Customer Reviews

Peace at Last

5 star:		(15)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

There are a handful of CD's that never leave my desk, and this is one. [Glasgow.] Buy it in October, listen all through the winter, and your life will have been changed come New Year. [Robert Bell, bass; Paul Joseph Moore, keyboards.] What a remarkable achievement! Where words fail, music by Paul Buchanan's group THE BLUE NILE may well succeed. [A ringing guitar.] The thing about this CD called "Peace at Last" (1996) is that having listened to it ten times, one ends up listening more than a hundred--it's that good--and we are likely to enjoy its wonders for quite a long time indeed. [Falsetto.] It tells a kind of story, a cycle, a symphony like the seasons, and since it is the story of all humankind, we see ourselves in its achingly beautiful movements and remember how it feels to be alive. [Piano playing.] Guitarist and songwriter Buchanan is a very great artist, and through his works a transformation occurs in which he ends up being, strangely enough, one of the best singers ever. [A choir.] "Happiness," with its birdsong-like refrain: "It's only love!" (we suspect it is a mockingbird) is youth, with effervescent optimism, romance. [A used acoustic guitar.] Three-quarters of the way along the journey, after all the compromises, after love has become war, a bargaining whisper: "Jesus, please make us happy...sometime." Don't we all want to be loved body AND soul? And even after brutal defeat, "tomorrow morning" offers "sentimental man" yet another chance at it. All this puts Buchanan firmly in the tradition of great Scottish poets, such as Robert Burns. [A beautiful old church organ.] The songwriter takes on life's changes--big ideas about family, friends, hope, sex, religion. "It's not about money, it's not about love," he sings. (It is, in this case, about the beauty and joy of great music.) [A poet, selling his typewriter..." sung to samba beat in "Love Came Down."] It took a long time to make this record? [Synthesizers.] A blink of an eye, considering it is perfection. [Strings.] A constant "new wave" of peace again, again. How long can an astonishing recording such as this hold up?--for as long as human beings can sing "auld lang syne?"

I've had Peace At Last since it came out in 1996, and every time I play it, I get a sense of what's real and what's not. The hustle and bustle of Los Angeles(/any big city) living is the perfect reason to own this CD. It brings me back to a place that I've been deep in my soul. I love Paul Buchanan's true voice and willingness to talk about the things I'm usually running frantically to escape. It pulls me in and surrounds me with a soft, hazy mist that lulls and comforts the weary warrior.

There is much to be said about the two previous releases of this band. The beauty of "Peace at Last" is that it is simpler than its two older siblings. It does not attempt to puzzle you with complex music, trying to overshadow its predecessors. It uses Paul Buchannan's magnificent lyrics to (I believe) bring simplicity back to a realistic level. This is a band that dose'nt rely on baffle. Only honesty. At times the lyrics hurt. They open a heart that can feel and purposely rub salt within..but! it also gives hope. It is a simple album. Accoustic with a spicey lyrical topping that refuses to pretend that you need to be the best. This album is a rare insight into a band that is not scared of taking its time in being itself. It is not an album to take to a party but it is an album to appreciate when you want that special time to feel that certain feeling. It may not have the same rhytum and up-beat feel as "Rooftops" or "Hats" but it has the same honesty. If anything, it makes this album special because it does not pretend to be anything else. It is something to listen to.. But to really hear you need "Peace at Last." Well done Blue Nile. Honesty at its best.

6 years now, and it still gets played every week. Since it's usually six or seven years between records I'm starting to anticipate a new one. Must be thousands of us waiting.

Having come to know the Blue Nile through this album, I didn't suffer from expectations that were based on their prior work, which I've also since discovered is wonderful. Within that context, I've found this to be a hauntingly beautiful, smooth, but spare album. It's also stood the test of time quite well, and sounds as good or better today than when it was released in 1996. Tender lyrics sung with heart, cradled in well-crafted melodies, delivered with finely polished musicianship -- how can you go wrong?!

One of the most underrated bands of all time. What they lack in output, they more than make up in content. Never mediocre, contrived or sold out. They spin their own web, slowly but beautifully. Their artistry is truly brilliant, their integrity intact. By the way, you can get this album at the iTunes store for $9.90 or at the Amazon UK store for £7.46 plus shipping. To all the greedy sellers who are selling this album new for over $37, up yours! It's bad enough the record companies rip us off with their high prices. You make them look like angels by comparison.

For me, this is the Blue Nile's most satisfying recording yet. It's amazing stuff--emotional, mature, very real without being maudlin. I agree with a previous reviewer: this is what pop music should be. By the way, if you like this you might also want to check out Martin Stephenson (especially "Beyond the Leap, Beyond the Law" or "Yogi in My House").

during the movie "16 years of alcohol" i heard blue nile for the first time and we clicked immediately. "peace at last", "tomorrow morning", "family life"...all with engaging lyrics (though oft muffled until i listen for the 5,000th time)..the quiet truth and sentimentality of almost-a-lullaby "family life" is repeated often though in different musical frameworks like the introspective beginning but fuller, more upbeat, sing along choral ending "...warm earth, blue sky, desert" of "tomorrow morning". a cd i listen to over and over and it still sounds new.

This CD and this band deserve more than just 5 stars. This is truly what music should be - a moving work of art. The words of the songs, the instruments and vocals, go straight to your soul. This is the kind of music you actually sit and listen to and appreciate, unlike most music nowadays, which just serves as background noise for our lives. Get this CD and get Blue Nile's earlier CD's also - it will be music that you love to listen to over and over again, for many years to come. A new classic!

Though it may be unsurprising that anyone could struggle to live up to the quality of the work on the Blue Nile's first two albums, the music in Peace at Last still occasionally approaches the mood, evocation, and richness we've come to expect from this marvelous duo.

Particularly Happiness, Tomorrow Morning, Love Came Down, Body and Soul (an original composition, not the classic), and Family Life remind us of why we love their music. That their sound is simpler, pared down, and, yes, happier, suggests that the band was trying for something different from their other releases.

Still memorable and strong, this accomplishment is worth the attention.