The Pogues

In 2002 Q magazine named The Pogues as one of the "50 Bands To See Before You Die". 47 on the Billboard 200. The band, including MacGowan, re-formed for a Christmas tour in 2001 and performed 9 shows in the UK in December 2004. In May of 2004, Richie released the album "Just for You." Despite heavy airplay of the title single on radio and television throughout the rest of the year, the album's sales peaked in June at No. His autobiography, A Drink With Shane MacGowan, co-written with his journalist girlfriend appeared in 2001. 2000's Renaissance sold well in Europe and was released in the United States in 2001. Shane MacGowan remains the sole member of the band in the spotlight, having founded The Popes (AKA Shane MacGowan and The Popes) in 1994. In 1996, Richie returned to recording with the moderately successful Louder Than Words.

Though he came with strings attached, few would argue that without MacGowan, The Pogues were a band lacking a leader and in search of creative direction. Michael Jackson is her godfather. Two politely received but disappointing albums followed until 1996 when the Pogues disbanded. She is best known as the best friend of heiress Paris Hilton, and co-star of the reality series The Simple Life. Without their singer, vocal duties were for a time handled by Joe Strummer, before Stacy finally took over permanently. The child of Richie band member Peter Escovedo III, brother of Sheila E, and a woman identified only as an assistant on Richie's 1980 world tour, Nicole had been living with them since she was 3. With his departure, the band was thrown into a state of flux. In 1990, Richie and his first wife formally adopted 9 year old Nicole Escovedo.

MacGowan and the band parted company in 1991. Compared to the previous two efforts, Dancing on the Ceiling didn't sell as well and Richie retired one year later. Their next album Hell's Ditch, produced by The Clash's Joe Strummer, featured Stacy and Finer handling many of the vocal duties. His next big success was in 1986, with Dancing on the Ceiling. The band was at the peak of its commercial success, but MacGowan was spiralling out of control (especially notable during an appearance on the US Saturday Night Live). In 1985, Richie worked with Michael Jackson on "We Are the World", recorded as part of USA for Africa. They managed to get things together to record If I Should Fall from Grace with God in 1988 (with its Christmas hit duet with Kirsty MacColl "Fairytale of New York") and 1989's Peace and Love (featuring "White City" and "Down All The Days"). He performed "All Night Long" to a live television audience of 2.3 billion viewers.

Looming over the band at this period (as throughout their entire career) was the increasingly erratic behaviour of their vocalist, principal songwriter and creative visionary, Shane MacGowan. The secret was kept right up until the climax of the ceremonies, when the spotlight hit Richie. The band failed to take advantage of the momentum created by the strong artistic and commercial success of their second album. They first refused to record another album (offering up the 4 track EP Poguetry in Motion instead); O'Riordan married Costello and left the band, to be replaced by bassist Darryl Hunt; and they added a multi-instrumentalist in Terry Woods, fomerly of Steeleye Span. Many speculated that it would be Michael Jackson. Their version of Eric Bogle's "The Band Played Waltzing Matilda" featured on the album and has become more popular than the original. Weeks prior to the end of the 1984 Summer Olympics, Los Angeles promoters announced that the closing ceremonies would feature a surprise guest. While the first album had focused mostly on traditional songs, Shane MacGowan came into his own as a songwriter with this disc, offering up some remarkable pieces of poetic story-telling. Can't Slow Down was even more successful, and established Richie's reputation as a superstar.

The album cover featured The Raft of the Medusa. Lionel Richie (1982) was an instant success and became one of the top-selling albums of the year. Phil Chevron (guitar) joined the group soon after, then with the aid of punk and new wave forefather Elvis Costello they recorded the follow up, Rum Sodomy & the Lash, in 1985 (The album title is a reply attributed to Winston Churchill and others in describing the Royal Navy.). That year his duet with Diana Ross "Endless Love" from the film of the same name spent ten weeks atop Billboard's pop chart. Shortening their name to "The Pogues" due to lack of radio play for the curse in their name, they released their first album Red Roses for Me in 1985. By 1980, though, the media had begun to focus on Richie and he left to embark on a solo career the next year. The band rapidly developed a reputation, started releasing some indie work, and ended up opening for The Clash on tour in 1984. Richie got his start in the Commodores, writing most of their hits in the late 1970s, including "Three Times a Lady" and "Still".

During this time they added Jeremy 'Jem' Finer (guitar, banjo), Cait O'Riordan (bass) and Andrew Ranken (drums). Lionel Brockman Richie, Jr. (born June 20, 1949 in Tuskegee, Alabama) is an American musician and pop singer, most famous for a series of hits during the 1980s. Shane MacGowan (vocals), Jim Fearnley (accordion) and Spider Stacy (tin whistle) were the original members of the Pogues, in the days when they busked on the streets of London. In the later incarnations of the band, after the departure of Shane MacGowan, electronic instruments such as the electric guitar would become more prevalent. Their politically-tinged music was reminiscent of The Clash, with whom they played (Joe Strummer produced one of their albums), and utilised traditional Irish instruments such as the tin whistle, banjo mandolin, accordion, and more.

The Pogues were founded in London in 1982 as Pogue Mahone — "pogue mahone" being the Anglicization of the Irish póg mo thóin, meaning "kiss my arse." The band specialised in Celtic folk with a side order of punk attitude and featured a largely Irish-born cast. They had a strong following, providing music which remains largely unique to this day. The Pogues were a popular Irish folk/punk band of the 1980s. The Rest Of The Best.

The Best of The Pogues. Pogue Mahone. Waiting For Herb. Hell's Ditch.

Peace and Love. Yeah Yeah Yeah Yeah Yeah. Poguetry in Motion. If I Should Fall From Grace with God.

Rum, Sodomy, and the Lash. Red Roses For Me.