[5][7][8] The lyrics reflect the concern felt by Strummer about world events with the reference to "a nuclear error" – the incident at Three Mile Island, which occurred earlier in 1979.

The lines referring to "Now don't look to us / Phoney Beatlemania has bitten the dust" reflects the concerns of the band over its situation after the punk rock boom in England had ended in 1977.

[citation needed] According to a retrospective assessment by AllMusic critic Donald A. Guarisco, the song "cleverly crossbreeds anthemic hard rock with reggae by juxtaposing slashing, staccato guitar riffs with an undulating rhythm section beat as Strummer lays down a snarling vocal".

"[9] The song fades out with a Morse code signal spelling S-O-S,[10] reiterating the earlier urgent sense of emergency, and further alluding to drowning in the river.

Two were released by CBS Records in 1991 (catalogue number: 656946; 31-656946-22) both with "Brand New Cadillac" on the B-side, the second one has an additional track on side two "Return to Brixton (Jeremy Healy 7" Remix)" (see the table below).

In 2012, on the occasion of the International Record Store Day, a limited edition 7" was released, with a new mix of the song by Mick Jones, and an instrumental version on the B-side.

The song did not make the U.S. charts, as "Train in Vain" was released as a single and broke the band in the United States, reaching No.

The success of the single and album was greatly helped by the music video shot by Don Letts showing the band playing the song on a boat at Festival Pier, next to Albert Bridge on the south side of the Thames, Battersea Park in a cold and rainy night at the beginning of December 1979.

[22] The song was used for a 2012 British Airways advertisement, picturing a jet aeroplane taxiing through the streets of London passing numerous landmarks and parking outside the Olympic Stadium.

[24] Following the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, the Clash gave permission to a Ukrainian punk band named Beton to rewrite the song as an anti-invasion anthem and charity fundraiser titled "Kyiv Calling".