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Rating: I'm writing these lines by hand on a sheet of paper while sitting at a table with a sea view on a late and gray Ligurian morning. In front of this peace, I suddenly feel the urge to listen to and talk about the Scottish trio from Glasgow formed in 1981, known as THE BLUE NILE.
The band's name comes from a 1962 work in two books by Alan Morehead that traces the history of the Nile River. It also subtly references the English play on words between color and mood.
Leading the band is Paul Buchanan, songwriter, guitarist, and the unmistakable lead vocalist of the trio, accompanied by his former university mates Robert Bell (bass) and J.P. Moore (keyboards).
They debuted with a proper album only in 1983 (A Walk Across The Rooftops), which struggled to break out of the UK circuit but nonetheless brought attention to the innovative and unique sound of their folk-pop.
They have three albums to their credit (1983-1996) and many collaborations, the most famous being with Peter Gabriel (Ovo) and Annie Lennox (Diva and Medusa).
Hats, 1989, is their second album and in my opinion the most complete and captivating.
It consists of 7 tracks, long ballads marked and characterized by Buchanan's warm, romantic, and in certain cases "moving" voice, which, like Gabriel, he modulates between low tones and falsettos depending on the intensity of the pathos and passion he wants to convey and achieve.
These are romantic ballads, at times dreamy, accompanied by often electronic rhythms alongside strings (real or synthesized) and acoustic guitar riffs, where voice and piano alternate with sweetness and vitality. And so much strength.
Technology marries the majesty of Paul's voice and the virtuous use of traditional folk and pop classical instruments. I would be inclined to define these songs as "lyrical," poignant yet so full of color and vitality that they imprint dreamlike images and landscapes in the listener's mind, like when one immerses oneself in the vision of a beautiful film.
The Blue Nile manage to strike the deepest chords of our being with their poetic and professional approach, without descending into trivial repetitions or saccharinity. I find no comparable bands. For me, they do not exist.
With compositions as beautiful as "Stay" (1983) or "Over The Hillside," or "The Downtown Lights" (covered by Lennox), or even "Headlights On The Parade," they have traversed a path that has made them unreachable for other pop bands.
If my more emotional side were music, on one hand, it would surely be the Blue Nile and Buchanan's voice.
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