If I Should Fall from Grace with God
If I Should Fall from Grace with God | ||||
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Studio album by | ||||
Released | 18 January 1988 | |||
Recorded | 1987 | |||
Studio | RAK Studios, London The Town House, London (strings) | |||
Genre | ||||
Length | 51:43 | |||
Label | Pogue Mahone/Warner Music Group (UK and Europe) Island (US and Canada) | |||
Producer | Steve Lillywhite | |||
The Pogues chronology | ||||
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Alternative cover | ||||
Singles from If I Should Fall from Grace with God | ||||
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If I Should Fall from Grace with God is the third studio album by Celtic folk-punk band the Pogues, released on 18 January 1988.[1] Released in the wake of their biggest hit single, "Fairytale of New York", If I Should Fall from Grace with God also became the band's best-selling album, peaking at number three on the UK Albums Chart and reaching the top ten in several other countries.
If I Should Fall from Grace with God saw the arrival of three new members: bassist Darryl Hunt replaced Cait O'Riordan, while Philip Chevron joined on guitar and Terry Woods played cittern and other instruments. Woods and Chevron (the only two members of The Pogues actually born in Ireland) contributed the first original songs to a Pogues album not written by singer Shane MacGowan or banjo player Jem Finer, and the album also saw the band begin to move away from their Irish folk/punk roots and start to incorporate musical styles from other parts of the world, most notably Turkey and Spain. Many of the songs' lyrics return to familiar themes in Pogues songs, such as emigration from Ireland or returning to the country and having to adapt to the changes that have taken place after a long absence, but other tracks dwell on Irish political history or protecting children from the issues encountered as adults.
Critically acclaimed, If I Should Fall from Grace with God marked the high point of the band's commercial success. Finer called the record "a very cohesive album that drew on a lot of styles. Everything came together and it was very focused. That [album is] really the creative peak for me, in terms of the whole band being on a wavelength."[2]
Background
The Pogues had received acclaim for their previous album Rum Sodomy & the Lash, released in August 1985, and had begun 1986 on a high note as they embarked upon a successful tour of the US, their first in that country, and released the Poguetry in Motion EP which became their first top 40 hit in the UK. However, the relationship with their producer Elvis Costello was deteriorating, and tensions were further heightened by his romantic involvement with the band's bass player Cait O'Riordan. The group parted ways with Costello, and after increasingly erratic behaviour which included not turning up to play shows, O'Riordan also left the band in October 1986.[3] During this period The Pogues' record label Stiff Records went into administration: as the label still owned the rights to all Pogues recordings, the group were unable to record any new material until they were released from their contract with Stiff.[4] During 1986, the group occupied themselves by guesting on a cover version of "The Irish Rover" with the Dubliners, and taking part in Alex Cox's comedy action film Straight to Hell, shot in southern Spain and also starring the Clash's frontman Joe Strummer.
The situation with Stiff was resolved in early 1987 and The Pogues were finally free to begin recording a new album. After recording some
The group had decided to use Steve Lillywhite to produce their new record. Finer later said, "I think it was as exciting for him as it was for us because he'd never worked with a band live in the studio".[6]
Composition and writing
The title for "Turkish Song of the Damned" actually came first and inspired the song's storyline and the music's Middle Eastern influence, rather than the other way round, as Chevron revealed to the NME: "We were in Germany and this magazine had an article about The Damned – the B-side of one of their singles is called 'The Turkey Song' [the B-side of their 1979 single "I Just Can't Be Happy Today"] but the mag called it 'The Turkish Song of the Damned' – it was too good a title to overlook". MacGowan explained the lyrics as being a mixture of pirate and ghost story "about a guy on a Turkish island who deserted a sinking ship with all the money and all his mates went down – I'm not totally sure about this – he's haunted and he's dancing around with all this Turkish music in his brain ... Then his best mate comes back, and all the crew, to drag him back down to hell or wherever they are."[7] The song ends with a rendition of the traditional Irish jig "The Lark in the Morning".
