Shane MacGowan is the face and name most often associated with The Pogues. Unraveling Shane's psyche would require a book-length study but the crux of his identity lies somewhere in that conflict between English experience and Irish heritage. The abbreviated story of his life starts with his birth in England, but he was raised in Ireland, and moved back to England some years later. He won a scholarship to the renowned Westminster School, where he was possibly enrolled alongside Thomas Dolby and other notable people. MacGowan was involved with drugs and publicized hooliganery before being in a band, the first of which was The Nipple Erectors in 1977. [more inside]
posted by filthy light thief on Sep 13, 2009 - 87 comments

Hungary may be the gloomiest country on earth. Believed by its people to be suffering from a centuries long curse, it's most famous modern musical export is probably the "Hungarian Suicide Song" - Gloomy Sunday. Originally popularized by Billie Holiday in the US (with an upbeat ending tacked onto the original lyrics), it's been covered dozens of times since then. Links to a few of my favorites inside: [more inside]
posted by empath on Jan 10, 2009 - 37 comments

It was 30 years ago today that Elvis Costello and the Attractions appeared on Saturday Night Live. They'd wanted to play Radio Radio but SNL said no as it was thought to be 'anti-media.' So they started playing Less Than Zero, but stopped eight seconds in and played Radio Radio anyway, which led to them being banned from SNL for 12 years. Tip o' the hat to the Post Punk Progressive Pop Party.
posted by carter on Dec 17, 2007 - 85 comments

"Window in the Sky" is a YouTube style video synch mash-up done on a professional budget with the magic of copyright clearances. "It's a triumph of postmodern reconstruction" says the Washington Post.
posted by stbalbach on Jan 29, 2007 - 160 comments

Costello Reissues Just returned from the mall, shocked at the price tags on the new Rhino Elvis Costello reissues. Having already bought the Ryko versions as well as the original vinyl back in the day, my anger is twofold. As a big Costello fan, I feel exploited. As a habitual CD buyer, I'm amazed at the price of back catalog stuff in the chains. Somebody please tell me there's a real reason for these high CD prices. Is it me or is the gap between online and chainstore prices way wider than it should be?
posted by davebush on Sep 4, 2001 - 6 comments

500 albums essential to a happy life, says Elvis Costello. And he oughta know. (For extra credit, compare and contrast this with the RIAA top songs of the century list announced earlier this week.)
posted by jhiggy on Mar 9, 2001 - 30 comments