Bruce Springsteen to honour Shane MacGowan with cover of The Pogues classic ‘A Rainy Night in Soho’
Bruce Springsteen is set to honour the late Shane MacGowan by releasing a cover version of The Pogues’ iconic hit, ‘A Rainy Night in Soho’.
The news was announced on March 10th via MacGowan’s social media channels, in a post that was also shared by Springsteen. It said: “Our very good friend Bruce has recorded a beautiful version of ‘A Rainy Night in Soho’.”
The announcement added: “It’s a stunning tribute to Shane’s songwriting and it’s out on Thursday! You can presave it at the link in bio now.”
It comes after Springsteen previously performed a live version of the Pogues classic during his show at Nowlan Park in Kilkenny in May 2024, paying tribute to the late frontman after he passed away from pneumonia in November 2023.
Over the course of their respective careers, MacGowan and ‘The Boss’ struck up a strong friendship, with the latter visiting the frontman of The Pogues at his home in Ireland when he was playing in Dublin in the summer of 2023.
At the time, MacGowan’s partner, Victoria Mary Clarke, posted a photo of the two icons on Instagram and wrote: “It is also wonderful to see that a person can be extremely successful in his field and still massively generous in his admiration for other musicians and writers. Extreme kudos and gratitude for the visit to me and [Shane MacGowan]!”
When MacGowan ultimately passed away a few months later, Springsteen paid tribute to him by saying he was one of his “all-time favourite writers” and that even though he spent time with him when he was “very ill”, he was “still beautifully present in his heart and spirit”.
As such, Springsteen has now committed his reverence to MacGowan on tape, with his version of ‘A Rainy Night in Soho’ coming as his next new single in a matter of weeks.
He previously shared the protest song ‘Streets of Minneapolis’ in January, in response to the killings of Renee Good and Alex Pretti by ICE agents in Minnesota.
‘The Boss’ is also set to kick off a new US leg of his Land of Hope and Dreams tour in Minneapolis at the end of this month, before taking it across the country to cities such as Chicago, New York, and Washington.
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