Customer Reviews

Rum Sodomy & The Lash

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Elvis Costello's influence should not be measured in what he gave to the Pogues, but rather by what he took away. Shortly after producing the Pogues' second effort, Costello stole the heart of Cait O'Riordan, the band's attractive female vocalist... and she was never heard from again. A pity, really, beacause her vocal skills would have been nicely placed alongside MacGowan's in the ballads he would sing on later efforts. Not that Kristy MacColl was all that bad, mind you, but O'Riordan was a centerpiece of the group from the beginning. Many a fan gnashed his teeth and hurled expletives into the air the day her departure was announced.

Anyway, it's nice to see the Poguetry In Motion 10" Ep finally available on cd, even if Rainy Night in Soho is only a remix. For a time, "Rum, Sodomy... " and "Poguetry..." were my favorite releases from the Pogues; that is, til "Should I Fall..." came along.

While FALL FROM GRACE is oft regarded as their most definitive album, RUM & SODOMY cannot be denied. One of The Pogues' pistol blarin' best. The fact that they tacked on the Poguetry In Motion ep, only makes this more essential. "Body Of An American" & "Rainy Night In Soho" are two of Shane MacGowan's most enduring songs outside of "Fairytale Of New York".

From the sickbed to the battlefield, they go for the throat on this one, hell bent on raising the dead. "Cuchuliann" opens the proceedings, all too somberly keeping vigil over an old hell raiser's final hour. For a few measures atleast. Then things suddenly ignite like a molotov cocktail. A flaming bottle of poitin tossed through a dead man's window.

What follows is the gutter woe of "Old Main Drag". Tom Waits, eat your heart out.

For sheer epic balladry, "A Pair Of Brown Eyes" has few competitors. MacGowan at his most yearning. More than anywhere else, he comes off here like the Irish answer to Jacques Brel.

There's never quite been a drinking song quite like,"Sally MacLennane". A reckless toast that touches on the surreal. Elsewhere, instrumentals like "Wild Cats" & "Paddy Garcia" go to show that The Pogues were far more than MacGowan's backing band.

As for their raids on traditional fare, "Dirty Old Town" ranks up with their previous takes on "Auld Triangle" & "Kitty". Their sneering rendition of "Gentlemen Soldier" puts all the "ire" back into Ireland. None of which prepares you for the album's closer. A searingly bleak version of Eric Bogle's "Waltzing Matilda". Its hard to walk away from this one unscathed.

Released in 1985, RUM & SODOMY was indeed at odds with the times. Remember this was era of Duran Duran & other "New Romantics". This along with their debut went to prove The Pogues were a problem that were not going to go away--- without a fight. A reckless gang of marauders loitering with intent. Leaving all those Synth Liberaci's trembling in their new lace sleeves.

Like none other, this captures the Pogues in all their irreverant glory. The sound of a bunch of drunken pirates setting their ship on fire. Giving producer Elvis Costello a reason to hold onto his hat.

After this, they took things to even greater heights. Only to fall from grace & gun eachother down in Hell's Ditch. I can't praise it enough. One of my favorite albums of all time.

Some music returns to you in the most unusual ways. I first heard the Pogues in college in 1985 and played this record, yes record, on my radio show 91.3 FM WKNH. While grieving for the loss of my closest friend from those days, I began a journey of reminiscing of those days, which included listening to bands....The Pogues, Jesus and Mary Chain, Jellyfish, The Posies, Thin Lizzy, Mott the Hoople, and The Clash.... we so often listened to and talked about with such passion. So, now, Dirty Old Town is playing and Shane's tales of death, drink, and dispair
are as poignant as ever. Great music is great in any era. Its evident that these songs came from a man struggling, partying, living, and dying in the moment. Great artists are like that. They feel something visceral and are able to capture it in some form. BUY THIS MUSIC.

If you're considering updating your collection with this version of the album, the remastering is excellent but the version of "Rainy Night In Soho" is not the original Poguetry In Motion EP version, but the inferior 1991 remix.

