U2 pay tribute to one of the great figures of Irish music. Bono’s band have just unveiled their own version of Yeah, Yeah, Yeah, Yeah, Yeah, a Shane MacGowan track recorded by The Pogues in 1988. The energetic cover heralds a far broader project: an impressive tribute album bringing together Bruce Springsteen, Hozier, Tom Waits, Glen Hansard and The Pogues, among others, to celebrate the songs of the legendary Irish artist.
U2 cover a classic Shane MacGowan track
The Irish band revisit Yeah, Yeah, Yeah, Yeah, Yeah
Two giants of Irish music come together. U2 unveiled a cover of Yeah, Yeah, Yeah, Yeah, Yeah on Friday 28 August 2026, a song written by Shane MacGowan and recorded by The Pogues in the late 1980s.
The original track was released in 1988. More direct and rock-driven than some of Shane MacGowan’s more melancholic compositions, it perfectly illustrates the blend of punk energy and distinctive songwriting that helped make The Pogues a band apart in the history of Irish music.
U2 now offer their own take on the song, retaining its energy while adding the instantly recognisable sound of the Dublin band.
But this cover is not a standalone release. It forms part of one of the year’s most impressive Irish music projects.
A major tribute album to Shane MacGowan
20th Century Paddy will be released on 13 November 2026
U2’s cover will feature on 20th Century Paddy – The Songs of Shane MacGowan, an album entirely dedicated to the compositions of The Pogues’ former frontman.
It is scheduled for release on 13 November 2026.
The project was developed in close collaboration with Victoria Mary Clarke, Shane MacGowan’s wife, and his sister Siobhan MacGowan, alongside Irish label Rubyworks.
Its title also has a particular history: 20th Century Paddy takes its name from a project Shane MacGowan had once considered making himself.
The album’s premise is simple: entrust MacGowan’s songs to artists from very different generations and musical worlds.
Bruce Springsteen, Hozier, Tom Waits… an impressive line-up
International stars and leading names from the Irish music scene
U2 are far from the only band taking part in this tribute.
Bruce Springsteen has recorded a new version of A Rainy Night in Soho, while Hozier and Jessie Buckley have taken on the essential Fairytale of New York.
The line-up also includes Tom Waits, Glen Hansard, Bob Geldof, David Gray, Steve Earle, Primal Scream, The Libertines, The Jesus and Mary Chain, Kingfishr, Damien Dempsey, Lisa O’Neill, Moya Brennan and The High Kings.
Johnny Depp and Imelda May, meanwhile, perform Haunted.
The Pogues themselves take part in the project with a new rendition of Gabrielle.
In total, the album will bring together 36 tracks, painting a broad musical portrait of Shane MacGowan and the considerable influence he exerted on several generations of artists.
The Edge pays tribute to Shane MacGowan’s genius
A songwriter able to bring together traditional Ireland and punk
To mark the track’s release, The Edge reflected on what, in his view, made Shane MacGowan so distinctive.
U2’s guitarist spoke in particular of an artist able to bring together worlds that seemed difficult to reconcile: Irish folk tradition, political memory, black humour and romanticism.
He places MacGowan’s world symbolically somewhere between the Irish pub storyteller and the punk scene, between the writer John B. Keane and The Clash.
It is a description that neatly sums up The Pogues’ importance in the history of Irish music. In the 1980s, the band succeeded in incorporating traditional Irish instruments and melodies into music fuelled by the energy of British punk.
That combination gave rise to an instantly identifiable sound and helped introduce a new form of Irish music to a vast international audience.
U2 and Shane MacGowan already had a connection
Bono paid tribute to the singer hours after his death
This new cover also has a personal dimension for U2.
Shane MacGowan died on 30 November 2023, aged 65. The following day, U2 paid tribute to him on stage during their Las Vegas residency.
Bono and his fellow musicians incorporated passages from A Rainy Night in Soho into their concert, dedicating the moment to The Pogues’ former singer.
Bono and Shane MacGowan had also shared the stage in the past, notably at a concert held at New York’s Carnegie Hall in 2009.
U2’s presence on 20th Century Paddy is therefore part of a long-standing relationship and admiration.
An album that will support homeless people in Dublin
A significant share of royalties will go to Dublin Simon Community
The tribute will not be solely musical.
At least 50% of the artist royalties generated by the album will be donated to Dublin Simon Community, an organisation supporting homeless people and those facing housing-related exclusion in the Dublin area.
The decision extends a cause that was particularly close to Shane MacGowan’s heart.
In 2021, the singer took part in Dublin’s celebrated Christmas Eve Busk. It was his last public performance before his death. Since his passing, a MacGowan song has been performed every year at the event in his memory.
When will the Shane MacGowan tribute album be released?
Save the date: 13 November 2026
20th Century Paddy – The Songs of Shane MacGowan will be available from 13 November 2026 on streaming platforms and in several physical editions.
U2’s cover of Yeah, Yeah, Yeah, Yeah, Yeah is available now.
Following releases by Bruce Springsteen, Johnny Depp and Imelda May, and Kingfishr, this new release offers a further glimpse of the project’s scale.
Nearly three years after Shane MacGowan’s death, his songs continue to bring together some of the biggest names in Irish and international music.
