Talk:Rock the Casbah/Archive 1

Cingular commercial
Should the article mention the songs use in the Cingular commercials? this site talks about it:, and here's a clip: .70.109.238.179 00:30, 29 December 2006 (UTC)
 * I agree. It should be mentioned into the article. B  e  arly  541  04:44, 29 December 2006 (UTC)
 * I have added the fact. Thanks for the source!  B  e  arly  541  05:09, 29 December 2006 (UTC)

National Review
Should link to the National Review site itself (if possible), not to an article on the NYTimes site which is inaccessible texcept to paying customers... AnonMoos 15:45, 29 October 2006 (UTC)
 * Done. Calbaer 01:59, 10 January 2007 (UTC)

Fabulist?
What is the word "fabulist" supposed to mean in the context in which it is currently used in the article? -- AnonMoos (talk • contribs) 13:00, 10 January 2007 (UTC)


 * If you put your mouse over "fabulist", you'll see it links to "fable" (I don't mean to insult you; I didn't know "fabulist" was derived from "fable", myself).  The writer evidently felt that "Rock the Casbah"s lyrics have the feeling of a fable.  I never thought of that before, but I find myself in agreement.
 * --63.25.119.35 (talk) 00:10, 18 February 2008 (UTC)

Reference to the song in Joe Strummer: The Future is Unwritten
I just added the part in "Political Impact" about Joe's feeling on the song being written on an American bomb. This is documented at about 1 hr, 38 minutes into the documentary, which is now out on DVD. If anyone knows the name of the Spanish friend of Joe's who reported that,....please, please amend my entry to reflect that. There is seemingly a thousand names at the end of the DVD, and they are so tiny as to be pretty illegible...and imdb is of little help. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 97.112.213.104 (talk) 08:45, 19 July 2008 (UTC)

Wrong wording in a sentence?
I have noticed that the first few words in this section of a sentence do not seem to make sense: "and is its only song to become a Top 10 hit in the United States" Does it mean that the song is the only one of the group to reach the US Top 10? If so maybe it should say something like "and it is the group's only Top 10 hit in the United States" or something similar? —Preceding unsigned comment added by Timfoxxy 236 (talk • contribs) 13:01, 17 September 2008 (UTC)

Clash concert in Austin
The Clash's Austin Concert in 1982 was at The City Coliseum not at Palmer Auditorium as reported in the video information. I was there and am in the video. Also, the venue's marquis is plainly visible in the video and informs everyone where the concert is being held. Also, I am having trouble finding out the name of the rasta looking director of the video. Does anyone remember? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 69.150.79.11 (talk) 22:28, 7 September 2009 (UTC)


 * Not sure why the incorrect reference to Palmer Auditorium wasn't changed before. I just changed it to Austin Coliseum. (I was there, too.) See http://homepage.mac.com/blackmarketclash/Bands/Clash/recordings/1982/82-06-09%20Austin%20Tx/82-06-09%20Austin%20Tx.html Jonl (talk) 12:43, 28 August 2010 (UTC)

Topper plays bass?
Since when did Topper Headon play bass on this song, there is no source for it so i have removed it for now, i'll re-add it if someone can come up with a source or something. --Chickenguy13 (talk) 10:41, 2 September 2010 (UTC)

rachid taha
i think he is singing "sharif don´t like it" in his version, instead of "sharia don´t like it" is that relevant? 77.181.148.51 (talk) 00:28, 23 February 2011 (UTC)


 * The Clash also sung "sharif don´t like it"... AnonMoos (talk) 04:15, 23 February 2011 (UTC)

interesting trivia
Rock the Casbah was written in protest of Khomeini's ban on music. Interestingly enough, the forebears of both Khomeini and Strummer were born in the same city, Lucknow, in India. Joe Strummer's father was born in Lucknow, like many other Brits during the Raj. Khomeini's grandfather was a Shia cleric from Lucknow (ultimately of distant Persian ancestry) who settled in Iran on his way back from a pilgramage to Najaf. Pretty random, yeah, but still kind of ironic. Afghan Historian (talk) 08:11, 25 March 2011 (UTC)

