Hot Press tribute to Shane McGowan and The Pogues published on day of punk poet’s passing

The remarkable legacy of Shane MacGowan and The Pogues is celebrated in the new issue of Hot Press.

The Christmas and New Year issue features an iconic image of Shane with the classic Pogues line-up of James Fearnley, Spider Stacey, Terry Woods, Cait O'Riordan, Andrew Ranken and Jem Finer on the cover.

The latest number of the acclaimed Irish music, popular culture, politics and current affairs magazine includes contributions from bandmates, family members and friends and admirers of Shane including Nick Cave, Jem Finer, Siobhan MacGowan, Damien Dempsey, The Mary Wallopers, Steve Lillywhite, and Johnny Cronin, among others.

It coincides with a special new exhibition ‘They Gave The Walls A Talking: The Extraordinary Story of The Pogues and Shane MacGowan', dedicated to the band, set to launch in EPIC, The Irish Emigration Museum, in Dublin during December.

Nick Cave, one of the issue’s contributors, stated that, even before he first met Shane in the late 1980s, he looked up to him as ‘a hero’.

"I really felt that he was the great songwriter of my generation," he remarked. "I thought he was, as a songwriter, head and shoulders above everybody else."

Damien Dempsey noted that Shane “will be remembered forever for his beautiful songs for getting Irish music and giving it a good kick up the arse. He brought it to a whole new generation and kept it alive and vital.”

Shane’s sister, novelist Siobhan MacGowan, meanwhile, recalled the influence their father and mother had on these young aspiring artists.

“Our parents were huge influences on us,” she said. “They were way before their time… They made us believe that we could do anything we wanted. They gave us a huge sense of belief in ourselves. Which was wonderful.”

"This is desperately sad news for anyone who loves Irish music,” Hot Press editor Niall Stokes said. "There is no doubt that Shane MacGowan was one of the all-time great songwriters – and will be remembered as such. In our Christmas issue, Nick Cave, who is such a brilliant wordsmith himself, pays hugely eloquent tribute to Shane, hailing him as the greatest songwriter of his generation.

“No one wrote about people on the margins of society as well as Shane. There is a deep sense of compassion and love of humanity in his work, which gives it a unique emotional power. There is also a wonderful poetic quality to his use of language.

"He truly was one of a kind – an exceptional and courageous talent, who hugely influenced the course of Irish music, and whose songs will still be sung in fifty and a hundred years time.

“Our heart goes out to his wonderful partner Victoria Mary Clarke, to his sister Siobhan and his father Maurice – and to all of the extended Pogues clan."

Shane passed away in the early hours of Thursday morning, his wife Victoria Mary Clarke, sister Siobhan and father Maurice, confirmed in a statement.

The current issue of Hot Press – featuring cover stars The Pogues – is in shops now, and is also available to purchase online from shop.hotpress.com

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