"Bottle of Smoke" is the story of an imaginary horse of that name that goes on to win the Cheltenham Gold Cup, winning the song's narrator a large sum of money after he bets on the horse at long odds.[4] MacGowan called it "the sort of weird impossible name that always wins a race".[6]
"
Despite never being released as a single, the track "Thousands Are Sailing" has since become one of The Pogues' most popular songs, and according to The Irish Times, it is "recognised as one of the finest songs about Irish emigration".[12] It was written by the band's new guitarist Chevron, and although he had written many songs before as the frontman of his previous band the Radiators, he admitted that for a long time he had felt unsure about putting his song forward for consideration as MacGowan was the recognised songwriter in the band. It was only when Terry Woods offered to help him out with the track and MacGowan showed his approval of the song that Chevron gained the confidence to complete it. Featuring what has been described as a "heartfelt lyric, soaring tune and compelling chorus on the theme of emigration from Ireland to America", "Thousands Are Sailing" inspired the 2012 Derek McCullough graphic novel Gone to Amerikay.[13] Although Chevron also contributed other songs to later Pogues albums, "Thousands Are Sailing" remains his most popular composition, and it was played at his funeral when he died of cancer in October 2013.[12]
"Fiesta" was inspired by a riotous party, which lasted for several days, that the band had during their stay in southern Spain while filming Straight to Hell.
The song "Streets of Sorrow"/"Birmingham Six" is the album's most explicitly political commentary. The first half is a ballad composed and sung by Woods about the life of Irish independence leader
MacGowan described "Lullaby of London" as being about a man who comes home at night drunk and proceeds to start telling his young son, who is in bed, about how everything is going to be fine and to go to sleep, while privately the man is worried and hoping that the child will not have to go through the same hardships that he did while growing up.[6]
"Sit Down by the Fire" is about "the old ghost stories people used to tell you in Ireland before you went to bed. They used to tell you some horrific stories to prepare you for the horrors of the world ahead."[6]
"The Broad Majestic Shannon" is named after
Release
The compact disc version of If I Should Fall from Grace with God contained two extra tracks not included on the vinyl LP or cassette versions: a cover of the traditional song "South Australia" and the instrumental "The Battle March Medley".
The alternative album cover, issued in the United States and Canada, is a collage of faked photos of the group's members standing in a line, in which each of their faces have been superimposed onto a shot of Irish author James Joyce. The original unedited picture of Joyce appears fourth from the left in the line.
Critical reception
Review scores | |
---|---|
Source | Rating |
AllMusic | [14] |
The Irish Times | [15] |
Mojo | [16] |
NME | 10/10[17] |
Q | [18] |
Record Mirror | 5/5[19] |
Rolling Stone | [20] |
Sounds | [21] |
Uncut | [22] |
The Village Voice | B+[23] |
If I Should Fall from Grace with God was well received by critics. In the UK the NME lauded the record; Terry Staunton's review for the magazine stated, "If I Should Fall from Grace with God sees The Pogues venturing towards the area occupied by the latter day Madness, troubled words on top of happy tunes, stormclouds casting shadows across forced smiles ... With their new LP, The Pogues have given us a thing of beauty, the bleakest of masterpieces which will find few equals in 1988."[17] Neil Perry of Sounds wrote that "within the grooves of Grace, the third Pogues LP, you get heaven and hell and everything in between. If you've ever viewed The Pogues as a quaint rabble-rousing cult band then think again, for this is a record of rare quality and seductive charm."[21] In Q, David Sinclair described the album as "old-style Pogues, as dependably garrulous and irreverent as ever, but the album also advances on new fronts with a gleeful sense of adventure".[18] Record Mirror's Eleanor Levy said that the band had added "depth to their 'Irish Rover' charm" and produced "quite simply, the most lively, enjoyable 'good time' album you will have heard this, or any, year."[19] Melody Maker was the only UK music paper to give the album a negative appraisal, with reviewer David Stubbs being fiercely critical of the idea that traditional Irish music should be mixed with rock music, before saying, "so far removed is this album from my constituency that I feel scarcely qualified to review it at all".[24][a]
