"Dirty Old Town" is a song written by Ewan MacColl in 1949 that was made popular by

the Dubliners The Dubliners () were an Folk music of Ireland, Irish folk band founded in Dublin in 1962 as The Ronnie Drew Ballad Group, named after its founding member; they subsequently renamed themselves The Dubliners. The line-up saw many changes in pers ...

and

the Pogues The Pogues are an English Celtic punk band founded in King's Cross, London, in 1982, by Shane MacGowan, Spider Stacy and Jem Finer. Originally named Pogue Mahone—an anglicisation of the Irish language, Irish phrase :wikt:póg mo thóin, ''p� ...

History

The song was written about

Salford Salford ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city in Greater Manchester, England, on the western bank of the River Irwell which forms its boundary with Manchester city centre. Landmarks include the former Salford Town Hall, town hall, ...

, then in

Lancashire Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated ''Lancs'') is a ceremonial county in North West England. It is bordered by Cumbria to the north, North Yorkshire and West Yorkshire to the east, Greater Manchester and Merseyside to the south, and the Irish Sea to ...

, England, the area where MacColl was born and brought up. It was originally composed for the 1949 play ''Landscape with Chimneys'', produced by

Joan Littlewood Joan Maud Littlewood (6 October 1914 – 20 September 2002) was an English theatre director who trained at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art and is best known for her work in developing the Theatre Workshop. She has been called "The Mother of M ...

and

Theatre Workshop Theatre Workshop is a theatre group whose long-serving director was Joan Littlewood. Many actors of the 1950s and 1960s received their training and first exposure with the company, many of its productions were transferred to theatres in the West ...

and set in a North of England industrial town. With the growing popularity of

folk music Folk music is a music genre that includes #Traditional folk music, traditional folk music and the Contemporary folk music, contemporary genre that evolved from the former during the 20th-century folk revival. Some types of folk music may be ca ...

in the 1960s the song became a standard in the repertory of British folk club singers. In a BBC radio documentary about “Dirty Old Town”, Professor Ben Harker (author of ''Class Act: The Cultural and Political Life of Ewan MacColl'', 2007, Pluto Press) explains that although MacColl later claimed the song was written as an interlude "to cover an awkward scene change", studying the script of the play ''Landscape with Chimneys'' reveals the song occurs at the beginning and at the end of the play. Harker argues the song is important to the play because “it captures the movement from dreamy optimism and romance to militancy, frustration and anger. That’s the trajectory of the song and of the play.” The first verse refers to the "gasworks croft" which was a piece of open land adjacent to Salford gasworks, and then speaks of the old canal, which was the Manchester, Bolton & Bury Canal. The line in the original version about smelling a spring on “the Salford wind” is sometimes sung as “the sulphured wind”. But in any case, most singers tend to drop the Salford reference altogether, in favour of calling the wind “smoky”. (This is the case in MacColl's own 1983 recording of the song.)

The Pogues version

Released on ''

Rum Sodomy & the Lash ''Rum Sodomy & the Lash'' is the second studio album by the London-based, Irish 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, ...

'' in 1985, the Pogues' version reached number 62 in the UK and 27 in the Irish charts when released as a single. It has been certified Silver for sales. The Pogues' version of the song is played during the team walk-on at Salford City FC.

Reception

John Leland at ''

Spin Spin or spinning most often refers to: * Spin (physics) or particle spin, a fundamental property of elementary particles * Spin quantum number, a number which defines the value of a particle's spin * Spinning (textiles), the creation of yarn or thr ...

'' called the song, "a sparse melancholy reminiscence of love in an industrial sewer. The Pogues are a crudely affecting bunch of romantics."

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Mus ...

said, "while Shane MacGowan may not have written "Dirty Old Town", his wrought, emotionally compelling vocals made this from then on."

Charts

The Dubliners version

The Dubliners recorded "Dirty Old Town" as part of their 1966 album ''Drinkin' and Courtin. Luke Kelly, lead singer of the Irish band, claimed in live performances that the song was a "love song" to Salford.

Certifications

References

External links

Discussion of lyrics
at The Mudcat Cafe
Material on Salford Gasworks
at The National Archives {{authority control 1949 songs The Dubliners songs Rod Stewart songs The Pogues songs Songs written by Ewan MacColl 1956 singles 1968 singles Major Minor Records singles The Specials songs British songs Salford City F.C. Esther & Abi Ofarim songs