The Blue Nile

All Music Guide:

The Scottish folk-ambient band the Blue Nile has enjoyed a mystique contrived by its inaccessibility and the infrequency of its recordings, but it has also made a series of critically acclaimed discs. The group was formed by three Glasgow natives who had graduated from university there: singer/songwriter/guitarist Paul Buchanan, bassist Robert Bell, and keyboardist Paul Joseph Moore. (Engineer Callum Malcolm and drummer Nigel Thomas have worked with the trio consistently, to the point of being considered secondary bandmembers.) (The Blue Nile is the title of Alan Moorehead's 1962 sequel to The White Nile, the two books making up a history of the Nile River.) They recorded their own single, "I Love This Life," which was distributed by Robert Stigwood's RSO Records just before the company closed its doors. They were then signed by Linn Products, which released their debut album, A Walk Across the Rooftops, in 1984. (A&M handled it in the U.S.) Since the company was small and the band did not tour, the album took some time to find its audience, though it briefly reached the U.K. charts and led to high expectations for a second album. This came in 1989 with Hats, which reached the British Top 20, throwing off three chart singles, "The Downtown Lights," "Headlights on the Parade," and "Saturday Night." The album also made the lower reaches of the American charts as the Blue Nile embarked on its first tour, a 30-date journey taking place in the British Isles and the U.S. In the ensuing years, the band members switched record labels, signing to Warner Bros., and contributed to recordings by Robbie Robertson and Julian Lennon. They finally emerged with their third album, Peace at Last, in June 1996. Another critically acclaimed release, it placed in the U.K. Top 20, but failed to chart in the U.S.

Wikipedia:

The Blue Nile are an adult alternative/pop band from Glasgow. The music of The Blue Nile is built heavily on synthesizers and electronic instrumentation and percussion, although later works featured acoustic guitar more prominently.

History

Early years

The band was formed in 1981 when Paul Buchanan (born 16 April 1956, Edinburgh) and his friend, Robert Bell, met Paul Joseph Moore after graduating from the University of Glasgow in the late 1970s. Although their individual degrees did not reflect their future career wishes (English Literature, Electronic Engineering and Mathematics, respectively), their mutual friendship grew out of their shared interest in music, and they began writing and recording together.

Bell and Buchanan were previously the key members of the band Night by Night, who had a small but enthusiastic following in the Glasgow area; they had made demos of songs like "Rio" and "Stay", but were not commercial enough at the time to secure a recording contract.

They formed their own label, Peppermint Records, and released their first single, "I Love This Life", which was later picked up and issued by RSO Records. Soon afterwards, RSO was absorbed into Polygram, and The Blue Nile's first single disappeared from view. The trio kept writing and recording over the next couple of years, including a couple of tracks that would later surface on their debut album.

A Walk Across the Rooftops

When local hi-fi manufacturer Linn Electronics heard their music, through friend and recording engineer Calum Malcolm, the company offered the band money to record a track that would showcase the sonic range of the company's high-end audio equipment. Linn was so pleased with the result, they formed their own record label in order to release The Blue Nile's debut, A Walk Across the Rooftops, in 1983. sample (help·info) Buchanan later commented that during that time Linn was not really a record company, and The Blue Nile was not really a band. Although it received positive reviews, it sold modestly.

1984 saw a greater exposure for the band throughout Europe with the videos for their two singles "Stay" sample (help·info) and "Tinseltown in the Rain" often shown on the video channel Music Box.

Hats

After a prolonged delay in which an entire album's worth of work was scrapped, The Blue Nile released Hats in 1989 to rave reviews, including a rare five-star rating from magazine. The album was recorded in the same studio as much of their previous work, Castlesound in Pencaitland, East Lothian. The album explores the highs and lows of romantic love. At the time, Hats reached #12 on the UK Albums Chart and slipped into the Billboard 200 in the United States. All three singles from the album reached the UK Singles Top 75.

Rickie Lee Jones, a fan of the band, selected The Blue Nile as her opening act for her 1990 tour. She would later record a duet with them, a cover version of the band's own "Easter Parade", which was featured as a B-side to the single "Headlights on the Parade". She also sang live with the band on the Channel 4 programme Halfway To Paradise, performing her song "Flying Cowboys".

In 1992, the band worked on Annie Lennox's debut solo album, Diva, and co-wrote the track "The Gift". Lennox later covered "The Downtown Lights" (from the Hats album), for her album, Medusa, released in 1995.

Peace at Last

In 1996, seven years later, The Blue Nile released their follow-up to Hats, entitled Peace at Last. In a radical departure from the band's prior two albums, the record is primarily driven by Buchanan's acoustic guitar. A gospel choir made a brief appearance on the lead-off single, "Happiness". sample (help·info) Despite the release of Peace at Last on a major label, the album sold poorly, and the critical reaction to the album was more mixed.

High

After the longest period between albums, eight years, The Blue Nile released High in 2004. It reached number 10 on the UK Album Chart, a record high for the band. Although acoustic guitar is still present on some tracks, the overall musical sound is more reminiscent of Hats.

The album was recorded in Glasgow, as the group had tired of travelling and living in other countries, such as the United States, Ireland, Italy and France. They also decided to release it on Sanctuary Records instead of a corporate label, following Sanctuary's A&R, John Williams, calling the band and suggesting releasing a record. According to Buchanan, the people at Sanctuary do not promise "to call on a Tuesday and then nothing comes of it".

Activities since High

Buchanan and Bell toured England and Scotland in May and June 2006, followed by Scotland and Ireland in November 2006, billed as 'Paul Buchanan sings the songs of The Blue Nile'. The band consisted of Buchanan on vocals and guitar; Bell on bass guitar and keyboards; Alan Cuthbertson and Brendan Smith on keyboards; Stuart McCredie on guitar; and Liam Bradley on drums. It was later revealed that Paul Joseph Moore was no longer with the band, and that Buchanan and Bell had refrained from simply billing themselves as The Blue Nile as a mark of respect for their former colleague.

On 14 July 2007, Buchanan and Bell played Manchester's Bridgewater Hall as part of the Manchester International Festival.  Saturday Night. (help·info)

In July 2008, the band played shows at the Glasgow Royal Concert Hall, London Somerset House and Galway Radisson Hotel.

In September 2010, a biography of The Blue Nile, by Allan Brown, ('Nileism - the strange course of The Blue Nile') was published. The writer claims that the band for the time being to all intents and purposes has broken up, although Buchanan still hopes they will find a way to make a fifth and final album.

Paul Buchanan stated in a BBC interview in 2012 that he hadn't spoken to to Paul Joseph Moore in several years, although he still keeps in touch with Robert Bell. Buchanan also involved Bell in the final stages of the making of his debut solo album "Mid-Air", which was self-released on his own Newsroom Records in May 2012.