The Pogues were founded in King's Cross, a district in north London, in 1982 as Pogue Mahone - "pogue mahone" being the Anglicisation of the Irish póg mo thóin, meaning "kiss my arse". The band specialised in Irish folk music, often playing with the energy of the punk rock scene from which several of the members had their roots.
Their politically-tinged music was reminiscent of The Clash, with whom they played (Joe Strummer produced one of their albums and even joined the group briefly), and used traditional Irish instruments such as the tin whistle, banjo, cittern, mandolin, accordion, and more. In the later incarnations of the band, after the departure of Shane MacGowan, electronic instruments such as the electric guitar would become more prominent. The first of The Pogues' albums, Red Roses for Me, borrows much from the punk tradition of MacGowan's previous band The Nipple Erectors (later dubbed The Nips).
Band history
Shane MacGowan (vocals), James Fearnley (accordion) and Spider Stacy (tin whistle) were the original members of the Pogues, in the days when they busked on the streets of London. Before the rest of the group formed, MacGowan and Stacy were rumoured to have played impromptu performances on street corners and city buses which attracted local interest to their talent. They later added Jeremy 'Jem' Finer (guitar, banjo), Cait O'Riordan (bass) and Andrew Ranken (drums). The band rapidly developed a reputation, started releasing independent work, and ended up opening for The Clash on tour in 1984. Shortening their name to "The Pogues" due to lack of radio play for the curse in their name, they released their first album Red Roses for Me that October.
Phil Chevron (guitar) joined the group soon after, then with the aid of punk and new wave forefather Elvis Costello they recorded the follow up, Rum Sodomy & the Lash, in 1985 (The album title is a famous comment attributed, probably falsely, to Winston Churchill and others in describing the traditions of the British Royal Navy). The album cover featured The Raft of the Medusa, though the faces on the characters in Géricault's painting have been replaced with those of the band members. While the first album had featured a higher percentage of traditional songs, Shane MacGowan came into his own as a songwriter with this disc, offering up poetic story-telling, such as "The Sick Bed of Cúchulainn" and "The Old Main Drag," as well as definitive interpretations of Ewan MacColl's "Dirty Old Town" and Eric Bogle's "And the Band Played Waltzing Matilda," the latter of which has become more popular than the original recording.
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 4 track EP Poguetry in Motion instead); O'Riordan married Costello and left the band, to be replaced by bassist Darryl Hunt; and they added a multi-instrumentalist in Terry Woods, formerly of Steeleye Span. Looming over the band at this period (as throughout their entire career) was the increasingly erratic behaviour of their vocalist, principal songwriter and creative visionary, Shane MacGowan.
Success & breakup
The band remained stable enough to record If I Should Fall from Grace with God in 1988 (with its Christmas hit duet with Kirsty MacColl "Fairytale of New York") 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 (nos. 3 and 5 respectively), but MacGowan was spiralling out of control. Following their next album, Hell's Ditch, MacGowan and the band parted company in 1991.
With his departure, the band was thrown into a state of flux. Without their singer, vocal duties were for a time handled by Joe Strummer, before Stacy finally took over permanently. Two politely received albums followed, the first of which, Waiting for Herb, contained the band's third and final top twenty single, "Tuesday Morning" which became their best selling single internationally. In 1996, the Pogues disbanded with just three members remaining.
Post breakup
Shane MacGowan founded Shane MacGowan and The Popes in 1994. They recorded two studio albums in the period up to their split in 2002. MacGowan's autobiography, A Drink With Shane MacGowan, co-written with his journalist girlfriend Victoria Mary Clarke, appeared in 2001. During this time the three other long-term members of the Pogues (Spider Stacy, Andrew Ranken and Darryl Hunt) played together briefly as the Vendettas.
Reunion
The band, including MacGowan, re-formed for a Christmas tour in 2001 and performed 9 shows in the UK in December [2004]. In 2002 Q magazine named The Pogues as one of the "50 Bands To See Before You Die". Also in December 2004, VH1 Conducted a poll to find the best Christmas song ever, with "Fairytale of New York" coming number one with 2,650 of the 10,000 votes cast - over 25%. In early 2005, VH1 conducted another poll to find the 100 greatest number ones that never Were, With The Pogues coming in at number 27.