Rock the Casbah is New Wave. Not Punk Rock.
Have any of you people even listened to Rock the Casbah? Its a New Wave song. It isn't Punk Rock. So, please don't undo my edit. —Preceding unsigned comment added by LongLivePunkRock (talk • contribs)
 * Do you have a source for that? We use verifiability to decide stuff here. --John (talk) 15:50, 25 September 2010 (UTC)

the clash was considered a punk rock band. i was in england in reading in 1978, when they got kicked out of the reading rock fest. new wave is the wrong word for their music, trust me. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 68.118.52.121 (talk) 11:53, 30 June 2011 (UTC)

Sources for future expansion
Perhaps these sources can be used to expand or improve this article. - Dravecky (talk) 09:30, 17 August 2011 (UTC)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6qf4A6JgyO8&feature=related — Preceding unsigned comment added by 180.222.0.92 (talk) 15:13, 1 October 2012 (UTC)

The Undertones connection
I instantly imagined that this song was by The Undertones, because they used to perform in a club called The Casbah, in Derry. Ah, well. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 87.224.102.138 (talk) 13:45, 22 January 2013 (UTC)

Song lyrics???
Hi, Growing up in Australia I heard that the original lyrics were 'Fuck the casbah'. The story that I heard from quite a few directions was that in order to played on air the lyrics had to be changed to 'Rock the casbah'. However, The Clash subverted this by half of the band singing 'Rock' and the other half singing 'Fuck'. When I was a kid it was a game to try and see who was singing what on the video Countdown (Australian TV series) aired. Is there any truth to this story? If so, it would be good to add to the article! Mondegreen de plume (talk) 06:10, 31 December 2010 (UTC)

I've seen at least one review implying that you can hear Fuck the Casbah. No sources so nothing addable (this from memory of things on forums from 5-6 years ago so might be wrong) but it looks like an old story got mangled. There've been internet claims* out rather than invented post 2002-pre 2010) that somewhere in the lyrics they're actually singing Fuck the Taskforce as a dig/attack re The Falklands War (probably mishead) (*both from people who allegedly noticed it/heard the band had done that deliberately at the time, plus younger fans repeating gossip). and apparently either when the single came out or slightly later, Chris Dean (from The Redskins http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Redskins_(band)) writing for The NME as X More did an article/review along the lines of it would be better/more politically relevant if The Clash *were* singing Fuck The Taskforce instead of Rock The Cashbah. There's a live version (forget if it's offical or not) that sounds more like 'fuck the taskforce' but I'd already seen the rumours by then so who  knows.109.224.137.121 (talk) 22:53, 28 February 2012 (UTC)


 * I heard radio stories in the U.S. when the single was out suggesting "Rock" did in fact replace a more choice word (and the way The Clash sang "Rock" seems to support that); but I don't have any sources to prove it. But then, I always thought "Soon as the sharif was outta their hair" implied the jet fighters dropped their bombs between the sharif's minarets (instead of the Casbah's as the sharif ordered); but I don't have any sources for that either (and it may be just my own imagination).  --RBBrittain (talk) 21:10, 1 July 2013 (UTC)

All time great?
Why is this entry being disputed?

Stop the silly revert war. There simply is no objective measure to say that it's "One of The Clash's all time great songs". Therefore, "Generally regarded as one of The Clash's all time great songs" should be the entry.

"Bah" what does that have to do with neutrallity? It played on the radio for years, even 50 year old men who listen to the doors know that song. I think that renown qualifies for greatest. Ask an old man about remote control of clash city rockers and he'll go what??? Ask about rock the casbah or should I stay or should I go and he'll go ohhh! I know that song.

You can't go from claiming popularity to asserting greatness. A well-known song is not necessarily a great song and 'great' is clearly POV. Midlem 07:08, 30 January 2006 (UTC)


 * Terms like "Generally regarded"; "Often considered"; "Widely believed" are weasel words for dressing up a popular opinion as a fact. Any sentence beginning with such pussyfooting qualifiers is probably appropriate for immediate deletion. The only person fooled by such bullshit is the bullshitter himself.
 * By no means should Wikipedia be declaring ANYTHING "great", much less "all time great".
 * --Ben Culture (talk) 12:22, 12 May 2014 (UTC)

Headon

 * In the 2002 Documentary Westway to the World Headon describes that he played drums, bass, and piano on the record. While he thought he was merely playing the song for the rest of the band, it was, unbeknownst to him, recorded.

