A Drink With Shane Macgowan

Rating:
Summary: Rock and Roll Paddy
Review: "A drink with Shane MacGowan" is a series of recorded interviews with Shane by longtime girlfriend Victoria Clarke. It is an interesting approach and Victoria gets Shane to open up in ways the media, of course, would be unable to. The beginning of the London punk scene, family, drugs/drink, racism, religion, authors, the end of the Pogues and his life's philosophy are just a few of the many topics covered by Shane and Victoria. Also included are some handwritten songs and drawings which were a cool touch and greatly contribute to the book. The only downside to this book was Victoria's overdone, heavy handed (and self complimentary) chapter introductions. But these will be easily forgiven, for this is a fascinating conversation with an amazing songwriter. Definitely recommended for any music, Pogues/Popes or punk fans.

Rating:
Summary: Rock and Roll Paddy
Review: "A drink with Shane MacGowan" is a series of recorded interviews with Shane by longtime girlfriend Victoria Clarke. It is an interesting approach and Victoria gets Shane to open up in ways the media, of course, would be unable to. The beginning of the London punk scene, family, drugs/drink, racism, religion, authors, the end of the Pogues and his life's philosophy are just a few of the many topics covered by Shane and Victoria. Also included are some handwritten songs and drawings which were a cool touch and greatly contribute to the book. The only downside to this book was Victoria's overdone, heavy handed (and self complimentary) chapter introductions. But these will be easily forgiven, for this is a fascinating conversation with an amazing songwriter. Definitely recommended for any music, Pogues/Popes or punk fans.

Rating:
Summary: MacGowan and His Girl with Green Eyes
Review: A Drink with Shane MacGowan is a great read not only for fans and those curious about the break up of the Pogues but those who enjoy a bit of craic or great storytelling. One gets a peek inside a very unique and brilliant mind and also gains knowledge of interesting bits of Irish and punk era history. The somewhat maligned question and answer format is, in fact, an engaging way to shed light on the relationship between MacGowan and his closest companion. While leading to a greater understanding of the man himself, it acquaints the reader with Clarke, an interesting character in her own right. An established writer, she peppers the banter with lighthearted sarcasm, humorously toying with writing styles much in the way of Joyce (another first year English lit. groupie!)
All in all it is a great book with a pint in a quiet corner of your favorite pub but works as well with tea and flannel pajamas - highly recommended!

Rating:
Summary: MacGowan is the king !
Review: Forget what those pompous pricks say in their official review. The book's format works fine for true MacGowan fans. I rather liked Victoria's " stage directions, " as the reviewers call them, and Shane's humor had me laughing pretty damned hard. This book is a " must read " for any Pogues and/or MacGowan fan !

Rating:
Summary: A Drink With A Drunk MacGowan
Review: I finally was able to read a book about a huge influence in my life. I would rather really have a drink with MacGowan, but the odds are not very good, so i'll settle for the text. The text is mostly written by Shane's wife/Girlfriend. What I got from this book was a huge eight part interview between Victoria, and Shane. The interviews varied from a cottage in Ireland, to a conversation at a pub. The book starts out with Shane reflecting his childhood in Ireland, and how his family moved throughout England, and how much he hated leaving Tippary, Ireland. I thought that was by far the best part of the book, and not the rantings and ravings about how bitter he seems about the breakup of The Pogues, or how he got nicked by the coppers, or sent to the looney bin. It was a good read, but not a great one. Some of Shane's answers vary from question to question, and Victoria even reminds him about it. I feel Mr. O'Hooligan (MacGowan)comes across as a brilliant, yet moody, sensitive poet/songwriter, who has been a part of a great period in music, from the beginning of U.K. punk, to the beginning of Celtic/Pirate/Punkrock. instead of the more traditional Celtic music, Shane helped the world hear Celtic music from a more modern punkrock type of angle. And look how far that "type" of music has come!!! From The Dropkick Murphys in Boston, To The Flogging Mollys In L.A., via one lead singer from Dublin. The Book is something every Shane/Pogues fan should have, but then again as a fan it's the only book I have(On the subject of Shane) A word of warning; I feel like Shane really didn't talk about the upside of being in the Pogues, because he seems to almost knock the other members of the band more than once. (Although he does have a Handwritten Apology on the last page in the book that says something like "I was only speaking from the Heart..." A heart still bitter about the breakup of The Pogues. The most important part of the book is when Shane explains how much he really truly loves his emerald isle of Ireland. That part was the best part of the book. Do give it a read!!

