"Whiskey in the Jar" is an Irish traditional song set in the southern mountains of Ireland, often with specific mention of counties Cork and Kerry. The song, about a rapparee (highwayman) who is betrayed by his wife or lover, is one of the most widely performed traditional Irish songs and has been recorded by numerous artists since the 1950s.
"The Masses Against the Classes" is a song by Welsh rock band Manic Street Preachers, released as a limited-edition single in January 2000. It was a stand-alone single, not featured on any studio album, and was deleted, removed from wholesale supply, on the day of release. Despite being deleted on the day of release, the single peaked at number one on the UK Singles Chart.
The Dubliners were an Irish folk band founded in Dublin in 1962 as The Ronnie Drew Ballad Group, named after its founding member; they subsequently renamed themselves The Dubliners. The line-up saw many changes in personnel over their fifty-year career, but the group's success was centred on lead singers Luke Kelly and Ronnie Drew. The band garnered international success with their lively Irish folk songs, traditional street ballads and instrumentals. The band were regulars on the folk scenes in both Dublin and London in the early 1960s, and were signed to the Major Minor label in 1965 after backing from Dominic Behan who was paid by Major-Minor to work with the Dubliners and help them to build a better act fit for larger concert hall venues. The Dubliners worked with Behan regularly between 1965 and 1966; Behan wrote numerous songs for this act including the song McAlpine's Fusiliers created specifically to showcase Ronnie Drew's gravel voice. They went on to receive extensive airplay on Radio Caroline which was part owned by Phil Solomon CEO of Major Minor, and eventually appeared on Top of the Pops in 1967 with hits "Seven Drunken Nights" and "The Black Velvet Band". Often performing political songs considered controversial at the time, they drew criticism from some folk purists and Ireland's national broadcaster RTÉ had placed an unofficial ban on their music from 1967 to 1971. During this time the band's popularity began to spread across mainland Europe and they appeared on The Ed Sullivan Show in the United States. The group's success remained steady right through the 1970s and a number of collaborations with The Pogues in 1987 saw them enter the UK Singles Chart on another two occasions.
Red Roses for Me is the debut studio album by the London-based band the Pogues, released on 15 October 1984. It was produced by Stan Brennan, who had managed the Nipple Erectors/The Nips and Rocks Off Records shop in London.
"Fairytale of New York" is a song written by Jem Finer and Shane MacGowan and recorded by their London-based band the Pogues, featuring singer-songwriter Kirsty MacColl on vocals. The song is an Irish folk-style ballad and was written as a duet, with the Pogues' singer MacGowan taking the role of the male character and MacColl the female character. It was originally released as a single on 23 November 1987 and later featured on the Pogues' 1988 album If I Should Fall from Grace with God.
"The Hand That Feeds" is a song by American industrial rock band Nine Inch Nails, released as the lead single from their fourth studio album, With Teeth (2005). It is the highest-charting song by Nine Inch Nails on all charts except for U.S. Modern Rock Tracks, where it stayed at number one for five weeks, because the single that followed, "Only", stayed at number one for two more weeks (non-consecutively), and the Billboard Hot 100 peaking at number 31, bested only by the group's 1999 single "The Day the World Went Away". It is, to date, Nine Inch Nails' only single to reach the top 10 of the UK Singles Chart, as well as their highest-charting single on the U.S. Mainstream Rock Tracks chart, peaking at number two. It was also a crossover hit, crossing over to pop radio as their first top 40 radio hit since "Closer" and "Hurt" in 1994 and 1995, respectively, peaking at number 31 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart.
Hell's Ditch is the fifth studio album by The Pogues, released in November 1990, and the last to feature frontman Shane MacGowan as a member.
"Everyday Is Like Sunday" is the third track of Morrissey's debut solo album, Viva Hate, and the second single to be released by the artist. While the lyric was written by Morrissey, the song's composer was Stephen Street. The song is reportedly inspired by Borth, a coastal village in Mid-Wales and by Nevil Shute's On the Beach, a novel about a group of people waiting for nuclear devastation in Melbourne, Australia. It reached number nine on the UK Singles Chart and remains one of his best-known songs. "Everyday Is Like Sunday", as well as the single's B-sides "Disappointed" and "Will Never Marry", feature on the compilation album Bona Drag.
