Washington Bullets (song)

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"Washington Bullets"
"Washington Bullets" cover
Song by The Clash
Album Sandinista!
Released December 12, 1980 (1980-12-12)
Genre Reggae, rock
Length 3:51
Label CBS
Composer The Clash
Sandinista! track listing
Side one
  1. "The Magnificent Seven"
  2. "Hitsville UK"
  3. "Junco Partner"
  4. "Ivan Meets G.I. Joe"
  5. "The Leader"
  6. "Something About England"
Side two
  1. "Rebel Waltz"
  2. "Look Here"
  3. "The Crooked Beat"
  4. "Somebody Got Murdered"
  5. "One More Time"
  6. "One More Dub"
Side three
  1. "Lightning Strikes (Not Once But Twice)"
  2. "Up in Heaven (Not Only Here)"
  3. "Corner Soul"
  4. "Let's Go Crazy"
  5. "If Music Could Talk"
  6. "The Sound of Sinners"
Side four
  1. "Police on My Back"
  2. "Midnight Log"
  3. "The Equaliser"
  4. "The Call Up"
  5. "Washington Bullets"
  6. "Broadway"
Side five
  1. "Lose This Skin"
  2. "Charlie Don't Surf"
  3. "Mensforth Hill"
  4. "Junkie Slip"
  5. "Kingston Advice"
  6. "The Street Parade"
Side six
  1. "Version City"
  2. "Living in Fame"
  3. "Silicone on Sapphire"
  4. "Version Pardner"
  5. "Career Opportunities"
  6. "Shepherds Delight"
This article is about the song. For the basketball team, see Washington Wizards.

"Washington Bullets" is a song from The Clash's 1980 album Sandinista!. A politically charged song, it is a simplified version of Latin American history from the 1959 Cuban Revolution to the Nicaraguan Sandinistas of the 1980s, with mention of the Bay of Pigs Invasion, the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan, the Dalai Lama, and Victor Jara, referencing his death at the hands of the Chilean government in the stadium that now bears his name. A criticism of the foreign policy of the United States, the song is indicative of The Clash's left wing politics. The song's title is often thought to have been a pun on the name of the American capital city's NBA franchise, which later went on to change its name to the Washington Wizards in 1997, but The Clash have denied any knowledge of the basketball team previous to the song's release.

The song is one of The Clash's more experimental, in the reggae style, with a marimba and lyrics that are almost spoken rather than sung. Though the marimba is the most prominent instrument, electric guitar riffs are still audible.

On the tribute album The Clash Tribute: The Never Ending Story, the song was covered by Attila the Stockbroker, with new lyrics to the later verses, omitting the reference to Afghanistan and The Clash's subtle attack on communism. The new verses are critical of U.S. involvement in the end of the Soviet Union, and Yeltsin's embrasure of western-style capitalism, making particular disparaging references to the New world order following the end of the Cold War.

v • d • e
The Clash
Joe Strummer · Mick Jones · Paul Simonon · Topper Headon
Nick Sheppard · Keith Levene · Pete Howard · Terry Chimes · Vince White · Rob Harper
Studio albums The Clash · Give 'Em Enough Rope · London Calling · Sandinista! · Combat Rock · Cut the Crap
Compilations and lives Black Market Clash · The Story of the Clash, Volume 1 · Clash on Broadway · The Singles · Super Black Market Clash · From Here to Eternity: Live · The Essential Clash · Singles Box · The Singles (2007)
Related articles Discography · Punk rock · The 101ers · London SS · Public Image Ltd · Big Audio Dynamite · Havana 3am · The Latino Rockabilly War · The Pogues · The Mescaleros · The Libertines · Carbon/Silicon · The Good, the Bad and the Queen
Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Washington_Bullets_%28song%29"
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