Billy Bragg, Dirty Pretty Things and The Bluetones will join forces in the Left Field this weekend, playing a string of shows to lend support to prisoner rehabilitation projects Jail Guitar Doors and Real Fits.


Established by Bragg in the memory of the late Joe Strummer, Jail Guitar Doors is an independent initiative. Taking its name from the B-side of The Clash’s 1978 single Clash City Rockers, the scheme provides musical equipment for inmates serving time at Her Majesty’s pleasure.


“Hearing The Clash changed my life, so I guess I was looking for a project that underscored
the transformative power of music,” explained Bragg. “Exprisoners who have actively participated in such sessions have a re-conviction rate of between 10-15 per cent, compared to the national average of 61 per cent.”


Strummer’s old mucker Mick Jones,who wrote the Jail Guitar Doors song, has helped Bragg deliver guitars to inmates at prisons, including Wandsworth and Pentonville.


Real Fits, meanwhile, encourages prisoners to get involved in creative writing. Last week, Dirty Pretty Things and The Bluetones’ Mark Morriss played a benefit gig for theproject in Hackney.


The Jail Guitar Doors night is taking place in the Left Field on Sunday from 7.30pm.