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The Pogues are a band of mixed Irish and English background, playing traditional Irish music with influences from punk rock
Punk rock

Punk rock is a rock music genre that developed between 1974 and 1976 in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia. Rooted in garage rock and other forms of what is now known as protopunk music, punk rock bands eschewed the perceived excesses of mainstream 1970s rock....
 and jazz
Jazz

Jazz is a primarily American musical art form which originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States from a confluence of African and European music traditions....
, formed in 1982 and fronted by Shane MacGowan
Shane MacGowan

Shane Patrick Lysaght MacGowan is an Irish people musician and singer best known as the original singer and songwriter of The Pogues. His voice has been described by Jools Holland as a voice that touches the heart and soul....
. They reached international prominence in the 1980s and early 1990s, until MacGowan left the band in 1991 due to drinking problems. They continued with first Joe Strummer
Joe Strummer

John Graham Mellor , better known by his stage name Joe Strummer, was the co-founder, lyricist, rhythm guitarist and lead singer of the English punk rock band The Clash....
 and then Spider Stacy
Spider Stacy

Peter "Spider" Stacy is an England musician. He is one of the founding members of London Irish band The Pogues.Stacy got his start in music in London's Punk rock scene during the late 1970s as frontman for The Millwall Chainsaws....
 on vocals before breaking up in 1996. The band began performing together again in 2001, though they have yet to record new music.

Their politically-tinged music was influenced by The Clash
The Clash

The Clash were an English Rock music band that formed in 1976 as part of the original wave of British punk rock. Along with punk rock, they experimented with reggae, ska, Dub music, funk, Hip hop music and rockabilly....
, yet used traditional Irish instruments such as the tin whistle
Tin whistle

The tin whistle, also called the tinwhistle, whistle, pennywhistle or Irish whistler, is a simple six-holed woodwind instrument....
, banjo
Banjo

The banjo is a stringed instrument developed by Slavery in the United States Africans in the United States, adapted from several African instruments....
, cittern
Cittern

The cittern or cither is a stringed instrument of the guitar family dating from the Renaissance. With its flat back, it was much simpler, and therefore cheaper, to construct than the lute, in addition to which it was easier to play and, being smaller and less delicate, far more portable....
, mandolin
Mandolin

A mandolin is a musical instrument in the lute family . It is descended from the Mandora, a soprano member of the lute family. It has a body with a teardrop-shaped soundboard, or one which is essentially oval in shape, with a soundhole, or soundholes, of varying shapes which are open and are not decorated with an intricately carved grille lik...
, accordion
Accordion

The accordion is a portable box-shaped musical instrument of the hand-held bellows-driven free reed aerophone family, sometimes referred to as a squeezebox....
, and others.






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The Pogues are a band of mixed Irish and English background, playing traditional Irish music with influences from punk rock
Punk rock

Punk rock is a rock music genre that developed between 1974 and 1976 in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia. Rooted in garage rock and other forms of what is now known as protopunk music, punk rock bands eschewed the perceived excesses of mainstream 1970s rock....
 and jazz
Jazz

Jazz is a primarily American musical art form which originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States from a confluence of African and European music traditions....
, formed in 1982 and fronted by Shane MacGowan
Shane MacGowan

Shane Patrick Lysaght MacGowan is an Irish people musician and singer best known as the original singer and songwriter of The Pogues. His voice has been described by Jools Holland as a voice that touches the heart and soul....
. They reached international prominence in the 1980s and early 1990s, until MacGowan left the band in 1991 due to drinking problems. They continued with first Joe Strummer
Joe Strummer

John Graham Mellor , better known by his stage name Joe Strummer, was the co-founder, lyricist, rhythm guitarist and lead singer of the English punk rock band The Clash....
 and then Spider Stacy
Spider Stacy

Peter "Spider" Stacy is an England musician. He is one of the founding members of London Irish band The Pogues.Stacy got his start in music in London's Punk rock scene during the late 1970s as frontman for The Millwall Chainsaws....
 on vocals before breaking up in 1996. The band began performing together again in 2001, though they have yet to record new music.

Their politically-tinged music was influenced by The Clash
The Clash

The Clash were an English Rock music band that formed in 1976 as part of the original wave of British punk rock. Along with punk rock, they experimented with reggae, ska, Dub music, funk, Hip hop music and rockabilly....
, yet used traditional Irish instruments such as the tin whistle
Tin whistle

The tin whistle, also called the tinwhistle, whistle, pennywhistle or Irish whistler, is a simple six-holed woodwind instrument....
, banjo
Banjo

The banjo is a stringed instrument developed by Slavery in the United States Africans in the United States, adapted from several African instruments....
, cittern
Cittern

The cittern or cither is a stringed instrument of the guitar family dating from the Renaissance. With its flat back, it was much simpler, and therefore cheaper, to construct than the lute, in addition to which it was easier to play and, being smaller and less delicate, far more portable....
, mandolin
Mandolin

A mandolin is a musical instrument in the lute family . It is descended from the Mandora, a soprano member of the lute family. It has a body with a teardrop-shaped soundboard, or one which is essentially oval in shape, with a soundhole, or soundholes, of varying shapes which are open and are not decorated with an intricately carved grille lik...
, accordion
Accordion

The accordion is a portable box-shaped musical instrument of the hand-held bellows-driven free reed aerophone family, sometimes referred to as a squeezebox....
, and others. In the later incarnations of the band, after the departure of Shane MacGowan, rock instruments such as the electric guitar would become more prominent. The first of The Pogues' albums, Red Roses for Me
Red Roses for Me

Red Roses for Me was the first full length album by the London-based band The Pogues and was released in 1984 in music. Its filled with traditional Irish music performed with punk rock influences....
, borrows much from the punk tradition of MacGowan's previous band The Nipple Erectors
The Nipple Erectors

The Nips were an England punk rock band formed in London in 1977, and are notable as The Pogues frontman Shane MacGowan's first musical group....
 (later dubbed "The Nips").

