Listen to A Rainy Night in Soho, then Bottle of Smoke. In the first, time seems to slow for the length of a love-soaked memory; in the second, everything hurtles along around a bet at the races. Both songs are by Shane MacGowan, and the contrast between them gives a good sense of what awaits listeners on 20th Century Paddy – The Songs of Shane MacGowan. The tribute album is due for release on Friday 13 November 2026, featuring Bruce Springsteen, U2, Hozier, Jessie Buckley and a recording by Glen Hansard.
A Shane MacGowan tribute album that takes the songs one by one
From Soho to the racecourse, the same eye for detail
The record was announced in March by Victoria Mary Clarke and Irish label Rubyworks. Its title is taken from that of an album Shane MacGowan had once planned to make himself. The list of performers and songs, unveiled in May, shows the scale of the project: songs that move from nocturnal London to an Ireland of departures and homecomings, performed by artists who do not all come from the same musical world.
Glen Hansard’s cover of Bottle of Smoke was released on 30 October, according to RTÉ. It is a posthumous recording: Hansard died in July 2026. He led the music at MacGowan’s funeral in Nenagh, County Tipperary, where he took part in a performance of Fairytale of New York, among other songs. Yet on this album, it is a racing song that he leaves behind: a full-tilt story in which the thrill of the bet lies as much in the rush of the words as in the tale they tell.
Which covers should you start with?
Springsteen for the ballad, Hozier and Jessie Buckley for the dialogue
A Rainy Night in Soho, entrusted to Bruce Springsteen and unveiled in March, is a good place to start if you know the Pogues mainly for their punk energy. The song rests on the way one voice addresses another and brings years of memories to the surface. Then move on to Fairytale of New York, performed by Hozier and Jessie Buckley: behind its status as a Christmas classic lies a two-voice scene, with dreams of emigration and promises colliding with reality.
U2 and Tom Waits at opposite ends of the album
U2’s cover of Yeah, Yeah, Yeah, Yeah, Yeah, already released, recalls the electric side of the repertoire. Tom Waits, meanwhile, appears on the tracklist with Summer in Siam. Between these two songs, it becomes clear how much would be lost by reducing the Pogues to a single pub atmosphere: MacGowan could write the clamour of a night out as well as the moments when the party dies down.
When can you listen to 20th Century Paddy?
The full release is due on 13 November
Several covers are already available, and Rubyworks has announced the full album for Friday. The label also states that 50% of the artists’ royalties will be donated to Dublin Simon Community, which helps people experiencing homelessness. To hear what the guest artists bring to the songs, the simplest approach is to listen to each cover alongside the original: the lyrics remain the same, but a voice that holds back a word, or lets it drift away, can change the way you hear the whole story.
