The Clash released their triple album Sandinista! in 1980, specifically on December 12 of that year. It was the band’s fourth studio album and followed the commercially successful London Calling.
Sandinista! contained 36 tracks spread across six vinyl sides, making it an unusually ambitious release for a punk band. The Clash recorded material in Britain, the United States, and Jamaica, drawing on reggae, dub, funk, gospel, jazz, rockabilly, calypso, folk, disco, and early rap as well as punk and rock.
The album’s title refers to the Sandinista National Liberation Front, which had taken power in Nicaragua in 1979. Its political themes and international musical influences reflected the band’s expanding interests. Songs such as “The Magnificent Seven,” “Washington Bullets,” and “The Call Up” show that broader scope.
Listeners sometimes confuse the date with London Calling, released in 1979, or Combat Rock, released in 1982. Sandinista! sits between those two landmark Clash albums and is notable for pushing the group’s experimentation furthest.