The Pogues were founded in King's Cross, a district of North London
North London

North London is the northern part of London, England. The area it covers is defined differently for a range of purposes....
, in 1982 as Pogue Mahone—pogue mahone being the Anglicisation
Anglicisation

Anglicisation or anglicization is a process of conversion of verbal or written elements of any other language into a more comprehensible English language for an English speaker....
 of the Irish póg mo thóin, meaning "kiss my arse
Arse

Arse is an English language term referring to the buttocks, first recorded circa 1400 and is commonly used in English speaking countries such as the British English, Ireland, Australia and New Zealand, parts of Canada and former parts of the British Empire....
".

The band specialised in Irish folk music, often playing with the energy of the punk rock
Punk rock

Punk rock is a rock music genre that developed between 1974 and 1976 in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia. Rooted in garage rock and other forms of what is now known as protopunk music, punk rock bands eschewed the perceived excesses of mainstream 1970s rock....
 scene in which several of the members had their roots.

Band history

The roots of The Pogues were formed when MacGowan (vocals), Peter "Spider" Stacy
Spider Stacy

Peter "Spider" Stacy is an England musician. He is one of the founding members of London Irish band The Pogues.Stacy got his start in music in London's Punk rock scene during the late 1970s as frontman for The Millwall Chainsaws....
 (tin whistle
Tin whistle

The tin whistle, also called the tinwhistle, whistle, pennywhistle or Irish whistler, is a simple six-holed woodwind instrument....
), and Jem Finer
Jem Finer

Jeremy "Jem" Finer is an England musician and composer. He was one of the founding members of The Pogues. He was primarily a banjoist, but he played a handful of other instruments as well, including mandola, saxophone, hurdy-gurdy, and guitar....
 (banjo
Banjo

The banjo is a stringed instrument developed by Slavery in the United States Africans in the United States, adapted from several African instruments....
) were together in an occasional band called The Millwall Chainsaws in the late 1970s after MacGowan and Stacy met in the toilets at a Ramones
Ramones

The Ramones were an American Rock music band often regarded as the first punk rock group. Formed in Forest Hills, Queens, Queens, New York, in 1974, all of the band members adopted stage names ending with "Ramone", though none of them were actually related....
 gig at The Roundhouse
The Roundhouse

The Roundhouse is a former Motive power depot now used as an arts and concert venue in Chalk Farm, London. Built in 1846, it ceased to be used as an engine shed by 1867, and underwent various uses before being abandoned just before the Second World War....
 in 1977. MacGowan was already with The Nips
The Nipple Erectors

The Nips were an England punk rock band formed in London in 1977, and are notable as The Pogues frontman Shane MacGowan's first musical group....
, though when they broke up in 1980 he concentrated a bit more on the still unstructured Millwall Chainsaws, who changed their name to The New Republicans. During this period MacGowan and Finer auditioned unsuccessfully for a license to busk at Covent Garden. In 1982 James Fearnley
James Fearnley

James Fearnley is an English people musician. He plays accordion in the folk music/punk rock band The Pogues.As a child he was a choir boy soprano, but his voice changed at the age of sixteen....
 (accordion
Accordion

The accordion is a portable box-shaped musical instrument of the hand-held bellows-driven free reed aerophone family, sometimes referred to as a squeezebox....
) joined MacGowen, Stacy, and Finer, calling the band Pogue Mahone. The new group played their first gig at The Pindar Of Wakefield on 4 October 1982.

They later added Cait O'Riordan
Cait O'Riordan

Caitl?n O'Riordan is a musician. She played bass guitar for the Irish punk rock/folk music band The Pogues from 1982 to 1986.O'Riordan was born in Nigeria to Ireland and Scotland parents who moved to London in 1967 when the Nigerian Civil War broke out....
 (bass
Bass guitar

The electric bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a plectrum.The bass guitar is similar in appearance and construction to an electric guitar, but with a larger body, a longer neck and Scale length, and usually four strings tuned to the same pitches as those of the double bass, whic...
) and Andrew Ranken
Andrew Ranken

Andrew Ranken is an England drummer, best known as the percussionist for the English-Ireland band The Pogues.He joined the band in 1983 and appeared on all of their recordings and tours until their breakup in 1996....
 (drum
Drum

The drum is a member of the percussion instrument group, technically classified as a membranophone.. Drums consist of at least one membrane, called a drumhead or drum skin, that is stretched over a shell and struck, either directly with parts of a player's body, or with some sort of implement such as a drumstick, to produce sound....
s). The band played London pubs and clubs, and 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
Stiff Records

Stiff Records is a record label created in London in 1976 in music by entrepreneurs Dave Robinson and Andrew Jakeman , and active until 1985 in music....
 when they opened for The Clash on their 1984 tour. Shortening their name to "The Pogues" (partly due to BBC censorship following complaints from Gaelic speakers in Scotland) they released their first album Red Roses for Me
Red Roses for Me

Red Roses for Me was the first full length album by the London-based band The Pogues and was released in 1984 in music. Its filled with traditional Irish music performed with punk rock influences....
 on Stiff that October.

The band gained more attention when the UK Channel 4's influential music show The Tube
The Tube

The Tube may refer to:*The London Underground*Television in general*The Tube , an ITV/Sky programme featuring the work of staff on the London Underground...
 made a video of their version of "Waxie's Dargle" for the show. The performance—featuring Spider Stacy repeatedly smashing himself over the head with a beer tray (in the manner of Bob Blackman's infamous "Mule Train/Mule Tray")—became a favourite with the viewers, but Stiff refused to release it as a single, feeling it was too late for it to help Red Roses for Me (in fact Stiff was by then in deep financial trouble). Nevertheless, it remained a favourite request for the show for many years.