Um, unless he played the drums, bass and piano simultaneously, there's no way he couldn't know he was being recorded. He'd have to be able to hear the previous tracks to be able to play along with them. Unless this is total BS, I'm qualifying this statement with "Headon claims." Dyfsunctional 18:54, 3 February 2006 (UTC)


 * I should rewatch Westway to the World to confirm, but I'm pretty sure Topper didn't say that. --Loopy e 21:18, 3 February 2006 (UTC)


 * You know, I really hate it when signatures are deleted or left off the end of comments, because following the discussion is so much harder when you have no clue who's saying what!!! So sign your posts and don't vandalize other people's posts, or don't post at all! I can't stress those two points enough. –Gravinos ( "Politics" is the stench that rises from human conflict. ) 07:51, 11 December 2007 (UTC)


 * PS–Accidental vandalism is still vandalism. If you are unsure of how to edit the page in a non-destructive manner, then do some tutorials and/or mess around in the sandbox until you are sure. –Gravinos ( "Politics" is the stench that rises from human conflict. ) 08:06, 11 December 2007 (UTC)


 * PPS–I also hate it when I poop my pants, which I do ALL the time!!!!! –Gravinos ( "Politics" is the stench that rises from human conflict. ) 08:06, 11 December 2007 (UTC)  —Preceding unsigned comment added by 63.25.119.35 (talk)


 * I'm not trying to top you -- that was awesome, you set us up and got us good! But I wanted to mention, the legendary gangster Al Capone died a free man after serving eight years's time. However, all along he had had untreated neurosyphilis, which caused severe brain damage -- one doctor estimated he had the cognitive capacity of a 12-year-old. If you look at all the possible symptoms, it's like mixing Alzheimer's disease with ALL the major mental illnesses! He had plenty of enemies, so he spent his last few years trying to figure out who was the "dirty rat" that kept putting feces in his pants!
 * --Ben Culture (talk) 13:04, 12 May 2014 (UTC)

Terry Chimes appearing in music video
Hi there. A fellow Wikipedian has removed the following paragraph of mine from the end of the music video section:

"Although music for "Rock the Casbah" was written and performed by drummer Topper Headon, Headon had been ejected from the band by the time the band shot the music video for the single. Consequently, Headon's replacement Terry Chimes is shown drumming in the music video."

The edit is fair enough, as it was unsourced. (Although, the truth of the statement can be derived by sheer logic, given the timeline of events...) However, it is a fact that I feel should be re-added to the article at some point in time.

Right now I cannot find a reliable source online that notes the fact that Chimes, not Headon is in the video. However, I distinctly remember reading an interview with Headon talking about the embarrassment of The Clash becoming a hit band after his sacking for drug abuse, with another musician drumming in the video for the song that he wrote.

Please keep an eye out for appropriate sources, and add this sentence ack into the article when found. Stuart mcmillen (talk) 01:58, 3 May 2016 (UTC)

Infobox broken
The infobox for the song is broken. Can anyone fix it? I can't I tried, and it still comes out the same as before. Donny (talk) 21:17, 24 June 2016 (UTC)

Political message
the song has a political message due to middle east, muslim symbols and jewish connotations

Look at the video. it was filmed in texas and there are two guys a jew and an arab and at the end the join the CLASH concert haha — Preceding unsigned comment added by 89.204.154.149 (talk) 15:55, 8 January 2017 (UTC)

