The White Riot Tour
Support from in order:
Prefects, Subway Sect, The Buzzcocks, The Jam.
updated 7 Jan 2010 -added The Times Review
updated October 2020 - added photos and new images, some copy
updated 22 Jnaury 2022 - added Cliche fanzine review (poor)
No known audio recording
Video - probably filmed by Don Letts/Julian Temple.
Don Letts' Punk Rock Movie is the only known footage to have been broadcast (White Riot). The taper also recorded Subway Sect. Punk Rock Movie 2mins and also Old Grey Whistle Test 2mins
The recent offical Sony release Sound System box set includes new video footage.
Don Letts Super 8 Medley 11:40
White Riot 1:52 (Harlesden, 3 Mar 1977)
Janie Jones 1:73 (unknown)
City of the Dead 2:04 (unknown)
Clash City Rockers 2:15 (unknown)
White Man in Hammersmith Palais 2:53 (unknown)
1977 1:41 (The Rainbow, 9 May 1977)
Don Letts footage has recenty been released. A good listing of the contents of the The Clash's Sound System box set can be found here.
1977 (from Punk Rock Movie old VHS - not box set)
1976/77 Julian Temple's early footage 18hrs
Known to contain several concerts including The Roxy 1 Jan 1977 and Harlesden plus Rehearsals footageJulian Temples 1976 footage 18 hours - included Roxy/Anarchy Tour/Harlesden/Rainbow - only the footage that was used in the film eventually got digitised because it was shot on an obscure format that does exist anymore and so it cost a fortune to put onto tape. 
The famous riot gig in which 200 seats were ripped out. Ecstatic fans could not sit down and as the Jam finished their set the mayhem began. The Clash opened with Londons Burning and fighting broke out.
The Rainbow - Punk 77
The Rainbow in Finsbury Park N4. Large venue that was originally part of the Astoria chain of cinemas in the 1930's that like so many became a rock venue.
In its time it had seen just about every major act play there from Jimi Hendrix to the Who. Closed in 1975 it lost some ground to Camden's Roundhouse but its reopening and refurbishment in 1977 set it back on course as a prominent North London venue.
In punky times it was infamous for the Clash riot where seats were torn up. The Stranglers regularly played here and the Ramones had their 1977 New year Eve concert immortalised on vinyl with the double classic 'It's Alive'. In 1977/1978 Jock McDonald would rent out the top and put on gigs, meaning you could have Thin Lizzy playing below while the Meat cranked it out upstairs.
Set on an island between two one way systems that went to and from the West End you could reach it by exiting the labyrinthine Finsbury Park Tube station tunnels and it was always worth getting a quick drinkie in the George Robey pub opposite.
Sadly residents complaints about noise and people shut it down in the Eighties. Now some god-awful gospel revival bollocks occur there. Fantastic ceiling of star and palm trees....but no Rainbow. Archive PDF
As it is now, the Rainbow Theatre 2002.
Joe Strummer and the Legend of the Clash
By Kris Needs
courtesy of Rock Archive
Songs Smiths - 11 April at 10:32 ·
Joe Strummer and Mick Jones on stage at the Rainbow Theatre London, during their 'White Riot' tour, 14th May 1977. (Photo by Chris Moor)
pictures copyright www.Corbis.com
Pass
Photos Getty Images
Billy Bragg - NME
“I saw them at the old Rainbow Theatre in Finsbury Park - one of the first nights of the White Riot tour in 1977. They completely had it. They had a backdrop from the Notting Hill carnival riot the year before with the line of coppers charging along Ladbroke Grove, and they just had the best sound - they really connected with the crowd.
“I think they started with ‘London’s Burning’ and then it was just mad jumping up and down for 45 minutes. The audience sitting further towards the front trashed the seats - it was reported as a riot, but wasn’t really, it was just exuberance, I think that show was the moment when punk stopped being a cliquey phenomenon and really grasped the popular imagination. It was the most amazing thing.” (Billy Bragg)
Robert Lloyd of the Nightingales and the Prefects
Poptones: You toured with the Clash as the Prefects - was it during this event that you realised that the punk rock dream was not to come true?