Phil Chevron
Phil Chevron

Philip Chevron is an Ireland singer, songwriter and guitarist. He is most widely known as lead guitarist for the Shane MacGowan led punk rock/folk music rock band, The Pogues....
 (guitar
Guitar

The guitar is a musical instrument with ancient roots that is used in a wide variety of musical styles. It typically has six Strings , but Tenor guitar, Seven-string guitar, Eight-string guitar, Ten-string guitar, Eleven-string guitar, Twelve-string guitar, Thirteen-string guitar and doubleneck guitar string guitars also exist....
) joined the group soon after, then with the aid of punk and New Wave
New Wave music

New Wave is a genre of rock music which originated from the late 1970s. It emerged from punk rock as a reaction against the popular music of the 1970s....
 forefather Elvis Costello
Elvis Costello

Elvis Costello is an England musician and singer-songwriter. Costello came to prominence as an early participant in London's Pub rock scene in the mid-1970s, and later became associated with the punk rock and New Wave musical genres, before establishing his own unique voice in the 1980s....
 they recorded the follow up, Rum, Sodomy and the Lash, in 1985. The album title is a famous comment falsely attributed to Winston Churchill
Winston Churchill

Sir Winston Leonard Spencer-Churchill, Order of the Garter, Order of Merit, Order of the Companions of Honour, Territorial Decoration, Fellow of the Royal Society, Her Majesty's Most Honourable Privy Council, Queen's Privy Council for Canada was a Politics of the United Kingdom known chiefly for his leadership of the United King...
 who was supposedly describing the "true" traditions of the British Royal Navy
Royal Navy

The Royal Navy of the United Kingdom is the oldest of the British Armed Forces . From the mid-18th century until well into the 20th century, it was the most powerful navy in the world, playing a key part in establishing the British Empire as the dominant world power from 1815 until the early 1940s....
. The album cover featured The Raft of the Medusa, with the faces of the characters in Théodore Géricault
Théodore Géricault

Th?odore G?ricault was an important French painter and lithographer, known for The Raft of the Medusa and other paintings. Although he died young, he became one of the pioneers of the Romanticism....
's painting replaced with those of the band members. The album shows the band moving away from covers to original material. Shane MacGowan came into his own as a songwriter with this disc, offering up poetic story-telling, such as "The Sick Bed of Cúchulainn
Serglige Con Culainn

Serglige Con Culainn , also known as Oen?t Emire is a narrative from the Ulster Cycle of Irish mythology. It originated in the 10th and 11th centuries, and survives in the Book of the Dun Cow, which combines two earlier versions....
" and "The Old Main Drag", as well as definitive interpretations of Ewan MacColl
Ewan MacColl

Ewan MacColl was an United Kingdom folk singer, songwriter, socialist, actor, poet, playwright, and record producer. He was the father of singer/songwriter Kirsty MacColl....
's "Dirty Old Town" and Eric Bogle
Eric Bogle

Eric Bogle is a Folk music singer-songwriter. He emigrated to Australia in 1969 and currently resides near Adelaide, South Australia.Several of his most famous songs tell of the futility or loss of war....
's "And the Band Played Waltzing Matilda
And The Band Played Waltzing Matilda

"And The Band Played Waltzing Matilda" is a song, written by Scottish-born singer-songwriter Eric Bogle in 1971. The song describes the futility, gruesome reality and the destruction of war, while criticising those who seek to glorify it....
" (this had previously been covered by Shane's fellow punk contemporaries The Skids
The Skids

The Skids were an art-punk/punk rock and New Wave music band from Dunfermline, Fife, Scotland, founded in 1977 by Stuart Adamson , William Simpson , Thomas Kellichan and Richard Jobson ....
 in 1981).

The band failed to take advantage of the momentum created by the strong artistic and commercial success of their second album. They first refused to record another album (offering up the four-track EP Poguetry in Motion
Poguetry in Motion

Poguetry in Motion is an EP by The Pogues and their first single to make the UK Singles Chart. It peaked at Number 29. It features the songs "London Girl", "Rainy Night in Soho", "The Body of an American" and "Planxty Noel Hill"....
 instead); O'Riordan married Costello and left the band, to be replaced by bassist Darryl Hunt
Darryl Hunt (musician)

Darryl Hunt is an England musician, most famous as the bass guitar of The Pogues from 1986 until their breakup ten years later. He currently fronts the band BISH and has performed with The Pogues since their reunion in 2001....
; and they added a multi-instrumentalist in Terry Woods
Terry Woods

Terry Woods , is an Ireland folk music, specialising in playing the mandolin and cittern. He is known for his membership in such folk and folk-rock music groups as The Pogues, Steeleye Span, Sweeney's Men and, briefly, Dr....
, formerly of Steeleye Span
Steeleye Span

Steeleye Span is a British electric folk band, formed in 1969 and remaining active today. Along with Fairport Convention they are amongst the best known acts of the British folk revival, and were among the most commercially successful, thanks to their hit singles Gaudete and All Around My Hat....
. Looming over the band at this period (as throughout their entire career) was the increasingly erratic behaviour of their vocalist and principal songwriter, Shane MacGowan. Their record label, Stiff Records
Stiff Records

Stiff Records is a record label created in London in 1976 in music by entrepreneurs Dave Robinson and Andrew Jakeman , and active until 1985 in music....
, went bankrupt soon after the 1987 release of the single "The Irish Rover" (with the Dubliners
The Dubliners

The Dubliners are an Music of Ireland band founded in 1962 in music....
).

