DAVE'S FAVES #1 THE BLUE NILE A Walk Across The Rooftops

[@awhite3747]

Ooh la la! 😨 'Hats' is my "rescue if the house is on fire" Blue Nile album. Not a skippable track on it, in a low lit room and a smooth Highland malt. 😁👍🇬🇧

[@cwbalmer]

One of the best albums ever!! I remember it in 1984... still a classic

[@donatoiacovino6968]

It was released in April '84 but almost all of the CD/vinyl pressings list 1983

[@MrMusicbyMartin]

Thanks for this. We hear so much, it’s nice to be reminded of material we might have forgotten, and The Blue Nile was one of those. It was in the same camp as Talk Talk, a little less spacey and more smokily jazzy. Perhaps Prefab Sprout as well (who might may a great future topic).

[@davidatkinson-lifematters4826]

Prefab were fantastic. Love Spirit of Eden and Laughing Stock too.

[@stephanevilleneuve9450]

A beautiful album with great melodies. Good British vibe. Your analysis is a wonderful tribute to it. Love your comments.

[@donatoiacovino6968]

Great review; love The Blue Nile and this particular album (its one of the best debut albums ever), but 'Hats' is on a different level.

[@davidatkinson-lifematters4826]

'Hats' was my favourite for years, but 'Rooftops' finally settled as my favourite.

[@conordoyle9481]

Cheers for the shout out David!

[@davidcopson5800]

Appreciating The Blue Nile: I take my hat off to you.

[@liamhemmings9039]

One of the greatest albums of all time. Reminds me of my late father. Beautiful songs, beautiful vocals. If you watch the video of them live at the Free Trade Hall in Manchester, I was the idiot who shouted out EADGBE. Met the band the next day when I was painting a shop front leaving Sacha’s hotel. I shouted out EADGBE again. The band came over and could not have been nice enough. An excellent review.

[@davidatkinson-lifematters4826]

Cheers Liam. I've heard that Free Trade Hall concert, and have it on cassette (later ripped to CD). What time in the video do you give that shout? I now want to hear it again!

[@cyclesgoff9768]

I’m the twat that showed Buchanan DAGDAD in 1981.

[@gerardfletcher1203]

its a classic the sound quality is fantastc p.s luv ur speakers reminds of me of joy devision. great video

[@GaryIrving-x5o]

My Essential 10 albums: 1) Hats / The Blue Nile 2) Quadrophenia / The Who 3) Bridge Over Troubled Water / Simon and Garfunkel 4) The Captain and Me / The Doobie Brothers 5) Blind Faith / Blind Faith 6) The Joshua Tree / U2 7) Deja Vu / Crosby Stills Nash and Young 8) The White Album / The Beatles 9) Five Leaves Left / Nick Drake 10) The FreeWheelin' Bob Dylan / Bob Dylan

[@hakanpersson6524]

I became aware of this great album when i bought my Linn Sondek LP12 turntable in the 80`s. To my knowledge this record was the first record in the Linn Records catalogue to be released. As you are mentioning the album has an astonishing sound quality and the music are likewise. That are not so hard to understand because Linn always pay attention to the music quality. To me "Blue Nile" sounds a bit like "New Music"or music by Rupert Hine. You really did a good choise of selecting this album to be your first choise. Many thumbs up from Sweden !! Can`t wait for no.2.

[@davidatkinson-lifematters4826]

Thanks Hakan. My plan is to work through all the great albums that have 'stood the test of time'....the ones that still mean a lot to me. I'm up to #4 now, so you might find these popping up in your recommended videos. 👍🏻

[@robertlonergan9401]

Yes,its a personal thing but there is no bad track on this album. You may like certain tracks more than others but as a collection of songs it's impeccable. Perfect for somewhat less than cheerful people like myself. Heatwave is astonishing and brilliantly atmospheric.

[@davidatkinson-lifematters4826]

Yes, I was a little harsh about 'Heatwave', and I acknowledge it would be a standout for most other bands. Like you say, personal opinions and all that.

[@robertlonergan9401]

@@davidatkinson-lifematters4826 Thanks for the reply and we both agree that its essential that music lovers offer up different opinions. The Bob Dylan album Infidels is brilliant apart from neighborhood bully which ruins it for me but other people disagree.. I think the blue Nile stopped at the right time which was the right move unlike other bands who become stale and ridiculous. Great channel! More please.

[@robertlonergan9401]

@@davidatkinson-lifematters4826 After our "heated debate" regarding the blue Nile and heatwave,I do what I normally do when I haven't listened to a band for a while and played all of their albums non-stop for as long as it takes using Spotify. I hit play on walk across the rooftops deluxe which I didn't know about and all I can say is"if it ain't broke,don't fix it" The newer remixed versions are way too busy sounding for me.If you can,give it a listen and maybe a comment?

[@rapportbryn]

I loved this. Terrific insights on a unique band and a beautiful album. Just wish I’d seen Paul Buchanan’s tribute to Sinatra…

[@davidatkinson-lifematters4826]

Thanks Andy. I'm still searching for the bootleg from that Birmingham gig, whilst hoping Paul will release a live album from that tour. I'm not holding my breath.

[@ArmarioActual]

Fantastic album, love it. I bet it sounds great on those Druids. 💙🎶

[@davidatkinson-lifematters4826]

It certainly does. Those Druids are fabulous. Possible a little large for my room, but ones to keep.

