SONG OF THE DAY
“Lost In The Supermarket” by The Clash (London Calling, CBS Records, 1979). Written by Joe Strummer and Mick Jones.
INTERESTING FACTS (a la wikipedia)
– “Lost in the Supermarket” is a 1979 song credited to the Strummer/Jones songwriting partnership.
– Although it features Mick Jones on lead vocals, the song was written by Joe Strummer.
– It was released on their third studio album, London Calling.
– The song was conceived and recorded in Jones’ grandmother’s flat where he was living at 36 Causton Street, down by the River Thames, near Vauxhall Bridge Road in Pimlico, London, between May and August, 1979 and recorded at Wessex Studios, 106A Highbury New Park, an old converted church between Islington and Stoke Newington (nearby Clissold Park).
– The supermarket in question is located beneath the Jones’ grandmother’s flat.
– A slower song than many of the others on the album, its lyrics describe someone struggling to deal with an increasingly commercialised world and rampant consumerism. The song speaks of numbers about suburban alienation and the feelings of disillusionment that come through youth in modern society.
– In the Making of ‘London Calling’: The Last Testament DVD, released with the 25th anniversary edition of London Calling in 2004, Strummer said he wrote the lyrics imagining Jones’ life growing up in a basement with his mother and grandmother.
– The song was covered by Ben Folds for use in the movie Over the Hedge. In addition, a cover performed by The Afghan Whigs was released on the tribute album Burning London; lead singer Greg Dulli sings portions of the Ben E. King song “Stand By Me” and another Clash song “Train in Vain” over the outro.
– The original Clash version was used in the season 4 Daria episode, “Mart of Darkness”.