Our First Time Reaction to 'Rock the Casbah | The Clash vs. The Establishment

have you heard the story behind The Clash's "Rock the Casbah"? Joe Strummer came up with the phrase while jamming with his violinist friend Tymon Dogg and hearing him play Eastern scales. He started shouting "rock the casbah," but Dogg misheard him and thought he was being told to "stop, you cadger!" Then, Strummer got inspiration for the lyrics from their manager's complaint about the band's long songs and the Indian musical style, rāga. The song tells a fabulist story of a Middle Eastern king banning Western rock music, and the people protesting by "rocking the casbah," leading to the military being sent to bomb them. But get this, the pilots of the fighter jets ignore the king's orders and join the protest by playing rock music on their cockpit radios! The lyrics even feature Arabic, Hebrew, Turkish, and Sanskrit loan-words. It's wild! Did you know it's based on an actual ban on Western music enforced in Iran since the Iranian Revolution? Crazy stuff!
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[@SnoBear626]

The Clash! One simply cannot tell the story of Rock-and-Roll without them, especially the album London Calling. London Calling is one of just a handful of albums that changes the course of music.

[@MrUndersolo]

I remember when the expanded edition came out. I did not buy it the first week in my in the store. When I went back a week later, the clerk told me that they sold out. Respect.

[@hamfox9714]

The only band that ever mattered.

[@mgoboski]

I saw this before and thought the fan was nuts. Radiohead, Tool, MGMT, Nirvana, etc. But then I kept seeing it and knew it had to be a slogan from their day. I was born years after they broke up, but thanks to my boomer dad for having great taste in music!

[@beatawallace5725]

Darn Right!

[@kierstenridgway4634]

That's a heavy statement. ❤✌️

[@shanefraser7764]

Oi oi✌️✌️✌️✌️✌️🇳🇿🇳🇿🇳🇿🇳🇿🇳🇿

[@hobiwankenobi5450]

I get you. I have one of those, too. This was my intro into alternative music in the late 80s early 90s.

[@jacqueline4514]

I was 15 in Brooklyn and would go to the local teen club, and even though this wasn’t disco or hip hop, the dance floor flooded when Rock The Casbah came on! The meaning of the song is that the extreme Muslims have banned western music and this was their shining a light on it ❤

[@johndeeregreen4592]

You could always guarantee profound lyrics from Joe Strummer... and a catchy song, at the same time.

[@ClueSign]

Written by their drummer while waiting for the other band members to show up to rehearsal.

[@nessaseetah1805]

The whole Combat Rock album is the most incredible trip. Heavy stuff!

[@BattleMatt]

The Clash were very political and wrote a lot about racism and race relations in the UK, the pop ones always get played but their best ones are things like White Riot and White Man in Hammersmith Palais. RIP Joe Strummer an absolute genius and a lovely man.

[@normandavidtidiman9918]

Can't disagree with 'White Man',but I'll give you 'Complete Control'.

[@jonnyodde2363]

Sadly, there will never be another Joe Strummer. People say that about celebrities and musicians all the time. Difference is, in Strummer's case it's actually true.

[@HemlockRidge]

A Casbah was/is the ancient fortress that was/is the center of a number of North African cities. The one in Algiers is the most famous.

[@thomasreitemeyer4778]

Interesting you are wearing a Public Enemy shirt. Chuck D is a big fan. He did a podcast about the Clash. Chuck D said one of his friends told him Public Enemy should be the rap equivalent of The Clash.

[@johndeeregreen4592]

The Clash built a bridge between rap and rock long before anyone else... yet, it has been forgotten.

[@derekodriscoll7178]

Great comment..the clash record 'This is a radio clash' is must ​@@johndeeregreen4592

[@cindycollier456]

I remember turning up my car stereo loud and singing this song with my young kids. Memories. 😊

[@CALLAHAN19]

One of the first bands to ever on MTV... we laughed our asses off to this video when it first Came out in very early 80s

[@travisshaffer5157]

Other Clash songs that I think you should hit a cover of “I fought the law”, “Should I stay or should I go”,”Train in vain”,”Rudie can’t fail” and “London calling”. I think if you start down the Clash rabbit hole you probably will want to hear more. They were a punk band that at one point sounded like a reggae band more than a punk band. Keep up the good work of sharing good music with the world.

