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The Pogues have always been an odd band to pigeon hole, punks with folk instuments, folkies with a punk attitue, bar room boozers, who knows, but thats really not the point. The point is that the Pogues kick out a great range of Irish folk with an attitude and stance that takes no prisoners. Even though they share some common ground with more traditional celtic folk bands such as the Dubliners and the Chieftans, they also are not a million miles away from bands such as the Clash or the Sex Pistols.

The title of the album comes from a quote from Churchill "dont talk to me of naval tradition, its all rum, sodomy and the lash", and the cover art work is an adaption of a naval painting from 1819 called the Raft of Medusa, with the bands faces super-imposed in the relevant places. This was the second album for the band, and followed a full calender of playing every toilet and folk club in London, fusing punk, folk, traditional reworks and original tunes at a time when being Irish and a folk band were the two most unfasionable things to be. They did it anyway.

Sick Bed of Cuchulainn opens preceedings in typicaly Irish fashion. Cuchulainn was the greatest of Irish ancient heroes, who according to legend and in poem also, lay ill in bed for a year after being attacked in a dream. The Pogues version of this theme is littered with reference to a whole range of other Irish notaries. After an almost pub singer style introduction the band pile in behind the whiskey cracked voice and carry you away in a drunken ceildah of sound. Mandolins sing, accordians scream and a pounding bass keeps the beat, and by the time the hook line comes in for the second time you will be spinning around the room. If not open that bottle of whiskey left over from last Christmas and put it to good use. John McCormack and Richard Tauber are named dropped as is Frank Ryan, as does the mythical bandit Billy in The Bowl, all meaningless except to those with a knowledge of Irish culture, but the names seem almost magical and add to the anthemic quality of the song.
The Old Main Drag is a slow banjo and accordian led waltz, berating the downward spiral of drugs and prostitution in the back streets of the big city. Amongst this dark tale is a small autobiographical set of lines about how singer Shane MacGowan was given a beating by the police at Vine Street police station.

A scream opens up Wild Cats of Kilkenny, a full on folk jig instrumental, heavy on the bass and drums until it builds the whistle takes

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