Product placement
Unknown Unknowns (talk) 08:24, 21 November 2015 (UTC)
 * 1) Videos are reliable sources, Wikipedia even has a 'cite video' tag.  Saying what a video shows is no different from quoting from a book.
 * 2) Product placements are notable, dozens of video and film pages link to the product placement page.  They're especially notable when they appear in a video by The Clash who had an anti-capitalist ideology.
 * 3) The 3RR has been broken many times and yet you have failed to inform an administrator. You might have barnstars but removing sourced material that you dislike is still vandalism.
 * You can't use YouTube videos as they are generally considered unreliable and most of the times violate external links policy. Also, as the "cited" material is not explicitly said/written in the video, it is considered original research (= unsourced). As I said in one of my edit summaries, if you want to restore this piece of info (which is very trivial, by the way) then find a written source to support this addition in the article. Synthwave.94 (talk) 18:24, 21 November 2015 (UTC)
 * YouTube videos are not unreliable sources if the subject is the actual video itself. This isn't original research, I am merely stating what the video shows - one of the main characters drinking a can of Dr Pepper in front of a Dr Pepper sign.  This is known as 'product placement'.  Product placement is not trivial in music videos, especially by a band who had anti-capitalist views.  And there is no Wikipedia requirement for written sources to support video ones.  Unknown Unknowns (talk) 14:23, 22 November 2015 (UTC)
 * It's still original research, as it is your own deduction : it is never said in the video that it's a product placement. This kind of "fact" must be cited by independent and reliable sources. It must not come from a primary source such as an official website, etc. Also, per WP:PRIMARY, "any interpretation of primary source material requires a reliable secondary source for that interpretation''." So unless you can find another source to confirm your statement, you cannot say it's a product placement. Synthwave.94 (talk) 18:40, 22 November 2015 (UTC)
 * Possibly - but I can leave the references to the products in. They're as notable as anything else in the video. Unknown Unknowns (talk) 09:22, 23 November 2015 (UTC)
 * It's apparent that you don't have a basic understanding of what product placement is, or you wouldn't have ever started this argument. As far as the sentence including the products, it's somewhat notable because of the subject matter of the song and its East-meets-West motif, but good grammar would still be helpful. I intend to fix that sentence, just letting you know that it's currently a mess. Try not to knee-jerk react next time. Rockypedia (talk) 18:40, 24 November 2015 (UTC)
 * On another note, I just noticed the second paragraph in the Music video section is completely WP:OR. There's no way to tell where those planes were from, or if they were even shot at the same time as the video, or just stock footage. They're F-4s for sure, but RF-4 vs. any other kind of F-4? Original research all the way, the presence of the two planes in the video isn't particularly notable by itelf, and I'm removing it outright. Rockypedia (talk) 18:54, 24 November 2015 (UTC)
 * Also, at 1:14 of the video it's apparent that the sheik is not drinking from a Dr. Pepper bottle. It appears to be a beer bottle, which would be consistent with the location behind him - the Posse West was a drive-thru beer store. None of this is verifiable with reliable sources anyway, so it's gone. Rockypedia (talk) 19:23, 24 November 2015 (UTC)

I've just watched the video again on a bigger monitor. The drinks can definitely isn't a Dr Pepper one but both characters are seen eating hamburgers outside Burger King. Even if this isn't product placement (and I suspect it is) then it's significant unless Burger King sell both Halal and Kosher food. Unknown Unknowns (talk) 09:35, 30 November 2015 (UTC)
 * I don't think you understand how Wikipedia handles trivia. This rule is applicable here: 6. Remember to challenge or remove trivia items that aren't sourced. For example, YES, the two characters are eating hamburgers at Burger King, but is this significant? It's your opinion that it is, but there's nothing in any reliable source to back up that assertion, and as such, any editor would be well within Wikipedia guidelines to remove that entire sentence. At the end of the day, our opinions are not what determines what gets included in an article and what gets cut. Stuff like the Burger King shot and the beer bottle, while observable, is not significant, and if you're drawing conclusions about Halal and Kosher food on your own, without citing a source, that's the definition of original research, and as you may know, original research gets removed. Period. Even the location being in Austin is, right now, original research, because you're inferring from a couple of shots that the entire video was shot there. I'm leaving it in solely because it does appear to be true and there may be a source discovered later, but if another editor came along and deleted it, I would have no problem with that action. You watching the video, no matter what size the monitor is, is not a source, and should not have anything to do with what you add to this article. That's just not how this site works. Rockypedia (talk) 14:46, 30 November 2015 (UTC)
 * How can we determine which scenes in a music video are trivia and which are detail? Unknown Unknowns (talk) 09:35, 2 December 2015 (UTC)
 * The point is, a description of the music video is all trivia until you find a notable publication describing details of the video in some greater context. Rockypedia (talk) 18:14, 2 December 2015 (UTC)