[@fuzzylogics139]

Hi Travis, say, I'm trying to remember a song by them that had a video shot in a house/ villa with chandeliers and diamonds everywhere. It was a funny video with I think a kid dancing/ playing guitar and then the singers head on top.. Like you know how we used to do when we were kids where one would do the arms and the other was the head and the arm head coordination was really of to the audience?.. Ok this sounds crazy, I find it hard to explain from vague memories, but I did my best: do you know which song I mean? EDIT never mind I've mixed up The Clash with Talking Heads somehow (and how the chandelier and diamonds mixed in with the memory of "Buring down the House" I have no idea, lol ) Getting old I guess!

[@travisshaffer5157]

Couldn’t for the life of me think of a Clash song with that video. Glad you figured it out.

[@fuzzylogics139]

@@travisshaffer5157 😅 Sorry and thanks for your willingness to help!

[@adamcee7251]

punky reggae

[@frasercathygartside1356]

the Clash were trying to build some bridges and burn some others -- they were reaching out and pushing back -- thanks for picking up on this tune

[@angelagreen778]

Read the lyrics!!! Reads like history!

[@DanSolo871]

The drummer practically recorded the whole song. He laid down drums, piano, bass and percussion all by himself and that was almost the whole thing.

[@geoffsullivan7902]

Oh the 80’s were fun! 😂great reaction guys….❤️

[@antonybrent6232]

The clash. Guns of Brixton is a banger 🔥🔥

[@zeroxox777]

This reaction is lots of fun to a British person 'cuz everyone here has heard it a million times and we see it afresh through your eyes. It was good to see u smiling!

[@jimilemons7680]

“It could have been the theme to footloose” is one of the best comments of ALL time. The ad lib Jie Strummer through in at the end “He thinks it’s not kosher!” Really irritated some people.

[@edwardmunoz7853]

I always thought about kosher pickles when I was younger listening to this 💯🤬

[@brenetssss]

YOU KNOW HE REALLY HATES IT

[@cynthiaschultheis1660]

Middle Eastern students at my University...LOVED IT!!!!👍👍👍😎😎😎

[@marqmars3599]

"Are we reunited?" 🤦😂🤣🤣🥰

[@thisisitreactions]

LOL. That's what I thought they really said...LOL. 😃 Glad you enjoyed the video. -- Corey Roy

[@allisterfiend_2112]

Look up Kasbah, it is the same as Casbah. Basically means a fortress.

[@Nickel138]

Fun fact: This video was filmed in Austin, Tx.

[@Another_User_Name_]

Punk Rock/ New Wave/ Alternative Rock, whatever genre you want to call the Clash, they were fantastic! This may have been their biggest hit, but it's far from their best in my opinion. "I Fought the Law", "Train in Vain" are just 2 that come to mind.

[@neill392]

The drummer Topper Headon wrote and played and recorded the track single headedly, while the rest of the band were sleeping in. Joe turned up after lunch wrote and recorded the lyrics and they had one of their biggest chart hits. Some years later, after the band had split and Topper was down on his luck, recovering from addiction and working as a taxi driver, Will Smith sampled it for his album Will2K. The royalties bought Topper a house.

[@thatmanstumototours2270]

The Casbah is a section of the city of Algiers in Algeria...It has been used to name many restaurants,nightclubs etc in order to evoke the mystery and secrecy of the old Casbah, which is almost maze-like in its layout,full of hideaways and back alleys and was a stronghold of the Algerian independence fighters in their struggle against the French ...you can visit it today,just get on a plane and get ready to smoke some most excellent kif....the sharif was the head of the local government in the Ottoman empire and is where we get the term Sheriff....

[@timlong7787]

There was an interview with the Clash’s manager. He said he was yelling at the band for their attitudes. And not coming up with songs fast enough. Right after that meeting he handed in this song. And he knew Stummer wasn’t paying attention to him and was somewhere else in his mind

[@thisisitreactions]

The video gives off that rebellious energy, so we can see that story being true!

[@stephenodubhlaoich]

Basically talking about Muslim war on western music and how the jet fighters that were supposed to bomb pla ces playing their music basically just ignored orders and started playing western rock instead in the jets lol. Real events

[@alesquire9180]

Fenom, you are like me. I have heard this song a million times and during the day it was played all the time.

[@pauledwards2564]

No-one walked or rocked like The Clash

[@scout3939]

Casbah is a medieval castle or fortress in Northern Africa. Also, casbah is the native section of a northern African town. (Merriam-Webster Dictionary).

[@EV1973]

I watched this video every day on MTV as a kid. No clue what any of it meant, but was mesmerized.

[@andrewwright9378]

I think the three of you should listen to the album ‘Sandinista’ by the Clash. you’d love it.

[@kayakuprising5914]

This music video was filmed around Austin, TX in 1982.

