could anyone have done for the title SANDINISTA what the pistols did with BODIES?

so far i thought the v.early pop group (prod.d.bovell), but i don't think they had any kind of a way with words

Not sure I understand the question -- do you mean lending an otherwise crap title a degree of credibility via great material?

Be that the case, I'd reckon the same stunt was pulled off with Soundgarden's ridiculously titled SUPERUNKNOWN, which is otherwise a great album (if you ask me, of course), not least for the title track.

at least that 3lp thing had a fast-forward mechanism by including a lyric sheet and it was an incredibly good deal -- the clash got that word up in lights at their own expense (i'm presuming CBS didn't meet the lp/quid bill) -- 'sandinista' is like a coffee table book, peruse at your leisure

i wasn't always sure if i was hearing the lyrics right on 'bodies' (my excuse for listening to one of the most musically compelling sex pistols' songs lots) -- maybe the full coffee table version of the sex pistols (forthcoming cd box, working title 'corp.') with i presume the _real_ album that they were making will bury or betray sex pistols _real_ lyrical agenda, of which i assume 'bodies' was maybe a flash, 'cause i wasn't there

Yes:
Life Without Buildings

Gilbreto Gil.

No. "Bodies" as a title is universal, ambiguous--- it tells you nothing about what to expect from the song. "Sandinista" tells you everything.

Not if Gilbreto Gil did it. The clash cheerled cartoons, but gil would have seen how confusing and strange and mixed-up the whole sitch, as well as the sandinistas themselves were.

How about Bernie Taupin? David Crosby? They might try

question as asked is v.unclear :( if i haf a moment today (which I won't) i will explain bettah

The Dog Faced Hermans or the minutemen.

alex and sterl have both understood it actually, but yeah "bodies" isn't a self-explanatory title, i hadn't thought of that

bodies is most out-on-limb-in-face pistols nasty ugly industrial housing estate inter-racial "social commentary", so is best pistols in some ways, but bodies still ain't slogan/news like washington bullets -> sandanista -> political nadir as coffee table item -> big (?) punk statement vindicated as accidentally stumbles across notorious "contra deal" to end all punk vs. business get the message across industry impass -> coup

so without the US stumble/bungle sandanista would have been one more footnote, but luckily for the clash it exploded later nicely leaving clash seemingly OTM -- isn't this coffee table book (atlas) scale versus on-the-fly exploito-socialism as neato grit-punk bullet ? at least the US audiences got lot's of ideas laid out by the clash (admittedly some "about england" too) -- clash were the only big- demograph us-sell act to get this across and lay it out -- suicide for "major artist", too complicated for obscuro left field simple- little-song (gil, pistols, costello, dylan ..) -- so the mutantes got such issues over locally & in paris, but essentially to the converted (and maybe only in Spanish or French)

could there be a better name for a pistols record & pistols-thought in gen'l than "flogging a dead horse"?

Yeah I figured I might be reading the question more literally than you meant it mark s but I'm sticking with my answer: what they did with the title is different than what they did with the song.

I agree with Sterling the most so far --- Gil probably could take "Sandinista" and turn it inside out under scrutiny. M E Smith on a good day might hit something there too. Either way though they'd be playing with expectations that "Sandinista" sets up. It might beat the Washington-Bullets-as-Book-Report angle, but it still wouldn't be doing what the pistols did with "Bodies". A complex "Sandinista" still presents you with a situation on stage. "Bodies" shows you nothing but an unmarked theatre door.

(don't mean to be a pain in the ass, I'm just a stickler fer titles is all)