Poll. Before the Clash began recording their second album, CBS requested that they adopt a cleaner sound than its predecessor in order to reach American audiences. Sandy Pearlman, known for his work with Blue Öyster Cult, was hired to produce the record. Simonon later recalled, "[R]ecording that album was just the most boring situation ever. It was just so nitpicking, such a contrast to the first album ... it ruined any spontaneity." Strummer agreed that "it wasn't our easiest session." Although some listeners complained about its relatively mainstream production style, Give 'Em Enough Rope received largely positive reviews upon its November release. Give 'Em Enough Rope got mixed reviews in the UK music press. But the album sold well with Clash fans and reached number 2 in the UK album charts. Despite the backlash from sections of the music press, NME readers voted Give 'Em Enough Rope the second best album of 1978 and The Clash were voted the best group in the same end of year poll. However, the album was not the American breakthrough CBS had hoped for, reaching only number 128 on the Billboard chart. The album's first UK single, the hard rocking "Tommy Gun", rose to number 19, the highest chart position for a Clash single to date. The Clash produced their first official music video, showing the group performing "Tommy Gun", to accompany the release of the single. In the video Joe Strummer wore a H Block t-shirt in support of the campaign for political status for Irish Republican prisoners. "English Civil War", which warned against the rise of the far-right in the UK, was released as the album's second single in February 1979 reaching number 25 in the UK Singles Chart. The B-side was a cover of the Toots and the Maytals' "Pressure Drop", once again illustrating the group’s reggae influences. In support of the album, the band toured the UK supported by the Slits and the Innocents. The series of concerts—there were more than thirty, from Edinburgh to Portsmouth—was promoted as the Sort It Out Tour. The band subsequently undertook its first, largely successful tour of North America in February 1979. The Cost of Living EP was released in May 1979. It featured The Clash’s cover of "I Fought the Law". The EP also contained the Clash-penned "Groovy Times" and "Gates of the West". The fourth track was a re-recording, and a longer