Deacon Blue are a Scottish pop rock band formed in Glasgow during 1985. The line-up of the band consists of vocalists Ricky Ross and Lorraine McIntosh, keyboard player James Prime and drummer Dougie Vipond. The band released their debut album, Raintown, on 1 May 1987 in the United Kingdom and in the United States in February 1988. Their second album, When the World Knows Your Name (1989), topped the UK Albums Chart for two weeks, and included "Real Gone Kid" which became their first top ten single in the UK Singles Chart and reached number one in Spain. Deacon Blue followed up their success with their third album Fellow Hoodlums (1991) and the release of their fourth album, Whatever You Say, Say Nothing (1993).
Raintown is the debut album by Scottish pop rock band Deacon Blue. The album, written largely by lead singer Ricky Ross, was released in the United Kingdom on 26 May 1987. It proved a commercial success and has to date sold around a million copies, peaking in the UK Albums Chart at no. 14 and remaining in the charts for a year and a half.
Lorraine McIntosh is a Scottish singer and actress. She is one of the vocalists of the pop/rock band Deacon Blue.
Richard Alexander Ross is a Scottish musician who is the lead singer of the rock band Deacon Blue. Alongside his discography with Deacon Blue, Ross has released a number of solo albums: his first, So Long Ago, was released in 1984.
When the World Knows Your Name is the second album by the Scottish rock band Deacon Blue. It was released in 1989 and attained the number 1 chart position in the UK Albums Chart.
Fellow Hoodlums is the third studio album by the Scottish rock band Deacon Blue, released in 1991. It includes four singles: "Your Swaying Arms", the Top 10 hit "Twist and Shout", "Closing Time" and "Cover from the Sky".
Whatever You Say, Say Nothing is the fourth studio album by Scottish rock band Deacon Blue, released in March 1993 by Columbia Records. It was the group's final original album before their initial dissolution in mid-1994.
Our Town – The Greatest Hits is the first greatest hits compilation album by the Scottish rock band Deacon Blue. The album reached the top spot of the UK Albums Chart in May 1994 for two weeks, and has been certified Platinum. It was also their second and final number one album to date. It is also notable for being the 500th number one album since the charts inception in 1956.
"Dignity" is a song by Deacon Blue, which was the band's first official release. It is one of their most popular songs and it is usually played as the final song at concerts. It received the most public votes for the 1980s songs in the Scotland's Greatest Album contest run by STV in 2011, and was featured on the 12 track compilation. It was also sung at the closing ceremony at the 2014 Commonwealth Games held in Glasgow.
"Wages Day" is a song by Scottish rock band Deacon Blue, released on 20 February 1989 as the second single from their second album, When the World Knows Your Name (1989). The song reached the top 20 in Ireland, Spain, and the United Kingdom. The main B-side is "Take Me to the Place", which is musically based on the hymn "Abide with Me" and the traditional melody "Eventide". Some versions of the single contain two songs: "Take the Saints Away" and a cover of Julian Cope's "Trampolene".
"Fergus Sings the Blues" is the third single from the album When the World Knows Your Name by the Scottish rock band Deacon Blue. Writer Ricky Ross has stated in an interview with Johnnie Walker and on SpectatorTV that the song was inspired by "Gael's Blue" by Scottish singer-songwriter Michael Marra.
"Love and Regret" is the fourth single from the album When the World Knows Your Name by Scottish rock band Deacon Blue. The song was released on 4 September 1989. The main B-side of the single is "Down in the Flood", while some versions of the single contain the additional B-side "Undeveloped Heart", which Ricky Ross later re-recorded as a solo artist. A limited-edition four-track live Extended play (EP) single was released on 10-inch vinyl and CD formats at the same time as the standard singles.
"Queen of the New Year" is the fifth and final single from the album When the World Knows Your Name by the Scottish pop rock band Deacon Blue.
"Twist and Shout" is the second single from the album Fellow Hoodlums by Scottish rock band Deacon Blue. The song reached No. 10 in the UK Singles Chart in August 1991 and No. 13 on the Irish Singles Chart
"Closing Time" is the third single from the album Fellow Hoodlums by Scottish rock band Deacon Blue. Released on 30 September 1991, it peaked at No. 42 on the UK Singles Chart.
"Cover from the Sky" is the fourth and final single from Scottish band Deacon Blue's third studio album, Fellow Hoodlums (1991). It was the first single to be released with Lorraine McIntosh on lead vocals. The various versions of the single introduce three B-sides, all of which are covers. Various live or alternative versions of previously released Deacon Blue songs also span the different single versions. "Cover from the Sky" reached number 31 on the UK Singles Chart.
"Your Town" is the first single from Scottish band Deacon Blue's fourth studio album, Whatever You Say, Say Nothing (1993). Additional versions of the single release contain various dance remixes of "Your Town".
"Only Tender Love" is the third single from Scottish band Deacon Blue's fourth studio album, Whatever You Say, Say Nothing (1993). The song on the single is an edited version of the album track. Released by Columbia Records, it reached No. 22 on the UK Singles Chart in May 1993. The B-sides are "Pimp Talking" and "Cracks You Up".
"Hang Your Head" is the fourth and final single from Scottish band Deacon Blue's fourth studio album, Whatever You Say, Say Nothing (1993). It was written by Ricky Ross and produced by Steve Osborne and Paul Oakenfold. The single version was released in July 1993 by Columbia Records and is very similar to the album version, except that it has a slightly longer introduction and also has a cold start in place of the album version's fade-in. This was the first Deacon Blue single release to exclude all vinyl formats. It reached a peak of number 21 on the UK Singles Chart in July 1993.
The discography of Scottish band Deacon Blue consists of ten studio albums, two live albums, seven compilation albums, and one album that is both a studio and a compilation album. As of 2020, Deacon Blue's total album sales stood at seven million, with twelve UK top 40 singles, along with two number one albums in the UK. Their debut album, Raintown (1987) reached number fourteen in the United Kingdom, and received a Platinum certification. It reached number fifty-four on the Dutch Album Top 100, and spawned the successful singles "Dignity", "Chocolate Girl" and "Loaded". Their follow up album, When the World Knows Your Name (1989), was a major success for the band, peaking at number one in the United Kingdom, achieving a double platinum certification. It charted in other European countries, including Sweden and Germany, and in international markets including Australia and New Zealand. Its lead single, "Real Gone Kid", peaked within the Top 10 of the UK Singles Chart, and peaked at number one in Spain and number five in New Zealand.