Success and breakup

The band remained stable enough to record If I Should Fall from Grace with God
If I Should Fall from Grace with God

If I Should Fall from Grace with God is a 1987 in music by The Pogues. It reached number 3 in the UK album charts. The album was a departure from previous Pogues albums, which had focused on an Irish Traditional Music/Punk rock hybrid, combining musical radicalism with strong commercial appeal....
 in 1988 (with its Christmas hit duet with Kirsty MacColl
Kirsty MacColl

Kirsty Anna MacColl was an England singer-songwriter....
 "Fairytale of New York
Fairytale of New York

"Fairytale of New York" is a Christmas song by English peopleIrish people folk-rock group The Pogues, and featuring the British singer Kirsty MacColl....
", which was voted "the best Christmas song ever" in VH1 UK
VH1 UK

VH1 UK is a music television channel from MTV Networks Europe. VH1 is based on the VH1. It was launched on 10 October 1994.Targeting 25–44 year olds, VH1 UK aims to be "mature, sophisticated and totally stylish for viewers who still feel young and want to keep in-touch with what is happening on the music scene today." The music...
 polls in 2004) and 1989's Peace and Love. The band was at the peak of its commercial success, with both albums making the top 5 in the UK (numbers 3 and 5 respectively), but MacGowan was increasingly unreliable. He failed to turn up for the opening dates of their 1988 tour of America, and prevented the band from promoting their next album, Hell's Ditch
Hell's Ditch

Hell's Ditch is the fifth full-length album by The Pogues, Released in 1990, the album continued the group's slow departure from Irish music, giving more emphasis to rock and roll and straight folk rock, and forsaking their earlier staples of traditional compositions almost entirely....
, so in 1991 the band sacked him. Vocal duties were for a time handled by Joe Strummer
Joe Strummer

John Graham Mellor , better known by his stage name Joe Strummer, was the co-founder, lyricist, rhythm guitarist and lead singer of the English punk rock band The Clash....
, before Stacy finally took over permanently. After Strummer's departure, the remaining seven Pogues recorded Waiting for Herb, which contained the band's third and final top twenty single, "Tuesday Morning", which became their best-selling single internationally. Terry Woods and James Fearnley then left the band and were replaced by David Coulter and James McNally respectively. Within months of their departures, ill health forced Phil Chevron to leave the band; he was replaced by his former guitar technician, Jamie Clarke. This line up recorded the band's seventh (and final) studio album, Pogue Mahone. The album was a commercial failure, and, following Jem Finer's decision to leave the band in 1996, the remaining members decided it was time to call it quits.

Post-breakup

After the Pogues' break-up, the three remaining long-term members (Spider Stacy, Andrew Ranken and Darryl Hunt) started a new band called The Wisemen. The band played mainly new Stacy-penned tracks, though Darryl Hunt also contributed songs, and the band's live set included a few Pogues songs. First Ranken then Hunt left the band, the latter going on to become singer/songwriter in an indie band called Bish, whose self-titled debut album was released in 2001. Ranken has gone on to play with a number of other bands, including hKippers, The Municipal Waterboard and, most recently, The Mysterious Wheels. In addition to The Wisemen (later renamed The Vendettas), Spider Stacy continued to write and record music with various bands, including a short stint with "Spider Stacy's Pogue Mahone", with Stacy fronting Pogues tribute band
Tribute band

A tribute act is a music group, singer, or musician who specifically plays the music of a well-known music act, often one which has disbanded or ceased touring....
, Boys from the County Hell. Shane MacGowan founded Shane MacGowan and The Popes
Shane MacGowan and The Popes

Shane MacGowan and The Popes is a band formerly led by Shane MacGowan of the Pogues, who play a blend of rock music, and Irish folk music, sometimes referred to as Paddy Beat, borrowing from World Beat, a popular genre name in the 1980s....
 in 1992. His autobiography A Drink With Shane MacGowan
A Drink with Shane MacGowan

A Drink with Shane MacGowan is a 2001 autobiography book of interviews between Shane MacGowan, lead singer and frontman for the Irish band The Pogues, and his journalist girlfriend, Victoria Mary Clarke....
, co-written with his journalist girlfriend Victoria Mary Clarke, was released in 2001. Jem Finer went into experimental music, playing a big part in a project known as "Longplayer
Longplayer

Longplayer is a piece of music that is designed to last for millennium. It started to play on 1 January 2000 and if all goes to plan will continue without repetition until 31 December 2999, at which point it will restart at the beginning....
", a piece of music designed to play continuously for 1,000 years without repeating itself. In 2005, Finer released the album Bum Steer with DB Bob (as DM Bob and Country Jem). James Fearnley moved to the United States shortly before leaving the Pogues. Philip Chevron reformed his former band The Radiators. Terry Woods formed The Bucks with Ron Kavana, releasing the album Dancin' To The Ceili Band in 1994. Later, he formed The Woods Band, releasing the album Music From The Four Corners of Hell in 2002.

Reunion

The band, including MacGowan, re-formed for a Christmas tour in 2001 and performed nine shows in the UK and Ireland in December 2004. In 2002 Q magazine
Q (magazine)

Q is a music magazine published monthly in the United Kingdom, with a circulation of 130,179 as of June 2007.Founders Mark Ellen and David Hepworth were dismayed by the music press of the time, which they felt was ignoring a generation of older music buyers who were buying CDs — then still a new technology — from artists suc...
 named The Pogues as one of the "50 Bands To See Before You Die". In July 2005, the band — again including MacGowan — played at the annual Guilfest festival in Guildford before flying out to Japan where they played three dates. Japan is the last place they all played together before MacGowan was originally sacked in 1991, and they have a strong following there. They played a date in Spain in early September. The reunited Pogues played dates in the UK with support from the Dropkick Murphys
Dropkick Murphys

Dropkick Murphys are an United States Celtic punk band formed in Quincy, Massachusetts, United States. First playing together in the basement of a friend's barbershop, they blended traditional Music of Ireland, folk rock, and hardcore punk....
 in late 2005, and re-released their 1987 Christmas classic "Fairytale of New York" on 19 December, which went straight in at #3 in the UK Singles charts on Christmas Day 2005, showing the song's enduring popularity. On 22 December 2005 the BBC broadcast a live performance (recorded the previous week) on the Jonathan Ross
Jonathan Ross (television presenter)

Jonathan Stephen Ross Order of the British Empire is a triple BAFTA Award-winning England film critic and presenter of radio and television. Working extensively with the BBC, Ross has presented The Film programme since 1997, his own chat show, Friday Night with Jonathan Ross since 2001, and a radio show on BBC Radio 2 beginning in 19...
 Christmas show with Katie Melua
Katie Melua

Ketevan "Katie" Melua is a Georgian people/United Kingdom singer, songwriter and musician. She was born in Georgia , but moved to Northern Ireland at the age of eight and then relocated to England at the age of 14....
 filling in for the late Kirsty MacColl
Kirsty MacColl

Kirsty Anna MacColl was an England singer-songwriter....
, the first time the band had played the song live on television. The following week they performed live on the popular music show CD:UK
CD:UK

CD:UK was a United Kingdom music television programme. Originally ran in conjunction with SMTV Live, the programme was first aired on ITV on 29 August 1998 to rival the BBC's Live & Kicking and was the replacement for The Chart Show, which had been airing on the network for nine years....
.

