Ahhh this takes me back to my student days! This is the Pogues second album and is rightly regarded as one of their classics.

When I first heard this album back in 1986 it really showed you could bring folk music to the masses but without the stereotypical images of beards, tankards and twee music.

With Shane McGowan on vocals the band were assured of exposure with his exploits and luckily they more than had the musical talent and tunes to back this up.

Take your pick from 'The Old Main Drag', the frenzied 'Jesse James' or 'A Pair of Brown Eyes' (amazingly this single peaked at no.72 in the UK yet many people know the band for this song alone).

Six bonus tracks on here including 'London Girl' with its quick fire drum and accordion backing and the laid back 'Rainy Night In Soho' - a classic late night tune.

If you only have one Pogues album, this shoud be it.

*****

Review by Jason Ritchie

***** Out of this world | **** Pretty damn fine |
*** OK, approach with caution unless you are a fan |
** Instant bargain bin fodder | * Ugly. Just ugly