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The fact that he hung on to the mike stand the entire evening no doubt helped his stability as he introduced songs like "Erheswoergotdheghhhh" and "Vichhhterehhggg" -- and let's not forget the classic, "Doneerhagahaerg -- exephg."
The Pogues were notoriously fond of swill.
And Shane is the most notorious Pogue, so no surprises from his whiskey-drenched blood-alcohol reading.
From the first pennywhistle strain and Celtic downbeat, the Commodore dancefloor was in full motion.
Beers and bodies were flying.
It was the all-out, full-frontal party that people expected.
But the Popes -- MacGowan's backup band -- are not the Pogues. And slowly, over the course of the degenerate evening, the differences between the two bubbled to the surface.
Somehow the Pogues were able to fill in the missing gaps left by Shane's frontmanship because they were all showmen -- they were more than willing to stand up there and keep the crowd moving.
And they've proven that now that they're on their own.
This was Shane's show and the Popes were playing the role of backup players, not equal partners.
As a result, it felt like something was missing -- in spite of the relentless pace of the performance and the near miraculous vocals on behalf of MacGowan, who actually improved as the show went on. PAGE 257 The Vancouver Sun, August 29, 1995
Leaning at a 45-degree angle at times against the equipment, MacGowan showered spit and love on to the ecstatic crowd as he pushed through songs off his solo release, The Snake.
Some started to sound Celtic-generic, but when he took a crack at covers ranging from Neil Diamond's classic Cracklin' Rosie to Hippy Hippy Shake, MacGowan's prowess as a blood-and-guts singer really showed.
And that's the attraction of the bad-toothed, hard-drinkin', ugly-lovin' image.
The fact that the man has a clear and serious drinking problem is hardly the point. The point is that his drinking problem is part of the show.
Without it, he'd just be another croaker with a bad attitude and an even worse voice. Which would you choose?