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Now the king told the boogie men
You have to let that raga drop
The oil down the desert way
Has been shakin' to the top
The Sheik he drove his Cadillac
He went a' cruisin' down the ville
The muezzin was a' standing
On the radiator grille
[Chorus:]
The Shareef don't like it
Rockin' the Casbah
Rock the Casbah
The Shareef don't like it
Rockin' the Casbah
Rock the Casbah
By order of the prophet
We ban that boogie sound
Degenerate the faithful
With that craazy Casbah sound
But the Bedouin they brought out
The electric camel drum
The local guitar picker
Got his guitar picking thumb
As soon as the Shareef
Had cleared the square
They began to wail
[Chorus:]
Now over at the temple
Oh! They really pack 'em in
The in crowd say it's cool
To dig this chanting thing
But as the wind changed direction
The temple band took five
The crowd caught a wiff
Of that crazy Casbah jive
[Chorus:]
The king called up his jet fighters
He said you better earn your pay
Drop your bombs between the minarets
Down the Casbah way
As soon as the Shareef was
Chauffeured outta there
The jet pilots tuned to
The cockpit radio blare
As soon as the Shareef was
Outta their hair
The jet pilots wailed
[Chorus:]
He thinks it's not kosher
Fundamentally he can't take it.
You know he really hates it.
You have to let that raga drop
The oil down the desert way
Has been shakin' to the top
The Sheik he drove his Cadillac
He went a' cruisin' down the ville
The muezzin was a' standing
On the radiator grille
[Chorus:]
The Shareef don't like it
Rockin' the Casbah
Rock the Casbah
The Shareef don't like it
Rockin' the Casbah
Rock the Casbah
By order of the prophet
We ban that boogie sound
Degenerate the faithful
With that craazy Casbah sound
But the Bedouin they brought out
The electric camel drum
The local guitar picker
Got his guitar picking thumb
As soon as the Shareef
Had cleared the square
They began to wail
[Chorus:]
Now over at the temple
Oh! They really pack 'em in
The in crowd say it's cool
To dig this chanting thing
But as the wind changed direction
The temple band took five
The crowd caught a wiff
Of that crazy Casbah jive
[Chorus:]
The king called up his jet fighters
He said you better earn your pay
Drop your bombs between the minarets
Down the Casbah way
As soon as the Shareef was
Chauffeured outta there
The jet pilots tuned to
The cockpit radio blare
As soon as the Shareef was
Outta their hair
The jet pilots wailed
[Chorus:]
He thinks it's not kosher
Fundamentally he can't take it.
You know he really hates it.
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Its about the authorities banning outside cultural influence (western music?) and Strummer is fantasizing about the people ignoring the ban and play music anyway. I like the bit about the pilot wailing. Nice way to illustrate that the tools of oppression have a conscience too.
I remember hearing this at Glastonbury blaring out of some speakers at a clothes. It sounded awesome. Still does.
Anyone hear that annoying phone ringtone around the third verse? Ironic that you can now actually get it AS your ringtone. lol
BTW Cut The Crap is the clash selling out...or just being awful. take your pick.
I love that I can have the tiniest bit of knowledge ever on this XD My friend's called Sharif, it means nobleman. Now I feel all intelligent.
I like this song, I really don't get it, to me it's just nonsensical, but I like it nonetheless
this song is about when ayatola jomeini forbided rock&roll in iran.
"now the king told the boogie man
you have to let that raga drop"
was actually a "comment"on something that their record label told them---after Sandinista, this executive (or whoever) was telling them they needed to write something more accessible, that everything had gotten too long, like a raga (and some of those songs on Sandinista ARE pretty long, nevermind the whole triple-album thing).