The Pogues were an English or Anglo-Irish Celtic punk band fronted by Shane MacGowan and others, founded in King's Cross, London in 1982, as "Pogue Mahone" – the anglicisation of the Irish Gaelic póg mo thóin, meaning "kiss my arse". The band reached international prominence in the 1980s and early 1990s, recording several hit albums and singles. MacGowan left the band in 1991 owing to drinking problems, but the band continued – first with Joe Strummer and then with Spider Stacy on vocals – before breaking up in 1996. 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. The group did not record any new material during this second incarnation.
Shane Patrick Lysaght MacGowan is an Irish singer-songwriter. He is best known as the lead singer and songwriter of Celtic punk band the Pogues. He was also a member of the Nipple Erectors and Shane MacGowan and the Popes, as well as producing his own solo material and collaborating with artists such as Kirsty MacColl, Joe Strummer, Nick Cave, Steve Earle, Sinéad O'Connor, and Ronnie Drew.
The Popes are a band originally formed by Shane MacGowan and Paul "Mad Dog" McGuinness, who play a blend of rock, Irish folk and Americana.
Rum Sodomy & the Lash is the second studio album by the London-based folk punk band The Pogues, released on 5 August 1985. The album reached number 13 on the UK charts. The track "A Pair of Brown Eyes", based on an older Irish tune, reached number 72 on the UK singles chart. "The Old Main Drag" later appeared on the soundtrack to the film My Own Private Idaho.
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.
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.
Peace and Love is the fourth studio album by The Pogues, released in July 1989.
The Nips are an English punk rock band formed in London in 1976 as The Nipple Erectors by punk artist Shanne Bradley. They were Shane MacGowan's first musical group.
Peter Richard "Spider" Stacy is an English musician, singer, songwriter, and actor. He is best known for playing tin whistle and sometimes singing for The Pogues.
The Snake is the first solo album by Shane MacGowan with backing band The Popes. Released in 1994 by ZTT Records. Guests on the album include Johnny Depp and members of The Dubliners, Thin Lizzy and The Pogues.
"A Rainy Night in Soho" is a song by The Pogues released in 1986, originally included on their Poguetry in Motion EP.
"Haunted" is a 1986 single by The Pogues. It was featured on the Sid and Nancy Soundtrack, the original soundtrack for the movie Sid and Nancy. It reached chart position #42 in the UK. Originally sung by Cait O'Riordan, in 1995 the song was re-recorded as a duet between former Pogues vocalist Shane MacGowan and Sinéad O'Connor for the Two If by Sea/Stolen Hearts soundtrack, this time reaching #30 in the UK. The original version was included on disc 1 of the 2008 compilation "Just Look Them In The Eye And Say... POGUE MAHONE!!"
"The Sunnyside 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.
Siobhan MacGowan is an Irish journalist and musician. She is the sister of Shane MacGowan, lead singer of the Irish group The Pogues.
The Best of the Pogues is a greatest hits album by The Pogues, released in September 1991. The album was dedicated to the memory of Deborah Korner.
The Crock of Gold was the second full-length album by Shane MacGowan and the Popes and was released in November 1997 on ZTT Records. The Crock of Gold followed The Snake, MacGowan's first solo album after the breakup of The Pogues, and was less critically acclaimed than its predecessor. The album is named for the novel by Irish writer James Stephens. To date, it is the last full studio album MacGowan has recorded.
Poguetry in Motion is an EP by The Pogues, released on Stiff Records in the UK on 24 February 1986, and in the US & Canada on MCA Records. It was the band's first single to make the UK Top 40, peaking at number 29 and the first Pogues recording to feature Philip Chevron and Terry Woods.
The Very Best of the Pogues is a greatest hits album by The Pogues, released in April 2001.
Essential Pogues is a greatest hits album by The Pogues, released in November 1991.