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 in late 2005, and re-released their 1987 Christmas classic "Fairytale Of New York" on 19th December, which went straight in at #3 in the UK Singles charts on Christmas Day 2005, showing the song's enduring popularity. On December 22nd 2005 the BBC broadcast a live performance (recorded the previous week) on the Jonathan Ross Christmas show with Katie Melua. "Fairytale of New York" was voted the greatest Christmas Record of all time for the second year running in a poll by UK Music Channel VH1, with "Fairytale of New York" taking in a whopping 39% of the overall vote.
The band was awarded the life-time achievement award at the annual Meteor Ireland Music Awards in February 2006.
In March 2011, the Pogues played a six-city/ten-show sell-out US tour titled "A Parting Glass with The Pogues". In August 2012, The Pogues undertook a 30th Anniversary European Tour.
Discography
Albums
Red Roses for Me - 1984, #89 UK
Rum, Sodomy, and the Lash - 1985, #13 UK
Poguetry in Motion (EP) - 1986, #29
If I Should Fall from Grace with God - 1988, #3 UK, #88 US
Peace and Love - 1989, #5 UK
Yeah Yeah Yeah Yeah Yeah (EP) - 1990, #43 UK
Hell's Ditch - 1990, #11 UK
Waiting for Herb - 1993, #20 UK
Pogue Mahone - 1996
The Best of The Pogues - 1991, #11 UK
The Rest of the Best - 1992
The Very Best of The Pogues - 2001, #18
The Ultimate Collection including Live at the Brixton Academy - 2001, #15 UK
Dirty Old Town: The Platinum Collection
Body of an American
The Pogues Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And the yanks they were within
And the tinker boys they hissed advice
'Hot-wire her with a pin'
Then we turned and shook as we had a look
In the room where the dead men lay
So big Jim Dwyer made his last trip
To the shores where his father's laid
But fifteen minutes later
We had our first taste of whiskey
There was uncles giving lectures
On ancient Irish history
The men all started telling jokes
And the women they got frisky
By five o'clock in the evening
Every bastard there was piskey
Fare thee well, going away
There's nothing left to say
Farewell to New York City boys, to Boston and PA
He took them out with a well-aimed clout
And we often heard him say
I'm a free-born man of the USA
He fought the champ in Pittsburgh
And he slashed him to the ground
He took on Tiny Tartanella
And it only went one round
He never had no time for reds
For drink or dice or whores
And he never threw a fight until the fight was right
So they sent him to the war
Fare the well, gone away
There's nothing left to say
With a slainte Joe and Erin go
My love's in Ameri-kay
The calling of the rosary
Spanish wine from far away
I'm a free born man of the USA
This morning on the harbour
When I said goodbye to you
I remember how I swore
That I'd come back to you one day
And as the sunset came to meet the evening on the hill
I told you I'd always love you
I always did and I always will
Fare thee well gone away
There's nothing left to say
'But to say adieu to your eyes as blue as the water in the bay
And to big Jim Dwyer the man of war
Who was often heard to say
I'm a free born man of the USA
I'm a free born man of the USA
I'm a free born man of the USA
The Pogues’ song “Body of an American” begins with a description of a chaotic scene. A Cadillac is parked outside the house, and the Americans are around. The tinker boys were giving advice to hot-wire the car. When they entered the room to find the dead man, they shook and moved slowly. Big Jim Dwyer was gone, and all they could do was take him to rest alongside his father's.
However, the mournful atmosphere quickly dissipated as people began drinking whiskey and the uncles started giving lectures on Irish history. The men cracked jokes and the women flirted by five in the evening when everyone was intoxicated. The song then appears to shift to discussing the story of an American soldier who fought and took out boxers like the champ in Pittsburgh and Tiny Tartanella in one round. He never had any time for alcohol, drug use or women of the night. However, he eventually got sent to the war. Finally, the song comes full circle to the final farewells and fond goodbyes, with the haunting chorus ‘I'm a free born man of the USA’.
