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The jigs and reels seem familiar, and the instrumentation includes fiddle, banjo, Irish pipes and accordian; but the singer's Cockney snarl sounds like it belongs in a punk band. It could only be the Pogues. These musicians began, for the most part, in various punk and new wave bands, but wanted to channel that kind of energy into a folk-based sound. The rowdier side of folk music, including drinking songs and sea chanties, influenced their original songwriting.
1988's If I Should Fall From Grace With God introduced a wider range of influences, including 1940's jazz, world music, and Mexican 'norteno' music. This album also introduced a new member, who provided a link with the earlier folk-rock tradition - Terry Woods, a founder of Steeleye Span. Steeleye Span
After 1990's Hell's Ditch, Shane MacGowan, the group's chief singer and songwriter, left the group in a dispute over his notorious alcohol abuse. The Pogues' two albums after that are sadly lacking, and the band seems to be on hiatus. The good news is that MacGowan has recorded two fine albums with a new band, the Popes.
DISCOGRAPHY
The Pogues
Red Roses For Me, 1984
Rum, Sodomy and the Lash
If I Should Fall From Grace With God, 1988
Peace and Love, 1989
Hell's Ditch, 1990
Waiting for Herb, 1993
Pogue Mahone, 1996
Shane MacGowan and the Popes
The Snake, 1994
The Crock of Gold, 1997
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update: Thursday, December 27, 2001 at 3:57:09 PM
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