The reaction from US critics was also very positive. Kurt Loder wrote in Rolling Stone that "obviously the Pogues can do it all. And it sounds as if they've only just begun."[20] Michael Corcoran of Spin stated that "it's got guts and soul, and will make poor people dance until 4 a.m., even if they have to be at work until 7 a.m." and that despite containing a few songs that could be skipped over, "this LP on cassette will cause more wear on the rewind button than on the fast forward".[26] The Village Voice critic Robert Christgau said that "neither pop nor rock nor disco crossover stays these groghounds from the swift accomplishment of their appointed rounds".[23]
Reviewing the 2004 reissue, Mojo's Pat Gilbert called If I Should Fall from Grace with God "an amazingly original, democratically written and ethnically adventurous album".[16] AllMusic reviewer Mark Deming considered it "the best album the Pogues would ever make".[14]
In 2006, Q placed If I Should Fall from Grace with God at number 37 on its list of the "40 Best Albums of the '80s".[27] The record was also included in the book 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die,[28] and was ranked number 975 in the 2000 edition of the book All Time Top 1000 Albums.[29]
Track listing
Original release
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
---|---|---|---|
1. | " Andrew Ranken | 1:01 |
- Tracks 7 and 12 are CD bonus tracks, not on vinyl, LP, or cassette editions
2004 reissue
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
---|---|---|---|
1. | "If I Should Fall from Grace with God" | MacGowan | 2:20 |
2. | "Turkish Song of the Damned" | MacGowan, Finer | 3:27 |
3. | "Bottle of Smoke" | MacGowan, Finer | 2:47 |
4. | "Fairytale of New York" | MacGowan, Finer | 4:36 |
5. | "Metropolis" | Finer | 2:50 |
6. | "Thousands Are Sailing" | Chevron | 5:28 |
7. | "Fiesta" | MacGowan, Finer | 4:13 |
8. | "Medley: The Recruiting Sergeant/The Rocky Road to Dublin/The Galway Races" | Traditional | 4:03 |
9. | "Streets of Sorrow/Birmingham Six" | MacGowan, Woods | 4:39 |
10. | "Lullaby of London" | MacGowan | 3:32 |
11. | "Sit Down by the Fire" | MacGowan | 2:18 |
12. | "The Broad Majestic Shannon" | MacGowan | 2:55 |
13. | "Worms" | Traditional | 1:01 |
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
---|---|---|---|
14. | "The Battle March (Medley)" (B-side of "Fairytale of New York", 1987) | Woods | 4:10 |
15. | "The Irish Rover" (A-side single, 1987; with The Dubliners) | Joseph Crofts/Traditional | 4:08 |
16. | "Mountain Dew" (B-side of "The Irish Rover"; with The Dubliners) | Traditional | 2:15 |
17. | "Shanne Bradley" (B-side of "Fairytale of New York") | MacGowan | 3:42 |
18. | "Sketches of Spain" (B-side of "Fiesta", 1988) | Finer | 2:14 |
19. | "South Australia" (B-side of "Fiesta") | Traditional | 3:27 |
Personnel
Credits are adapted from the album liner notes, except where noted.[30]
The Pogues
Additional personnel
|
Technical personnel
|
Charts
Chart (1988) | Peak position |
---|---|
Australian Albums (Kent Music Report)[32] | 36 |
Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)[33] | 52 |
New Zealand Albums (RMNZ)[34] | 4 |
Norwegian Albums (VG-lista)[35] | 15 |
Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan)[36] | 9 |
Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)[37] | 9 |
UK Albums (OCC)[38] | 3 |
Certifications and sales
Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
---|---|---|
France ( SNEP)[39]
|
Gold | 100,000* |
United Kingdom (BPI)[40] | Gold | 100,000^ |
* Sales figures based on certification alone. |
Release history
Region | Date | Label | Format | Catalog |
---|---|---|---|---|
United Kingdom | 18 January 1988 | Pogue Mahone | LP | NYR 1 |
cassette
|
TCNYR 1 | |||
CD | CDNYR 1 | |||
United States | 1988 | Island | LP | 90872-1 |
cassette | 90872-4 | |||
CD | 90872-2 | |||
Canada | LP | ISL 1175 | ||
cassette | ISLC 1175 | |||
CD | CIDM 1175 | |||
Worldwide | 1994 | Pogue Mahone/Warner Music Group | LP | 2292-44493-1 |
cassette | 2292-44493-4 | |||
CD | 2292-44493-2 | |||
Worldwide | 13 December 2004 | Warner Strategic Marketing | CD | 5046759602 |
United States | 19 September 2006 | Rhino | CD | R2 74069 |
Notes
References
- ^ "D'EMI 'God'?". NME. 9 January 1988. p. 3.
- ^ ISBN 978-1-84609-008-0.
- ^ "News". NME. 15 November 1986. p. 4.
- ^ a b c Scanlon, Ann (28 November 1987). "The Rogues of Tralee". Sounds. pp. 22–24.
- ^ Scanlon, Ann (September 2004). "Celtic Soul Rebels". Mojo. No. 130. pp. 76–82.
