Rum Sodomy And The Lash (Remastered & Expanded) - Pogues (The)

...of naval tradition, it's all Rum Sodomy and the Lash !', the album cover is very distinct, it copies a famous painting 'The Raft of the Medusa' (1816) a famous shipwreck off the coast of Africa, and depicts dying naked bodies, with the members of the band's faces cleverly superimposed on some of the bodies. The album was produced by the talented Elvis Costello, and is , in my opinion, awesome.

*****THE BEST TRACKS*****

...
...CUCHULAINN

This is a lyrical masterpiece, penned by Mcgowan himself, and he sings of the ancient Cuchulainn, who was a powerful leader from Irish mythology.He dreams of being attacked by powerful women with horsewhips and is subsequently taken ill, as a result of which he lies asleep in his sickbed for a year.

"They took you out into the street and kicked you in the brains
So you walked back in through a ... more

I remember, back in the eighties, my Uncle, whom I lived with for a while, bursting into the house, fresh from a trip to Ireland, and proclaiming with a gleam in his eyes "I have got something here that is gonna blow you away !" With that he strode over to the sound system, thrust in a cassette, cracked open a few beers (no fine wines in those drunken days of rebelliousness !! Hee Hee) and cranked up the sounds to full volume ! What followed opened up my senses to a whole new type of music for me......The Pogues.

How to describe them..well there's a thing...they do not fit into any existing category as far as I am concerned. Their music is a mix of traditional Irish Folk and and a type of Punk Rock synonymous with The Clash. Fronted by the infamous, drunken and exquisitely ugly 'Shane McGowan', they were signed by Stiff Records in 1984 and 'Rum Sodomy and the Lash' is their second album after 'Red Roses for me', and arguably, but as far as I am concerned, their best album.

'Rum, Sodomy and the Lash' takes it's name from the famous Churchill quote 'don't talk to me of naval tradition, it's all Rum Sodomy and the Lash !', the album cover is very distinct, it copies a famous painting 'The Raft of the Medusa' (1816) a famous shipwreck off the coast of Africa, and depicts dying naked bodies, with the members of the band's faces cleverly superimposed on some of the bodies. The album was produced by the talented Elvis Costello, and is , in my opinion, awesome.

*****THE BEST TRACKS*****

The album opens with my favourite track..THE SICK BED OF CUCHULAINN

This is a lyrical masterpiece, penned by Mcgowan himself, and he sings of the ancient Cuchulainn, who was a powerful leader from Irish mythology.He dreams of being attacked by powerful women with horsewhips and is subsequently taken ill, as a result of which he lies asleep in his sickbed for a year.

"They took you out into the street and kicked you in the brains
So you walked back in through a bolted door and did it all again
At the sick bed of Cuchulainn we'll kneel and say a prayer
And the ghosts are rattling at the door and the devil's in the chair"

This varies from a slow beat to up tempo with the traditional folk Uilean pipes and fiddle wanting you to get up and tap your feet, must be played loud for full effect , McGowans husky and coarse voice lends itself to the heady atmosphere of the track.....Brilliant.

I'M A MAN YOU DON"T MEET EVERYDAY

This is a traditional scottish song, but made their own by their unique arrangement, minimal music and , interestingly, sung in the beautifully lilting tones of their female vocalist Cait O'Riordan, who, incidentally, later left the band and married it's producer, Costello.

"Oh, my name is Jock Stewart, I'm a canny gaun man,
And a roving young fellow I've been.
So be easy and free, when you're drinking with me,
I'm a man you don't meet every day."

'Gaun' is scots gaelic for 'going' and 'canny' means 'warily!.Beautifully sung and in contrast to the rest of the album, slow tempo.

A PAIR OF BROWN EYES

Another self penned masterpiece from McGowan and he sings this in a somewhat ...err.....sentimental way. In it he sings about a drunken old man, who's life is ruled by the evil drink. He reminisces about the war and how his body was broken in battle, coming back from the war, broken bones and all, his woman wasn't waiting at the quay having run off and left him for another man...He always remembers her brown eyes.

"But when we got back
Labelled parts one to three
There was no pair of brown eyes
Waiting for me.
And a rovin' a rovin' a rovin' I'll go
For a pair of brown eyes."

Overall, sentimental yet catchy and melodic.

SALLY MACLENNANE

Again, penned by himself, McGowan sings of being a barman in a pub and of drunken revelry (something of which I am unashamedly an.expert.....though in many years past, or in McGowan's words 'Times long gone'). He refers to the Elephant man in the song, this is believed to be in regard to a real person , a huge bloke, who used to drink in Shane's uncle's pub in Dagenham. This guy was extremely argumentative after a drink and subsequently broke his neck after one particularly raucous incident. He was nicknamed 'Elephant Man' because of the cast he had to wear for months as a result!! Nice.

"I played the pump and took the hump
And watered whiskey down
I talked of whores and horses
To the men who drank the brown
I heard them say that Jimmy's
Making money far away
Some people left for heaven without warning"

Full of lively 'fiddling' and those, Oh so melodic pipes, in an Irish 'Jiggy' type way, this will make you want to get up and dance, well it does me anyway !

JESSE JAMES

This is a traditional song although it has been adapted somwhat, lyrically, to match the pogues' own inimitable style..Telling the familiar story of the death of Jesse James, killed at the hands of the Ford brothers, cousins of the james'.Gowans's rough hewn huskiness again makes this song his own !

"Poor jesse had a wife
To mourn for his life,
Three children,
They were brave;
But that dirty little coward
That shot mr. howard
Has laid poor jesse in his grave."

Again, executed in a very punchy and catchy style, another foot tapper.

Full track listing ( The remastered versiion includes bonus tracks as listed)

1. Sick Bed of Cuchulainn
2. Old Main Drag
3. Wild Cats of Kilkenny
4. I'm a Man You Don't Meet Every Day
5. Pair of Brown Eyes
6. Sally Maclennane
7. Pistol for Paddy Garcia
8. Dirty Old Town
9. Jesse James
10. Navigator
11. Billy's Bones
12. Gentleman Soldier
13. Band Played Waltzing Matilda
14. A Pistol For Paddy Garcia (Bonus Track)
15. London Girl (Bonus Track)
16. Rainy Night In Soho (Bonus Track)
17. Body Of An American (Bonus Track)
18. Planxty Noel Hill (Bonus Track)
19. The Parting Glass (Bonus Track)

Overall I think this album is fantastic.The Pogues sing of Drunkeness, prostitution, hopeless despair and death but not in a depressing way, this is surprisingly upbeat given the subject matter and thoroughly enjoyable,the lyrics are amazing and truly thought provoking. I wouldn't skip any of the tracks because they are all exceptionally performed. If you are thinking of buying a Pogues album, make sure it is this one and you will not be disappointed.
Available from Amazon 10.99GBP new or 3.99 GBP used, or from E Bay at prices starting from 1.00 GBP
An album definitely NOT for the fainthearted.

 

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