Robert Lloyd: Absolutely, the very first gig we did with them at the rainbow (May 1977) put the kibosh on any notion we might have foolishly have had of a movement, revolution or whatever. the fortunate thing for us young, stupid kids was that this was really early in our, er, career and so we wasted less time running with the pack than we would have.
Selena Quirke: "I was, yeah, on the front page for supposedly wrecking The Rainbow." https://www.museumoflondon.org.uk/discover/tales-punk
Audio Player
“There were loads actually, but for me personally one of the ones that really stands out is The Clash gig. May the 9th 1977, Clash played The Rainbow. I was there, I was in the front row which I didn’t have tickets for but managed to wangle my way into and it was the night that seats, well they called it the riot, didn’t they, it was the White Riot tour for The Clash and they claimed that the punks had like wrecked The Rainbow Theatre, thrown all the seats everywhere. The next day it was in the papers. I actually hadn’t gone home that night and was wearing the same clothes and my picture was in the Evening Standard and I was, I remember being on the bus and people looking at me and that’s what it was down to, because I was, yeah, on the front page for supposedly wrecking The Rainbow.”
Paul Wright on Flikr
https://www.flickr.com/photos/paulwrightuk/7032838103
The Clash punk concert ticket The Rainbow, London 1977
This is my ticket to The Clash’s gig at The Rainbow in north London on Tuesday 13 December 1977. A group of us from south London made the trip across the river to The Rainbow. It really was a momentous occasion for me and my friends, and we proudly wore our punk gear much to the shock of the commuters on the tube. The Clash were fantastic but the all-seater venue wasn’t right for them or for Sham 69 who were the support band. Not that we sat down at all. Here is a review of this concert that appeared in Melody Maker:
Rainbow, London - Melody Maker
THE CLASH had just launched into their first encore on the Tuesday night, "London's Burning," when the security, which the band had promised would be "low-key," spilled over into viciousness as a kid who was trying to get up on stage was smashed.
The group stopped playing immediately, horrified, and Mick Jones pulled the fan up on stage. Then, for both that song and for "White Riot," they let the kid chip in on vocals.
And I don't mean they just tolerated him the dream-come-true bloke probably sang more of both numbers than Joe Strummer. How many other bands can you imagine allowing that to happen?
But that's what Clash are all about, speaking for, with, and from working-class youth, instead of talking down to them; it's what made their album such a complete work of art, so burningly, passionately true; it's what made the synthesis of a mythic harmonica-note and the lines "I don't wanna hear about what the rich are doing / I don't wanna go to where the rich are going/They think they're so clever, they think they're so right/ But the truth is only known by guttersnipes" so moving when I first heard them in "Garageland."
But listen. Why the hell are the Clash playing the Rainbow anyway? Everybody knows the place's appalling heavy security record. But quite apart from that, the place is far too big - the punk revolt was necessary because of just this kind of enforced performer-audience distance. Another thing - frenzy-music is meant to be danced to, which means it's positively wrong for the Clash to play in a seated hall. And if they're going to remain true, they should stop singing "Garageland" now. It's precisely because I love the Clash that I have to say all this - they mustn't sell out (yes, that phrase again, but it does mean something).
As for the gig, maybe the situation and my being up in the Circle away from the tumult had something to do with it, but they didn't get to me as I know they can. The worst thing about any Clash performance is their vocals - Joe Strummer's voice is so rough and fragmented (great on record) that not only is it impossible to hear the words unless you know them already, but it's even difficult some of the time to discern the tunes.
One reason why the Clash didn't seem as impressive as usual was that they were following Sham 69, who gave another magnificent performance. Everything about their powerfully emotional work is genuine, heartfelt and I'd trust Jimmy Pursey with my life.
