Cait O'Riordan
Encyclopedia
Caitlín O'Riordan is a British musician. She played bass guitar
for the British-Irish punk
/folk
band The Pogues
from 1983 to 1986. She later played with Elvis Costello
, her husband from 1986 to 2002, as well as several other projects.
O'Riordan was born in Nigeria
to Irish
and Scottish
parents who moved to London
in 1967 when the Nigerian Civil War
broke out. She met future Pogues frontman Shane MacGowan
in 1979 while he was playing with his band The Nips
; he invited her to join the Pogues in 1982. She appeared on the group's first two albums, Red Roses for Me
and Rum, Sodomy and the Lash and several early singles, before leaving in 1986. On top of playing bass, she provided vocals for "I'm a Man You Don't Meet Every Day
" on Rum, Sodomy and the Lash and for "Haunted
" on the soundtrack to Alex Cox
's film Sid and Nancy
. She also appeared with the band in the 1987 Alex Cox
film Straight to Hell and had a small role as the dance hall girl Slim McMahon. During that time she also sang in Darryl Hunt
's band Pride of the Cross.
O'Riordan became involved with Elvis Costello
in 1985, while he was producing the Pogues' album Rum, Sodomy and the Lash; they married on 17 May 1986. Her former Pride of the Cross bandmate Darryl Hunt filled in for her on several shows during the Pogues' 1986 U.S. tour, and he replaced her permanently when she left later that year to join Costello on his King of America
tour. With Costello she cowrote the track "Lovable" from King of America, and wrote, cowrote, and appeared on songs on the Costello albums King of America, Blood & Chocolate
, Spike
and Mighty Like a Rose
. O'Riordan and Costello divorced in 2002.
The Pogues' most commercially successful song, "Fairytale of New York
" from If I Should Fall from Grace with God
, was originally envisioned as a duet between O'Riordan and Shane MacGowan; the band eventually recorded it some time later with Kirsty MacColl
singing the female part. O'Riordan and Costello are mentioned in the lyrics to "Fiesta
", another song from If I Should Fall from Grace with God. In 2004, O'Riordan joined Pogues' guitarist Phil Chevron
's re-united band The Radiators From Space
; that year she also toured with the Pogues for the first time in eighteen years. She left the Radiators and was replaced in February 2006 by Jesse Booth, and went on to form a band of divorcées named PreNup with Hothouse Flowers
guitarist Fiachna Ó Braonáin
.
Bass guitar
The bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
for the British-Irish punk
Punk rock
Punk rock is a rock music genre that developed between 1974 and 1976 in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia. Rooted in garage rock and other forms of what is now known as protopunk music, punk rock bands eschewed perceived excesses of mainstream 1970s rock...
/folk
Folk music
Folk music is an English term encompassing both traditional folk music and contemporary folk music. The term originated in the 19th century. Traditional folk music has been defined in several ways: as music transmitted by mouth, as music of the lower classes, and as music with unknown composers....
band The Pogues
The Pogues
The Pogues are a Celtic punk band, formed in 1982 and fronted by Shane MacGowan. The band reached international prominence in the 1980s and early 1990s. MacGowan left the band in 1991 due to drinking problems but the band continued first with Joe Strummer and then with Spider Stacy on vocals before...
from 1983 to 1986. She later played with Elvis Costello
Elvis Costello
Elvis Costello , born Declan Patrick MacManus, is an English singer-songwriter. He came to prominence as an early participant in London's pub rock scene in the mid-1970s and later became associated with the punk/New Wave genre. Steeped in word play, the vocabulary of Costello's lyrics is broader...
, her husband from 1986 to 2002, as well as several other projects.
