Friday, March 13, 2020

How The Clash made a movie star out of their roadie


The Clash : I Fought the Law



On March 13, 1980 The Clash's movie Rude Boy  made its world premiere at Prince Charles Cinema in London's Leicester Square. Filmed between 1977 and 1979, the movie stars Ray Gange playing an ex-Clash roadie who used to work in a porn shop. His accent is indecipherable but we understand the word "fuck' is said 96 times.

The movie is awful but the concert footage is brilliant.


Here's a scene you didn't come to this post to see, featuring Joe Strummer and Gange talking socialist politics over beer that ends with Gange asking to be the band's roadie.


Here's an extremely short clip of the Clash getting ready to rehearse. 


Finally, here's Gange explaining that the film mirrors his own experiences as a roadie for The Clash. Gange would not make a career out of acting. That's something that will not surprise anyone who sees the movie.  He did, however, become romantically involved with Wayne's World director Penelope Spheeris .



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