10 Greatest Forgotten Songs Of The 1990s
2. Shamrocks And Shenanigans - House Of Pain
The trio known as House of Pain began when two Irish-American kids from California connected over their mutual love of hip hop. Erik Shrody (Everlast) and Daniel O’Conner (Danny Boy) decided to form their own group. Everlast brought in his former DJ, Leor Diamant (DJ Lethal), and the lineup was officially born in 1991. By the following year, House of Pain recorded and released their first album, Fine Malt Lyrics.
That first House of Pain record was a game changer in 1992. Everyone remembers the record’s big hit single, Jump Around. What everyone doesn’t remember is the second single, Shamrocks and Shenanigans.
Where Jump Around sounds as though it was hand crafted to be a radio hit, Shamrocks and Shenanigans was just the better song. Everlast and Danny Boy didn’t break any new ground thematically here. The lyrics check all the House of Pain boxes: Being Irish, drinking, fighting, etc. The magic is in the combination of a snazzy backing track, catchy lyrics, and that chorus: BOOM Shalock lock BOOM!
The track peaked at only number 65 on Billboard’s Hot 100. While Shamrocks and Shenanigans may have never reached the success of Jump Around, it did help the record to reach platinum status.