I love this album. Must have listened to it a thousand times. I can't get enough of Shane McGowan's voice - rough and masculine and filled with a dogged Irish faith in the face of self-inflicted Irish despair. The female voice on "I'm a Man You Don't Meet Every Day" is hauntingly beautiful. God gave that particular ineffable quality only to the Daughters of Houlihan. If you like Irish music, you need this album. It's certainly been a big part of the soundtrack of my life since it came out over 20 years ago.

How do you make a great punk album with more than 3 chords? Make it Irish music, Get a roudy singer and speed it up to double time.
The songs of the Irish have a lot of tragedy, irony, anger and humor to them. This is perfectly translated into the songs that Shane MacGowan wrote. His songs deal with the down side of life in story form almost like watching a movie which most songwriters can't do, He also does a better job to songs he didn't write than the original singer does. The band does a perfect job of giving a feeling to the lyrics.
This Album is the last true MacGowan production. The next album "If I Should Fall From Grace Of God" has the rest of the band putting there two cents in and a producer that takes away the bands edge. "Peace and Love" is where he looses interest for many reasons and the band takes over.
My personal opinion this is the one to get if you want to feel the band's energy in it's prime state.

I must admit to being a little put off when I first gave a listen to Rum Sodomy as I was expecting something more along the lines of the Dropkick Murhpys than traditional celtic sound. However, after one listen, and then another and then another and then another....I keep coming back to it. Fantastic sound, lyrics and delivery. Now I am a fan. Alas, like many of my "discoveries" it is a little late.

What can be said about the Pogues? One of the greatest song writing bands in history. Shane is a genius and somewhat of a drinker I hear. I think I'll get a beer...

Rum, Sodomy, and the Lash is a great album. It contains "A Pair of Brown Eyes," arguably Shane MacGowan's first masterpiece. It was recorded long before the album sessions took place, and was released as the band's third single. A slow ballad, it does not tell a story as much as it vividly recreates a depressing encounter in a bar. The singer, trying to drink away the memory of a brown-eyed ex-lover, is subjected to the ramblings of a drunken veteran of the Great War. The old-timer graphically relates how he endured the horrors of battle only to return home and find that his own brown-eyed girl had not waited for him. Following the time honored folk process, MacGowan set his lyrics against a backdrop of traditional Irish music. The album includes two more MacGowan classics: "The Sickbed of Cuchulainn" and "The Old Main Drag."
Replete with allusions to Irish history and culture, "Sick Bed" is a MacGowan tour de force with references to the mythical Irish hero Cuchulainn, Irish singers John McCormack and Richard Tauber, Irish Republican Frank Ryan, and Cloughprior cemetery where many of MacGowan's family are buried. "The Old Main Drag," a slow poignant number, is a seamy slice of life tale of a 16 year-old immigrant's attempts to cope with London's underbelly. MacGowan has claimed that the song isn't autobiographical, not surprising given the teenager's involvement with male prostitution, but the lyrics' power are surely born of experience. Nearly 25 years after its release "The Old Main Drag" had lost none of its power and remained a concert favorite.
Rum, Sodomy, and the Lash contains several other fine tracks. A traditional Scottish song, "I'm a Man You Don't Meet Everyday," featuring Cait O'Riordan's finest recorded vocal, is one. MacGowan's vocals on three cover tunes, however, are even better. "Navigator," an excellent song about immigrants building the railroads was written by the Nips' manager Phillip Gaston. "Dirty Old Town," the Ewan McColl classic, is nearly perfect. But best of all is MacGowan's flawless interpretation of Eric Bogel's anti-war masterpiece, "And the Band Played Waltzing Matilda." Otis Redding once said that Aretha Franklin stole his song, "Respect." Indeed, most fans associate the song with Franklin despite Redding's outstanding recording. The same can be said of "And the Band Played Waltzing Matilda." Bogel's version is fine, but with the release of Rum, Sodomy, and the Lash the song became MacGowan's. No fan of Irish music should be without this album.
Rake at the Gates of Hell: Shane MacGowan in Context

I think they came into greater focus on their next album (If I Should Fall From Grace With God) but this is a very fine album. The Sickbed of Cuchulainn, Sally MacLennane, and Jesse James are the standouts.