The Pogues were an English or Anglo-Irish Celtic punk band fronted by Shane MacGowan and others, founded in King's Cross, London in 1982,[1] as Pogue Mahone – the anglicisation of the Irish Gaelic póg mo thóin, meaning 'kiss my arse'.[2]
The band reached international prominence in the 1980s and early 1990s, recording several hit albums and singles. MacGowan left the band in 1991 owing to drinking problems, but the band continued – first with Joe Strummer and then with Spider Stacy on vocals – before breaking up in 1996.[3] The Pogues re-formed in late 2001, and played regularly across the UK and Ireland and on the US East Coast, until dissolving again in 2014. The group did not record any new material during this second incarnation.
Their politically-tinged music was informed by MacGowan and Stacy's punk backgrounds,[4] yet used traditional Irish instruments such as the tin whistle, banjo, cittern, mandolin and accordion.
| Title | Details | Peak chart positions | Certifications (sales thresholds) | |||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AUS [5] [6] | AUT [7] | GER [8] | NL [9] | NOR [10] | NZ [11] | SWE [12] | SWI [13] | UK [14] | US [15] | |||||||||||
| Red Roses for Me |
| — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 89 | — | |||||||||
| Rum Sodomy & the Lash |
| 89 | — | — | — | — | 17 | 39 | — | 13 | — |
| ||||||||
| If I Should Fall from Grace with God |
| 36 | — | — | 52 | 15 | 4 | 9 | 9 | 3 | 88 |
| ||||||||
| Peace and Love |
| — | — | 13 | 53 | 13 | 32 | 7 | 17 | 5 | 118 |
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| Hell's Ditch |
| 82 | — | — | — | — | 41 | 17 | 33 | 12 | 187 |
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| Waiting for Herb |
| — | 30 | 32 | — | — | — | 15 | 29 | 20 | — | |||||||||
| Pogue Mahone |
| — | 38 | — | — | — | — | — | — | 118 | — | |||||||||
| "—" denotes an album that did not chart or was not released. | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Title | Details | Peak chart positions | ||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UK | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Streams of Whiskey: Live in Leysin, Switzerland 1991 |
| — | ||||||||||||||||||
| The Ultimate Collection Including Live at the Brixton Academy 2001 |
| 15 | ||||||||||||||||||
| The Pogues in Paris: 30th Anniversary Concert at the Olympia |
| — | ||||||||||||||||||
| Live in London The Pogues with Joe Strummer |
| — | ||||||||||||||||||
| BBC Sessions 1984–1986 |
| — | ||||||||||||||||||
| "—" denotes an album that did not chart or was not released. | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Title | Details | Peak chart positions | Certifications (sales thresholds) | |||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| IRE [17] | AUS | NOR | NZ | SWE | SWI | UK | ||||||||||||||
| The Best of The Pogues |
| 21 | 94 | — | 10 | 34 | 25 | 11 |
| |||||||||||
| Essential Pogues | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |||||||||||||
| The Rest of The Best |
| — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||||||||||||
| The Very Best of The Pogues |
| 2 [19] | — | 40 | 12 | — | 87 | 18 |
| |||||||||||
| The Ultimate Collection |
| 12 | — | 13 | 8 | 41 | — | 15 |
| |||||||||||
| Dirty Old Town: The Platinum Collection |
| 46 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| |||||||||||
| Just Look Them Straight in the Eye and Say... POGUE MAHONE (The Pogues Box Set) |
| 40 | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||||||||||||
| The Pogues: Original Album Series |
| — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||||||||||||
| The Very Best of The Pogues |
| — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||||||||||||
| 30:30: The Essential Collection |
| 91 | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||||||||||||
| 30 Years The Pogues |
| — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||||||||||||
| The Stiff Records B-Sides (1984–1987) |
| — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||||||||||||
| "—" denotes an album that did not chart or was not released. | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Title | Details | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Live at The Town & Country Club London 1988 |
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| Saturday Night Live |
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| |
| Poguevision |
|
| |
| Completely Pogued |
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| |
| The Pogues in Paris – 30th Anniversary |
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| Year | Title | Peak chart positions | Certifications | Album | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| IRE | AUS [21] | NL | NOR | NZ | SWE | SWI | UK | ||||||
| 1984 | "Dark Streets of London" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | Red Roses for Me | |
| "Boys from the County Hell" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |||
| 1985 | "A Pair of Brown Eyes" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 72 | — | — | Rum Sodomy & the Lash | |
| "Sally MacLennane" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 51 | — | — | |||
| "Dirty Old Town" | 27 | — | — | — | — | — | — | 62 | — | — |
| ||
| 1986 | Poguetry in Motion (EP) | 11 | — | — | — | 9 | — | — | 29 | — | — | ||
| "Haunted" | 7 | — | — | — | — | — | — | 42 | — | — | Sid and Nancy Soundtrack | ||
| 1987 | "The Irish Rover" (featuring The Dubliners) | 1 | — | — | — | 25 | — | — | 8 | — | — | 25 Years Celebration | |
| "Fairytale of New York" (featuring Kirsty MacColl) | 1 | 33 [22] | 52 | 8 | 5 | 14 | 40 | 2 | — | — | If I Should Fall from Grace with God | ||
| 1988 | "If I Should Fall from Grace with God" | 4 | — | — | — | 27 | — | — | 58 | — | — | ||
| "Fiesta" | 11 | — | 23 | — | — | — | — | 24 | — | — | |||
| 1989 | "Yeah Yeah Yeah Yeah Yeah" | 6 | 111 | — | — | 19 | — | — | 43 | 36 | 17 | Yeah Yeah Yeah Yeah Yeah | |
| "Misty Morning, Albert Bridge" | 8 | — | — | — | — | — | — | 41 | — | — | Peace and Love | ||
| "White City" | 22 | — | — | — | — | — | — | 90 | — | — | |||
| 1990 | "Summer in Siam" | 21 | 139 | — | — | — | — | — | 64 | — | — | Hell's Ditch | |
| "Jack's Heroes" (featuring The Dubliners) | 4 | — | — | — | — | — | — | 63 | — | — | Yeah Yeah Yeah Yeah Yeah | ||
| "Miss Otis Regrets / Just One of Those Things" (with Kirsty MacColl) | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | Red Hot + Blue | ||
| 1991 | "Sunny Side of the Street" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 23 | Hell's Ditch | |
| "A Rainy Night in Soho" (remix) | 24 | — | — | — | — | — | — | 67 | — | — | Poguetry in Motion | ||
| "Fairytale of New York" (re-issue) | 10 | — | — | — | — | — | — | 36 | — | — | If I Should Fall from Grace with God | ||
| 1992 | "Honky Tonk Women" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 56 | — | — | Yeah Yeah Yeah Yeah Yeah | |
| 1993 | "Tuesday Morning" | 26 | — | — | — | — | — | — | 18 | — | 11 | Waiting for Herb | |
| "Once Upon a Time" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 66 | — | — | |||
| 2005 | "Fairytale of New York" (re-release) | 3 | — | — | — | — | — | — | 3 | — | — |
| If I Should Fall from Grace with God |
. David Kent (historian). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992. illustrated. Australian Chart Book. St Ives, N.S.W.. 1993. 0-646-11917-6. 235.