Nileism: The Strange Course of The Blue Nile

2011 sees the thirtieth anniversary of The Blue Nile’s formation in Glasgow. Four albums – containing a total of just 33 songs – have followed, at a glacial pace. The band’s melancholy, romantic songs about ordinary people have attracted a fanatical fan base – one that includes musicians such as Annie Lennox, Peter Gabriel and Rickie Lee Jones. The Blue Nile are one of modern music’s greatest mysteries, as secretive about their plans as they are painstaking about their work.