-WARNERS/RHINO POGUES BOX SET DUE June, 2008

[Maldoror]

I love these translations - Just garlic Them Straight in the Eye and Say Pogue Mahone!

I like the review, though he doesn't say a lot about the box set actually.

[FAY]

Sorry, there's no electronic version.
It's titled, "We've Been Loving You A long Time."
Written by Andy Wilkinson who reviewed Trouble Pilgrim several months ago.
It's favorable yet predictable. No earth shattering insights. A quick run through of each disc with mentions of the obvious.
If there's any reason to scan it for posterity's sake let me know and I'll do my best.

[Zuzana]

If there's any reason to scan it for posterity's sake let me know and I'll do my best.

Think of the future generations as well as fans over the pond, aha!
Yep, if it is not too much of a pain in the neck, scan it please! Maybe it's not earth shattering, but it can still be an interesting read.

[Zuzana]

The Pogues
Just Look Them Straight in the Eye and Say...POGUEMAHONE!! [box set]

Punknews.org
Review by: FelixT
Rated with four stars out of five

Full URL

Let’s not talk about the old tired clichés that surround the Pogues and Shane MacGowan, and let’s talk about the actual music, which a lot of reviewers fail to do when talking about this band. That’s really a shame, since they wrote some of the finest music there is.

Flogging Molly made me discover this band, as weird as this sounds. When I first listened to FM, I loved it and went on the Internet to see what others had to say about their music. Then I read a lot of people comparing Flogging Molly to the Pogues. It intrigued me and, of course, I had to check them out, so I got If I Should Fall from Grace with God. It was a revelation. From that point forward, I would only refer to the Pogues as The Best Band Ever.

So you guessed it, I am a fan. I know everything there is to know about the band, I have every album, the originals and the re-releases, and I am always the first in line to get any new product they put out on the release date. Just when I thought that I would never get new music by them, they took me by surprise by releasing a five-disc box set a few months ago that contains rare recordings, live stuff, B-sides, demos, etc., to keep me entertained for hours and hours.

I won’t review every single song, since this review would be longer than it needs to be. Let’s just say that I only bought this box set because I am a fan, but I didn’t expect any of the songs to be all that great. After all, if they were any good, why didn’t they make it on any of the albums? The fourth track of the first disc shut me up big time. "NW3" is as good as anything they've ever recorded. Some of you will remember that song, for Shane Macgowan used the very same melody and some of the lyrics for the song "Mother Mo Chroi" on his second solo album, The Crock of Gold. It’s not the only song Shane used from his time with the Pogues, as the next song, "Donegal Express," was properly recorded on his first solo release, The Snake. It is to be noted that the version we have here has been self-censored by the band, so no “F” words. We can also hear that it was shortly before Shane and the Pogues parted ways, in his “I don’t give a shit anymore” period. Finally, toward the end of the first disc, the song "Pinned Down / I’m Alone in the Wilderness" bears a lot of similarities to "B & I Ferry," on Shane’s second album. The first disc is definitely the best one in the set with, in addition to the aforementioned songs, brilliant pieces like "The Traveling People" and "Gabbo," to name a few, as well as traditional songs, like "Danny Boy" and "The Rocky Road to Dublin."

It’s not to say that the other discs are not good. They’re all amazing in their own right. It’s just that the first one feels more like a real album. On the second, we are given new versions of some classics, like "Sally Maclennane," "Streams of Whiskey," "Greenland Whale Fisheries" (some might have already heard that one without knowing it, on an episode of "Futurama"), "Billy’s Bones," "Rainy Night in Soho," etc. My first complaint is that it wasn’t necessary to include three versions of "Fairytale of New York," especially since they’re all pretty hard to listen to. It’s nice to see how the song developed into the best Christmas song ever written, but after listening to them once, I am pretty much sure you will skip the tracks every time.

A lot of the songs on the third disc are unused songs (or song versions) that were recorded for Alex Cox’s movies "Sid & Nancy" and "Straight to Hell." It is the second time we get to hear the song "Haunted," and it’s hard not to realize Cait O’Riordan’s beautiful voice. The rest of this disc is mainly composed of other Pogues’ classics (there are so many). The fourth disc also contains songs Shane recorded during his half-assed solo career, as well as many demos or alternate versions of old songs.

The best part of the fifth disc is the three songs by the late Kirsty MacColl at the beginning, which is a welcome change of pace. Other than that, this disc contains a lot of post-Shane Macgowan material, so you either like it or you don’t. Joe Strummer, of Clash fame, even assumes the role of lead singer for some of the songs.

It’s not to say that this box set is perfect, though. A lot of this material hadn't been released before for a reason. I know fans of the Pogues will get this box set no matter what I say. For the casual fans, or even for the non-fans alike, there is still a lot to enjoy here, as there are a lot of gems that remind us why the Pogues are so great.

