On 25 January 1977, the Clash signed to CBS Records for £100,000, a remarkable amount for a band that had played a total of about thirty gigs and almost none as a headliner. As Clash historian Marcus Gray describes, the "band members found themselves having to justify [the deal] to both the music press and to fans who picked up on the critics' muttered asides about the Clash having 'sold out' to the establishment." Mark Perry, founder of the leading London punk periodical, Sniffin' Glue, let loose with what he would later call his "big quote": "Punk died the day the Clash signed to CBS." However, he changed his mind when he heard the "White Riot" single for the first time: "They're the most important group in the world at the moment. I believe in them completely. All I said about them is crap." As one band associate described it, the deal "was later used as a classic example of the kind of contract that no group should ever sign—the group had to pay for their own tours, recordings, remixes, artwork, expenses ..." Mickey Foote, who worked as a technician at their concerts, was hired to produce the Clash's debut album, and Terry Chimes was drafted back for the recording. The band's first single, "White Riot", was released in March 1977 and reached number 34. The album, The Clash, came out the following month. Filled with fiery punk tracks that raged against the ruling establishment, the bosses, the police, alienation and boredom. The Clash also presaged the many eclectic turns the band would take with its cover of the reggae song "Police and Thieves". The group, from its earliest days, had been influenced by the subject matter, slogans and lyrics of this other rebel music. They often played reggae in rehearsals but recording “Police and Thieves” was an important step that was only taken after a lot of discussion within the group. Reggae would have a strong influence on The Clash throughout the group’s history. "Amidst the Sex Pistols' inertia in the first half of 1977, the Clash found themselves as the flag-wavers of the punk rock consciousness", according to music journalist and former punk musician John Robb. Though The Clash album charted well in the UK, climbing quickly to number 12, CBS refused to give it a US release, believing that its raw, barely produced sound would make it