A Rainy Night in Soho by Shane MacGowan and The Popes
The Pogues were a late 20th century act from London who disbanded during the mid-1990s but reunited and remained together for nearly 15 years beginning in 2001. That said, all of the band’s studio albums were dropped during their first iteration. And amongst their many singles which came out during that time was A Rainy Night in Soho, originally being part of The Pogues’ EP titled Poguetry in Motion, which UK-based Stiff Records released on 24 February 1986.
Throughout most of their years of existence, The Pogues were fronted by Shane MacGowan (1957-2023) who, to note, passed away at the age of 65 just a couple of days prior to the writing of this post. As such, it was Shane who wrote A Rainy Night in Soho, in addition to serving as the lead vocalist. And the track was produced by another music legend, Elvis Costello.
This song had a humble chart showing, most notably peaking at number 27 on the Irish Singles Chart (with The Pogues being a band that specialized in Celtic punk). But it is a fan favorite, considering that it went on to be featured on a few of The Pogues’ projects, in addition to being an inseparable part of their setlists during the 21st century. And as far as said projects, they include the band’s 1991 compilation album The Best of the Pogues, as well as the 2005 reissue of the group’s second studio album (which originally came out in 1985), Rum, Sodomy & the Lash.
In fact, there are three versions of this song in circulation. During the making of A Rainy Night in Soho, MacGowan and Costello had their creative differences, with Shane favoring the mix that featured a cornet, while Elvis rather preferred an oboe in its stead. So all releases of Poguerty in Motion, except those issued in Canada, feature the cornet version.
Meanwhile, a cut containing both mixes found its way onto the reissue of Poguetry in Motion in 1991, as well as the 2005 reissue of yet another of the band’s earlier studio albums, Hell’s Ditch, which was originally dropped in 1990.
Cover Versions
It should also be pointed out that A Rainy Night in Soho has been covered by some really popular musicians, i.e. Johnny Deep and Bono, as well as Nick Cave.
Interpretation of the Lyrics to this Song
Unfortunately, the late Shane MacGowan had a dependency on alcohol, one which he reportedly developed (through the actions of his father) at a very young age. And the reason we’re bringing that up is because it has been reasonably postulated that the addressee of this song is in fact booze itself.
What has been deemed the most overt lyrical clue in that regard is when, in the fifth verse, the singer refers to ‘sometimes waking up in the morning’ with ‘the ginger lady by his bed’. It has been speculated that he may be talking about an actual lady, i.e. one with reddish hair. But notice how Shane says ‘by his bed’, not in his bed, as you would expect a romantic interest to be.
He then follows that up by making other statements which may imply that he’s not singing about a lover, such as describing the “ginger lady” as being “covered in a cloak of silence”, i.e. as if she can’t speak, yet MacGowan still ‘hearing her talking in his head’, which Genius has concluded is actually a reference to a hangover. So that said, as it currently stands, it’s a matter of debate as to whether the “ginger lady” is an actual woman or a bottle of whiskey.
When you look at all of the lyrics of A Rainy Night in Soho, it is obvious nonetheless that the vocalist and addressee are akin to lifelong friends, i.e. a pair that ‘grew up together’ with the same homeys. This person or personification whom Shane is singing to is also depicted along the lines of being the sole person he can confide in and furthermore, considering they have been together for so long, may be the only one that understands MacGowan. And in the seventh and final verse, he does allude to this entire piece being a double entendre or, as the singer puts it, one where “we may never find out what it means”.
So all things considered, A Rainy Night in Soho can be interpreted in a couple of different ways. For all we know, Shane may well be singing to a really-close friend, perhaps a lover even, who he grew up with and has remained supportive even into the present, including “on a rainy night in Soho” when MacGowan obviously needed some type of assistance or encouragement. And it may be that in the fifth verse, what he is alluding to is being drunk alright, but the person he hears ‘talking in his head’ isn’t the booze but rather said friend, perhaps chastising him for once again getting drunk.
But since we know that Shane was indeed hooked on alcohol (the main picture on his Wikipedia page even shows him holding what appears to be a bottle of liquor) and was for a good while impenitent in that regard, then it isn’t out of the way to believe that this song may be based on that dynamic, i.e. his lifelong relationship with booze.
But that said, A Rainy Night in Soho is a bit loaded, even beyond the singer’s interactions with the addressee, whoever or whatever that may be. And in the sixth verse Shane comes off as if, if this song was indeed inspired by his alcoholism, that he made internal peace with inebriation being a regular part of his life.