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[MacRua]

The Pogues
Just Look Them Straight in the Eye and Say ... Poguemahone!! (Rhino)
BY MARGARET MOSER
The Austin Chronicle
Full URL

On one hand – the one holding a dram of Jameson – the Pogues were fueled as much by Gaelic myth as rock & roll. On the other hand, who would have guessed that Irish folk music could produce such a genius aberration? The rollicking boys from Dublin had more in common with Paddy Moloney than U2, or at least Pogues frontman Shane MacGowan did since the Chieftains were more likely to warble about whiskey than what they were looking for. This 5-CD UK import throws down a righteous and satisfying combination of music, text, and photos, but it's more musical mitzvah than greatest hits. Poguemahone!! jigs through the group's volatile history with live material, alternate takes, demos, and other rarities. It also includes a host of delightful covers ("Eve of Destruction," "Maggie May"), a blistering 12-inch remix of "If I Should Fall From Grace With God," and a dreamy descent into unreleased soundtracking (Sid and Nancy, Garbo, Straight to Hell). Despite the dominant presence of MacGowan, the Pogues were a revolving door of personalities, shaped by those within at any given time. Bassist Cait O'Riordan gets vocal time, as does Pogues co-founder Spider Stacy, on Steve Earle's "Johnny Come Lately" and even Joe Strummer, who briefly replaced MacGowan in 1991. These Strummer tracks are more notable than effective, with the Pogues employed more as backup than the brash rowdies we know and love. The band imploded shortly after back-to-back milestones, 1988's If I Should Fall From Grace With God and the following year's Peace and Love, the best Christmas song of modern times gracing the former with "Fairytale of New York." Poguemahone!!'s fatal flaw lies in that beloved MacGowan-Kirsty MacColl duet as a work-in-progress, presented here in three distinct periods – MacGowan with Elvis Costello on piano, MacGowan with accordion, MacGowan with full band. It's alluring, but you crave the full version with darling Kirsty so you can sing along and call your beloved a slut and cheap lousy faggot. Not even a live version is offered, though the hidden track "Good Night, Irene" is a sweet consolation. By the way, "pogue mahone" is phonetic. The phrase is "póg mo thóin," but the boys correctly guessed we Yanks don't have enough Jameson in our blood to deal with Gaelic spelling

[philipchevron]

The Pogues
Just Look Them Straight in the Eye and Say ... Poguemahone!! (Rhino)
BY MARGARET MOSER
The Austin Chronicle
Full URL

On one hand – the one holding a dram of Jameson – the Pogues were fueled as much by Gaelic myth as rock & roll. On the other hand, who would have guessed that Irish folk music could produce such a genius aberration? The rollicking boys from Dublin had more in common with Paddy Moloney than U2, or at least Pogues frontman Shane MacGowan did since the Chieftains were more likely to warble about whiskey than what they were looking for. This 5-CD UK import throws down a righteous and satisfying combination of music, text, and photos, but it's more musical mitzvah than greatest hits. Poguemahone!! jigs through the group's volatile history with live material, alternate takes, demos, and other rarities. It also includes a host of delightful covers ("Eve of Destruction," "Maggie May"), a blistering 12-inch remix of "If I Should Fall From Grace With God," and a dreamy descent into unreleased soundtracking (Sid and Nancy, Garbo, Straight to Hell). Despite the dominant presence of MacGowan, the Pogues were a revolving door of personalities, shaped by those within at any given time. Bassist Cait O'Riordan gets vocal time, as does Pogues co-founder Spider Stacy, on Steve Earle's "Johnny Come Lately" and even Joe Strummer, who briefly replaced MacGowan in 1991. These Strummer tracks are more notable than effective, with the Pogues employed more as backup than the brash rowdies we know and love. The band imploded shortly after back-to-back milestones, 1988's If I Should Fall From Grace With God and the following year's Peace and Love, the best Christmas song of modern times gracing the former with "Fairytale of New York." Poguemahone!!'s fatal flaw lies in that beloved MacGowan-Kirsty MacColl duet as a work-in-progress, presented here in three distinct periods – MacGowan with Elvis Costello on piano, MacGowan with accordion, MacGowan with full band. It's alluring, but you crave the full version with darling Kirsty so you can sing along and call your beloved a slut and cheap lousy faggot. Not even a live version is offered, though the hidden track "Good Night, Irene" is a sweet consolation. By the way, "pogue mahone" is phonetic. The phrase is "póg mo thóin," but the boys correctly guessed we Yanks don't have enough Jameson in our blood to deal with Gaelic spelling

Jameson? Some sort of hard liquor, I'll wager. Journos know these things.

[firehazard]

Jameson? Some sort of hard liquor, I'll wager. Journos know these things.

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