[@JeffSearust]

Most of this was filmed in and around Austin Texas... That's why there's an armadillo..lol

[@GrimrDirge]

That bassist is keeping it funky and the pianist is rockin.

[@johndeeregreen4592]

You do know the studio recording, the instrumental part was multi-tracked and pretty much done entirely by the drummer Topper... even the piano. All members were top-notch... Topper is a musical genius.

[@yolandabrooksqueenofsevens]

This was my cut y’all in 1982🔥🔥🔥

[@dianesorensen2549]

Such a great vibe!

[@terrisue4059]

This video was filmed in Austin. The planes came from Bergstrom AFB before it was turned into the city airport. It was so small back then. Nothing like today. I was able to ride in that Texas limo with longhorns back in the 80's. Ya'll have a great day.

[@paulleach1042]

I love rock and prog rock but this was one hell of a band full stop

[@karenmandeville7116]

the Casbah is a citidel/castle in Algeria.

[@karenmandeville7116]

you probably typed what is the casbah, which gets you this video. you need to type WHERE is the Casbah-it's a place.

[@DKLGalactus5]

There's always a massage in there music.

[@cynthiaschultheis1660]

London Calling is a good one, too

[@sebastienlola]

one of my favorite bands for so long (:

[@tomswanson7446]

I was fortunate to witness The Clash live with The Who in the Seattle coliseum in 1976

[@saintsataniko2116]

I don't remember much of an uproar related to Rock the Casbah or reports of death threats (although it's certainly possible). But there's another song that came out a few years before called "Killing An Arab" by The Cure that really ran that risk. It's not at all about what the title suggests. It was actually about the French novel "L'Etrangere" (The Stranger) by Albert Camus who was actually born in Algeria. The song was one of The Cure's first singles, but started to disappear from compilations by the late 90's. I thought The Cure were legitimately afraid to even be associated with it but I see there's a video of them playing it live in Mexico as recently as 2019.

[@heidij1967]

I used to know the son of the director of this video. Thanx for sharing!!

[@dallismurphy3802]

You might like 'Guns of Brixton', 'Straight To Hell', 'Rudy Can't Fail', 'London Calling ' & 'Bankrobber'. Too many great songs to list but these ones are also good inroads into The Clash.

[@johndeeregreen4592]

My kid is named Rudy for a reason.

[@bryanforis1839]

The drums help a lot and had of hits great live band

[@paulgoblet7393]

Yes! Yes!

[@BadgerBJJ]

Now every time I hear this I’m rocking the cash bar

[@cynthiaschultheis1660]

Casbah is surrounding area outside Mosque, Temples.🙏

[@cynthiaschultheis1660]

Off the Album "COMBAT ROCK"👍🏼👍🏼👍🏼👍🏼👍🏼

[@TMFMD]

The Clash & the Sex Pistols created Punk music. The Clash definitely had many songs worth revisiting today.

[@edwardmunoz7853]

"are we reunited" lol 😂👊

[@j.rebekah8605]

Reaction to Iranian revolution of 1979. Sherif is obviously the origin of 'sheriff'. These lyrics are full of political and general history, etymology, commentary on religion, and human nature for better or worse. All set upon the best rock music of all time. And a pretty great video. Thanks guys!

[@lisasimmons9849]

This song is my ringtone 😂

[@cityhonors1]

Clash and Big Audio Dynamite. A few members also Tour as part of The Gorillaz! 😞 RIP Joe Strummer 🥰🐰

[@grantmcpherson5413]

Safe European Home, Stay Free and pretty much anything of the London Calling album. The only band that mattered! RIP Joe!!!

[@miaahern3566]

Brilliant reaction 😊

[@traveldoc1234]

Filmed entirely in Austin, TX!

[@KaylaYeager-mz5sd]

Takes me back to the beginning of party days. Hanging with friends getting people to buy us beer. Always somebodys parents out on the weekend. Guess where the party was ? 😁😅

[@Guy-lo3ld]

Great reaction!!

[@thisisitreactions]

Thank you!! 😁

[@brooksboyd1959]

Filmed in Austin.

[@lauraartis5452]

When I first heard this song eons ago, I thought it said lock the cashbox! 😂😂😂😂

[@thisisitreactions]

😂😂😂

[@penname5766]

Ahahahah 😂😂😂😂

[@heathcornbeef]

Kia ora hello my brothers from Aotearoa New Zealand. Hay my favourite song ever is Complete Control by these guy's followed by Stiff Little Fingers version of Roots Radicals Rockers and Reggae my almost 17 year old son is called Strummer Clash palace R.I.P SAINT JOE STRUMMER

[@susanmurray7654]

I had a Sony Walkman...cassette! The Clash inside...happy days.

