Shane MacGowan, Pogues songwriter who fused punk and Irish rebellion, dies at 65

Shane MacGowan, the brilliant but messy former songwriter and lead singer of the Pogues, who revitalized interest in Irish music in the 1980s by harnessing the driving force of punk rock, has died. He was 65 years old.

Mr. McGowan’s wife, Victoria Mary Clarke, He announced his death on Instagram. No additional details were provided. A joint statement from the family was shared on One of the band’s social media accounts He died early Thursday. “The last prayers and rituals were read, which brought relief to his family,” the statement read.

Mr. McGowan emerged from the London punk scene in the late 1970s and spent nine turbulent years with the initial incarnation of the Pogues. Originating from north London pubs, the band performed in stadiums in the late 1980s, before Mr McGowan’s addiction and mental and physical decline forced the band to sack him. He later founded Shane MacGowan & the Popes, with whom he recorded and toured in the 1990s.

Along the way, Mr. McGowan earned a dual reputation as a giant destructive figure and a masterful songsmith whose lyrics painted vivid pictures of the vulnerabilities of Irish immigrant life. His best known work is the opening lines of his biggest hit, an alcoholic’s lament turned into an unlikely Christmas classic called “A New York Fairy Tale.”

It was Christmas Eve, my dear
In the tank drunk
An old man said to me, I’ll never see another one

“I was good at writing,” Mr. McGowan told Richard Bowles, who wrote an authorized autobiography, “A Furious Devotion,” published in 2021. I can write, I can spell, I can make it flow and when I mix. With the music, it was perfect.

In addition to his wife, Mr McGowan is survived by his sister Siobhan and father Maurice.

The full obituary will be posted soon.

Derek Bryson Taylor Contributed to reports.