Shane MacGowan and the Popes
| The Popes | |
|---|---|
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|
| General information | |
| Genre (s) | Folk rock , folk punk |
| founding | 1994 |
| Website | http://www.thepopesofficialsite.com/ |
| Current occupation | |
| Paul "Mad Dog" McGuinness | |
Guitar, vocals |
Charlie Hoskyns |
Bass , vocals |
Jim McAllister |
| Dave Allen | |
Mandolin, guitar, vocals |
Whiskey Mick Rowan |
Drums , vocals |
Will Morrison |
| former members | |
| Tom McManamon | |
Drums, vocals |
Andy Ireland |
bass |
Bob Dowling |
Fiddle |
Gerry Diver |
| Mick O'Connell | |
Guitar, vocals |
Kieran "Mo" O'Hagan |
Fiddle, tin whistle
|
John Myers |
Drums |
Danny Heatley |
bass |
Berni France |
Whistle |
Colm O'Maonlai |
Accordion, whistle |
Kieran Kiely |
Singing, band leader
|
Shane MacGowan |
The Popes are a musical group best known as Shane MacGowan's backing band. It was founded after The Pogues dissolved , but never achieved their popularity.
history
The band recorded two studio and one live album with MacGowan, and a rarity compilation was released. After MacGowan's exit from the band, the Popes released four releases without him as a lead singer, followed by tours of their own.
Johnny Depp , a friend of MacGowan's, appeared in the video in the music video for the October 1994 single "That Woman's Got Me Drinking" . Depp also directed, played guitar, and made a few appearances with MacGowan.
MacGowan left the band in 2002 and was succeeded by Paul "Mad Dog" McGuiness. Under McGuiness, the album "Holloway Boulevard" was recorded, the Popes' first release without MacGowan. In 2004 the live album "Release the Beast" was released, which included a re-release of "Holloway Boulevard".
On December 15, 2006, Popes banjo player Tom McManamon died after a long illness. He has played with Storm , The Pogues , Depeche Mode , Joe Strummer , U2 , Sinéad O'Connor and many others throughout his career . McManamon was buried with his banjo in hand on January 7, 2007.
In March 2007, several former members appeared for a memorial concert for Tom McManamon. Meanwhile, guitarist and singer Paul McGuiness had announced a new line-up for the Popes' next studio album: Paul McGuinness (guitar and vocals), Will Morrison (drums), Charlie Hoskyns (guitar), Fiachra Shanks (banjo, mandolin), Laurie Norwood (Bass) and Ben Gunnery (fiddle). This line-up recorded the second album without MacGowan, "Outlaw Heaven". It was released in May 2009.
In May 2007, the former members Bob Dowling, Andy Ireland, Brian Kelly and Dennis Dowling announced the formation of the band "The Electric Popes", which has so far been unsuccessful.
In March 2012 the band's third and fifth album, "New Church", was released.
Discography
Albums with MacGowan
- The Snake (October 1994)
- The Church of the Holy Spook (1994)
- The Crock of Gold (October 1997)
- The Rare Oul 'Stuff (January 2002) (Rarities Compilation)
- Across the Broad Atlantic: Live on Paddy's Day - New York and Dublin (February 2002) (live)
Albums without MacGowan
- Holloway Boulevard (March 2002)
- Release the Beast - Live in London 2003 (with a re-release of "Holloway Boulevard") (August 2004) (live)
- Outlaw Heaven (May 2009)
- New Church (March 2012)
EPs
- Christmas Party (December 1996)
DVDs
- Live at Montreux 1995 (November 2004)