Shane MacGowan wrote a blog for The Guardian
The Guardian

Sorry, no overview for this topic
 website in 2006, detailing his thoughts on the current tour. The band was awarded the lifetime achievement award at the annual Meteor Ireland Music Awards in February 2006. In March 2006, the band played their first U.S. dates with Shane in over 15 years. The band played a series of sold-out concerts in Washington D.C., Atlantic City
Atlantic City, New Jersey

Atlantic City is a City in Atlantic County, New Jersey, New Jersey, United States. Famous for its boardwalk, casino, sandy beaches, shopping centers, spectacular view of the Atlantic Ocean, and as the inspiration for the board game Monopoly , Atlantic City is a resort community located on Absecon Island on the coast of the Atlantic Ocean....
, Boston, and New York. Later they played a series of highly acclaimed and sold out gigs during mid-October 2006 in San Francisco, Las Vegas
Las Vegas, Nevada

Las Vegas is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Nevada, the seat of Clark County, Nevada, and an internationally renowned major resort city for gambling, shopping, and entertainment....
, and Los Angeles, and toured Glasgow
Glasgow

Glasgow is the largest city in Scotland and List of largest United Kingdom settlements by population in the United Kingdom. The city is situated on the River Clyde in the country's Scottish Lowlands....
, Manchester
Manchester

Manchester is a city and metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England. Manchester was granted City status in the United Kingdom in 1853....
, Birmingham
Birmingham

Birmingham is a city status in the United Kingdom and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands of England. Birmingham is the most populous of England's English Core Cities Group, and is the List of United Kingdom cities by population British city after London, with a population of 1,010,200 ....
, London, Dublin
Dublin

Dublin is both the largest city and capital of Republic of Ireland. It is located near the midpoint of Ireland's east coast, at the mouth of the River Liffey and at the centre of the Dublin Region....
, and Nottingham
Nottingham

Nottingham is one of the three major city status in the United Kingdom in the East Midlands and is in the ceremonial county of Nottinghamshire, England....
 in mid-December 2006. They began a second U.S. tour in March 2007, once again to coincide (and conclude) with a Roseland Ballroom
Roseland Ballroom

The Roseland Ballroom is a catering hall/music venue/dance hall in a converted ice skating rink with a colorful ballroom dancing pedigree in New York City's Theatre District, New York on 52nd Street ....
 New York City show on Saint Patrick's Day
Saint Patrick's Day

Saint Patrick's Day , colloquially St. Paddy's Day or Paddy's Day, is an annual feast day which celebrates Saint Patrick , one of the patron saints of Ireland, and is generally celebrated on March 17....
. 2007 has proved to be the most prolific year of touring since the reunion. A tour of the west coast of America and eleven dates in the UK in December complement the headlining festival appearances made in the summer across Europe (Sweden, Belgium and Spain). They continue to be in huge demand, often selling out very large venues, despite criticism of selling out, and claims that arenas and festivals do not suit the band's sound.

Guitarist Phil Chevron has stated there were no plans to record new music or release a new album. Chevron said that one way to keep enjoying what they were doing was to avoid making a new album, although he did say that there still is a possibility in the future for new music, but certainly not in the near future. Terry Woods has commented that MacGowan has been writing, and most of it sounds good. However on the pages of The Pogues message board, Chevron revealed that The Pogues are preparing a box set of unreleased tracks for release in June 2008.

The band has received mixed reviews of its recent performances. Reviewing a March 2008 concert, The Washington Post described MacGowan as "puffy and paunchy," but said the singer "still has a banshee wail to beat Howard Dean's, and the singer's abrasive growl is all a band this marvelous needs to give its amphetamine-spiked take on Irish folk a focal point." The reviewer continued: "The set started off shaky, MacGowan singing of `goin' where streams of whiskey are flowin,' and looking like he'd arrived there already. He grew more lucid and powerful as the evening gathered steam, through two hours and 26 songs, mostly from the Pogues' first three (and best) albums."

Several dates for a US tour with MacGowan were announced for March 2009. Cities include New York, Boston, Washington, Atlanta and Philadelphia with additional dates to follow.

Current members

  • Shane MacGowan
    Shane MacGowan

    Shane Patrick Lysaght MacGowan is an Irish people musician and singer best known as the original singer and songwriter of The Pogues. His voice has been described by Jools Holland as a voice that touches the heart and soul....
    : 1982–1991, 2001–present; vocals
    Voice

    Voice may refer to:* Human voice* Voice control or voice activation* Writer's voice* Voice acting* Voice vote* Voice message* Voice , a 2005 South Korean film...
    , guitar
    Guitar

    The guitar is a musical instrument with ancient roots that is used in a wide variety of musical styles. It typically has six Strings , but Tenor guitar, Seven-string guitar, Eight-string guitar, Ten-string guitar, Eleven-string guitar, Twelve-string guitar, Thirteen-string guitar and doubleneck guitar string guitars also exist....
    , banjo
    Banjo

    The banjo is a stringed instrument developed by Slavery in the United States Africans in the United States, adapted from several African instruments....
    , bodhrán
    Bodhrán

    The bodhr?n is an Ireland frame drum ranging from 25 to 65cm in diameter, with most drums measuring 35 to 45cm . The sides of the drum are 9 to 20cm deep....
  • Spider Stacy
    Spider Stacy

    Peter "Spider" Stacy is an England musician. He is one of the founding members of London Irish band The Pogues.Stacy got his start in music in London's Punk rock scene during the late 1970s as frontman for The Millwall Chainsaws....
    : 1982–1996, 2001–present; vocals
    Voice

