Caitlín O'Riordan (born 4 January 1965) is a British musician of Irish and Scottish descent.
She played bass guitar for the Irish
punk
Punk or punks may refer to:
Genres, subculture, and related aspects
* Punk rock, a music genre originating in the 1970s associated with various subgenres
* Punk subculture, a subculture associated with punk rock, or aspects of the subculture s ...
/
folk
Folk or Folks may refer to:
Sociology
*Nation
*People
* Folklore
** Folk art
** Folk dance
** Folk hero
** Folk music
*** Folk metal
*** Folk punk
*** Folk rock
** Folk religion
* Folk taxonomy
Arts, entertainment, and media
* Folk Plus or Fol ...
band
the Pogues
The Pogues were an English or Anglo-Irish Celtic punk band fronted by Shane MacGowan and others, founded in Kings Cross, London in 1982, as "Pogue Mahone" – the anglicisation of the Irish Gaelic ''póg mo thóin'', meaning "kiss my arse ...
from 1983 to 1986. She later played with
Elvis Costello
Declan Patrick MacManus OBE (born 25 August 1954), known professionally as Elvis Costello, is an English singer-songwriter and record producer. He has won multiple awards in his career, including a Grammy Award in 2020, and has twice been nom ...
(her husband from 1986 to 2002) as well as several other projects. She uses the name Rocky O'Riordan on social media and for her
Sirius-XM radio show, ''The Rocky O'Riordan Show''.
Biography
Caitlín O'Riordan was born in Nigeria to Irish and Scottish parents, who moved to London when the
Nigerian Civil War
The Nigerian Civil War (6 July 1967 – 15 January 1970), also known as the Nigerian–Biafran War or the Biafran War, was a civil war fought between Nigeria and the Republic of Biafra, a secessionist state which had declared its independence f ...
broke out in 1967.
[ She heard ]the Nips
''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things that are already or about to be mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in ...
' song "Gabrielle" on the radio in 1979, and subsequently met future Pogues
The Pogues were an English or Anglo-Irish Celtic punk band fronted by Shane MacGowan and others, founded in Kings Cross, London in 1982, as "Pogue Mahone" – the anglicisation of the Irish Gaelic ''póg mo thóin'', meaning "kiss my arse". ...
' frontman Shane MacGowan
Shane Patrick Lysaght MacGowan (born 25 December 1957) is an Irish singer, songwriter, and musician. He is best known as the lead singer and songwriter of Celtic punk band the Pogues. He was also a member of the Nipple Erectors and Shane MacG ...
, who was working at Rocks Off Records, where she went to purchase the record.
In 1982, she was invited by MacGowan to join his newly forming band Pogue Mahone. She appeared on the group's first two albums, ''Red Roses for Me
''Red Roses for Me'' is the debut studio album by the London-based band the Pogues, released on 15 October 1984. It was produced by Stan Brennan, who had managed the Nipple Erectors/ The Nips and Rocks Off Records shop in London.
Overview
''R ...
'' and ''Rum Sodomy & the Lash
''Rum Sodomy & the Lash'' is the second studio album by the London-based folk punk band The Pogues, released on 5 August 1985. The album reached number 13 on the UK charts. The track " A Pair of Brown Eyes", based on an older Irish tune, reached ...
, the EP Poguetry in Motion'', and several early singles, before leaving in 1986. Besides 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" ( Roud 975) is a traditional Scottish or Irish music hall song written from the point of view of a rich landowner telling the story of his day while buying drinks at a public house. According to Archie Fisher, ...
" on ''Rum Sodomy & the Lash'', and for " Haunted" on the soundtrack to Alex Cox
Alexander B. H. Cox (born 15 December 1954) is an English film director, screenwriter, actor, non-fiction author and broadcaster. Cox experienced success early in his career with '' Repo Man'' and '' Sid and Nancy'', but since the release and c ...
's film ''Sid and Nancy
''Sid and Nancy'' (also known as ''Sid and Nancy: Love Kills'') is a 1986 British biographical film directed by Alex Cox, co-written with Abbe Wool, and starring Gary Oldman and Chloe Webb. The film portrays the life of Sid Vicious, bassist of ...
''. The Pogues' most commercially successful song, "Fairytale of New York
"Fairytale of New York" is a song written by Jem Finer and Shane MacGowan and recorded by their London-based band the Pogues, featuring singer-songwriter Kirsty MacColl on vocals. The song is an Irish folk-style ballad and was written as a du ...
" from ''If I Should Fall from Grace with God
''If I Should Fall from Grace with God'' is the third studio album by Irish folk-punk band the Pogues, released on 18 January 1988. Released in the wake of their biggest hit single, "Fairytale of New York", ''If I Should Fall from Grace with God ...
