Top 10 Drinking Songs

With St Patrick's day this weekend we wanted to feature an Irish themed Top 10. It was a toss up between 'Top 10 Lead Singers Who Look Like Leprechauns' and this...So what better way to get in the mood than with this drinking playlist. These songs will have you reaching for a Guinness quicker than you can say 'what's the craic?'.

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1. 'Fairytale of New York' – THE POGUES (featuring Kirsty MacColl)

Looking through their back catalogue, many Pogues songs could be on this list. 'Fairytale of New York' gets my vote for the number one song on our Drinking Playlist. There's something about it that says boozy festive season shenanigans that is nostalgic- and nostalgia is always best washed down with booze. Not to mention Shane MacGowan always sounds drunk.

2. 'Too Drunk To Dream' - THE MAGNETIC FIELDS

“Sober, life is a prison. Shit-faced, it's a blessing”. How's that for poetic? The Magnetic Fields detail all the ways in which life is much more bearable when shit-faced. So what are you waiting for?

3. 'Tubthumping' – CHUMBAWAMBA 

This hit from the 1990s is really irritating – when sober. Drunk, however, it is an anthem. The verse is simply a list of all alcoholic beverages, sung in a heavy English accent. Not to mention that ambiguous lyric – is it 'pissing the night away' or 'kissing the night away'? I'm going to go with the former.

4. LCD Soundsystem – Drunk Girls

Most of this song involves the lyrics “drunk girls” on a loop – apparently drunk girls are milder, and more patient. Whatever the case, with it's catchy guitar riff and not-so-subtle encouragement, it's the perfect drinking companion.

5. 'Wasted' – THE RUNAWAYS

By this stage, you are probably well and truly smashed. The original riot girls tell it how they see it – dude, you're wasted. Rock out with Joan Jett – but avoid the bad cocaine.

6. DZ Deathrays – This Mess Up

The film clip involves two guys and a bottle of Jagermeister – and yes, the two of them drink the whole bottle in the duration of the song. One proceeds to vomit the entire contents of his stomach at the end (warning: this is on the film clip).

7. Nouvelle Vague – Too Drunk To Fuck

A cover of the Dead Kennedy's, this tune articulates the downside of getting wasted – the part that usually comes at the end of the night, with some help from beer goggles. But you've danced all night and drank 16 beers, so it must've been a good night. Even if you're too drunk to, erm, follow through with that spunk you pulled at the bar.

8. 'Lilac Wine' – JEFF BUCKLEY

Wine that is “sweet and heady”, wine that makes us see what we want to see. Buckley croons, “why is everything so hazy?” Erm, that's probably the 2 bottles of wine my friend.

9. 'One For My Baby (and One More For The Road)' – BILLIE HOLIDAY

This is a classic for the pining boozer, for those moments when you're drowning your sorrows and whining about your broken heart. Pull up a barstool, and bend someone's ear – also use it as an excuse to order two drinks at once.

10. 'Sunday Morning Coming Down '– JOHNNY CASH

Penned by Kris Kristofferson and covered by many, I think it's appropriate to go with the Man in Black's version. Cash liked a sneaky tipple and so knew all about hungover Sundays. This is the last song on our drinking playlist – for the morning after. If all else fails, try a beer for breakfast.

Words by Rebecca McCann.