Description

Formed in 1982, The Pogues married the raw energy and political anger of punk with the structures and instrumentation of Irish folk. The scope of their brash approach belied the acoustic nature of their arrangements. Singer/songwriter Shane McGowan, the band's visionary, departed the band for a solo career, and the Pogues made a couple of sub-par '90s albums without him.

Biography

The London, England-based punk scene of the late-70s inspired some unusual intermingling of styles and the Pogues (then known as Pogue Mahone) performed punky versions of traditional Irish folk songs in pubs throughout the capital. They were fronted by singer Shane MacGowan (b. 25 December 1957, Kent, England, but raised in County Tipperary, Eire) and also included Spider Stacy (b. Peter Richard Stacy, 14 December 1958, Eastbourne, England; tin whistle), Jem Finer (b. 25 July 1955, Stoke-on-Trent, England; banjo, mandolin), James Fearnley (b. 9 October 1954, Worsley, West Manchester, England; guitar, piano accordion), Cait O'Riordan (b. 4 January 1965, Nigeria; bass) and Andrew Ranken (b. 13 November 1953, Ladbroke Grove, London, England; drums). MacGowan had spent his late teen years singing in a punk band called the Nipple Erectors (aka the Nips) which also featured Fearnley. After several complaints the band changed their name (Pogue Mahone is "kiss my arse" in Gaelic) and soon attracted the attention of the Clash who asked them to be their opening act. Record companies were perturbed by the band's occasionally chaotic live act where they would often fight onstage and Stacy kept time by banging his head with a beer tray. In 1984 Stiff Records signed the Pogues and recorded Red Roses For Me, which contained several traditional tunes as well as excellent originals such as "Streams Of Whiskey" and "Dark Streets Of London". It announced a major songwriting talent in MacGowan's evocative descriptions of times and places he had often visited first-hand.
Acclaimed UK recording artist Elvis Costello produced the follow-up Rum, Sodomy & The Lash on which Philip Chevron (b. 17 June 1957, Dublin, Eire), formerly a guitarist with the Radiators, replaced Finer who was on "paternity leave". The album saw MacGowan's songwriting reach new heights on "The Sick Bed Of Cuchulainn", "A Pair Of Brown Eyes" and "And The Band Played Waltzing Matilda'. The Pogues soon established themselves as a formidable and unique live act and the album built on this success by entering the UK Top 20. There were further changes when the multi-instrumentalist Terry Woods (b. 4 December 1947, Dublin, Eire, a co-founder of Steeleye Span) joined, and Cait O'Riordan was replaced by Darryl Hunt (b. 4 May 1950, Hampshire, England). O'Riordan later married Elvis Costello. The Pogues" intrinsically political stance resulted in the video that accompanied the single "A Pair Of Brown Eyes" having to be re-edited because the band was filmed spitting on a poster of Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher. "We represent the people who don't get the breaks. People can look at us and say, 'My God, if that bunch of tumbledown wrecks can do it, so can I'", explained Chevron in a press interview. The band would later have their protest ballad, "Birmingham Six', banned from airplay. The album on which this appeared, 1988"s If I Should Fall From Grace With God, was produced by Steve Lillywhite and embraced Middle Eastern and Spanish sounds. It sold more than 200,000 copies in the USA and "Fairytale Of New York", a rumbustious but poignant duet by MacGowan and Lillywhite's wife, Kirsty MacColl, was a Christmas number 2 hit in the UK in 1987. During the same year, the Pogues teamed up with veteran Irish folk group the Dubliners on a Top 10 version of the traditional number "The Irish Rover".
In the autumn of 1989, there were fears for the future of the Pogues when MacGowan's heavy drinking led to him pulling out of several shows. He was due to join the band in the USA for a prestigious tour with Bob Dylan when he collapsed at London's Heathrow Airport. He missed all the support spots with Dylan and the band played without him. "Other groups in a situation like that would've either said, 'Let's get rid of the guy" or "Let's split up', but we're not the sort to do that. We're all part of each other's problems whether we like it or not", said Chevron. Peace And Love featured songs written by nearly every member of the band and its eclectic nature saw them picking up the hurdy-gurdy, the cittern and the mandola. Its erratic nature drew criticism from some quarters, mainly from original fans who preferred the early folk punk rants. While the other members were clearly strong players, it was widely accepted that MacGowan was the most talented songwriter. His output had always been highly sporadic but there were now fears that the drinking that fuelled his earlier creativity may have slowed him to a standstill. In an interview in 1989 he said he had not been "dead straight sober" since he was 14 and that he drank in quantity because "it opened his mind to paradise".
It was announced in September 1991 that MacGowan had left the band and had been replaced by the former Clash singer Joe Strummer. This relationship lasted until June the following year when Strummer stepped down and the lead vocalist job went to Spider Stacy. MacGowan later re-emerged with his new band, the Popes, while his erstwhile colleagues continued to tour heavily, recording competent new material that lacked the flair of old. The Pogues eventually called it a day in August 1996. They reunited with the errant MacGowan in December 2001 to play a number of live dates. Several repeat performances have followed.
DISCOGRAPHY: Red Roses For Me (Stiff 1984)***, Rum, Sodomy & The Lash (Stiff/MCA 1985)****, If I Should Fall From Grace With God (Stiff/Island 1988)****, Peace And Love (PM/Island 1989)***, Hell's Ditch (PM/Island 1990)***, Waiting For Herb (PM/Elektra 1993)**, Pogue Mahone (WEA 1995)**, Streams Of Whiskey 1991 recording (Sanctuary 2002)**.
COMPILATIONS: The Best Of The Pogues (PM 1991)****, The Rest Of The Best (PM 1992)***, The Very Best Of The Pogues (WEA 2001)****.
VIDEOGRAPHY: Live At The Town And Country (Virgin 1988), Completely Pogued (Start 1988), Poguevision (WEA 1991).
BIBLIOGRAPHY: The Pogues: The Lost Decade, Ann Scanlon. Poguetry: The Lyrics Of Shane MacGowan, John Hewitt and Steve Pyke (illustrators). Shane MacGowan: Last Of The Celtic Soul Rebels, Ian O'Doherty. A Drink With Shane MacGowan, Victoria Mary Clarke and Shane MacGowan. Life & Music ... Shane MacGowan, Joe Merrick.
FILMOGRAPHY: Straight To Hell (1987).

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