Rea, Chris

views updated

Chris Rea

Singer, songwriter

Chris Rea is hardly a household name in the United States, but this unassuming singer has been a constant figure on the European music scene for more than a decade. He is sometimes referred to as the “British Bruce Springsteen” because of the gruff, raspy quality of his voice and the themes that run through his music; like Springsteen, Rea often writes about the search for meaningful values in a world gone awry. Coincidentally, both Springsteen and Rea are of Irish-Italian extraction. Reacites the music of Joe Walsh as his inspiration for becoming a guitar player. He began playing in his twenties, and in 1975 he formed the band Magdelene, later to be called the Beautiful Losers. The group, which included future Whitesnake member David Cloverdale, won Melody Maker magazine’s “Best New Band” award that year.

In 1976 Rea signed as a solo artist with Magnet Records. He got off to a flying start with the single “Fool If You Think It’s Over,” which charted in both the United Kingdom and the United States and earned him a Grammy nomination for best new artist. Unfortunately for Rea, he was making the right music at the wrong time. Soon after his initial burst of popularity, punk swept over England, overshadowing every other style of music. Rea slipped into a period of relative obscurity. He wrote some fine albums, such as Shamrock Diaries and Do You Like Tennis, but sales of these were far too small to satisfy record company executives.

During this period, Rea became quite disillusioned with the machinations of the recording industry. “I was very close to completely stopping music and opening an Italian restaurant,” he told Kent Zimmerman of the Gavin Report.”I was sick to death of it. I didn’t want to be a rock star. I just wanted to enjoy the music, which is what I started out doing.... Everyone wanted me to be the next Elton John or George Michael-type superstar. That’s not where I come from. I come from the school of Joe Walsh, Bonnie Raitt, Ry Cooder, Lowell George.”

Rea’s label was as disenchanted with him as he was with them. When he delivered the demo tapes for the album Watersign, the company skipped over the usual remixing process and released the tapes untouched, apparently aiming to fulfill his contract and release him. The unexpected happened, however: Watersign became a respectable hit, selling half a million copies and producing a top single, “I Can Hear Your Heart Beat.” Rea began touring heavily to bolster the album’s success, and built up a loyal following in Germany and France as well as the United Kingdom.

Rea’s greatest recognition in the United States came with his 1990 recording, The Road to Hell. Zimmerman stated that “Out of ... ten-plus years of recording

For the Record…

Born in Middlesbrough, England, 1951; married.

Played with band Magdalene, later called the Beautiful Losers, 1970s; signed as solo artist with Magnet Records, 1976; released debut album, Whatever Happened to Benny Santini, 1978.

Addresses: Record company —EastWest Records, 75 Rockefeller Plaza, New York, NY 10019.

music, Road to Hell stands out as his masterwork.... There’s a feel of environmental politics threading its way, conceptually, through most of the songs.... Mixed in with the doomy lyrics and instrumentation are a few choice love songs.”

Rea conceived of the album while trapped in an all-too-typical traffic jam in the south of England. The isolation of the thousands of commuters in their cars struck him forcefully, and within days he had written several songs concerning the ills of modern life. The music behind the lyrics has an ominous, eerie quality. “That’s deliberate,” Rea explained. “I’m trying to bring a bit of Alfred Hitchcock into the music... A lot of folks do think that we’re on the edge of some terrible, impending disaster.

Rea had another success in America in 1994 with Espresso Logic, which showcased “a number of genres, from crunching blues, to Beatlesque pop, to fluent jazz,” according to Steve White in the Lowell, Massachusetts Sun. The album consists of tracks previously included on European releases, one of which was also called Espresso Logic; the other was titled God’s Great Banana Skin.

The U.S. album, however, included a duet by Rea with Elton John titled “If You Were Me.” Reviewers commented on Rea’s fluid slide guitar and praised his throaty yet polished vocals. In addition, Lee Barrish, writing for Cleveland’s Scene, observed, “The elements of woe (thoughts of mortality and death) that coursed their way through the last three albums have finally been laid to rest.” A Network Forty reviewer remarked that the release “is a bold milestone” in Rea’s career and also noted that Rea’s relative obscurity in the United States despite his immense popularity in Europe does not affect him: “He has always stood for quality music with intelligence, not just commercial appeal.”

Selected discography

On Magnet

Whatever Happened to Benny Santini (includes “Fool If You Think It’s Over”), 1978.
Deltics, 1979.
Do You Like Tennis, 1980.
Chris Rea, 1982.
Watersign, 1983.
Shamrock Diaries, 1985.
Wired to the Moon, 1985.
On the Beach, 1986.
Dancing with Strangers, 1987.