O'Riordan was born in Nigeria
Nigeria
Nigeria , officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a federal constitutional republic comprising 36 states and its Federal Capital Territory, Abuja. The country is located in West Africa and shares land borders with the Republic of Benin in the west, Chad and Cameroon in the east, and Niger in...
to Irish
Irish people
The Irish people are an ethnic group who originate in Ireland, an island in northwestern Europe. Ireland has been populated for around 9,000 years , with the Irish people's earliest ancestors recorded having legends of being descended from groups such as the Nemedians, Fomorians, Fir Bolg, Tuatha...
and Scottish
Scottish people
The Scottish people , or Scots, are a nation and ethnic group native to Scotland. Historically they emerged from an amalgamation of the Picts and Gaels, incorporating neighbouring Britons to the south as well as invading Germanic peoples such as the Anglo-Saxons and the Norse.In modern use,...
parents who moved to London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
in 1967 when the Nigerian Civil War
Nigerian Civil War
The Nigerian Civil War, also known as the Nigerian-Biafran War, 6 July 1967–15 January 1970, was a political conflict caused by the attempted secession of the southeastern provinces of Nigeria as the self-proclaimed Republic of Biafra...
broke out. She met future Pogues frontman Shane MacGowan
Shane MacGowan
Shane Patrick Lysaght MacGowan is an Irish musician and singer, best known as the original singer and songwriter of The Pogues.-History:...
in 1979 while he was playing with his band The Nips
The Nipple Erectors
The Nipple Erectors are an English punk rock band formed in London in 1976 by female punk artist Shanne Bradley and are notable as Pogues frontman Shane MacGowan's first musical group.-Career:...
; he invited her to join the Pogues in 1982. She appeared on the group's first two albums, Red Roses for Me
Red Roses for Me
Red Roses for Me was the first full length album by the London-based band The Pogues and was released in 1984. It is filled with traditional Irish music performed with punk influences. Traditional songs and ballads mixed with Shane MacGowan's "gutter hymns" about drinking, fighting and sex was...
and Rum, Sodomy and the Lash and several early singles, before leaving in 1986. On top of playing bass, she provided vocals for "I'm a Man You Don't Meet Every Day
I'm a Man You Don't Meet Every Day
"I'm a Man You Don't Meet Every Day" is a traditional Irish song written from the point of view of a rich landowner telling the story of his day while buying drinks at a public house.Various versions of the song exist...
" on Rum, Sodomy and the Lash and for "Haunted
Haunted (Pogues song)
"Haunted" is a 1986 single by the Irish band The Pogues. It was featured on the Sid and Nancy Soundtrack, the original soundtrack for the movie Sid and Nancy. It reached chart position #42 in the UK. Originally sung by Cait O'Riordan, in 1995 the song was re-recorded as a duet between former Pogues...
" on the soundtrack to Alex Cox
Alex Cox
Alexander Cox is a British film director, screenwriter, nonfiction author and sometime actor, notable for his idiosyncratic style and approach to scripts...
's film Sid and Nancy
Sid and Nancy
Sid and Nancy is a 1986 British biopic directed by Alex Cox. The film portrays the life of Sid Vicious , bassist of the seminal punk rock band the Sex Pistols, and his relationship with girlfriend Nancy Spungen .-Plot:The film opens with several police officers dragging Sid Vicious out of the Hotel...
. She also appeared with the band in the 1987 Alex Cox
Alex Cox
Alexander Cox is a British film director, screenwriter, nonfiction author and sometime actor, notable for his idiosyncratic style and approach to scripts...
film Straight to Hell and had a small role as the dance hall girl Slim McMahon. During that time she also sang in Darryl Hunt
Darryl Hunt (musician)
Darryl Hunt is an English musician, most famous as the bassist of The Pogues from 1986 until their breakup ten years later...
's band Pride of the Cross.
O'Riordan became involved with Elvis Costello
Elvis Costello
Elvis Costello , born Declan Patrick MacManus, is an English singer-songwriter. He came to prominence as an early participant in London's pub rock scene in the mid-1970s and later became associated with the punk/New Wave genre. Steeped in word play, the vocabulary of Costello's lyrics is broader...
in 1985, while he was producing the Pogues' album Rum, Sodomy and the Lash; they married on 17 May 1986. Her former Pride of the Cross bandmate Darryl Hunt filled in for her on several shows during the Pogues' 1986 U.S. tour, and he replaced her permanently when she left later that year to join Costello on his King of America
King of America
King of America is the tenth studio album by the British rock singer and songwriter Elvis Costello, released in 1986 in the United Kingdom as F-Beat ZL 70946, and in the United States as Columbia JC 40173. It was billed as by "The Costello Show featuring the Attractions and Confederates" in the UK...
