Fortnightly Music Reviews from the streets of Teesside and beyond
The Bluebells, The Cumberland Arms, Newcastle 3 May 2025
There can’t be many greater gaps between a first and second album (1984’s debut album ‘Sisters’ and 2023’s second The Bluebells In The 21st Century), Ken McCluskey even joked about being less prolific than the Blue Nile! We have to be grateful however that the band did reform and the songs from their sublime second album were effortlessly blended in with the classics from their classic 1984 debut.
Bobby Bluebell opened the set with the beautiful ‘Daddy Was A Engineer’ reflecting on his relationship and guidance received from his father and the 2 acoustic sets that followed didn’t disappoint. Ken McCluskey sang probably the most poetic, moving ever song about Scottish junior football (and following your son around numerous far flung Scottish football locations like Auchinleck, Johnstone Burgh, St.Roch’s and Kirkintilloch Rob Roy ) ‘Stonehouse Violets’ . His soulful ‘Orienteering’ and heartbreaking ballad ‘Blue Train’ were simply sublime. The band talked about Elvis Costello being a mentor figure in their early days and how he persuaded them to believe in their abilities as songwriters and record ‘Aim In Life’ (which was previously a staple of the
McCluskey brothers earlier punk band Raw Deal). The harmonising by Bobby and Ken in ‘Aim In Life’ was genuinely spell binding.
They didn’t overlook the rousing early classic singles ‘Everybody’s Somebody’s Fool’ and ‘Cath’ and they reminisced about their links with Keith Armstrong’s fantastic Kitchenware label and their first appearance in Newcastle in the early 80’s at the legendary Soul Kitchen. The Bluebells featured a couple of well-suited covers (Todd Rundgren’s gorgeous ‘I Saw The Light’ and Buffalo Springfield’s timely anti-war anthem ‘For What It’s Worth) in addition to their timeless hits ‘I’m Falling’ and the joyous ‘Young At Heart’.
They are currently recording a third album on Glasgow’s fantastic independent label Last Night From Glasgow so the wait for their next north east gig won’t be decades hopefully! It was a glorious matinee performance in the sublime surrounds of Ouseburn’s finest intimate venue The Cumberland Arms.
Words: Chris Bartley Pictures: Chris Bartley
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