Deacon Blue make immense return to Glasgow for a special hometown gig

On a cold autumn evening, the people of Glasgow turned out in their thousands to pack the OVO Hydro for a band that the city has had a love affair with since the eighties. Kicking off with an acapella version of Wages Day on a dark moody stage the band then played a small acoustic set which included hits such as ‘Chocolate Girl’, ‘Queen of the New Year’ and ‘Raintown’.

It’s always a special night when Deacon Blue plays live in Glasgow with frontman Ricky Ross proclaiming: “It’s great to be home. It’s great to be home in Glasgow.”

There was a small break after the acoustic set with Ross joking that after some people enquiring about a support act, they were in fact the support act for the band for the full electric set. As the band made their way through the All the Old 45s set, songs that have become a regular feature of Deacon Blue’s live set don’t look out of place amongst some of their best-loved songs.

Ross reflected on how far the band had come from a small rehearsal space at the back of Buchanan Street and how society hadn’t changed much in almost 40 years. They paid tribute to founding member Graeme Kelling who passed away almost 20 years ago as Ross said: “He loved the fact people sang the song back and would love the fact people are still singing it back” before they performed the 1987 hit ‘Loaded’.

The roof of the Hydro nearly came off after the band played ‘Twist and Shout’ followed by ‘Real Gone Kid’ with thousands rising to their feet to dance the night away.

Deacon Blue’s encore started with a message of peace that Ross admitted has taken on more meaning since being written in 2020 before they concluded the show with ‘Dignity’, ‘Fergus Sings the Blues’ and a cover of Warren Zevon’s ‘Keep Me in Your Heart’.