The Pogues
Tuesday Oct 17th
The Grove
Anaheim Ca
the show was supposed to start at 8. we got to the venue about 830. i knew there was one opening act, so we sat in the car for a bit. sapped a beer, took a sip or two off the flask, and puffed a studly one before we went in. once our tix were torn, we stopped for a smoke, then got in line to buy a couple of drinks, then headed into the hall.
in case you have never been, let me tell you that with the exception of tiny bathrooms, and way too high ticket prices, the Grove of Anaheim is a really nice venue. decent sound, great lighting, general admission, good crowds. i had told my gf that we would be standing right in the very fucking front. she lamented that she didnt want to stand right in the front, on account of the heat and the mosh pits. i didnt want her to have a bad time, so i agreed, and we stood in the second section back from the stage. it was perfect. we managed to work our way up to the front wall of this second section, so nobody was in front of us, and we had a perfect view of the stage.
not more than 5 minutes after we pick our spots, the fucking pogues come on. every drink in the house was immediately thrust up in the air as soon as shane started shambling towards the mic stand. i was giddy as fuck. HE'S HERE!!! HE IS ACTUALLY FUCKING HERE!! the motherfucking, soon to be dead, legend Shane motherfucking MacGowan and the rest of the original lineup (sans cait o'riordan) right in front of my eyes.
it was amazing. these guys are all amazing musicians, and it shows. i was in music geek heaven looking at the instrumentation on stage. drums, guitar, and bass, of course. but i dont get to too many shows that feature the accordion, bass mandolin, cittern, and banjo so prominently. but the best thing was that they all were having a good time, and loving every minute of it. they were all getting along! it was amazing watching these guys that had this incredible and tumultuous history together get on stage 10 years later, and pick up like they never stopped, or never had problems. they seemd to be having as good a time, if not better, than the audience. and that energy and feeling totally transfers itself into the crowd. watching spider stacy and shane hitting themselves over the head with beertrays and the like during "Fiesta", or watching james fearnley play the shit out of that accordion, and jumping around on stage like he was the very pulse of the whole band was something i will never forget as long as i live. when they played "fairytale of new york", it was one of the most beautiful performances ive ever seen given on stage by a band. even in his dilapidated condition, shanes vocals were amazing. originally, the song was a duet with kristy maccoll. but she is dead now. so instead, they had this raven haired chanteuse, dolled up like she was from the 50's (more of a rockabilly look, than a poodle skirt look) to sing her part with shane. i dont know her name. i wish i did, she was great. but towards the end of the song, snow started falling on stage, and shane and this girl danced together while the rest of the band played, and the snow fell. and while it might have been humorous to some to watch shane try to be nimble enough to pull off the dance. i was almost moved to tears. it was kind of like the last episode of the first season of "Deadwood" where the doc dances with the gimp, and al swearengen looks on. the spirit and vibe in the crowd, and on the stage was so amazing. im sure thats part of why i found their dance to be so touching. i was moved the entire night. they played a ton of my faves. the sickbed of cuchulainn, sally maclennane, white city, sayonara, etc. they did two encores. awesome! the crowd was amazing, save for a fight or two down in the front, which we were fortunate to be able to watch without having to participate. which i actually quite enjoyed, as what tradtitional irish music gig would be complete without a good brawl or two, and streams of whiskey a flowin'? everyone was singing along, helping shane when he fucked up. periodically, shane took a break from singing for a song, to let one of the other guys have a go at a tune. after the song, he would come back out, with a full cup of gin and tonic, and a fresh Smokey Thingie. i think at one point or another, every one of them smoked on stage. but shane was the only one that smoked the entire time. the place was actually filled with smoke. it was almost like i had been magically transported back to the UK. between the smell of the smoke, and the booze, and the wonderful music being played, it was like i was there, not here. this was absolutely the best fucking show i have been to in a long time. its one of those that i will never forget. there arent a whole lot of shows where you get that feeling. i cant describe it exactly, but its like a feeling of rightness, and belonging. its like when you and your significant other cum together during sex. there is just this energy and emotion that comes from the stage, and spreads through the crowd. you get like this amazing high, and you never want that show to end. there is something amazingly cathartic about screaming yourself hoarse, and/or singing a song that really means something to you with a ton of other people who feel the same way. i kept getting all goosebumpy, and i couldnt keep the smile off my face. i felt like a victim of the jokers "smilex" from Burton's Batman. too often, things happen at shows that can take you out of them mentally, (or physically too, i suppose), or a lot of times, you arent emotionally in just the right place, (or the band, or the rest of the crowd for that matter) to allow yourself to get there. but every now and again, you just luck out. its like the planets aligning or something. you are in exactly the same place as everyone else, psychologically, and everything just clicks. i can count the number of shows that i have been to that were orgasmic (for lack of a better term) like this on two hands. the first time i saw Oingo Boingo was another one. i would say that i wish every show could be like this. that every show could be this good. but then, it wouldnt be as satisfying or as meaningful when they did happen, would it? i walked out of the building in awe. i know i griped about the lofty price of the tickets, but afterwards, there were no regrets. it hurt me pretty bad in the wallet to go, but there will never be so much as a whim of regret. every single penny was well spent. thank god for the Pogues. thank fucking god for em.
i have a couple of pics of the show. but before you all chide me for their crappiness, let me make an excuse or two. first, security was extremely tight. everytime i would see someone snapping pics, 2 seconds later, staff pro decended upon them like locusts, confiscating thier shit, or just ejecting them outright. so we waited until the end to try to snap a few. but we were trying to stay covert at the same time, and so they didnt turn out too good. also, my brother (who took em) is a photo guy, and he also added that the distance from the stage, and the inherent lighting, and the numerous objects (peoples heads and arms and stuff) in between the camera and its subject would throw the focus off. so when you look at these pics, just pretend that you are at the show, only completely shit faced, if that were the case, im sure that these pics are how the shit would have looked anyways.
