RIP, Shane MacGowan

Demons, death, and immigrant cultures, Shane knew it all

The only real surprise about Shane MacGowan’s death is that it didn’t happen sooner. Like most Pogues fans, I’ve been expecting it pretty much since I first heard of them.

My siblings and I first saw the Pogues on MTV. As much as five people with different tastes could agree on a band, we agreed on the Pogues. We liked that they did punk versions of the traditional music that our Aunt Mary listened to. We liked that their original songs had great lyrics and either signaled that a party was about to begin or that it should have ended an hour before. We liked that Pogue rhymed with Logue, another tool in our kit for people who consistently mangled our last name. We liked them so much that “Sally MacLennane” was played at my brother’s funeral this summer.

sad to say I must be on my way
So buy me beer and whiskey 'cause I'm going far away (far away)
I'd like to think of me returning when I can
To the greatest little boozer and to Sally MacLennane

No “Danny Boy” for Paul.

Seeing the Pogues

I’ve seen the Pogues live three times, each time with a different lead singer. The first time, Shane MacGowan was the lead.

The second time, I was supposed to go with two friends from college, and one had to drop out at the last minute because of work. I called my then-boyfriend to see if he wanted to go. No, he said, I don’t really like the Pogues. My friend Dennis called our friend Flynn from college. When we arrived at the Riviera Theatre in Chicago’s Uptown, we saw a sign saying that Shane MacGowan had been fired from the band, Joe Strummer was taking his place, and anyone seeking a refund should go to the box office. But who wanted a refund? Joe Strummer was a bonus! Even if Joe Strummer occasionally had to look at a lyric sheet, and eventually the band started playing Clash songs, it was a lot of fun.

Flynn and I have Irish ancestry. Dennis’s parents emigrated from Korea. We lost Dennis when moshing broke out. Flynn and I went into the pit to rescue Dennis from the Irish kids, and it was a night for the ages.

My then-boyfriend, now-husband is still upset that he missed that show because he thought he was too cool for the Pogues. He agreed to go with me to see the Pogues for the third time, when Spider Stacy took the mike.  And it was a good show, but not a great show. The band lost a certain edge when they lost Shane MacGowan.

Money. Always Money.

Drugs and alcohol damaged the band’s dynamics, and the money made it worse. MacGowan wrote, co-wrote, or arranged most of the Pogues songs. Given royalty structures, he made more money than the other band members. He could stay home drinking and have a good income from “Fairytale of New York” alone. The other band members preferred to tour, especially the long trips to where Irish expatriates and the descendants of immigrants were happy to pay big bucks to see the band over and over again: the US, Canada, and Australia.

MacGowan himself was born in England but spent much of his childhood with relatives in Ireland, so he understood how immigration creates homesickness. Many performers have found that this makes a great audience. The US (and Canada, and Australia) are overrun by Irish performers every St. Patrick’s Day. Some of the Pogues greatest songs are about the Irish experience in London (“Rainy Night in Soho”) or New York (“Fairytale of New York”, which does have an unfortunate slur in the lyrics.)

They aren’t the only ones. Christy Moore’s has his sad song “City of Chicago”.

Los Tigres del Norte have built their career on songs about Mexican immigrants in the US, some gleeful narcocorridos celebrating drug traffickers, others, like “La Juala de Oro” (“The Golden Dream”) are heartbreaking stories of losing their heritage. That song has the English line “I don’t wanna go back to Mexico, no way Dad,” because the immigrant’s son refuses to use Spanish. In the version below, the English is supplied by Juanes, a Colombian singer.

We talked about these songs when I taught Business and American Culture at University of Illinois at Chicago, the course that became my Fulbright topic. Culture that appeals to immigrants is big business in the US, as immigration is central to this nation’s identity. Our families may have come here centuries ago, but things like weddings, funerals, and holidays reflect aspects of the cultures of our ancestors. The Pogues took advantage of the opportunity and wrote some great songs in the process.

Dying before getting old

The Rolling Stones are about to go on tour again, this time sponsored by the AARP. They have longevity. Punk, New Wave, and the Pogues seem to have a death wish. Joe Strummer died at 50 of a congenital heart condition. Kirsty MacColl, who sings the duet on “Fairytale of New York”, was 41, diving in Cozumel when she was run over by a powerboat that was in the area illegally and most likely driven by Mexican multi-millionaire grocery magnate Guillermo González Nova. (Visitors to Mexico might be familiar with his La Comer, Fresko, and City Market stores.) It was a big scandal in Mexico, as well it should have been.

Shane MacGowan and another frequent duet partner, Sinéad O’Connor, both died this year. Shane was 65 and Sinéad was 56, and both had wrestled with demons for decades. When MacGowan left The Pogues, he formed a new group called The Popes. This song was originally sung by erstwhile Pogues member Cait O'Riordan, then re-arranged as a duet for the first Shane MacGowan and The Popes album.

Life is hard, isn’t it? Appreciate those you have now, while you have the time. And if you know of other songs and artists aimed at diasporas, let me know.