The Pogues Rum, Sodomy & the Lash

4 stars out of 5 -- "[S]ome of the purest toothless lyricism in punk-rock history."
"[The album] found the band grooming its folk/punk sound a bit, but with a subsequent leap forward in lyrical and thematic complexity."
"[O]ne of rock's most gleefully misanthropic albums, a catalog of the vilest, basest impulses in the human psyche....One of the few genuinely radical albums of the '80s."
Ranked #93 in Q's "100 Greatest British Albums" - "...Shane MacGowan articulated the aspirations and disappointments of the London Irish, fuelled by drink and despair....The Pogues were as tight as a metal band..."
Ranked #36 in Spin's "50 Most Essential Punk Records" - "...Shane MacGowan sees the Pistols, then decides jigs can tear shit up as good as Stooges riffs..."
Ranked #22 in NME's list of the '50 Greatest Albums Of The '80s.'
Ranked #86 in NME's list of the 'Greatest Albums Of All Time.'
Ranked #79 in AP's list of the 'Top 99 Of '85-'95' - "...RUM, SODOMY, AND THE LASH is equally a landmark punk record and an authentic Irish cultural document. With lovelorn drunks, bustling taverns, beautiful countrysides and misbegotten encounters with the law, MacGowan's songs here are practically lyrical poetry and tributes to Irish literary heroes such as James Joyce..."
5 stars out of 5 - "The crucial edge was still in place but their sound had expanded....A masterpiece? Absolutely."