    Voice may refer to:* Human voice* Voice control or voice activation* Writer's voice* Voice acting* Voice vote* Voice message* Voice , a 2005 South Korean film...
    , tin whistle
    Tin whistle

    The tin whistle, also called the tinwhistle, whistle, pennywhistle or Irish whistler, is a simple six-holed woodwind instrument....
  • Philip Chevron: 1985–1994, 2001–present; guitar
    Guitar

    The guitar is a musical instrument with ancient roots that is used in a wide variety of musical styles. It typically has six Strings , but Tenor guitar, Seven-string guitar, Eight-string guitar, Ten-string guitar, Eleven-string guitar, Twelve-string guitar, Thirteen-string guitar and doubleneck guitar string guitars also exist....
  • James Fearnley
    James Fearnley

    James Fearnley is an English people musician. He plays accordion in the folk music/punk rock band The Pogues.As a child he was a choir boy soprano, but his voice changed at the age of sixteen....
    : 1982–1993, 2001–present; accordion
    Accordion

    The accordion is a portable box-shaped musical instrument of the hand-held bellows-driven free reed aerophone family, sometimes referred to as a squeezebox....
    , mandolin
    Mandolin

    A mandolin is a musical instrument in the lute family . It is descended from the Mandora, a soprano member of the lute family. It has a body with a teardrop-shaped soundboard, or one which is essentially oval in shape, with a soundhole, or soundholes, of varying shapes which are open and are not decorated with an intricately carved grille lik...
    , piano
    Piano

    The piano is a musical instrument played by means of a keyboard instrument. Widely used in Western music for solo performance, ensemble use, chamber music, and accompaniment, the piano is also very popular as an aid to musical composition and rehearsal....
    , guitar
    Guitar

    The guitar is a musical instrument with ancient roots that is used in a wide variety of musical styles. It typically has six Strings , but Tenor guitar, Seven-string guitar, Eight-string guitar, Ten-string guitar, Eleven-string guitar, Twelve-string guitar, Thirteen-string guitar and doubleneck guitar string guitars also exist....
  • Terry Woods
    Terry Woods

    Terry Woods , is an Ireland folk music, specialising in playing the mandolin and cittern. He is known for his membership in such folk and folk-rock music groups as The Pogues, Steeleye Span, Sweeney's Men and, briefly, Dr....
    : 1986–1994, 2001–present; mandolin
    Mandolin

    A mandolin is a musical instrument in the lute family . It is descended from the Mandora, a soprano member of the lute family. It has a body with a teardrop-shaped soundboard, or one which is essentially oval in shape, with a soundhole, or soundholes, of varying shapes which are open and are not decorated with an intricately carved grille lik...
    , cittern
    Cittern

    The cittern or cither is a stringed instrument of the guitar family dating from the Renaissance. With its flat back, it was much simpler, and therefore cheaper, to construct than the lute, in addition to which it was easier to play and, being smaller and less delicate, far more portable....
    , concertina
    Concertina

    A concertina is a Free-reed instrument musical instrument, like the various accordions and the harmonica. It has a bellows and buttons typically on both ends of it....
    , guitar
    Guitar

    The guitar is a musical instrument with ancient roots that is used in a wide variety of musical styles. It typically has six Strings , but Tenor guitar, Seven-string guitar, Eight-string guitar, Ten-string guitar, Eleven-string guitar, Twelve-string guitar, Thirteen-string guitar and doubleneck guitar string guitars also exist....
  • Jem Finer
    Jem Finer

    Jeremy "Jem" Finer is an England musician and composer. He was one of the founding members of The Pogues. He was primarily a banjoist, but he played a handful of other instruments as well, including mandola, saxophone, hurdy-gurdy, and guitar....
    : 1982–1996, 2001–present; banjo
    Banjo

    The banjo is a stringed instrument developed by Slavery in the United States Africans in the United States, adapted from several African instruments....
    , mandola
    Mandola

    The mandola or tenor mandola is a fretted string instrument musical instrument. The mandola has four double courses for a total of eight strings....
    , saxophone
    Saxophone

    The saxophone is a conical-Bore transposing instrument musical instrument considered a member of the woodwind family. Saxophones are usually made of brass and are played with a Single-reed instrument mouthpiece similar to the clarinet....
    , hurdy-gurdy, guitar
    Guitar

    The guitar is a musical instrument with ancient roots that is used in a wide variety of musical styles. It typically has six Strings , but Tenor guitar, Seven-string guitar, Eight-string guitar, Ten-string guitar, Eleven-string guitar, Twelve-string guitar, Thirteen-string guitar and doubleneck guitar string guitars also exist....
  • Andrew Ranken
    Andrew Ranken

    Andrew Ranken is an England drummer, best known as the percussionist for the English-Ireland band The Pogues.He joined the band in 1983 and appeared on all of their recordings and tours until their breakup in 1996....
    : 1982–1996, 2001–present; drums, percussion
    Percussion instrument

    A percussion instrument is any object which produces a sound by being hit with an implement, shaken, rubbed, scraped, or by any other action which sets the object into vibration....
  • Darryl Hunt
    Darryl Hunt (musician)

    Darryl Hunt is an England musician, most famous as the bass guitar of The Pogues from 1986 until their breakup ten years later. He currently fronts the band BISH and has performed with The Pogues since their reunion in 2001....
    : 1986–1996, 2001–present; bass guitar
    Bass guitar

    The electric bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a plectrum.The bass guitar is similar in appearance and construction to an electric guitar, but with a larger body, a longer neck and Scale length, and usually four strings tuned to the same pitches as those of the double bass, whic...
  • Ella Finer (regular guest) 2005– (Vocals on Fairytale of New York
    Fairytale of New York

    "Fairytale of New York" is a Christmas song by English peopleIrish people folk-rock group The Pogues, and featuring the British singer Kirsty MacColl....
    )
  • James Walbourne (Temp replaced for Philip Chevron during his recovery from cancer) 2007