Rating:
Summary: a rockin', boppin' lunatic!
Review: i read this in one sitting, such is my keeness for the subject of "A Drink With Shane MacGowan", a title that aptly describes the over-all feel of the book. impressionistically i felt as though i was sitting in the same snug in some smokey pub listening to MacGowan and Clarke discuss,(and in some cases argue about) those heady, roller coaster times. i can't reccomend this title to intolerants, begrudgers or teetotalers but if you were ever a fan of punk in general, the Pogues or Shaney Mac himself , this is great crack.

Rating:
Summary: a rockin', boppin' lunatic
Review: i read this one in one sitting, such is my keeness for the subject of "A Drink With Shane MacGowan", most appropriately titled since, impressionistically, i felt as though i might have been seated in a snug of some smokey pub listening to Clarke and MacGowan discuss,(and in some cases argue about) what must have been heady, intoxicating times. while i can't reccomend "A Drink..." to intolerants, begrudgers or teetotalers, people who have a general interest in punk or a more specific interest in the Pogues and Shaney Mac himself, will find this great crack.

Rating:
Summary: Interesting but where was the editor?
Review: I received this as a gift and just read it over the holidays. Shane Macgowan is a great interview subject and his girlfriend manages to pin him down for several coherent and enlightening interviews (which is no mean feat judging from his on-camera interviews captured in the If I Should Fall from Grace film).

However, it seems that she just transcribed the spew from each session, as is, rather than attempt to organize the material into subject categories. While reading the ramblings from the mind of a drunken genius does offer some charm it also allows for sloppy overlaps and omissions. For instance, Shane is very when interesting describing what it was like to discover Punk Rock in 1976 London but just barely touches on his punk band the Nips (or Nipple Erectors). There are also a few glaring about-faces where he slags someone in one interview and then praises them in another.

This was an entertaining (if sloppy) read but some fly-by-night indie press did not put it out. I expected more from Grove Atlantic, was this material edited at all?

One more thing: I read this on an airplane and in a hotel, I would have much preferred to read it at home with my Pogues CD's on shuffle.


Rating:
Summary: Painful!
Review: I was elated when I stumbled across this book. As a huge Shane Macgowan and The Pogues fan I could not wait to hear the insight and drunken ramblings that awaited. What a disaster of a book! The question and answer format is painful as his wife (or 1st year Enlish lit. groupie) delivers tone setting (I guess) descriptives of the scene by annoyingly ending each sentence in an adjective. Totally pompous writing. Besides the style, there is not much meat here either. The Pogues and Shane's fall out with the Pogues is virtually glossed over. Besides some the ear biting incident at the Pistols show and some often heard before recounting of life as a drunken teenage punk there is not much more. If any of you have seen the BBC documentary on Shane entitled "The Great Hunger" this book adds nothing more. Although nothing could lessen my sense of awe with Shane's songwriting, the book (like "The Great Hunger") only reinforces the pathetic nature of Shane's life outside of music.

Rating:
Summary: Fantastic!
Review: I was in Dublin a month ago and ate at a pub in the "Temple Bar" called (excuse spelling) Erin Dorian. As I was upstairs, I learned later, that Shane was downstairs and had been every night for the last 3 weeks causing trouble and, well, being Shane. Of course, I kicked myself all the way back to America having been a mere 10 stair steps from him. This book is the next best thing to being there. I doubt if Shane would be as informative or fluent to allow me inside his world if I had met him in Dublin. This is a must read for every Pogues or Shane fan! It gives a true insight to the madness behind the method.