Sound check: Joe Strummer is calling London's musicians

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Legacy of a legend: Joe Strummer’s influence on the London scene still looms large

Strummer’s boys: Jamie T

Supported: Mumford and Sons are doing very nicely now, thanks to help from Strummer's charity

Tonight a bevy of unsigned, unknown musicians will play to about 500 people in support of The Kooks on an open-air stage underneath the Westway.

Who's responsible for their appearance at such a high profile event? Joe Strummer, mainly.

On what would have been his 57th birthday (he died from a heart defect in 2002) the Clash frontman's influence on London's music scene still looms large, not just through the popularity of his old band but in a practical way, too.

Strummerville, the charity set up by his friends and family shortly after his death, has become an invaluable support for young musicians.

All five support bands at tonight's show near the organisation's Westway home - Smokey Angle Shades, Beans On Toast, Nat Jenkins, The Supernovas and The Skylarkers - have benefited from Strummerville aid.

They are a long way from superstardom, although Strummerville acts Jamie T and Mumford And Sons are now doing very nicely with major label record deals.

"It's inspired by The Clash's do-it-yourself ethos, empowering people to get their music out there themselves," Trish Whelan, director since last September, tells me.

She's looking for people who want to be musicians, not pop stars. The anti-X Factor Strummerville is a fitting legacy for a rock giant who was resolutely down to earth.

For just a pound an hour, Strummerville offers rehearsal and songwriting rooms decorated with Clash lyrics and artwork in the Camden Roundhouse and the Oh Yeah centre in Belfast.

It organises campfire gigs at the Glastonbury Festival, where Strummer, more heal-the-world hippy than cynical punk, was an annual fixture around an open fire.

It offers introductions to mentors including Clash drummer Topper Headon, Massive Attack producer Nellee Hooper and Coldplay producer Danton Supple. It can provide something so simple yet vital as the loan of the Strummerville van or even cash.

Money comes from gigs organised around the world by Clash fans, and trustees such as Damien Hirst, who in 2008 auctioned Beautiful Love Strummerville Painting With Beautiful Butterflies for over £800,000, donating all the proceeds.

The surname-free Jay, who performs Billy Bragg-style witty folk as Beans On Toast, can't speak highly enough of the charity that gave him a platform. "There's a real Robin Hood vibe to it," he says.

"Having Joe Strummer's heart behind it is such a great start because there's so much love for that man. Everyone's got a Clash story. It opens a lot of doors."

The bands, more than a hundred of whom have uploaded songs as free downloads in the DIY section of the website, become part of a friendly community at a stage when they might normally feel isolated and unloved.

The loan of instruments and drummers is common, and if someone starts landing bigger gigs, they're likely to bring their Strummerville pals along as support bands.

One day one of them might even become as big as the hero whose legacy made their dream possible.

Library Live, tonight, under the Westway at Portobello Road. Doors 6pm, tickets £15 on the door.

Five bands to download at www.strummerville.com/diy/

Smokey Angle Shades
Hairy retro fivesome whose summery rock 'n' roll resembles The Band or Mungo Jerry, heavy on the harmonies and fun on rollicking free track Had About Enough.
 
Dan Smith
The London pianist's dramatic keywork is enhanced by looped layers of drums, strings and impressively powerful vocals when he performs solo.

The Riff Raff
Young sextet with a bit of folk and a bit of ska colouring their tuneful songs. Singer Alex Thompson has something of Jamie T and The Streets in the strong accent of his vocals. “I just wanna make Joe proud,” he sings in his Strummerville tribute on My Blood Is Brave.
 
The Wild Wolves
Alex Cox, formerly the drummer in mildly successful and now defunct rockabilly revivalists Vincent Vincent And The Villains, is now making more sensible but no less enjoyable indie pop with this new band.
 
Dekay
Deep-voiced female rapper from north-west London who covers homelessness and clinical depression from personal experience in her dark songs.

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