- (Chris Brazier - Melody Maker 24th December 1977)
The Rainbow Theatre
232 Seven Sisters Road
London
N4 3NX
Any further info, articles, reviews, comments or photos welcome. Please email blackmarketclash
No known recording known to exist except the one track from the Punk Rock Movie
If you know of any recording
email blackmarketclash
from the Punk Rock Movie
3 tracks were filmed;
White Riot - Harlesdon Colliseum/March
1977 - Rainbow/9 May
Garageland - White Riot Tour/Unknown
There are several sights that provide setlists but most mirror www.blackmarketclash.co.uk. They are worth checking.
from Setlist FM (cannot be relied on)
from Songkick (cannot be relied on)
... both have lists of people who say they went
& from the newer Concert Database
Also useful: Ultimate Music datbase, All Music, Clash books at DISCOGS
A collection of articles, interviews, reviews, posters, tour dates White Riot Tour. Articles cover the month of May 1977.
If you know of any articles or references for this particular gig, anything that is missing, please do let us know.
Google Seach
'The Clash' Rainbow Theatre 1977 White Riot Tour
CLICHE #1 1977 Punk Fanzine
Featuring: Live gig review of The Clash at the Rainbow May 9th 1977 + singles reviews.
Clash of opinion - May 1977
just about readable
Clash Rainbow date - May 1977
Les InRocks [French] [2003]
... article
... photos
... translated article (via Google)
The Clash, The Jam, The Buzzcocks: The Rainbow Theatre, London
Live Review by Jon Savage,
Sounds, 21 May 1977
Rock ‘n’ roll can be one of the few honest things left in this world. Yes. An event, a gathering of the clans. Yes. But it was all down to ...
Record Mirror Letters Page (25 June 77)
Punk its a Real Killer - as aletters pour in over punk violence
Caught in the Act
Melody Maker 14 May 1977
It was going to be a long evening, that much was certain ...
Rainbow, London - Melody Maker
Chris Brazier - Melody Maker 24th December 1977
THE CLASH had just launched into their first encore on the Tuesday night, "London's Burning," when the security, which the band had promised would be "low-key," spilled over into viciousness as a kid who was trying to get up on stage was smashed.
Marcus Gray Last Gang in Town
pages ? -?
The Times
The Clash at Full Strength - Ned Chaillet
Amercian Rock critics, faced wiht a torrent of punk rock bands...
Album tracking June 1977 - unreadable
Times 11 May 1977
Clive Bennett: Is Punk Junk? Clearly its devoteses do not think so
The Rainbow in Finsbury Park N4. Large venue that was originally part of the Astoria chain of cinemas in the 1930's that like so many became a rock venue. (archived PDF)
The Guardian - 9 Dec 2016
‘It was described as a riot’: the Clash at the Rainbow, London, 1977
Eddie Duggan on a legendary punk gig (archived PDF)
Q Magazine Punk Special June 2002
During the Clash's White Riot Tour gig, 200 seats are trashed .. Billy Bragg
The Sun 11 May 1977 Punk Wreck!
Fans riot and theatre boss is delighted!
and a later piece (23 Nov 77) in The Sun - On the road with the The Clash
London Evening Standard (article wanted)
I wanna riot! Fans smash 200 seats at punk show
Daily Mail (article wanted)
Daily Mail described it as a riot with seats being ripped up and thrown about. The truth is that some seats became detached from their weak mountings as we surged about and the broken seats were simply passed out of the crowd.
Sounds backstage
[photos] at the Rainbow
The Clash Rock the Rainbow (1977)
Posted on October 2, 2015 by Phop 7 wonder
The Clash, Rainbow Theatre Ticket Stub by Scareball licenced under CC BY-SA
Monday 9th May 1977, the Clash headline the Rainbow Theatre at Finsbury Park as part of their ‘White Riot’ Tour. (archived PDF)
The Clash “White Riot Tour” London gig at The Rainbow Theatre on 09.05.1977
London gig at The Rainbow Theatre on 09.05.1977 is a milestone in British punk history, since it is considered as the largest punk gig to be held in London to date. Part of their first headline tour with The Jam, The Buzzcocks, Subway Sect and The Prefects as support acts, this gig ended up in a true riot when fans started tearing out seats, throwing them on stage and causing unprecedent damages. However, as 1977 was the year of punk frenzy, the theatre`s demolition was hailed as a success and the Rainbow’s director, Allan Schaverien,stated about the incident: “ (archived PDF)
Erica Echenberg 17 Photos
Musicpictures.com
Gigwise: The Clash's 1977 performance at London's Rainbow Theatre has been voted the best gig in the countries capital ever.
