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Cover of London Calling by The Clash
Cover: London Calling

Song · The Clash

“Spanish Bombs” by The Clash

From the album London Calling (1979)

“Spanish Bombs” by The Clash appears on 20 radio countdowns from 5 stations between 1999 and 2024. It was first released in 1979 on the album London Calling. Its best result is #107 on the 90.9 The Bridge Top 909 Songs of All Time. In the combined RockLists rankings it is #999 alternative song of all time.

20countdowns
5stations
#107best position
0#1 finishes
0top 10 finishes
1999–2024years charted

Watch

The Clash - Spanish Bombs (Official Audio)

Video from YouTube (theclashVEVO). Pressing play loads YouTube's player. Watch on YouTube

"Spanish Bombs" is one of the sneakier gems on London Calling, the Clash's third album, released in December 1979, and Joe Strummer wrote it while the sessions were under way. The spark came on the ride home from Wessex studios in London, when a radio news report about ETA bombing tourist hotels on the Costa Brava set him thinking about the IRA campaign back in Britain.

Strummer takes the lead with Mick Jones chiming in, and the band turns all that into a rousing rocker with pop hooks in its bones: power chords, briskly strummed acoustic guitar, Paul Simonon's bass and Topper Headon's drums shoving it along, with Guy Stevens producing and Bill Price engineering. AllMusic later picked it out as a highlight of the album, and it resurfaced on the compilations The Story of the Clash, Volume 1 and Clash on Broadway.

Written with AI assistance from RockLists chart data, MusicBrainz and Wikipedia.

RockLists rankings

Alternative & Modern Rock

Indie & Adult Alternative

All Rock Formats

All-time and decade countdowns

Year#StationCountdownof
1999 534 CD101 CD101 Top 2000 Songs of All-Time (December 1999) 2000
2000 534 CD101 CD101 Top 2001 Songs of All-Time (December 2000) 2001
2001 534 CD101 CD101 Top 2002 Songs of All-Time (December 2001) 2002
2002 534 CD101 CD101 Top 2003 Songs of All-Time (December 2002) 2003
2003 534 CD101 CD101 Top 2004 Songs of All-Time (December 2003) 2004
2003 615 Fred (XM 44) Fred XM Top 2044 Songs of All-Time (July 2003) 2044
2004 534 CD101 CD101 Top 2005 Songs of All-Time (December 2004) 2005
2005 532 CD101 CD101 Top 2006 Songs of All-Time (December 2005) 1994
2007 1002 CD101 CD101 Top 2008 Songs of All-Time (December 2007) 2008
2008 951 CD101 CD101 Top 2009 Songs of All-Time (December 2008) 2009
2009 967 CD101 CD101 Top 2010 Songs of All-Time (December 2009) 2010
2010 1001 CD101 CD101 Top 2011 Songs of All-Time (December 2010) 2011
2011 1031 CD101 CD101 Top 2012 Songs of All-Time (December 2011) 2011
2013 1088 CD101 CD101 Top 2013 Songs of All-Time (December 2013) 2012
2014 1142 CD101 CD101 Top 2014 Songs of All-Time (2014) 2013
2019 885 WYEP WYEP Big Spring Countdown 2019 1017
2019 885 WYEP WYEP Labor Day Weekend Countdown 2019 1099
2020 1440 WXPN WXPN 2020 Greatest Songs of All Time 2020
2023 107 90.9 The Bridge 90.9 The Bridge Top 909 Songs of All Time 909
2024 744 WYEP WYEP Best Songs of the Past 50 Years 1049

Also listed as: Spainish Bombs.

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