Hard to believe they’ve been around for over 20 years, but it was back in 1985 when former Depeche Mode/Yazoo keyboardist Vince Clarke first hooked up with ex-butcher Andy Bell for what would become a match made in pop heaven. 32 Top 40 hits later and they’re still capable of surprises, none more so than on this all-acoustic outing which sees them re-visit some of their finest moments in a radically transformed setting.
Recorded in the Brooklyn studio that gives the album its name, Union Street proves pretty conclusively that a good song is a good song, whatever musical clothes it comes wrapped in. With acoustic guitars, minimal percussion and the occasional wash of strings, there isn’t a synth or drum machine in sight, and all the better for it too. Opening with the heartfelt break-up song ‘Boy’, from the Cowboy album, Bell’s soaring voice sounds even more forceful and majestic with the sparse backing. The gorgeously melodic ‘Stay With Me’ is transformed into a hymn-like plea, while the bottleneck guitar and harmonies on ‘Tenderest Moments’ lend it a country feel.
Of the lesser-known songs, the yearning ‘Blues Away’ (from the ‘94 album I Say I Say I Say) is one of the highlights, the acoustic setting perfectly complementing the sentiments. ‘How Many Times’ is even more poignant, especially given Bell’s revelation last year that he has been suffering from HIV for years: “How many times will I regret the chances I’ve taken,” he sings in an almost mournful tone. Some might quibble with the absence of their biggest hits ‘Sometimes’ and ‘A Little Respect’, but few will complain on hearing this understated gem, which closes with an emotionally-wrought version of ‘Rock Me Gently’, complete with a chorus of gospel voices.