- ^ a b c d e f Martin, Gavin (2 January 1988). "Once Upon a Time in the West". NME. pp. 22–23, 31.
- ^ a b c O'Hagan, Sean (21 March 1987). "Wild Rovers' Return". NME. pp. 24–25.
- ^ a b Gilbert, Pat (August 2008). "20 Greatest Duets". Q. No. 265. pp. 106–109.
- ISBN 978-0-571-25397-5.
- ^ Wilcock, David (31 December 2012). "Sales of the Pogues' 'Fairytale Of New York' reach 1 million 25 years after release". The Independent. Retrieved 10 July 2014.
- ^ "Pogues track wins Christmas poll". BBC News. 16 December 2004. Retrieved 13 March 2015.
- ^ a b McGreevy, Ronan (12 October 2013). "'Grand finale' send-off for Pogues guitarist Philip Chevron". The Irish Times. Retrieved 13 March 2015.
- ^ "Phil Chevron". The Daily Telegraph. 8 October 2013. Retrieved 13 March 2015.
- ^ a b Deming, Mark. "If I Should Fall from Grace with God – The Pogues". AllMusic. Archived from the original on 27 June 2022. Retrieved 3 December 2005.
- ^ McNamee, Paul (10 December 2004). "Reissues". The Irish Times. Retrieved 10 August 2015.
- ^ a b Gilbert, Pat (December 2004). "You shebeen there!". Mojo. No. 133. p. 123.
- ^ a b Staunton, Terry (16 January 1988). "Grace with the Devil". NME. p. 24.
- ^ a b Sinclair, David (February 1988). "Gleeful". Q. No. 17. p. 75.
- ^ a b Levy, Eleanor (16 January 1988). "The Pogues: If I Should Fall from Grace with God". Record Mirror. p. 14.
- ^ a b Loder, Kurt (25 February 1988). "The Pogues: If I Should Fall From Grace With God". Rolling Stone. No. 520. Archived from the original on 23 December 2007. Retrieved 22 December 2006.
- ^ a b Perry, Neil (16 January 1988). "The Underdog Bites Back!". Sounds. p. 27.
- ^ Wilde, Jon (December 2004). "Keeping it reel". Uncut. No. 91. p. 158.
- ^ a b Christgau, Robert (24 May 1988). "Christgau's Consumer Guide". The Village Voice. Retrieved 13 January 2012.
- ^ Stubbs, David (16 January 1988). "The Pogues: If I Should Fall from Grace with God". Melody Maker. p. 28.
- ^ Stubbs, David (26 July 2004). "I Remember . . . (Melody Maker Reminiscences)". mr-agreeable.net. Archived from the original on 22 May 2012. Retrieved 13 July 2022.
- ^ Corcoran, Michael (May 1988). "The Pogues: If I Should Fall from Grace with God". Spin. Vol. 4, no. 2. pp. 19–20. Retrieved 6 August 2022.
- ^ "40 Best Albums of the '80s". Q. No. 241. August 2006. pp. 84–89.
- ISBN 978-0-7893-1371-3.
- ISBN 0-7535-0493-6.
- ^ If I Should Fall from Grace with God (Media notes). The Pogues. Pogue Mahone Records. 1988.
{{cite AV media notes}}
: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link) - ^ a b c d "The Irish Rover". Discogs. Retrieved 11 March 2021.
- ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
- ^ "Dutchcharts.nl – The Pogues – If I Should Fall from Grace with God" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 12 July 2014.
- ^ "Charts.nz – The Pogues – If I Should Fall from Grace with God". Hung Medien. Retrieved 12 July 2014.
- ^ "Norwegiancharts.com – The Pogues – If I Should Fall from Grace with God". Hung Medien. Retrieved 12 July 2014.
- ^ "Swedishcharts.com – The Pogues – If I Should Fall from Grace with God". Hung Medien. Retrieved 12 July 2014.
- ^ "Swisscharts.com – The Pogues – If I Should Fall from Grace with God". Hung Medien. Retrieved 12 July 2014.
- ^ "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 12 July 2014.
- ^ "French album certifications – the Pogues – If I Should Fall from Grace with God" (in French). InfoDisc. Select THE POGUES and click OK.
- ^ "British album certifications – the Pogues – If I Should Fall from Grace with God". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 13 February 2022.
External links
- If I Should Fall from Grace with God (Adobe Flash) at Radio3Net (streamed copy where licensed)