London Calling
London calling at the top of the dial After all this, won't you give me a smile?
London Calling, a double album released by The Clash in December 1979, marked the band's critical and commercial breakthrough. Besides straightforward punk, it featured a much wider array of styles than the Clash's earlier albums, including American-style rockabilly and reggae works that resonated with the Ska movement in Britain. The album is rightly considered a landmark, and tracks such as "Train in Vain", "Clampdown", "Should I Stay or Should I Go?", and "London Calling" show up with regularity on rock stations to this day.
The title track alludes to the BBC World Service's station identification, starting "This is London calling" that was used during World War II.
The cover features a picture of Paul Simonon smashing his bass guitar, surrounded by typography that imitates Elvis Presley's debut album. The picture was later voted the best rock and roll photograph of all time by Q magazine.