The Blue Nile @ Bridgewater Hall

Belinda Hanks
16/ 7/2007

14/07/07

IT'S nights such as this that remind you why song masters Paul Buchanan and Robert Bell are so well-loved.

World weary and unashamedly romantic, their music is heartbreaking and timeless. And it has always stood alone.

"Play everything," hollers one fan, already wondering if they will ever have the chance to see them again while trying to savour every melancoly phrase. Blue Nile gigs are something of a rarity (this is the first official one in seven years), but the Glaswegian comrades haven't lost their touch.

They have only released three albums since their debut A Walk Across The Rooftops in 1984. Stand out second album, Hats (1989), was followed some six years later by Peace At Last (1996) and finally High in 2004.

All are revered as masterpieces to their fans. So unsurprisingly, the hall is awash with a warm familiarity as Buchanan opens with Seven AM and Saturday Night, from Hats, followed by two highlights: an evocative The Downtown Lights and the hauntingly beautiful Happiness.

Candour

Buchanan has always been drawn to songs with painful emotional candour, such as oldie Easter Parade, which many stand to applaud. His voice sounds at times like a gentle murmur and at others a sorrowful cry.

Sing-a-long favourite Tinsel Town rouses the hall before the startling beauty of Stay and a sublime Sentimental Man. The highlight was undoubtedly Family Life, a statement of undying devotion ("I go to sleep and I pray/ For my kids/ For my wife/ Family life"). It brings a universal tear to the crowd's eye.

Blue Nile (with Alan Cuthbertson and Brendan Smith on keyboards and Stuart McCredie on guitar) wrap things up with Walk Across The Rooftops.

The encore of Headlights On The Parade and a cover of Strangers In the Night brought a sad farewell until who knows when.