Many of you know this story. On last year's US tour, the Pogues cancelled one show, at the last minute, due to an injury to lead singer Shane MacGowan. I didn't find out until I had traveled all the way to NYC, and was standing in front of Roseland, where notices of the cancellation was posted. I cursed all the way back to Grand Central, and vowed never to buy tickets to a Pogues show again.
Then they went on sale this year.
I bought a pair of tickets to the Roseland show on the day before St. Patty's (I'm too old, cynical and delicate to brave the streets and the club on that holiday). Yesterday, I found out that Billy Bragg will be a special guest on the one and only night for which I purchased tickets. I feel as if a little bit of the luck of the Irish has been spread before me. But I won't count my chickens until the night of the show.
BTW, Bragg's new album will be out just before his US appearance.
The ultimate coincidence is that I was introduced to both of these artists in a trip to Britain in 1984 where I saw the Pogues open for Elvis Costello at the Hammersmith Odeon, and I heard Billy Bragg for the first time when John Peel played a new cut over the radio as I was heading to Bacup for the wedding of a friend.
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