80s hitmakers Fairground Attraction have reunited after thirty five years for a fourteen date UK tour and a brand new studio album due on September 20th. Most people will remember the band’s debut single ‘Perfect’ which went to Number One across the globe and, in 1988, won Best Single at The Brit Awards. Today, they have shared the video for the title track, ‘Beautiful Happening’.
Originally written for opera tenor Andrea Bocelli, guitarist and songwriter Mark Nevin was inspired by Andrea’s powerful performance in Milan Cathedral during the 2020 lockdown, writing the lyrics:
“There’s something beautiful in this darkness/ Something beautiful is going on/ There’s something happening in this silence/ Some kind of sweet and wordless song/ Some kind of beautiful/ Some kind of beautiful/ Some kind of beautiful happening
Bocelli passed on the song but his loss was Fairground Attraction’s gain, capturing perfectly the spirit of their rebirth and giving them the title of their album and tour.
For the video the band revisited Regents Canal in Kings Cross, London, the location of their classic ‘Perfect’ video. Once again back on a barge, the band perform ‘Beautiful Happening’ in the rain albeit in a more understated performance than the 1988 video. Like the song, the video is beautiful and thought-provoking and a poignant reminder of the passing of time, made even more moving when intercut with footage from ‘Perfect’ shoot.
There is no band quite like Fairground Attraction. Their use of the guitarrón (a large, Mexican acoustic bass), played by Simon Edwards, gives the bed of their records a warmth and character that combines with drummer Roy Dodds, Nevin and Reader to create a charming acoustic antidote to all that is modern and digital. When they arrived on the scene all those years ago, their unique sound was described by many as a “breath of fresh air” and it is just as true today.
The band’s meteoric rise to the top of the charts in the late 80s was as surprising as it was welcome, not least for the members themselves, who struggled with having their lives turned upside down and, unfortunately, the whole thing was over too soon, leaving a legacy of just four singles and one double-platinum album, The First of a Million Kisses.
The band announced their return in March, with the first single, ‘What’s Wrong With The World?’ The new album, ‘Beautiful Happening’ is out September 20th.
“I can’t tell you how wonderful it is to be back together, making music again,” reflects Mark, “I think we had all given up hope that it would ever happen a long time ago. It is almost spooky, as though we are ghosts, who have come back to life, but something happens between us when we play together; time evaporates and it could all have been yesterday.”
Fans will also have the chance to see the band live this autumn, with their first UK tour since they split in 1990. See tour dates below and get tickets HERE
