with Joe also meant working with Mick and working with Topper. There\u2019s an open-mindedness in both situations \u2013 whoever\u2019s got the best idea, let\u2019s use it. The main thing is to make great music. Nobody\u2019s taking orders from anybody. I think that would have been near impossible with The Clash, for anyone to receive orders and act on them. We were pretty feisty individuals.<\/p>\n

There\u2019s a picture of you hanging out with David Bowie backstage at Shea Stadium in 1982. Do you remember what you talked about?
Marcus Fry, Taunton<\/strong><\/p>\n

We spoke about Brixton, because we both grew up there. It was only a brief moment. But then five years ago, I was putting this radio show together with other members of The Clash. I wrote a letter to David Bowie to ask if he\u2019d record something for our show and he did a Christmas message for us in the voice of Elvis!<\/p>\n

In the past you\u2019ve mentioned that reggae records were the main way for you to tame the bass. Which were the first reggae songs you learned to play along to and which ones remain your favourites?
Juan P\u00e9rez, via email<\/strong><\/p>\n

I guess the first was probably \u201cMPLA\u201d by Tapper Zukie. The Heptones\u2019 basslines are really good \u2013 Leroy Sibbles is my favourite bass player. I listen to all types of music, but before going into the studio I like to listen to The Heptones because those basslines just skip and dance, they\u2019re amazing.<\/p>\n

I\u2019ve spotted the name Sam scratched into your bass. Could you tell us who that is, and if there\u2019s a story behind it?
Sam Goddard, via email<\/strong><\/p>\n

What I think they might be referring to is an attempt to scratch in \u20183am\u2019 [as in Simonon\u2019s post-Clash band, Havana 3am]. I was probably halfway through carving it into the bass when we had to go on stage or something. I\u2019m still playing that guitar, I\u2019ve kept that one safe. I probably got it about a year after the [Fender] Precision that I smashed. I couldn\u2019t really tell you what year it was made or anything, it\u2019s a tool to me. We got a few reviews in the beginning where I was singled out for having to go over to Mick to tune up the bass for me. But I didn\u2019t care \u2013 listen mate, I\u2019m up on stage! I had all the notes painted on to the neck of my guitar. Which actually I painted, just to set that straight, \u2018cos some people thought that Mick did that. It\u2019s what Mick calls the Paul Simonon School Of Music. I think some people think I still can\u2019t play very well! Maybe they\u2019re right, I dunno. But it seems to have worked so far!<\/p>\n

What was it like to play with Bob Dylan?
Francisco Serafina, Grenada, Spain<\/strong><\/p>\n

Bob Dylan used to come to a lot of Clash shows. He used to bring his family. Recording with him was\u2026 interesting. We all turned up and Bob said, \u2018I\u2019ve got these ideas\u2019 and he played the guitar for this one song, and we\u2019re like, \u2018OK \u2013 D, E, G, F\u2019, going round it, and then he went, \u2018Now there\u2019s this other song\u2019, and after that there\u2019s another song, and after about six or seven songs he says, \u2018Right, let\u2019s do the first one again\u2019. At that point, I can hardly remember the one we\u2019ve just done, let alone the first one. It\u2019s a disaster. I don\u2019t know what the point was. Maybe there was a certain energy or outlook he wanted, I\u2019m not really sure. Maybe he hadn\u2019t given it too much thought. Nothing was explained.<\/p>\n

I read that you once spent a week painting the Thames from Jeffrey Archer\u2019s balcony. Weren\u2019t you tempted to splatter his lounge at the same time?
Kevin Ashdown, Somerset<\/strong><\/p>\n

Well, the funny thing is, I did! I was chucking paint around and some went a bit further than I expected. I looked around and there was a Monet there, and I think maybe a few drops went on that. I did think, \u2018Oh shit, what do I do now? Do I rub it out and risk making it worse?\u2019 So I just left it. I didn\u2019t run into him by the way, but I was very grateful that he let me use his premises as a painting studio. One could misread this if I say that I really enjoy his views. What I mean is the views outside his window, not his political views, which I don\u2019t adhere to whatsoever.<\/p>\n

What do you think whenever you see a stencilled slogan shirt in Top Man or somewhere like that?
John Devereux, Lewes<\/strong><\/p>\n

It doesn\u2019t really bother me. If you want to pay whatever it costs for that, then that\u2019s down to you. But it would probably be a lot more interesting and creative if you did one yourself. You can express yourself personally for a lot less money.<\/p>\n

If Joe Strummer was still alive, do you think you\u2019d be tempted to reform The Clash?
Peter Dolman, Columbus, Ohio<\/strong><\/p>\n

No. I\u2019ve got no interest, even at the time when Joe was alive and around. Everybody seemed quite interested in the idea, but I gotta say, I wasn\u2019t. I\u2019d rather me and Joe worked together again in another project, rather than go the easy route and reform something that was quite special and unique to that time. I\u2019m not really interested in getting back together in that context. It never really works, I don\u2019t think.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s the 40th anniversary of London Calling next year. Do you have any plans to commemorate it?
Mike P, via email<\/strong><\/p>\n

No. I\u2019m not interested in any of that. We did do a box set that me and Mick worked on [2013\u2019s Sound System<\/em>] and as far as I was concerned that was the be all and end all, that\u2019s done. I don\u2019t think you could get any better than that. But of course the record company has this thing, \u2018Oh, it\u2019s the anniversary of this\u2026\u2019 It\u2019s like, so what? I\u2019m not really interested in celebrating yesterday. I\u2019ve got other things to do. I\u2019m more interested in what you\u2019re doing tomorrow rather than what you did yesterday. That\u2019s what keeps me going, anyway.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

The post An Audience With The Clash\u2019s Paul Simonon: \u201cI\u2019m the Clint Eastwood of bass playing!\u201d<\/a> appeared first on UNCUT<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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