The Pogues

about

The Pogues are a Celtic punk band from London, formed in 1982 and fronted by Shane MacGowan. The band reached international prominence in the 1980s and early 1990s. MacGowan left the band in 1991 due to drinking problems, but the band continued first with Joe Strummer and then with Spider Stacy on vocals before breaking up in 1996. The band, including MacGowan, reformed in 2001 and have been playing regularly ever since. While the band have not released an album since 1996, they are credited with inventing Celtic Punk and have had a large influence on the larger Celtic Fusion scene. The band were awarded the life-time achievement award at the annual Meteor Ireland Music Awards in February 2006. The Pogues were founded in King's Cross, a district in north London, in 1982 as Pogue Mahone - "pogue mahone" being the Anglicisation of the Irish póg mo thóin, meaning "kiss my arse". The band specialised in Irish folk music, often playing with the energy of the punk rock scene, in which several of the members had their roots. Their politically-tinged music was reminiscent of The Clash, with whom they played. (Joe Strummer produced one of their albums and even joined the group briefly) and used traditional Irish instruments, such as the tin whistle, banjo, cittern, mandolin, accordion, and more. In the later incarnations of the band, after the departure of Shane MacGowan, electronic instruments, such as the electric guitar, would become more prominent. The first of The Pogues' album

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