Here's a good question about the Piano and punk music. I've been wondering,...

[SKKY]

...were The Clash the first to use it? You can clearly hear it in "Rock the Casbah". I'm thinking Primate1 or MrScorpio will know the answer.

[ghostsofgiants]

1. Good question.

Not sure off the top of my head. Pretty sure it was done before "Rock the Casbah" though.

[SKKY]

2. My "punk chops" are not even close to what yours probably are...

...but I just can't remember hearing it in a true punk song before. Of course, some would debate whether or not The Clash would qualify, but in my world they do.

[ghostsofgiants]

3. Anyone who debates The Clash's punk cred is full of shit.

:P

I'm stuck at work right now, so I can't even look into it. If you're lucky, someone like swag or asthmaticeog might come along (even though they're never around nowadays), they'd know more than I would.

[Jamastiene]

6. Anyone who debates The Clash's punk cred needs to go back to Punk Rock 101.

You got that right.

[Tom Kitten]

4. The Stranglers used keyboards from the start

although they weren't really "punk" in style, they got grouped together with all those other British punk bands from 1977. (Plus they used an electric piano)

First punk song I know that used a piano was "Taking Too Long" by The Wipers from "Youth Of America", released in 1980.

I found a review with an mp3 or three here...

http://music.allansworld.info/2008/09/17/the-wipers-youth-of-america-review/

(ed:punktuation!)

[Jamastiene]

5. No, they weren't.

Mink Deville used it back in the 70s. So, did the Patti Smith Group. Also, back in the early days at CBGB's Blondie were punk as hell and they used keyboards/piano extensively. So did Television. The Talking Heads did as well. Lance Loud did too.

So did the Ramones, although they rarely used them when performing live.

So, yeah, other punk bands used keyboards used before the Clash used them. :D

[dhpgetsit]

7. I remember when I thought Elvis Costello was punk.

But every time I found a punk rocker I liked, I found out it wasn't really punk.
Whatever. I like what I like.


Peace Love And Understanding

[dembotoz]

8. boomtown rats had a fair amount of piano

i don't like mondays
comes to mind

[harmonicon]

9. I guess it depends on what you call "punk"

There is definitely piano on the Clash's "Sandinista" album, and possible "London Calling", which are both earlier than "Rock the Casbah". So maybe there were the first in that traditional punk pantheon, but I think that really probably only covers music from '75 to maybe '84.... hell... I don't know. I can't think clearly now anyway.

[Sebastian Doyle]

10. Yeah, there was piano on the London Calling album

"The Card Cheat" comes to mind.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5KsULtQ_yIs

[atomic-fly]

11. I think this one qualifies

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g6yTRq_rJg4&NR=1

[SKKY]

12. Ok, yea, I guess that pretty much settles it then!

And the underlying theme through all this is that, I need to go back to punk 101. You guys do rock though! I appreciate the insights, and I'm embarrassed to admit that some of you have turned me onto some new music I missed way back when.

[DBoon]

13. OT, but DJ Liebowitz's version of "Holiday Inn: Cambodia" is cool

it is an instrumental version played entirely on piano

[Tikki]

14. I know Captain Sensible played keyboards....

and guitar.

The Damned

Tikki

[Symarip]

15. You'll find that the idea of punk is pretty subjective

I mean, were The Clash really playing punk rock on London Calling? By then, they morphed into something far less restrictive than three chord songs all done with power chords.

Anyhow, if you're talking about The Clash, White Man in Hammersmith Palais has some sort of electric piano on it, I think. I could be wrong.