0447. The Pogues
If I Should Fall From Grace With God

Three years after their first entry on the list, The Pogues are back, bringing with them their biggest hit - the collaboration with Kirsty McColl called Fairytale Of New York - the Christmas song for people not feeling so stereotypically Christmassy.

On their first album after bassist Cait left (she hung around for one more after Rum Sodomy & The Lash) they sidestepped their by then standard mix of Gaelic punk on about half the songs to dabble with Spanish and Middle Eastern traditional sounds, making it not as completely Pogues as I'd like it. And I'm feeling like I'm a bit too harsh, but I really think that Streets Of Sorrow / Birmingham Six really should have been wholly sung by McGowan, 'cause Tarry Woods' just hasn't got the delivery for it (well, at least not when sandwiched between a couple of Shane's contributions.

Still, in spite of my complaining that everything isn't as I want it to be, it's a good album. The lyrics on songs like Thousands Are Sailing are just magnificient.