Of course it is PRODUCT PLACEMENT

i have read sources which claimed that there was a connection DR. PEPPER BURGER KING and STAR LINE LIMO

all not by accident but intended

MTV persons also claimed that they asked the director of the video to remove the things from the video but he rejected. at that TIME mtv america had only a limited number of videos which fitted for the ROCK FORMAT MTV and they had to play the video and when the song reached the top 10 of the hot 100 there was not a chance not to play it — Preceding unsigned comment added by 89.204.154.149 (talk) 16:02, 8 January 2017 (UTC)

DR PEPPER and BURGER KING product placement in the video
they were sponsored and maybe compensated by DR PEPPER and BURGER KING  + LONE STAR LIMO car rental

it was not an accident to see those big brands in the video — Preceding unsigned comment added by 89.204.154.149 (talk) 15:57, 8 January 2017 (UTC)


 * I very much doubt that Lone Star Limo has ever been a "big brand". I would also tend to doubt that Burger King paid anything to the Clash to be included in the video, in which case it wouldn't be "product placement"... AnonMoos (talk) 12:27, 11 January 2017 (UTC)

PRODUCT PLACEMENT Problem and racism claim MTV 1982
I Have heard that MTV at the beginning did not played VIDEOS by african americans or non europeans

they had only a limited number of ROCK MUSIC VIDEOS which fitted to their concept and that the PRODUCT PLACEMENT  burger king and DR PEPPER was a problem but they had no chance because the song was perfect for MTV and it has already reached the top 10 of the HOT 100 and they had to play it despite the problem of brands in the video  — Preceding unsigned comment added by 89.204.154.149 (talk) 16:04, 8 January 2017 (UTC)
 * Unfortunately, "I heard that..." does not qualify as a reliable source on Wikipedia. Rockypedia (talk) 00:18, 9 January 2017 (UTC)

But DR.PEPPER compensated them for sure

Their concert in that summer was named after that soft drink brand — Preceding unsigned comment added by 46.189.28.120 (talk) 11:19, 26 June 2017 (UTC)
 * See the cited source in the article. There is no Dr. Pepper bottle in the video. At one point a character is holding a beer. You may be mistaking the beer for a Dr. Pepper. Rockypedia (talk) 14:33, 26 June 2017 (UTC)

External links modified
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I have just modified 9 external links on Rock the Casbah. Please take a moment to review my edit. If you have any questions, or need the bot to ignore the links, or the page altogether, please visit this simple FaQ for additional information. I made the following changes:
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 * Added archive https://web.archive.org/web/20131020025459/http://australian-charts.com/forum.asp?todo=viewthread&id=21533&pages= to http://australian-charts.com/forum.asp?todo=viewthread&id=21533&pages=
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 * Added archive https://web.archive.org/web/20141006134948/http://australian-charts.com/forum.asp?todo=viewthread&id=40275 to http://australian-charts.com/forum.asp?todo=viewthread&id=40275
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 * Added archive https://web.archive.org/web/20140714181446/http://www.citypages.com/1999-12-15/sports/clashback/2/ to http://www.citypages.com/1999-12-15/sports/clashback/2/

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Significance of misheard "stop, you cadger"
The lyrics sections mention Tymon Dogg mishearing "rock the casbah" as "stop, you cadger". This seems like totally unrelated trivia. Can anybody with the source (Gilbert, Pat (2004). Passion Is A Fashion: The Real Story Of The Clash. Aurum Press Ltd. ISBN 1845130170.) check if there is more relevance to that anecdote? If not, I suggest removing that bit. Gökdeniz Karadağ (talk) 00:57, 30 December 2018 (UTC)

Cell phone ringtone again
I've noticed that the aforementioned "cell phone ringtone" sounds like the opening measure of Dixie. I wonder if this was deliberate? Was it inadvertant, or intentional? It seems like it may certainly add to the meaning of the song. Any ideas?

