The Pogues

The Pogues

The Pogues were an English or Anglo-Irish Celtic punk band fronted by Shane MacGowan and others, founded in Kings Cross, London in 1982. The band reached international prominence in the 1980s and early 1990s, recording several hit albums and singles. The Pogues re-formed in late 2001, and played regularly across the UK and Ireland and on the US East Coast, until dissolving again in 2014.

About The Pogues in brief

Summary The PoguesThe Pogues were an English or Anglo-Irish Celtic punk band fronted by Shane MacGowan and others, founded in Kings Cross, London in 1982. The band reached international prominence in the 1980s and early 1990s, recording several hit albums and singles. The Pogues re-formed in late 2001, and played regularly across the UK and Ireland and on the US East Coast, until dissolving again in 2014. Their politically-tinged music was informed by their punk backgrounds,yet used traditional Irish instruments such as the tin whistle, banjo, cittern, mandolin and accordion. Their record label, Stiff Records, went bankrupt after the release of the single ‘Fairytale of New York’ in 1987. Members of the band, including Cait O’Riordan, acted in Alex Cox’s Straight to Hell, and were included on the soundtrack of the film If I Should Fall from God’s Grace with Kirsty MacColl. The group remained stable enough to record a Christmas duet with Kirsten MacColl, God Bless The Child, on the album ‘The New York duet’ in 1994. They also appeared in the film ‘If I Should fall from God’ with Kirstie MacColl and Alex Cox, which was released in 1998. The song ‘The Irish Rover’ was one of five songs by the band that were featured in the movie ‘Straight to Hell’, which was also released that year. They were also featured on the film’s soundtrack for the film, ‘The Godfather’, and the soundtrack for The Godfather: Part II, which came out the following year.

In the film they played the song ‘Waxie’s Dargle’ which was a favourite request for the Channel 4 music show ‘The Tube’ The band’s version of the song became a favourite with the viewers, but it was too late for it to help Red Roses for Me to be released as a single. They first refused to record another album ; O’riordan married Costello and left the band; they added a multi-instrumentalist in Terry Woods to be replaced by Darryl Hunt, formerly of Plummet Airlines and Pride of the Cross. In 1996 the band continued – first with Joe Strummer and then with Spider Stacy on vocals – before breaking up in 1996. The band failed to take advantage of the momentum created by the strong artistic and commercial success of their second album, ‘Rum Sodomy & the Lash’ The group did not record any new material during this second incarnation. They played their first gig at The Pindar of Wakefield on 4 October 1982. They then appeared at Gossips in Dean Street Soho on Thursday 3 November 1983 with Trash Trash Trash and The Stingrays. They released a single, ‘Dark Streets of London’, on their own, self-named label, gaining a small reputation – especially for their live performances. They came to the attention of the media and Stiff. Records when they opened for The Clash on their 1984 tour.