U2 Covers The Pogues In Honor Of Shane MacGowan

U2 resumed their run at the Las Vegas Sphere on Friday night and paid tribute to Shane Macgowan of the influential Irish rock band The Pogues. MacGowan died on Thursday, November 30 at age 65.

The tribute to MacGowan came during the stripped-down portion of the show performed on the Brian Eno-designed turntable stage. The segment began with the Rattle And Hum track “All I Want Is You.” Frontman Bono led a seamless transition into The Pogues’ “A Rainy Night In Soho.”

“Sing with us for Shane MacGowan,” Bono said in the middle of the cover. “Give us your ‘la-la-la’ America!” Bono then altered the lyrics, singing “MacGowan’s song is never over.”

On social media, U2 further expressed their admiration for MacGowan, writing:

“Shane MacGowan’s songs were perfect so he or we his fans didn’t have to be…”

“A Rainy Night In Soho” was written by MacGowan and released on The Pogues 1986 EP, Poguetry In Motion. The song was performed by Bono with actor/musician Johnny Depp at MacGowan’s all-star 60th birthday concert held in January 2018 at The National Concert Hall in Dublin, Ireland. MacGowan later called that performance “all right.”

Watch audience-recorded video footage from Friday night of U2 covering The Pogues’ “A Rainy Night In Soho” below: