Seven years ago today I was getting ready for work like it was any other day.  Listening to (what was then known as) CFNY as I always did when I heard them announce Joe Strummer had died. Suddenly what started out as a very ordinary day was shattered.   I couldn’t believe what I heard – I felt sick.  It couldn’t possibly be true.  I thought they had to have gotten something wrong.  Joe couldn’t die.  Everything he meant for so many years came rushing to the surface and all I could do was cry.  I’ll never forget the feeling of hearing that news or those words.  I couldn’t imagine a world without Joe in it and the grief was real.   Seven years later I still remember the numbness of that day and still feel the profound sadness.

I never met Joe but he got me through so many dark years when I didn’t have clue and was full of self-loathing.  Beyond being an incredible talent, warrior and icon of the punk movement he lived life with a passion and intensity few have the energy or drive for.  He continuously reinvented himself and never limited nor allowed himself to be easily defined.  He was a punk and so much more and he brought that out in us. I still find myself inspired by him.

Above all his accomplishments, everyone who knew him speaks of his big heart, generous nature and honesty – if he did nothing else what better legacy to a life well lived is there?  In spite of all his success and influence he remained humble and true to himself and his beliefs to the end. And he was a good guy.

Today I choose to celebrate Joe’s life – not indulge in the sorrow and emptiness he left us with.  There was comfort in knowing Joe was out there and now there’s still comfort in his memory.   To this day, I still try to stay true to ideals he helped form in me. He left a void but his presence continues in his music, his memory and the positive impact he left on our lives.

Cheers Joe.

”I will always believe in punk-rock, because it’s about creating something for yourself. Part of it was: ‘Stop being a sap! Lift your head up and see what is really going on in the political, social and religious situations, and try and see through all the smoke screens.” Joe Strummer, July 2002

White Man in Hammersmith Palais

Joe Strummer and the Mescaleros – Nitcomb

Tags: Joe Strummer, Joe Strummer legacy, planet forward, punk movement, punk rock, Social Responsibility, The Clash