What a wonderful collection of musicians and creatives to pay tribute to Shane MacGowan. Johnny Depp is also here. Like a rat in the pasta sauce. We’ll overlook that as 20th Century Paddy: The Songs of Shane MacGowan brings in new blood like Madra Salach, old veterans such as Bruce Springsteen and U2, along with a few fascinating, out-there choices. Pulling Tom Waits on board, bringing in Kate Moss to cover Lonesome Highway, and even managing to bring on Hozier and Jessie Buckley for a collaboration, there’s no doubt that every effort has been made to make sure the best in class (and Depp) are on hand to pay tribute to MacGowan. With The Pogues having such a rich and fascinating discography, it’s easy to lose sight of just how much good they did and still do. The Songs of Shane MacGowan is just as much a celebration of the late songwriter as it is of the band who pull together a new version of Gabrielle for the sake of this album.
Compilation albums are fast turning into tributes to the greats, or congratulatory slaps on the back of material long forgotten by bands defined by one or two songs. This is the former. Springsteen’s A Rainy Night in Soho opens this mammoth compilation, and it’s still an astounding take on MacGowan’s flirtations with one of London’s best districts. Springsteen keeps the brass of the original alive, something Bob Dylan opted to evade during his evocative, piano-led interpretation on stage in 2025. All the greats have found much to love in A Rainy Night in Soho, but what The Songs of Shane MacGowan provides is a clear and creative route through incredible lyrics. MacGowan is, quietly, one of the greats. What each of these covers fails to manage is the magic of MacGowan’s delivery. A placid-sounding Fairytale of New York (with the lyrical change, for the frothing obsessives who need to know if it happened) is the first of a few clangers. The talent of the artists at hand isn’t always enough to carry a new message through a classic. Buckley and Hozier are a tremendous pairing, but it just doesn’t pay off all that much with a flat-sounding instrumental accompaniment.
Artistic license is flexed brilliantly across The Songs of Shane MacGowan. It’d have been all too easy to expect musicians to find their way through already established songs and instrumentals. To hear the likes of Picture This, LYRA, and Madra Salach offer a unique take with the core of the message still intact is tremendous. It doesn’t all work, but the ambition displayed by the next generation of big names is outstanding. This is more an experiment in how MacGowan’s work can be adapted into different sub-genres of rock. The best bits of that come from a riotous Turkish Song of the Damned from Madra Salach and a stripped-back acoustic performance from Steve Earle for If I Should Fall from Grace with God. With so many artists bringing their style to MacGowan’s work, the results were inevitably going to be a mixed bag, but the spirit found throughout The Songs of Shane MacGowan is inspired.
Kingfishr, Waits, and The Murder Capital are on hand for some marvellous renditions too. What helps every artist involved with The Songs of Shane MacGowan is that the late singer could hardly write a bad lyric. He had a magic to his wordplay, a sincerity that came across as brutal but brilliantly honest. That’s captured and kept alive by everyone involved here. Though there’ll be renditions that don’t quite work for you, that’s the beauty of such a sporadic covers album. Just a tremendous experience to hear all those reworkings of great lyrics. Instrumentally sporadic works with each an expression of respect and love for one of the best to ever do it. MacGowan’s work in the hands of so many bright stars and soon-to-be headliners is a pleasure to hear. His work has rubbed off on the right people, and their collaborative efforts here is a special occasion worth celebrating with.
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