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
A Rainy Night in Soho A Rainy Night in Soho "A Rainy Night in Soho" is a song by The Pogues. Originally included on their "Poguetry in Motion" EP, which has been reissued as bonus tracks on the group's 2004 expanded edition of "Rum, Sodomy and the Lash". The song is commonly performed at Pogues concerts and has been included in their recent setlists since their reformation in 2001. Two recordings and various mixes of the song were made in the studio. Songwriter Shane MacGowan and producer Elvis Costello clashed over the final mix of the song, with MacGowan preferring a mix featuring a cornet,