Fairytale of New York undergoing rewrites and aborted attempts at recording, and losing its original female vocalist along the way, before finally being completed in August 1987. Although the single never reached the coveted UK Christmas number one, being kept at number two on its original release in 1987 by the Pet Shop Boys' cover version of "Always on My Mind", it has proved enduringly popular with both music critics and the public: to date the song has reached the UK Top 20 on fifteen separate occasions since its original release in 1987, including every year since 2005, and was certified double platinum in
Peace and Love (The Pogues album) in the down-and-out hall of fame". Peace and Love (The Pogues album) Peace and Love is the fourth studio album by The Pogues, released in July 1989. "Peace and Love" continued the band's gradual departure from traditional Irish music. It noticeably opens with a heavily jazz-influenced track. Also, several of the songs are inspired by the city in which the Pogues were founded, London ("White City", "Misty Morning, Albert Bridge", "London You're a Lady"), as opposed to Ireland, from which they had usually drawn inspiration. Nevertheless, several notable Irish personages are mentioned, including Ned of the Hill, Christy Brown, whose