Very few bands are capable of producing albums of this length (and at 19 tracks long it certainly is an epic) that can keep the listener from switching off part of the way through, but the variation of sounds and styles whilst maintaining a high overall standard of quality is testament to The Clash, something that perhaps wasn't quite so successful in their even more experimental follow-up Sandinista. The album opens with the well-known title track, which sets the standard high for the rest of the album that follows. Up next is 'Brand New Cadillac', a song that could very easily have fitted alongside earlier work from the band, before taking a strong deviation in direction with third track 'Jimmy Jazz', a very laid back tune that stands in stark contrast to the first two songs, although it's personally one of my least favourite tracks on the album. The record then goes to step in numerous different directions, the more interesting of which being reggae-inspired tracks such as 'The Guns of Brixton', which the band pull off with effortless ease. Other highlights include the despaired view of a consumerist society in 'Lost in the Supermarket', Spanish civil war-inspired 'Spanish Bombs', and a terrific duetting of Joe Strummer and Mick Jones on the song 'Rudie Can't Fail'. The album is rounded off by 'Train in Vain', a rousing anthem that's absolutely perfect for anyone having undergone a bitter relationship breakup.

All in all this album deserves its place as one of the best of British rock, and is certainly not a record that I tire of listening to.