This song captures many themes such as the Irish Catholic community's pain of losing loved ones and celebrating life at the same time. It talks about the embrace of life and mourning through drinking and telling taking jokes, and uncles giving lectures. Despite the tragic loss of a loved one like Big Jim Dwyer, life never stops in the Irish community. The song's range also encompasses history, boxing, and war, maintaining a strong sense of Irish American identity.
Line by Line Meaning
The cadillac stood by the house
The car was parked near the house
And the yanks they were within
American soldiers were inside
And the tinker boys they hissed advice
The gypsies whispered suggestions
'Hot-wire her with a pin'
They recommended starting the car with a small wire
Then we turned and shook as we had a look
We were scared as we checked out the room
In the room where the dead men lay
Where corpses were lying
So big Jim Dwyer made his last trip
Jim Dwyer took his last journey
To the shores where his father's laid
To the place where his father was buried
But fifteen minutes later
A short time later
We had our first taste of whiskey
We drank whiskey for the first time
There was uncles giving lectures
Uncles were lecturing
On ancient Irish history
About old Irish events
The men all started telling jokes
The men began joking
And the women they got frisky
The women became flirtatious
By five o'clock in the evening
At 5 pm
Every bastard there was piskey
Everyone was drunk
Fare thee well, going away
Goodbye as I leave
There's nothing left to say
There's nothing more to speak of
Farewell to New York City boys, to Boston and PA
Goodbye to boys in NYC, Boston, and PA
He took them out with a well-aimed clout
He knocked them down with a good punch
And we often heard him say
He frequently said
I'm a free-born man of the USA
I'm a citizen with freedom
He fought the champ in Pittsburgh
He battled the champion in Pittsburgh
And he slashed him to the ground
Then brought him down
He took on Tiny Tartanella
He challenged Tiny Tartanella
And it only went one round
And the fight only lasted one round
He never had no time for reds
He didn't have time for communism
For drink or dice or whores
For alcohol, gambling, or prostitutes
And he never threw a fight until the fight was right
He never lost a fight on purpose
So they sent him to the war
So he was drafted to the war
With a slainte Joe and Erin go
With cheers to Joe and goodbye to Erin
My love's in Ameri-kay
My love is in America
The calling of the rosary
The recitation of the rosary
Spanish wine from far away
Wine from Spain that's distant
This morning on the harbour
Early today by the docks
When I said goodbye to you
When I said farewell to you
I remember how I swore
I recall how I promised
That I'd come back to you one day
I'd return to you someday
And as the sunset came to meet the evening on the hill
As the sun went down behind the hills
I told you I'd always love you
I said I'd always love you
'But to say adieu to your eyes as blue as the water in the bay
But to bid farewell to your blue eyes like the water in the bay
And to big Jim Dwyer the man of war
And to Jim Dwyer, the warrior
Who was often heard to say
Who would frequently say
I'm a free born man of the USA
I'm a native-born citizen of the USA
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: SHANE PATRICK LYSAGHT MACGOWAN
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@Bins..ihatebins
If you are all not Irish and just watching because of a TV Show but are enjoying the music here are some others tonight like
Fiesta~ The Pogues
Irish Rover ~ The Pogues
Dicey Reilly~ The Dubliners
Raitlin Bog ~ The Jolly Beggermen
All for me grog ~ The Dubliners.....
All great drinking songs
@stonerainproductions
Rest in peace Shane MacGowan. Thank you for this, and many other amazing songs. Fare thee well, enjoy the high road. Slainte.
@godelgado13
RIP LANCE REDDICK better known for his role as Cedric Daniels in the greatest Masterpiece American TV has ever produced, The Wire.
@kathrynwright2195
Agreed, his death was so sad, so many roles still laid before this incredibly talented actor.
@kinkarcana1293
He was natural Poolice in his roles where he played them(The Wire, Bosche), he is counted.
@seangallagher1947
Okay, chill bro.
@lu3366
@@kinkarcana1293 Fringe
@danielc9595
Best show of all time
@NYCentralSpotter1070
Jimmy, I say this seriously. If I was laying there dead on some Baltimore street corner, I'd want you standing over me, catching the case. Because, brother, when you were good, you were the best we had.
@frederiqueperron3591
euh
@GogsGamers
what?