The Pop Corporation

Chris Rea has sadly left us, and this being the Christmas period, it’s sad that he left as people settled down to his classic yuletide groover, ‘Driving Home For Christmas’.

There’ll be a lot of fond words written about the great man, but we’d like to pay tribute by highlighting some of his finest songs, because Rea was a music titan, even if he was an unassuming one.

While those who know about the Bob Mortimer tale of an egg in the bath, we’re going to look at some of his incredible songs, and how he hopped genres to amass fans from all walks of life.

Chris – you certainly were a real one.

FOOL IF YOU THINK IT’S OVER

His first hit, Rea’s smooth West Coast number featured a wonderful drum machine that had echoes of Timmy Thomas and Sly & The Family Stone.

If this had been released by an artist from the US, it’d be in the songwriter’s hall of fame, or considered a Yacht classic. It charted highly Stateside, and was the first sign that Rea was a songwriter of note.

ON THE BEACH

The rock critics didn’t initially take to ‘On the Beach’, but the dance music fans spotted an immediate Balearic groove that was undeniable.

Inspired by his time courting his wife on the Spanish island Formentera off the coast of Ibiza, it wasn’t surprising that the track got the remix treatment and was a hit multiple times over.

A classic that spanned genres.

JOSEPHINE

Rea’s track that really took hold with the Balearic heads was his wonderful ‘Josephine’. There’s a number of versions of the track, which he wrote for his daughter, but it’s the one above that became an all-time classic in Ibiza.

EVERYTIME I SEE YOU SMILE

From his ‘Tennis’ album, Rea manages to channel the funky chug of Little Feat, and cut it pure with his own Teeside charm.

If this song shows you anything, it’s that Chris Rea almost certainly had a killer record collection.

SHE GAVE IT AWAY

A deeper cut, but one that shows a whiff of jazz rock a la Steely Dan. Spicy chords and easy grooves from early in Rea’s career.

A great little gem for sure.

ROAD TO HELL

The greatest song ever written about traffic jams, Chris Rea’s bluesy dadrocker is up there with the best of anything by Dire Straits et al.

Arguably his best known hit in the UK outside of his Christmas single (also about being behind the wheel), Rea’s despair and melancholia makes for one of the best blues tracks of the ’80s.

LET’S DANCE

A silly shuffler that’s designed for weddings, knees up ’round your parents’ house and the rest. There’s no point over-thinking this one – if there’s joy in your heart, then there’s room for this magic little bopper.

DRIVING HOME FOR CHRISTMAS

It could be about a touring musician, it could be a truck driver who has been away, it could be the soundtrack to clocking off work for the year – Chris wrote a universal working person’s anthem with this and, given the time of year, we’ll close with this.

Rest easy Chris. X