The "cell phone ringtone" is apparently a digital watch - can someone include information about this in the article, there must be a version without the horrible beeping and I would like to know which version it is. —Preceding unsigned comment added by Fatcud (talk • contribs) 11:36, 17 May 2009 (UTC)


 * Fatcud, I know from my childhood that the sound is from the alarm music from a Pac-Man game watch made by Nelsonic in the early '80s. Why it played "Dixie" I'll never know! It was a cherished possession of mine, and I wish I could find an audio file or video of the product to prove it. Several are for sale on eBay but they are in the range of $100-200 each.204.65.0.25 (talk) 18:54, 1 June 2012 (UTC)


 * According to my boss' husband (who is from the UK and was living there during the era of The Clash), the "beeping" or "ringtone" apparently only appears in the US releases of this song, and does NOT appear in the UK releases of this song. Whether he was talking about the single or Combat Rock (the album this song is from) I'm not certain. Xatticus —Preceding unsigned comment added by 204.144.12.7 (talk) 01:32, 15 December 2010 (UTC)
 * UPDATE: Okay, so I've listened to original UK vinyl release of this single. The beeping is INCREDIBLY faint on this version (I was barely able to pick it up through my Shure earbuds) it almost sounds like it's EQ'd out a little bit. Hope this helps Xatticus —Preceding unsigned comment added by 204.144.12.7 (talk) 20:24, 18 December 2010 (UTC)


 * Back in the day, I recognized those beeps from a handheld video game I had. By "handheld" I don't mean the controller; I mean the whole thing was one simple video game, not unlike Space Invaders, and was the size of a thick new Stephen King or John Irving novel in hardcover.
 * I'm sorry, I have been trying for years to remember the game's title, but all I know is that it was something very cliched and unmemorable.
 * --Ben Culture (talk) 13:17, 12 May 2014 (UTC)


 * Just as an interesting aside, the 'ringtone' is the same tone used by the satellite telephone that is swallowed by the Spinosaurus in Jurassic Park III. Xtrememachineuk (talk) 11:02, 24 March 2015 (UTC)


 * It's not a cell phone ringtone. It's from a novelty "Dukes of Hazzard" digital watch whose alarm tone was the first few bars of "Dixie," just like the General Lee's horn. — Preceding unsigned comment added by

My grandmother bougt me the dukes of hazzard watch when I was like 6 or 7 years old. I remember putting it up ro a large speaker when the song was on the radio in my parents home in Muskegon Michigan. Years later I noticed the sound when the song played on the radio. I told people about it and they thought I was crazy. Yes, people are right, it was a dixie watch and I have no idea how I broadcasted the sound over the air. Boz Ilahi michigan

68.190.59.141 (talk) 01:37, 13 September 2016 (UTC) Ringtone from cell in the 80's? I think not. I think I know where the tone originates from, just wondering why is it in the song.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tt4eFG5B_vY — Preceding unsigned comment added by CuriousJorgeGeorge (talk • contribs) 05:03, 14 April 2017 (UTC)

Albeit late to the party, and having just landed here after hearing the ringtone in the track, to clarify, the Jurassic Park reference is not the case - see Satphone Ringtone from JP3 but as correctly pointed out above, it is the incomplete first bar of Dixie, as per the General Lee's horn.--86.136.218.15 (talk) 16:24, 5 December 2019 (UTC)

Soundtrack listing
Why does this article list the entire track listing & graphic for a movie soundtrack that is only a cover version at that? I think that whole section should be struck and replaced with a one-line trivia entry instead.

Simomons absence.
This is one of the few times Simomon does not appear at all. The only other song I can think of that he is absent from is The Magnificent seven.

however cell phones didn't exist when the song was released...
"The first commercial citywide cellular network was launched in Japan by NTT in 1979. Fully automatic cellular networks were first introduced in the early to mid 1980s (the 1G generation). The Nordic Mobile Telephone (NMT) system went online in Denmark, Finland, Norway and Sweden in 1981.[6]"

So yeah cell phones did exist, even if it wasn't sampled from one.