What this blog is and how to use it

This blog contains poems that have caught my attention over the years. Many of the poems I've discussed and explored with 16 -19 year old students in my capacity as lecturer in English.

Browse the list of poems by scrolling down the page or read the titles of poems or names of poets in the sidebar 'Poem Titles and Poets'. Then click on the title or poet.

Monday 18 December 2023

Fairytale of New York written by Jem Finer and Shane MacGowan

Shane MacGowan


Verse 1: Shane MacGowan]

It was Christmas Eve, babe, in the drunk tank
An old man said to me, "Won't see another one"
And then he sang a song, 'The Rare Old Mountain Dew'
I turned my face away and dreamed about you

[Verse 2: Shane MacGowan]

Got on a lucky one, came in eighteen-to-one
I've got a feeling this year's for me and you
So, Happy Christmas, I love you, baby
I can see a better time when all our dreams come true

[Verse 3: Kirsty MacColl]

They've got cars big as bars, they've got rivers of gold
But the wind goes right through you, it's no place for the old
When you first took my hand on a cold Christmas Eve
You promised me Broadway was waiting for me

[Verse 4: Kirsty MacColl & Shane MacGowan & Together]

You were handsome, you were pretty, queen of New York City
When the band finished playing, they howled out for more
Sinatra was swinging, all the drunks, they were singing
We kissed on a corner, then danced through the night

[Chorus: Shane Macgowan & Kirsty MacColl]

The boys of the NYPD choir
Were singing, "Galway Bay"
And the bells were ringing out
For Christmas Day

[Verse 5: Kirsty MacColl & Shane MacGowan]

You're a bum, you're a punk, you're an old slut on junk
Lying there almost dead on a drip in that bed
You scumbag, you maggot, you cheap, lousy faggot
Happy Christmas, your arse, I pray God it's our last

[Chorus: Shane Macgowan & Kirsty MacColl]

The boys of the NYPD choir
Still singing, "Galway Bay"
And the bells are ringing out
For Christmas Day

[Verse 6: Kirsty MacColl & Shane MacGowan]

"I could have been someone" Well, so could anyone
You took my dreams from me when I first found you
I kept them with me, babe, I put them with my own
Can't make it all alone, I've built my dreams around you

[Outro: Shane Macgowan & Kirsty MacColl]

The boys of the NYPD choir
Still singing, "Galway Bay"
And the bells are ringing out
For Christmas Day

Click here for a detailed analysis of the lyrics

And click here for my tribute to Shane MacGowan