A poll of over 100 Time Out writers and contributors voted it the most legendary performance ever reports Ananova. The gig is mostly remembered for a riot in which fans ripped out hundreds of seats. (archived PDF)
The Clash: A teenage love story
1977 was punk's Year Zero, the year Joe Strummer and chums made their call to arms to the nation's youth. Martin James heard the call, cheeked his mum and ran away to join the 'White Riot' tour. 27 years on, he sits down with Messrs Jones and Simonon to reminisce...
Harldesen March 77, Erics, Electric Circus, Rainbow May 77, Aylesbury Friars 78. (Archived PDF)
White Riot Tour montage
The Clash compilation video of the track 1977
THE FUTURE IS UNWRITTEN Song 1977 (Beaconsfield Film School Session)
Licensed to YouTube by SME (on behalf of Sony Music UK); CMRRA, LatinAutor - UMPG, UNIAO BRASILEIRA DE EDITORAS DE MUSICA - UBEM, UMPG Publishing, and 2 Music Rights Societies
White Riot: Documentary about Rock Against Racism Festival
https://www.facebook.com/WhiteRiotFilm
http://whiteriot-movie.com https://bcij.jp/ctg/movie/5598.html
According to the Japanese promo link above, it will be available for digital rental starting this April 2020:
“The rental distribution period will start from April 17th (Friday) on the following distribution platforms. The service will be available for approximately one month until May 15 (Fri). The platform also includes the online movie theater "Uplink Cloud", which has been urgently implemented due to the situation of uplink. In the future, some theaters are planned to be released one by one, but so that people who live in the self-restraint area can also enjoy it, and also in the `` chaotic world by director Rubika Shah of this work, thinking by myself, I want you to know the importance of raising your voice. Even if you are alone, you can find your friends by raising your voice. You can act together and overcome it. "What you can do now It was said that it came to be implemented. Please check out RAR's activities at home, which are relevant to modern times.
■ Distribution platform Uplink cloud, Amazon prime video, GYAO! Store, crank-in! Video, COCORO VIDEO, TSUTAYA TV, DMM movie, dTV, Hikari TV, Video Market, Videx JP, Movie full plus, music.jp, U-NEXT, Rakuten TV and others.”
The Clash Live - University of East Sussex Brighton White Riot Tour - Wednesday 25th May 1977
Video - Video - Filmed by Students
Youtube release (by students?) 10 tracks
Capitol Radio (Youtube)
Protex Blue (Youtube)
Cheat (Youtube)
Remote Control (Youtube)
I'm So Bored with the USA (Official)
Hate & War (Official)
Career Opportunities (Official)
Remote Control (Official)
White Riot (Youtube)
Police And Thieves (Youtube)
Official re-release - Official Sony Soundsystem Boxset DVD
I'm So Bored With The USA 2:14 PREVIOUSLY UNRELEASED
Hate & War 1:94 PREVIOUSLY UNRELEASED
Career Opportunities 1:42 PREVIOUSLY UNRELEASED
Remote Control 2:73 PREVIOUSLY UNRELEASED
The Clash Live - The Rainbow 9th May 1977 - White Riot Tour
Video - probably filmed by Don Letts/Julian Temple.
Don Letts' Punk Rock Movie is the only known footage to have been broadcast (White Riot). The taper also recorded Subway Sect. Punk Rock Movie 2mins and also Old Grey Whistle Test 2mins
The recent offical Sony release Sound System box set includes new video footage.
Don Letts Super 8 Medley 11:40
White Riot 1:52 (Harlesden, 3 Mar 1977)
Janie Jones 1:73 (unknown)
City of the Dead 2:04 (unknown)
Clash City Rockers 2:15 (unknown)
White Man in Hammersmith Palais 2:53 (unknown)
1977 1:41 (The Rainbow, 9 May 1977)
Don Letts footage has recenty been released. A good listing of the contents of the The Clash's Sound System box set can be found here.
If you know any please let us know
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