The 101ers: Elgin Avenue Breakdown Revisited : Music Reviews : Rolling Stone

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A peek at Joe Strummer's sturdy pre-Clash band in the mid-seventies, Joe Strummer led the 101ers, a gritty, R&B-heavy band of pub rockers who eventually became one of London's top good-time acts. The 101ers allegedly took their name from the number of their West London squat, but it might as well have been for the education they delivered night after night: This is Rock & Roll 101. Collected from three demo sessions and several live shows, Elgin Avenue Breakdown (first released in 1981) features Strummer originals like the terrific "Lonely Mother's Son" (which reappeared as "Jail Guitar Doors" on Super Black Market Clash), as well as rollicking covers like Chuck Berry's "Maybellene" and "Gloria," by Them, which Strummer introduces, yelling, "Fuck the discos!" The highlight on all of these tracks is Strummer's ragged voice, which is fully formed (or deformed) here. It's no accident that the Clash toured with Bo Diddley or that they covered "I Fought the Law." Turns out Strummer was punk before he even knew what that meant.