Search - Pogues :: Streams of Whiskey

Horrible Recording

Gavin | California | 11/29/2002

(1 out of 5 stars)

"This is a horrible CD. It was actually released without the permission of The Pogues and they (The Pogues) ask you to please not purchase it."

"Whiskey" or the Reunion album?

Grunt Hog | Vancouver, Canada | 04/24/2006

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Recorded at a gig in Leysin, Switzerland on July 12, 1991, this album originally circulated as a bootleg known as "Live on Rain Street" before it was reissued as an "official" album release in 2002. The band members themselves have protested its release, and request that you instead purchase the live CD from their 2001 reunion performance at the Brixton Academy, available as Disc 2 of the Pogues Ultimate Collection.



Amazon reviewers of the 2001 reunion show have praised that disc, while reviewers on this page have been quite harsh to "Streams of Whiskey." Which is the better disc? Are the harsh reviews of this album justified?



For my money this is by far the better disc. It is an absolute gem of a performance that has been unjustly maligned, while the 2001 reunion show has been a little over-hyped. The fact is, The Pogues were an untouchable live act from their inception in 1984 through to their parting with Shane MacGowan later in 1991. While it's nice to see the older, chubbier Pogues get together again and relive past glories, the reunion show simply doesn't capture the band during its 1984-1991 peak. "Streams of Whiskey," despite its sometimes questionable sound quality, does. That makes it essential listening to any Pogues fan and an important document of what this band sounded like while they were still riding that wave where it seemed they could do no wrong.



As for the sound quality: yes, the recording on the 2001 reunion show is much better, while this one seems unprofessionally recorded and sloppily mixed at times. But the messy quality does not detract from the excellent performance the band puts on, and really, what is more important?. I'd rather have a poorly recorded excellent performance any day than a well-recorded lousy performance. Besides, the sound quality isn't *that* bad; critics make much too big a deal over this.



Ignore the naysayers, and indeed the band themselves, you owe it to yourself to get this disc. I put off getting it for a long time because of the bad reviews, but once I heard it I felt foolish for shying away from such a great disc. It's The Pogues in their prime, and you can't go wrong with that."

Not as bad as others will lead you to think

Chris Simmons | 06/17/2003

(3 out of 5 stars)

"i guess this falls into the same category as the Clash's "Cut The Crap" album. One person says its bad so others will think the same. this is not a bad quality live recording (trust me, you can do worst), but it's not the best. i must admit it has good stuff on it (especially rain street). but then again shane sounds drunk... its not a bad recording, just keep that in mind, but you will probably want to wait for the re-union album."