Live at Acton Town Hall

Some concerts seem more important after the fact than they did in the moment. On November 15, 2002, Joe Strummer & the Mescaleros played a benefit show for striking firefighters in the West London town of Acton, one of a handful of dates he scheduled near the end of the year. Most of the fans who showed up had no idea that Mick Jones, Strummers former bandmate in the Clash, would be on hand to join him for three songs at the end of the set, marking the first time they had shared a stage since 1983. None of the people on hand knew that it would be the last show Strummer would ever play in London, and among the last of his life; a heart condition claimed him on December 22, 2002. The concert took on a greater historical significance in the wake of Strummers passing, and a soundboard tape of the gig circulated among fans for years before it was issued as a limited-edition Record Store Day release in 2012. 2023s Live at Acton Town Hall gives the show a wide release at last, and for the most part, its reputation promises a bit more than the album delivers. While the audio is certainly not bad, its a soundboard tape that sounds just a bit hollow and echoey, and doesnt always capture the power of the guitars -- Mick Joness contributions are barely audible. And though this truly was a good Joe Strummer show, it wasnt a great one; the folk, Latin, and world influences in the Mescaleros manifested themselves on-stage with the band stretching out on many of the songs, and while the grooves are potent and the band is in fine form, the jams may have worked better in front of an audience than listened to in the cold light of a 21-year-old tape. That said, the warmth and passion of Strummers performance is front and center throughout, his engagement with his bandmates and the audience is total, and the live takes of "Bhindee Bhagee," "Shaktar Donetsk," and "Johnny Appleseed" connect more strongly than they did in their studio recordings. What Live at Acton Town Hall does best is preserve one night in the musical life of Joe Strummer and remind us why he was always special -- and why no one has truly taken his place in the musical zeitgeist all these years later. ~ Mark Deming