[@johngibson788]

Based on your mentioned musical taste, I'm a bit older, having grown up with early Floyd, Led Zep etc. I agree on the quality of A Walk Across the Rooftops, but like others below, I think that the higher tempo songs are up there with the others. I imagine you may agree that Talk Talks Spirit of Eden or Laughing Stock are in a similar vein, and of equal quality. I look forward to your future videos.

[@davidatkinson-lifematters4826]

Thanks John. I do enjoy those later Talk Talk albums, but they're definitely mood music, and much less varied than The Blue Nile. And Buchanan is a truly outstanding vocalist.

[@johnmcintosh5413]

Love listening to people’s opinions on Albums especially ones I have also connected with myself, enjoyed that cheers for the post but would be good if we could got a listen to it as well ✌🏼

[@markfirth3204]

Worth seeing the song Walk Across the Rooftops live on Later - kzbin.info/www/bejne/bXysYWCGidOnadk

[@aldo34]

Brilliant album. But 'Stay'...dude, it's a masterpiece!

[@oliviergeoffroy9823]

enjoyed a lot your video this band known by few people in france brilliant.... paul buchanan is guest vocalist in craig armstrong's debut album...;-))....

[@davidatkinson-lifematters4826]

Yes, and he sounds great on it. His work with Chris Botti is also worth hearing. He's such a brilliant singer. It's all about his vulnerability.

[@ciatangallaghe2485]

The collector is as important as the musician, because, the collector is the curator of the gallery that the musician visits for inspiration. The record store is as important to a musician as gallery to the artist.

[@markfirth3204]

I love this album. I cannot recommend it highly enough. I have it on vinyl and CD. It was recommended to me by a friend when we were both at Uni in the early 1980s. He sent it to me as on a cassette. As I recall he sent me this and the first Prefab Sprout album. I was hooked pretty quickly. While I agree with your hierarchy of songs I would not down play the "lesser" songs as much as you do. All the songs are really good. Blue Nile are an original sounding band built on Paul Buchanan's spare and tender vocals and the sparse arrangements. Truly great but, as you said, about the least prolific band in the world.

[@davidatkinson-lifematters4826]

Hi Mark, I absolutely love 'Swoon'. Another wonderful group, and just like The Blue Nile, led by a perfectionist. A agree I was slightly harsh about a couple of tracks. I didn't intend to be, but I'm trying to differentiate rather than just say 'super, smashing, great' or 'rubbish', all whilst doing it in a single 'take'. Sometimes I raise my own eyebrows when looking back. It is what it is. But thanks for the comment regardless, and the link to the 'Later' performance.

[@ZJProz]

I totally agree. The juxtaposition of Pre-Fab Sprouts melodies against the digital atmospheric coolness surrounding Paul Buchanan's voice was a joy to grow with and enjoy in real time.

[@davidatkinson-lifematters4826]

A fabulous live version of 'Tinseltown in the Rain' here: kzbin.info/www/bejne/i3zNZqRrm6eSe6c

[@tonyjedioftheforest1364]

Another one that I have missed. The vinyl is going for silly money on eBay so I will have to make do with the CD.

[@Nephilim-81]

You know I’ve had “Hats” for many years now and I have yet to pick up their first album. I owe it to myself to do that because I adore HATS! I revisit it often. Downtown Lights has been one of my test tracks for a long time when auditioning new audio equipment. :)

[@davidatkinson-lifematters4826]

You'll certainly enjoy the first album!

[@Abefroman-lq3md]

@@davidatkinson-lifematters4826It’s. It as good as Hats

[@kelvynification]

Try the album from ‘Metro’ late seventies. Not one dud track on the album. Bowie covered a track ‘Criminal World’. One of the greatest unknown records ever released. Worth checking out:)

[@davidatkinson-lifematters4826]

I love that album! I talked about it in this video here: kzbin.info/www/bejne/q6a8c3uKfp6qpqcsi=a0W0vo5Y0q25Vg8N

[@kelvynification]

@@davidatkinson-lifematters4826 great. Just checked it out.

[@TractorCountdown]

A landmark album and one I love as well. A friend had the 12" single and it hit me in the same way something like Joy Division's 'Atmosphere' did; a real sense of beauty with a unique vision. I had the album on cassette, then CD, as for a long time during the 80s I was without a record player. I very nearly bought the vinyl reissue but was put off by several complaints about shoddy pressings - it seems you weren't affected by the later albums you picked up.

[@davidatkinson-lifematters4826]

Yes, the pressings I got are both fine. I also bought the 2CD versions, and it's clear all the really good stuff ended on the original releases. Not much in the archive. But what a band - so unique you can tell who it is in seconds.

[@TractorCountdown]

@@davidatkinson-lifematters4826 That's good to know, about the pressings and the 2CD sets, thanks David. Cheers, Ian

[@cyclesgoff9768]

I know Buchanan keeps going on about the songs being universal. But this album reeks of Glasgow. Come visit us and experience it for yourself. Even Hats reeks of Byers Rd.

[@davidatkinson-lifematters4826]

Been to Glasgow many times, and you're right, this album does reek of the city.

[@cyclesgoff9768]

@@davidatkinson-lifematters4826 Even although it wasn’t recorded here 😄😱😎

[@elfranco7011]

Well done talking about this great LP. Heatwave and Stay are amazing songs - your assessment of those tracks is way off in my opinion.

[@davidatkinson-lifematters4826]

There's room for everyone here! Even those who like the songs I'm not so fond of! Glad you love the album though; it's a beauty.