[@ELIZABETHANNEBuonagura]

The Casbah (Arabic: قصبة, qaṣba, meaning citadel) is the citadel of Algiers in Algeria and the traditional quarter clustered around it. In 1992, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) proclaimed Kasbah of Algiers a World Cultural Heritage site, as "There are the remains of the citadel, old mosques and Ottoman-style palaces as well as the remains of a traditional urban structure associated with a deep-rooted sense of community."[1]

[@candicelitrenta8890]

Midnight Oil is a band out of Australia and they had a number one hit with Bed's are Burning. I would love to see you react to that one. It is very political as well. From the 80's

[@loriprovencher8984]

Know Your Rights is another great song of theirs.

[@paulgoblet7393]

These guys are great! 😂

[@stevesharp6138]

Lite punk with a absolute message

[@958298bordeaux]

I LOVED this song

[@lucagoodwinnicholls9451]

Kia Ora hello guys from AOTEAROA NEW ZEALAND brothers this is my favourite band ever. My 17 year old son is called Strummer Clash Palace (palace is my surname) . Ps this isn't my account 😮 it's my stepsons 😊

[@casey4602]

RIP Joe Strummer 😢

[@avenueb]

come on guys this is the most commercial song The Clash ever made. Go deeper

[@terryconnelly484]

Droping rock bombs on the casbah... Early 80s reference of dropping bombs. Meaning music

[@goeienacht]

To the guy that said “I only know black shit”….my family is big on the clash and many bands that fell into ska…which was a genre birthed from people of color and inspired reggae. We need to stop believing black is not rock genres too… y’all should react to the specials too.

[@bruceday4036]

Lol footloose awesome 👍

[@thisisitreactions]

😂

[@carlwarrell3216]

The video was filmed in Austin Texas and I knew several places filmed.

[@ELIZABETHANNEBuonagura]

I still miss you Joe. 💘💘💘💘

[@phillychick4196]

Gen X is here. You have our attention. ❤

[@cynthiaschultheis1660]

Casbah is a public venue in middle east

[@davihinghaus9785]

Another amazing reaction video hahaha You should react from Clash: London Calling and Guns of Brixton

[@edwardmunoz7853]

Filmed in Austin Texas 🤘

[@joebrown5120]

The Only Band That Matters! A rabbit hole you should definitely dive down

[@aliciagail6018]

I'm sorry you all missed them in real time 🥲

[@ponfed]

"Open to hearing some new shit." Realest thing ever said.

[@jaydMANifistation]

Dictionary Definitions from Oxford Languages · Learn more noun the citadel of a North African city. "a town dominated by its ancient casbah" the area surrounding a North African citadel, typically in the old part of a city. noun: the kasbah; noun: the casbah "he took me to a flat in the casbah"

[@taradalik1405]

What people seem to not see is that this is one of the most subversive videos EVER made, if not THE one! The rabbi and the Bedouin outside their normal warzone just get along fine, drink alcohol, eat burgers (possibly with bacon), break all the rules and end up in a Clash concert!!! Boy, the Clash was unique!😂😂😂

[@mikecheaure9646]

The Clash were simply know as "The only band that ever mattered"

[@clareshaughnessy2745]

Ah, 1982, Liverpool, the State night club

[@MrVvulf]

What exactly is a Casbah? I got you fam - Definition: a North African castle or fortress. : the native section of a North African city.

[@thisisitreactions]

Good looking!!

[@DavidPurvis-dt6iw]

Think of the year this was in the charts then look at what is happening in the world today I think it's time for the punks to rock the Casbah

[@marcelovi2740]

the best rock band

[@harlee2191]

Sound of my 8th grade experience 😂🎉

[@jakeenan]

The story of the lyrics began with their manager telling them to stop sounding so Ragga/Reggae. Rock it up some guys. Fun fact: the drummer Topper Headon wrote and played on all the instruments on this track. Strummer wrote the story and sang it. The band sacked the drummer shortly after due to drug addiction......big mistake....they fell apart after that. He was the heartbeat, their tempo.

[@rhllnm]

Filmed in Texas.

[@lindasalaki9404]

The video is 🔥🔥🔥🔥

[@franckmedina3346]

The clash/London calling

[@lauraartis5452]

If you listen to the lyrics, it kinda does remind you of Footloose.

[@thisisitreactions]

Definitely reminds of the classic movie