'', was written as a duet for O'Riordan and MacGowan, but the band eventually recorded it with Kirsty MacColl
Kirsty Anna MacColl (10 October 1959 – 18 December 2000) was a British singer and songwriter, daughter of folk singer Ewan MacColl. She recorded several pop hits in the 1980s and 1990s, including " There's a Guy Works Down the Chip Shop Swears H ...
singing the female part. O'Riordan and Costello are mentioned in the lyrics to " Fiesta" from ''If I Should Fall from Grace with God''.
In 1983, she became the singer in Darryl Hunt
Darryl Hunt (February 24, 1965 – March 13, 2016) was an African-American man from Winston-Salem, North Carolina, who, in 1984, was wrongfully convicted and sentenced to life imprisonment for the rape and the murder of Deborah Sykes, a young wh ...
's jazz band Pride of the Cross
Pride is defined by Merriam-Webster as "reasonable self-esteem" or "confidence and satisfaction in oneself". A healthy amount of pride is good, however, pride sometimes is used interchangeably with "conceit" or "arrogance" (among other words) wh ...
. Hunt had originally planned to ask Wendy May of the Boothill Foot Tappers to be the singer. When he told O'Riordan, she laughed at him and said she ought to do it. At the audition the band told her that she couldn't sing. During her time with Pride of the Cross, she sang lead on their only single, "Tommy's Blue Valentine".
She acted in the 1987 Alex Cox film, '' Straight to Hell'', as the singing dancehall girl Slim McMahon, and also in the 1988 Frank Deasy
Frank Deasy (19 May 1959 – 17 September 2009) was an Irish screenwriter. He won an Emmy Award for the television series ''Prime Suspect'' and was also nominated for his works, '' Looking After Jo Jo'' and '' The Grass Arena''. His other work ...
film '' The Courier''.
O'Riordan became involved with Elvis Costello
Declan Patrick MacManus OBE (born 25 August 1954), known professionally as Elvis Costello, is an English singer-songwriter and record producer. He has won multiple awards in his career, including a Grammy Award in 2020, and has twice been nom ...
in 1985, while he was producing the Pogues' album ''Rum Sodomy & 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'' is the tenth studio album by British rock singer and songwriter Elvis Costello, credited to "The Costello Show featuring the Attractions and Confederates" in the UK and Europe and to "The Costello Show featuring Elvis Costel ...
'' tour.
She co-wrote the track "Lovable" from that album, and wrote, co-wrote, and appeared on songs on Costello's subsequent albums '' Blood & Chocolate'', '' Spike'' and '' Mighty Like a Rose''. O'Riordan and Costello divorced in 2002. In a 2008 interview with the ''Irish Independent
The ''Irish Independent'' is an Irish daily newspaper and online publication which is owned by Independent News & Media (INM), a subsidiary of Mediahuis.
The newspaper version often includes glossy magazines.
Traditionally a broadsheet n ...
'', she denied ever having formally married Costello: "We weren't married...It was a kind of Muslim 'I divorce you' kind of thing."
In 2004, she joined Pogues' guitarist Phil Chevron's re-united band the Radiators; that year she toured with the Pogues for the first time in 18 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 are an Irish rock band that combine traditional Irish music with influences from soul, gospel, and rock. Formed in 1985 in Dublin, they started as street performers. Their first album, ''People'' (1988), was the most success ...
guitarist Fiachna Ó Braonáin
Fiachna Ó Braonáin (born 27 November 1965) 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. The Hothouse Flowers were founded as a ...
.
In 2018 O'Riordan joined Pogues tin whistle player Spider Stacy
Peter Richard "Spider" Stacy (born 14 December 1958, Eastbourne) is an English musician, singer, songwriter, and actor. He is best known for playing tin whistle and sometimes singing for The Pogues.
Early life
Stacy left school at 16 after f ...
to perform Pogues songs accompanied by Cajun music
Cajun music (french: Musique cadienne), an emblematic music of Louisiana played by the Cajuns, is rooted in the ballads of the French-speaking Acadians of Canada. Although they are two separate genres, Cajun music is often mentioned in tandem w ...
band Lost Bayou Ramblers under the name Poguetry. In February and March 2020 Poguetry played an eight date tour of the US.
Since 2020 O'Riordan has hosted a weekly radio show, "The Rocky O'Riordan Show" on U2-X Radio, an artist-branded channel which is part of SiriusXM
Sirius XM Holdings Inc. is an American broadcasting company headquartered in Midtown Manhattan, New York City that provides satellite radio and online radio services operating in the United States. It was formed by the 2008 merger of Sirius Sat ...
.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Oriordan, Cait
1965 births
British bass guitarists
British people of Irish descent
British people of Scottish descent
Living people
Musicians from London
The Pogues members
Elvis Costello
Women bass guitarists
British expatriates in Nigeria
The Radiators from Space members
20th-century British musicians
21st-century British musicians