Spider Stacy on the Pogues, Lost Bayou Ramblers, and ‘A Fairytale of New York’

Spider Stacy met Shane MacGowan at a Ramones gig in England when they were both teens. Shortly after, they formed the Pogues, a band that merged folk styling and punk rock delivery with Irish rebel songs. Then Spider learned how to play the tin whistle. He talks to Pat Healy about how to deal with unreliable band members, a new Pogues musical, playing with Joe Strummer, and his current Poguetry tour with original Pogues bassist Cait O’Riordan and the New Orleans band Lost Bayou Ramblers. He also explains why you don’t need a doctorate to know how to hit yourself on the head with a beer tray.