"Lullaby" is a song by English rock band the Cure from their eighth studio album, Disintegration (1989). Released as a single on 10 April 1989, the song is the band's highest-charting single in their home country, reaching number five on the UK Singles Chart. It additionally reached number three in Germany and Ireland while becoming a top-10 hit in several other European countries and New Zealand. The music video won the British Video of the Year at the 1990 Brit Awards.
"The Blues Are Still Blue" is the second single from Scottish indie pop band Belle & Sebastian's seventh studio album, The Life Pursuit (2006). The track was released on 3 April 2006 on Rough Trade Records and was produced by Tony Hoffer. The single reached number 25 on the UK Singles Chart, becoming the band's last top 40 hit to date. The song is their only top-50 hit in Australia, where it peaked at number 43 in June 2006 as an extended play.
"Shout" is a song by English pop/rock band Tears for Fears, released as the second single from their second studio album, Songs from the Big Chair (1985), on 19 November 1984. Roland Orzabal is the lead singer on the track. The single became the group's sixth UK top 40 hit, peaking at No. 4 in January 1985. In the US, it reached No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 on 3 August 1985 and remained there for three weeks; also topping the Cash Box chart. "Shout" became one of the most successful songs of 1985, eventually reaching No. 1 in multiple countries. It is regarded as one of the most recognizable songs from the mid-eighties, and is recognized by Chris True of AllMusic as a "Tears for Fears signature moment".
"Candy" is a song by Ash, released as the fourth single from their album Free All Angels on 1 October 2001. It was released as a single CD as a 7-inch vinyl, as well as on DVD format. Candy performed only slightly better than previous single "Sometimes", reaching number 20 on the UK Singles Chart and number 25 in Ireland.
"Molly's Chambers" is the second single taken from Youth and Young Manhood, the debut album by the American alternative rock band Kings of Leon.
"Fire Woman" is a song by British rock band the Cult, written by singer Ian Astbury and guitarist Billy Duffy. It was the first single released from their fourth studio album, Sonic Temple, and was subsequently featured on all of the Cult's compilation/greatest hits albums, as well as being a steady fixture of the band's live performances.
"Portsmouth" is a traditional English folk dance tune, similar to an Irish or Scottish hornpipe melody. It is sometimes referred to as the "Portsmouth Hornpipe".
"Tonight" is a song by Irish boy band Westlife. It was released together with "Miss You Nights" as a double A-side single on 24 March 2003 in the UK. It was the second and final single from their first compilation album Unbreakable – The Greatest Hits Volume 1 (2002). In other countries, "Tonight" was released without "Miss You Nights" as separately with an emphasis more on the "Tonight" release.
"Everywhere" is a song by British-American rock band Fleetwood Mac from their fourteenth studio album, Tango in the Night (1987). The song was written by Christine McVie, who also performed lead vocals, and produced by Lindsey Buckingham and Richard Dashut. In the United States, "Everywhere" was released as the fourth single from Tango in the Night in November 1987, while in the United Kingdom, it was issued as the album's fifth single on 21 March 1988.
"The Finest" is a song by American band the S.O.S. Band. It is the fifth track on their sixth studio album, Sands of Time, and is one of the group's last songs to feature the vocals of original lead singer Mary Davis. Labelmate and fellow R&B singer Alexander O'Neal shares vocals with Mary Davis during the bridge. "The Finest" was released as a single in 1986.
"Red Sky" is a single released by the British Rock band Status Quo in 1986. It was included on the album In the Army Now.
"Can You Dig It?" is a 1991 single by English indie rock band the Mock Turtles that was featured on their 1990 album, Turtle Soup. It was originally the B-side to the song "Lay Me Down". It was released on Siren Records in all formats except for one of the seven-inch singles released in Europe where it was released by Virgin Records.