Former members

  • Cait O'Riordan
    Cait O'Riordan

    Caitl?n O'Riordan is a musician. She played bass guitar for the Irish punk rock/folk music band The Pogues from 1982 to 1986.O'Riordan was born in Nigeria to Ireland and Scotland parents who moved to London in 1967 when the Nigerian Civil War broke out....
    : 1982–1986, 2004; bass
  • Joe Strummer
    Joe Strummer

    John Graham Mellor , better known by his stage name Joe Strummer, was the co-founder, lyricist, rhythm guitarist and lead singer of the English punk rock band The Clash....
    : 1991 (also replaced an ailing Phil Chevron for a U.S. tour in 1987); vocals, guitar
  • Jamie Clarke: 1993–1996; guitar, vocals
  • Dave Coulter: 1993–1996; mandolin, ukulele, percussion
  • James McNally: 1993–1996; accordian, whistles, percussion


Discography


Fairytale of New York

"Fairytale of New York" was released as a single in 1987 and reached #1 in the Irish charts and #2 in the British charts over Christmas (the time of peak sales). The song has become a festive classic in the UK and Ireland over the years, and was voted the best Christmas song of all time three years running in 2004, 2005 and 2006 in polls by music channel VH1 UK
VH1 UK

VH1 UK is a music television channel from MTV Networks Europe. VH1 is based on the VH1. It was launched on 10 October 1994.Targeting 25–44 year olds, VH1 UK aims to be "mature, sophisticated and totally stylish for viewers who still feel young and want to keep in-touch with what is happening on the music scene today." The music...
, despite not achieving Christmas Number One when it was released. It was also voted as the 27th greatest song never to reach UK#1 in another VH1 poll, and also voted as the 84th greatest song of all time by BBC Radio 2
BBC Radio 2

BBC Radio 2 is one of the BBC's national radio radio station and the List of most-listened-to radio programs in the United Kingdom. Much of its daytime playlist-based programming is best described as Adult contemporary music or Album-orientated rock, although the station is also noted for its specialist broadcasting of other musical genres....
 listeners in their "Sold on Song" top 100 poll. In 2007 the record was briefly censored by the BBC because of the word "faggot" being deemed potentially offensive to gays. Following protests from listeners, including the mother of Kirsty MacColl, the censorship was lifted.

Albums

  • Red Roses for Me
    Red Roses for Me

    Red Roses for Me was the first full length album by the London-based band The Pogues and was released in 1984 in music. Its filled with traditional Irish music performed with punk rock influences....
     (1984): #89 UK
  • Rum Sodomy & the Lash (1985): #13 UK
  • If I Should Fall from Grace with God
    If I Should Fall from Grace with God

    If I Should Fall from Grace with God is a 1987 in music by The Pogues. It reached number 3 in the UK album charts. The album was a departure from previous Pogues albums, which had focused on an Irish Traditional Music/Punk rock hybrid, combining musical radicalism with strong commercial appeal....
     (1988): #3 UK, #88 US
  • Peace and Love (1989): #5 UK
  • Yeah Yeah Yeah Yeah Yeah
    Yeah Yeah Yeah Yeah Yeah

    "Yeah Yeah Yeah Yeah Yeah" was a single by The Pogues. It stalled just outside of the UK Top 40 at number 43, but became the band's first single to chart in the USA, reaching number 17 in the Modern Rock Charts....
     (EP, 1990): #43 UK
  • Hell's Ditch
    Hell's Ditch

    Hell's Ditch is the fifth full-length album by The Pogues, Released in 1990, the album continued the group's slow departure from Irish music, giving more emphasis to rock and roll and straight folk rock, and forsaking their earlier staples of traditional compositions almost entirely....
     (1990) #12 UK
  • Waiting for Herb
    Waiting for Herb

    Waiting for Herb is a 1993 album by The Pogues, their first without former lead singer Shane MacGowan. The album saw the band continue to expand their musical reach past the music of Ireland roots it had been founded on, and was only their second full-length album without a single traditional song....
     (1993): #20 UK
  • Pogue Mahone
    Pogue Mahone (album)

    Pogue Mahone is the seventh and latest album by The Pogues, originally released in 1996....
     (1996)


Live Albums

  • Streams of Whiskey: Live in Leysin, Switzerland 1991 (2002)
  • The Ultimate Collection including Live at the Brixton Academy 2001 (2005): #15 UK


Compilation Albums

  • The Best of The Pogues
    The Best of The Pogues

    The Best of the Pogues is a 1991 album by The Pogues.The album was dedicated to the memory of Deborah Korner...
     (1991): #11 UK
  • The Rest of The Best (1992)
  • The Very Best Of The Pogues (2001): #18 UK
  • Dirty Old Town: The Platinum Collection (Budget CD) (2005)
  • Just Look Them Straight In The Eye and Say....POGUE MAHONE!! (Anthology/Box Set of rare and unreleased tracks) (2008)


Video

  • The Pogues: Live at The Town & Country Club St Patricks Day 1988 VHS 1988
  • POGUEVISION" Music Video Collection - VHS 1991


Singles

Year Title Chart positions Album
U.S. Modern RockU.S. Club PlayU.K. Singles
UK Singles Chart

The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official UK Charts Company on behalf of the British record industry. The chart week runs from Sunday to Saturday, with the chart being printed in Music Week magazine , ChartsPlus , and published online on various sites ....
Irish Singles Chart
1984 "Dark Streets of London" - - - -Red Roses for Me
"Boys from the County Hell" - - - -
1985 "A Pair of Brown Eyes
A Pair of Brown Eyes

"A Pair of Brown Eyes" is a single by The Pogues, their first to make the UK Singles Chart, peaking at Number 71. It featured on the band's second album, Rum, Sodomy, and the Lash, and was composed by Pogues front man Shane MacGowan....
"		 - - 71 -Rum, Sodomy and the Lash
"Sally MacLennane
Sally MacLennane

"Sally MacLennane" was the second single by The Pogues to make the UK Top 100, reaching number 54. The song was composed by Shane MacGowan and featured on the band's second album, Rum, Sodomy And The Lash....
"		 - - 51 -
"Dirty Old Town
Dirty Old Town

