Before I get to the point about technology, let me mention how politics enters the picture here. The Jam was nowhere near as famous in the States as their contemporaries, The Clash, but for me, from about 1978/1979 to 1984, though I listened to other music, nearly nothing remained on my turntable as long as the The Clash, Gang of Four, and The Jam. Although I'd always been interested in politics, both in the US and abroad, it seemed that these three bands really catalyzed and gave voice to the feelings that I had, and shaped those politics to what they are today, in no small part.
As the unmistakeable riff of In The City started, and the old punk rock blood cells started to emanate from the heart into the rest of my body, I looked around the audience. A lot of grey hair, bald spots, and digital CAMERAS/CAMERAPHONES being held aloft! I just remember thinking, "Boy, do I wish I had these kind of Star-Trek-like gadgets back in the day!" Not that it marred the experience, but I would see them out very frequently, with the now ever-present flash capturing every moment of our lives, like a live blog.
This was then further brought to the fore as they began This Is The Modern World and I now found myself thinking rather than just relaxing and enjoying the show. How prescient this song was back in 1978 when it came out. And this became a theme throughout the show that was different from that 1982 show because the world was different, and the changing meaning of "modern" came up. How so:
- The thick cloud and stench of cigarette and marijuana smoke was no longer there, as it used to be concert de rigeur
- At least half the audience took pictures and crude YouTube videos with their digital cameras and iPhones, and we'll all be able to relive the show by the time this blog posts (to wit: Mary's Flickr Page)
- My ears will not be ringing for a week, even though the sound was loud, but balanced and undistorted
- That A-Bomb in Wardour St. has a very different meaning today to an American than it did then
What was the same from 1982?
- At a crossroads of political power between progressives and reactionaries
- Brits and US in two unnecessary wars (then: Argentina, Grenada; today: Iraq for both), and as sung then and now by Foxton: "It was done underneath the flag of democracy..."
- That the audience sang along and knew the words and timing as well as the band
What a weird confluence of events that brought us to this show: hanging out at the Cake Shop in LES with Mary finding a copy of Setting Sons on vinyl two weeks ago and purchasing it; then my friend John Dodge calling me last week to tell me he saw From The Jam in Chicago and that it was surprisingly good; and then seeing it also in my New Yorker's Upcoming Events section. I sometimes tire of what Mary and I call "Geezer Shows", but this one was well worth it, even without the erstwhile Paul Weller.
Here we are Down In the Tube Station at Midnight with my watch as proof!
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