Song · The Clash
“Complete Control” by The Clash
Released 1977
“Complete Control” by The Clash appears on 9 radio countdowns from 3 stations between 1977 and 2012. It was first released in 1977. Its best result is #2 on the John Peel's All-Time Festive Fifty (1978). In the combined RockLists rankings it is the #9 alternative song of 1977, #1,947 alternative song of all time and #9 of the '70s.
Watch
Video from YouTube (theclashVEVO). Pressing play loads YouTube's player. Watch on YouTube
"Complete Control" came out as a 7-inch in September 1977, and it's the Clash biting the hand that signed them. Their label had put out "Remote Control" without asking them first, which left the band furious, and Joe Strummer and Mick Jones hit back with a broadside aimed at the record business, at managers, and at what punk itself was turning into.
The title points at managers who wanted their groups on a short leash, the Clash's Bernie Rhodes and the Sex Pistols' Malcolm McLaren: at a band meeting in the Ship, a Soho pub on Wardour Street, Rhodes declared that complete control was what he was after. Strummer and Jones share guitars and vocals over Paul Simonon's bass and Topper Headon's drums, and Lee "Scratch" Perry produced it with Mickey Foote. The American edition of the band's debut album picked it up too.
Written with AI assistance from RockLists chart data, MusicBrainz and Wikipedia.
RockLists rankings
Alternative & Modern Rock
All Rock Formats
Year-end countdowns
| Year | # | Station | Countdown | of |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1977 | 9 | John Peel (BBC Radio 1) | John Peel's Forgotten Fifty of 1977 | 61 |
All-time and decade countdowns
| Year | # | Station | Countdown | of |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1978 | 2 | John Peel (BBC Radio 1) | John Peel's All-Time Festive Fifty (1978) | 50 |
| 1979 | 5 | John Peel (BBC Radio 1) | John Peel's All-Time Festive Fifty (1979) | 50 |
| 1980 | 15 | John Peel (BBC Radio 1) | John Peel's All-Time Festive Fifty (1980) | 50 |
| 1981 | 18 | John Peel (BBC Radio 1) | John Peel's All-Time Festive Fifty (1981) | 50 |
| 1982 | 19 | John Peel (BBC Radio 1) | John Peel's All-Time Festive Fifty (1982) | 50 |
| 2000 | 33 | John Peel (BBC Radio 1) | John Peel's All-Time Festive Fifty (2000) | 50 |
| 2003 | 1279 | Fred (XM 44) | Fred XM Top 2044 Songs of All-Time (July 2003) | 2044 |
| 2012 | 777 | WXPN | WXPN 885 Greatest Rock Songs (2012) | 885 |
Also listed as: Complete Control" (7.
Comments
Log in or create a free account to join the conversation about "Complete Control" by The Clash.
No comments yet. Be the first to share your thoughts.