Deacon Blue is a Scottish pop band formed in Glasgow in 1985. Their name ca… Read Full Bio ↴Deacon Blue is a Scottish pop band formed in Glasgow in 1985. Their name came from the title of the Steely Dan song "Deacon Blues". Success came for the band in 1989 when their second studio album, When The World Knows Your Name, topped the UK Album Charts. The album included "Real Gone Kid" which became their first UK top ten single. After releasing further albums in 1991 and 1993, they split up in 1994. Five years later, in 1999, the band held a reunion gig and this led to the album, Walking Back Home. Since then they have released Homesick (2001) , The Hipsters (2012), A New House (2014), Believers (2016), City Of Love (2020) and Riding On The Tide Of Love (2021)

This predominantly Glaswegian act became one of the top-selling UK bands of the late 1980s/early 1990s. The group's members were Ricky Ross, Lorraine McIntosh, James Prime, Dougie Vipond, Ewan Vernal and Graeme Kelling.

Ross, a former school teacher originally from Dundee, was the group's frontman, penning the vast majority of Deacon Blue's songs. He married female vocalist Lorraine McIntosh in the later years of the band's career. McIntosh, born May 1964 in Glasgow joined the band in 1987 as a vocalist.

The band's first album, Raintown, produced by Jon Kelly and released in 1987, is regarded by many as the band's finest effort, spawning the singles "Dignity", "Chocolate Girl" and "Loaded". Many consider Raintown to be a concept album, since nearly all the songs contribute to the overall theme of being stuck in a dead-end life in a deprived city longing for something better. The city that the album's title refers to is Glasgow, and the memorable cover art of the album is a shot of the River Clyde's docks taken on a miserable day from Kelvingrove Park.

The second album, 1988's When The World Knows Your Name, was the band's most commercially successful, with the mega-selling singles "Real Gone Kid", "Wages Day" and "Fergus Sings The Blues". However, music critics began deriding the band at this stage for pursuing commercial success over artistic quality, citing the earlier achievements of Raintown.

Jon Kelly returned to the producer's chair in 1991 for Fellow Hoodlums, and the album was met with more critical success, but by now the group's honeymoon period was over and their success started to wane. This album was followed up with Whatever You Say, Say Nothing in 1993, a much more experimental album which gained praise from the critics, but was a commercial failure.

The band released a Greatest Hits compilation the following year.

With Vipond's decision to quit the group in favour for a career in television, Deacon Blue split up in 1994.

Five years later, the band held an unexpected reunion gig in 1999, and this led on to a new album, Walking Back Home, with the band now working on a part-time basis.

The band released another album, Homesick, in 2001.

Though Graeme Kelling died from cancer in 2004, the band has vowed to continue in his absence.

The year 2006 saw Deacon Blue returning to the studio to record three new tracks for a Singles album - including the track "Bigger than Dynamite".

The band performed at Manchester United's Old Trafford stadium, as the pre-match entertainment for the Rugby League Super League Grand Final on the 14 October, and continued on to a full UK tour in November.

The album The Hipsters was released in 2012.
http://www.deaconblue.com/, followed by A New House, Believers, City of Love and Riding On The Tide Of Love.

In 2023 the band released a greatest hits set titled "All The Old 45's" along with a box set of all their albums titled "You Can Have It All".

Goodnight Jamsie
Deacon Blue Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

You were a good man, Jamsie
Everyone loves you, now you're gone
And the seagulls over
Where you lie, sing your final song

I'm walking back away from here
To see where you belong
Here's the church and here's the work

And here's where shows were at the fair

Take me on the skirling waltzer
And scream the ghost train down

And buckle me to the chary plane
As the big wheel goes around

Overall Meaning

The lyrics to Deacon Blue's song, Goodnight Jamsie, are a tribute to a man named Jamsie who has recently passed away. The opening lines, "You were a good man, Jamsie / Everyone loves you / Now you're gone," indicate that Jamsie was a well-respected member of the community and his loss has been deeply felt. The next line, "And the seagulls over where you lie sing your final song," invokes a poetic image of seagulls singing a mournful tune over Jamsie's grave.

As the song continues, the singer walks through the town, reflecting on Jamsie's life and legacy. They pass by the church and the places where Jamsie worked and performed, suggesting that he was an active member of the community. The final verse is perhaps the most poignant, as the singer implores Jamsie to "take me on your skirling waltzer" and "buckle [them] to the chairy plane," referencing the amusement park rides that were a part of Jamsie's world. The lines suggest a longing to recapture the joy that Jamsie brought to others, even in the face of his untimely death.

Overall, the song serves as a heartfelt elegy for a man who was clearly beloved by many. Its imagery and the specificity of its references to Jamsie's life give it a sense of intimacy and authenticity that is rare in popular music.

Line by Line Meaning

You were a good man
Jamsie, you were a kind-hearted person

Everyone loves you
You were liked and appreciated by many

Now you're gone
You have passed away

And the seagulls over Where you lie Sing your final song
As you are laid to rest, the seagulls above are creating a natural melody

I'm walking back Away from here To see where you belong
I am leaving this place to reflect on your life and legacy

Here's the church And here's the work And here's where shows were at the fair
This is the place where you had a significant presence in the community, such as attending church, working, and enjoying the annual festivities

Take me on your skirling waltzer And scream the ghost train down
In memory of you, I want to relive the moments we shared on the carnival rides, especially the wild ones

And buckle me to the chairy plane As the big wheel goes round
I want to pay tribute to you by embracing the exhilaration of being spun around on the Ferris wheel, similar to the thrill-seeking adventures you enjoyed in life

Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: PRIME, ROSS

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind

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