tour. With Costello she cowrote the track "Lovable" from King of America, and wrote, cowrote, and appeared on songs on the Costello albums King of America, Blood & Chocolate
Blood and Chocolate (album)
Blood & Chocolate is the eleventh studio album by the British rock singer and songwriter Elvis Costello, released in the United Kingdom as Demon Records XFIEND 80, and in the United States as Columbia 40518...
, Spike
Spike (Elvis Costello album)
Spike is the 12th studio album by the British rock singer and songwriter Elvis Costello, released on and compact disc as Warner Brothers 25848. It was his first album for the label. It peaked at #5 on the UK album chart, and at #32 on the Billboard 200....
and Mighty Like a Rose
Mighty Like a Rose
Mighty Like A Rose is the 13th studio album by the British rock singer and songwriter Elvis Costello, released in 1991 on compact disc as Warner Brothers 26575. The title is presumably a reference to the pop standard "Mighty Lak' a Rose", and although that song does not appear on the album, the...
. O'Riordan and Costello divorced in 2002.
The Pogues' most commercially successful song, "Fairytale of New York
Fairytale of New York
"Fairytale of New York" is a song by the Irish rock group The Pogues, released in 1987 and featuring the British singer Kirsty MacColl. The song is an Irish folk style ballad, written by Jem Finer and Shane MacGowan, and featured on The Pogues' album If I Should Fall from Grace with God...
" from If I Should Fall from Grace with God
If I Should Fall from Grace with God
If I Should Fall from Grace with God was well-received by critics. Mark Deming of Allmusic awarded the album four and a half out of five stars, calling it "the best album the Pogues would ever make." Robert Christgau gave the album a B+ and said that "neither pop nor rock nor disco crossover stays...
, was originally envisioned as a duet between O'Riordan and Shane MacGowan; the band eventually recorded it some time later with Kirsty MacColl
Kirsty MacColl
Kirsty Anna MacColl was an English singer-songwriter.MacColl scored several pop hits from the early 1980s to the early 1990s...
singing the female part. O'Riordan and Costello are mentioned in the lyrics to "Fiesta
Fiesta (The Pogues song)
"Fiesta" is a single by The Pogues, featured on their 1988 album If I Should Fall from Grace with God. It was written by Jem Finer and Shane MacGowan, based on a Spanish fairground melody Finer had picked up...
", another song from If I Should Fall from Grace with God. In 2004, O'Riordan joined Pogues' guitarist Phil Chevron
Phil Chevron
Philip Ryan , professionally known as Philip Chevron, is an Irish singer, songwriter and guitarist. He is best known as the guitarist for The Pogues.-Career:...
's re-united band The Radiators From Space
The Radiators From Space
The Radiators From Space are an Irish punk rock band. The band formed in 1975 in Dublin, originally under the name Greta Garbage and the Trashcans, and consisted of Philip Chevron , Pete Holidai, Steve Rapid, Jimmy Crashe and Mark Megaray. They were one of the earliest punk rock bands...
; that year she also toured with the Pogues for the first time in eighteen years. She left the Radiators and was replaced in February 2006 by Jesse Booth, and went on to form a band of divorcées named PreNup with Hothouse Flowers
Hothouse Flowers
The Hothouse Flowers are an Irish rock group that combines traditional Irish music with influences from soul, gospel and rock.-Career:The group first formed in 1985 when Liam Ó Maonlaí and Fiachna Ó Braonáin began performing as street musicians, or buskers, on the streets of Dublin,Ireland as "The...
guitarist Fiachna Ó Braonáin
Fiachna Ó Braonáin
Fiachna Ó Braonáin plays the guitar and sings vocals with the Irish band Hothouse Flowers. Born in Dublin, he received his school education at Scoil Lorcáin and Coláiste Eoin...
.