"Dirty Old Town" is a song written by Ewan MacColl in 1949 that was made popular by The Dubliners....
"		 - - 62 27
1986 Poguetry in Motion
Poguetry in Motion

Poguetry in Motion is an EP by The Pogues and their first single to make the UK Singles Chart. It peaked at Number 29. It features the songs "London Girl", "Rainy Night in Soho", "The Body of an American" and "Planxty Noel Hill"....
 (EP
Extended play

An extended play is a vinyl record, Compact disc, or music download which contains more music than a Single , but is too short to qualify as an LP album....
)		 - - 29 11 -
"Haunted
Haunted (Pogues song)

"Haunted" is a 1986 single by the Ireland band The Pogues. It was featured on the Sid and Nancy Soundtrack, the original soundtrack for the movie Sid and Nancy....
"		 - - 42 7Sid and Nancy Soundtrack
Sid and Nancy

Sid and Nancy is a 1986 in film film directed by Alex Cox. The film materialized during a time of renewed interest in the period of punk rock, heroin addiction and specifically the life of Sid Vicious....
1987 "Irish Rover" (Featuring The Dubliners) - - 8 1 -
"Fairytale of New York
Fairytale of New York

"Fairytale of New York" is a Christmas song by English peopleIrish people folk-rock group The Pogues, and featuring the British singer Kirsty MacColl....
" (Featuring Kirsty MacColl
Kirsty MacColl

Kirsty Anna MacColl was an England singer-songwriter....
)		 - - 2 1If I Should Fall from Grace with God
1988 "If I Should Fall from Grace with God
If I Should Fall from Grace with God (song)

"If I Should Fall From Grace With God" was a single released by The Pogues, from the album of the same name. It was the follow up to the Christmas classic, "Fairytale of New York", but despite the massive success of their previous single, the song stalled at Number 58 in the UK singles Chart....
"		 - - 58 4
"Fiesta
Fiesta (The Pogues song)

"Fiesta" is a single by The Pogues, featured on their 1988 album If I Should Fall from Grace with God. It was written by Jem Finer and Shane MacGowan, based on a Spanish fairground melody Finer had picked up ....
"		 - - 24 11
1989 "Yeah Yeah Yeah Yeah Yeah
Yeah Yeah Yeah Yeah Yeah

"Yeah Yeah Yeah Yeah Yeah" was a single by The Pogues. It stalled just outside of the UK Top 40 at number 43, but became the band's first single to chart in the USA, reaching number 17 in the Modern Rock Charts....
"		 17 36 43 6 Yeah Yeah Yeah Yeah Yeah
"Misty Morning, Albert Bridge
Misty Morning, Albert Bridge

"Misty Morning, Albert Bridge" is a 1989 single by the United Kingdom-Ireland folk rock band The Pogues. It was composed by banjo player Jem Finer and featured on the band's fourth album, Peace and Love ....
"		 - - 41 8Peace and Love
1990 "Summer in Siam
Summer in Siam

"Summer in Siam" was a single by The Pogues from their 1990 album, Hell's Ditch. Composed by enigmatic frontman Shane MacGowan, it charted in the UK Top 100 at Number 64....
"		 - - 64 21Hell's Ditch
"Jack's Heroes
Jack's Heroes

"Jack's Heroes" was a single released by The Pogues & The Dubliners in 1990, composed by tin whistle player Spider Stacy about the Republic of Ireland national football team, then managed by Jack Charlton....
" (Featuring The Dubliners)		 - - 63 4Yeah Yeah Yeah Yeah Yeah
1991 "Sunny Side of the Street
Sunny Side of the Street

"Sunny Side of the Street" is a track from The Pogues' fifth album, Hell's Ditch, released in 1990. The song, composed by Shane MacGowan and Jem Finer, is an up-tempo celebration of an unrepentant libertine - a common theme for frontman and lyricist MacGowan....
"		 23 - - - Hell's Ditch
"Rainy Night in Soho
Rainy Night in Soho

"Rainy Night in Soho" is a song by The Pogues. Originally included on their Poguetry in Motion EP, a different version can be found on an expanded edition of the group's 1985 release, Rum, Sodomy and the Lash....
 (Remix)"		 - - 67 24Poguetry in Motion
"Fairytale of New York
Fairytale of New York

"Fairytale of New York" is a Christmas song by English peopleIrish people folk-rock group The Pogues, and featuring the British singer Kirsty MacColl....
" (Re-Issue)		 - - 36 10If I Should Fall from Grace with God
1992 "Honky Tonk Woman" - - 56 -Yeah Yeah Yeah Yeah Yeah
1993 "Tuesday Morning
Tuesday Morning (song)

"Tuesday Morning" is a song recorded by The Pogues. It was released in 1993 as a Single from their first post-Shane Macgowan album, Waiting for Herb....
"		 11 - 18 26Waiting for Herb
"Once Upon a Time" - - 66 -
2005 "Fairytale of New York
Fairytale of New York

"Fairytale of New York" is a Christmas song by English peopleIrish people folk-rock group The Pogues, and featuring the British singer Kirsty MacColl....
" (Re-Release)		 - - 3 3If I Should Fall from Grace with God
2006 "Fairytale of New York
Fairytale of New York

"Fairytale of New York" is a Christmas song by English peopleIrish people folk-rock group The Pogues, and featuring the British singer Kirsty MacColl....
" (Re-entry of re-release)		 - - 6 -
2007"Fairytale of New York
Fairytale of New York

"Fairytale of New York" is a Christmas song by English peopleIrish people folk-rock group The Pogues, and featuring the British singer Kirsty MacColl....
" (Re-entry on Downloads alone)		 - - 4 3
2008"Fairytale of New York
Fairytale of New York

"Fairytale of New York" is a Christmas song by English peopleIrish people folk-rock group The Pogues, and featuring the British singer Kirsty MacColl....
" (Re-entry on Downloads alone)		 - - 12 8


External links