Reason #334 Why The ’80’s Didn’t Suck: If I Should Fall From Grace With God
Back in the ‘80’s, waiting 3 years between albums was asking quite a lot. When the Pogues released what I consider their masterpiece in 1985 (Rum, Sodomy and the Lash), I was a huge fan. I just started going to bars and clubs (17 and a fake ID, I believe my name was Juan Nomad!*), and the Pogues were the ultimate drinking music. They were everything I was looking for at the time; exotic, punky and above all else, fun. I devoured RSATL, and still know every song by heart.
Long story short, by the time the follow up was released I had moved on. 3 years was a HUGE time to wait, and I had no patience for such things! The musical landscape was dire back then, and the only bright light was the new rock/dance hybrid that was in its infancy. So I forgot about the Pogues for a while. Then, a few years later, I heard A Fairytale In New York on some program during the Christmas Season, and fell in love. It remains to this day one of my favorite Christmas songs, cynical as it is, and probably rivals The Kinks Father Christmas as my favorite. I picked up the album and decided immediately it was every bit the equal of RSATL, perhaps even beating it in terms of overall song quality.
The remastered version tags on an EP that only adds to the enjoyment, with the wonderful Body Of and American and the jaunty London Girl as the standouts. The highlights of the album proper are probably the titled track, Fairytale Of New York (of course), Lullaby of London and Fiesta, which sounds like a Spanish version of Madness.
*Not really. Cannot remember what name was on the I.D. Kind of wish it was Juan, looking back!
Stellar pair of records – as good a back-to-back as I’ve heard.
I’d throw in Turkish song of the damned as a standout – and Fairytale doesn’t get nearly the holiday airtime it deserves!
Couldn’t agree more – genius LP this.