This song is a little different from their prior music before this one. I love the soul/rock feel of this song. MacGowan’s vocals are spot on also. The video is really cool as you see them progressing from a beat group to a psychedelic one.
Yeah Yeah Yeah Yeah Yeah” was the title track to the band’s 1988 EP, which featured rock and R&B rather than Irish folk. This track adds a touch of blue-eyed soul with its Memphis-style horn section. It became the Pogues’ first single to chart in the U.S. The song peaked at #17 on the Billboard Alternative Charts, #43 in the UK, #19 in New Zealand, and #1 in Ireland. Sorry, my Canadian friends…I could not find that chart position.
Despite seemingly being a hit material single, “Yeah Yeah Yeah Yeah Yeah” stalled in the U.K. In America, it was the first Pogues song to make any charts at all, making it all the way to #17 on the rock charts and #36 on the club charts. Since it wasn’t on any of their studio albums and has only intermittently shown up on their best-ofs… I’m curious how many Pogues fans forgot this song even existed.
The Pogues were formed in Ireland in 1982 by Shane MacGowan. They reached international prominence in the 1980s and early 1990s. MacGowan left because of drinking problems and was replaced for a time with Joe Strummer and then with Spider Stacy on vocals before breaking up in 1996.
They reformed with MacGowan in 2001 and were still together and playing. The band was awarded the lifetime achievement award at the annual Meteor Ireland Music Awards in February 2006. On November 30, 2023, Shane MacGowan passed away.
The video is a lot of fun. It was based on the Top of the Pops and Ready, Steady, Go pop shows of the 1960s.
Yeah Yeah Yeah Yeah Yeah
I loved you baby since we were at schoolI didn’t show it, I was a foolWhen you were burning I was cold as iceAnd baby now I realiseOh, yeah
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah (yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah)Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah (yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah)Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah (yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah)Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah (yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah)
Woo-ooh-ooh-oohWoo-ooh-ooh-ooh
I gave you misery, I gave you liesAnd if I hurt you, I apologizeAs long as I look into those deep green eyesSwear I’d put my finger to the eyesOh, yeah
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah (yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah)Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah (yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah)Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah (yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah)Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah (yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah)
Woo-ooh-ooh-oohWoo-ooh-ooh-ooh
Woo-ooh-ooh-oohWoo-ooh-ooh-ooh
Now all that I can do is hope and prayThat you’ll forgive me before it’s too lateThere’s only one thing I can say to youYou know I’ll fuck you, you know it’s trueOh, yeah
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah (yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah)Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah (yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah)Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah (yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah)Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah (yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah)
Woo-ooh-ooh-oohWoo-ooh-ooh-ooh
Woo-ooh-ooh-oohWoo-ooh-ooh-ooh
When I talk to GodHe know I understandHe says, “Stick by me and I’ll be your body now”Gonna tell you what I think of youI might not give the antidote you want me toOh well, oh well, oh well, oh well
I’ve got a big machine with plenty magazinesI’ve got a new machine now with plenty magazinesI’ve got a big machine now with plenty magazinesI’ve got a new machine with plenty magazines
So, stick it up, stick it up, stick it up, stick it upStick it up, stick it up, stick it up, stick it up, stick it up, stick it up, stick it up
And she saidYeah, yeah, yeah, yeahAnd we saidYeah, yeah, yeah, yeah (yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah)
And we saidYeah, yeah, yeah, yeah (yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah)And we saidYeah, yeah, yeah, yeah (yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah)
When I talk to GodHe know I understandHe says, “Stick by me and I’ll be your body now”Gonna tell you what I think of youI might not give the antidote you want me to
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah (yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah)Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah (yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah)
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PowerPop... An Eclectic Collection of Pop Culture 