"I think in fairness, to say that "in terms of songwriting" they've never recovered since Peace And Love is an opinion you're of course entitled to, but it does something of a disservice to the highlights of ALL three subsequent albums. Go and listen to them again. And again. And again."
I tried - believe me I did but it just didn't work for me and still doesn't.
"Furthermore, to call the Popes material "bearable" seems very bizarre indeed - granted, Shane's two albums with the Popes may not match up the holy triumvirate that is the Pogues first three albums, but there are more than a few songs on there which could never be described in such throwaway terms as "bearable". Have you actually listened to those albums? "Song With No Name", "Donegal Express", "Paddy Rolling Stone", "Ceilidh Cowboy", "St John Of Gods", "Aisling"... bearable????"
Yep - I've got them and listened them and will quantify my use of 'bearable'. I mean that in comparison the the first three lps and the Poguetry lp. I remember hearing RRFM and RSATL for the first time in 1986 and my life changed from that moment on. I was 15, growing up in rural Lincolnshire and the Pogues opened a window to another world for me for which I am eternaly grateful. I remember waiting and waiting for new tunes and freaking when I heard The Body of an American and Rainy Night in Soho on Poguetry. The wait for the third lp was agony and I can still see my mate John Lightfoot bringing it in to our school classroom now after he'd been in to town (Gainsborough) to buy it at dinner time. When I heard the first bars of the opening I had a rush of blood that I've rarely had since.
I think I'm tied up in that early material both musically and emotionally - as you all know, our teenage years are our most tempestous, and I equate the Pogues' music from 1984 - 1989 with some of most formative experiences (first beer, overnight patry, snog, shag, etc, etc). They also lead me to Peel and another world of music ... and I still listen to the Men They Couldn't Hang as well. I was dissapointed when I heard Peace and Love and they were pretty ropey at Reading in 1989. Shane just couldn't sing - why write such beautiful words if no-one can understand them?
I lost my way with them from about 89 - 93 ish then 'rediscovered' the early material - even though it had always been there in the background I found a new resonance in the songs and lyrics and felt that I understood a lot more than I had in my younger days. I did go and see the Popes in 1989 on St. Paddy's night at the Forum in London and was dissapointed by Shane and the band. It was 'old Pogues faves by numbers' and I couldn't hear a word of singing. My friend, an arch Pogue fanatic since '84 got in to a ruck cos he shouted out that Shane was a drunken embarassment and the band were a bunch of sycophantic 'rockers'. I didn't entirely agree with him but it was not good to see.
And of course, given the inordinate amount of complete and utter crap that is passed off as music I would take my least favourite Popes song over virtually anything else.
"That said, I am compelled to agree with your final sentence - I'd cut off my right arm (that's the most useful one
) for even ONE new song.[/quote]"
So okay then Pogues - we've paid our money for the cd re-issues and re-re issues and books and gig tickets (dead cheap!) and t-shirts and we love you to bits - pull out your fingers and write some new songs then!
Posted: Thu Nov 30, 2006 2:01 pm
)