The meaning of that song...

[lilybee]

Hi everybody,

I figured I'll start this new thread, about the meaning of certain songs.

I often wonder what a particular Chris Rea song is about, aside from the obvious Josephine, Julia, and a few love songs for his wife. Chris Miller and Chris (Poland) mentioned Saudade and Candles, on the other thread. I had read Chris' comments on Candles before but I didn't know Saudade at all, so I looked it up, and found some interesting stories behind it, even videos of the crash.

Or take for instance GGBS:
(quote from the the tour booklet)

"The original spark for the idea came from one of my daughters who was about to laugh at somebody who'd been giving her a hard time, slipped on the banana skin so to speak, and I told her not to laugh, 'don't laugh when people go down even if they've been awful to you because you're tempting God to throw you a banana skin"

I know some of you have been Rea fans for a long time and know all this, but humor me as I enjoy discovering more about Chris Rea songs,

Lily

[lilybee]

...I've always wanted to know what the slashing of strats means on the Auberge video ....

A friend told me, "Texas ( The Water Sign version ) is about a pin up poster and the name of the pin up was Texas. Winning from Wired To The Moon was written following a conversation on football
( soccer ) with former Middlesbrough footballer Craig Johnston."

His songs are pretty much self-explanatory if you read the lyrics, but if you have more facts like these, add them on to the Reakipedia this site has become,

Lily

[chrismiller]

Hey Lily,

I didn't know Saudade at all, so I looked it up, and found some interesting stories behind it, even videos of the crash.

Yes, yes, Saudade is a beautiful song with a very sad story behind it. It's apart from the song but interesting to know that Senna's accident was the last fatal one in Formula One's history; after it all the track walls were reconstructed to be safer; but it's a shame after all a man had to die to open up chairmen's eyes.

Return to the original topic, I remember the first verse of The Road to Hell is referring to the river Tees in Middlesbrough. And the song itself refers to London motorway M25 where CR once found himself in a traffic jam but everyone know this, I'm sure.

According to Wikipedia 'the song "Steel River" compares the old polluted Tees with the later clean river, there being salmon, but no industry.'
Funny, 'Deltics' refers to the Deltic-class locomotives.

That's with one breath, I think these are really well-known facts but good to have them in one place so thanks Lily for creating this thread.

Chris

[Tina3]

Hi Everyone,
Lily I have a question?... do you sit up at night thinking of new thread names for this site???
I am with Chris(M) on this one too...thanks for the thread.

Funny, 'Deltics' refers to the Deltic-class locomotives.

I didn't know this

Texas ( The Water Sign version ) is about a pin up poster and the name of the pin up was Texas

or this...

Winning from Wired To The Moon was written following a conversation on football
( soccer ) with former Middlesbrough footballer Craig Johnston."

or even this.

Does anyone have any ideas on what the meaning behind these songs...
One Golden Rule
Lampiou (Blue Guitars number 10)

I read a newspaper article which said that "The Days I spent With You" is about when Chris was on holidays with his family and they found a dog in a very poor condition and Chris made it his business to find an animal sanctury and brought the dog there and made sure it would be well looked after.This sanctury was on the opposite side of the island to where they were staying.
Tina

[Chris]

Hello everyone,

On "King of the Beach" CD, there is a song Chris Rea wrote at a Warsaw hotel while visiting Poland for a TV show as well as a promotional tour. It's called "Still Beautiful." What a great love song it is!
"The Bones of Angels", which is on the same album, he wrote (evidently impressed and overwhelmed) after visiting the Cologne Cathedral (German: Kölner Dom, officially Hohe Domkirche St. Peter und Maria.)

Best regards to you all,
Chris

[lilybee]

Hello everyone,

"The Bones of Angels", which is on the same album, he wrote (evidently impressed and overwhelmed) after visiting the Cologne Cathedral (German: Kölner Dom, officially Hohe Domkirche St. Peter und Maria.)

Best regards to you all,
Chris

Hi Chris,

I had read your comments on this before, but this time you made me go and look it up.... simply outstanding! The most beautiful gothic structure I have seen...

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/c ... t_1_RB.JPG
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/c ... _osten.jpg
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/c ... nSpire.JPG
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/c ... enraum.jpg

(and I though St. Patrick's Cathedral was the bomb.... )

Thank you,

Lily

[lilybee]

Does anybody know why Chris slashes all those Strats on Auberge?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xLCNy4kEEiY

Lily

[jwanzong]

Isn't Janice Blue on his new album a song for his vet and (can't think of it ) but the other song on the album is about his dog Bella that passed away? Someone told me this at a concert but who knows if it is true.....interesting idea though.

[jwanzong]

spent with you - that's the other song someone said was for his pup.

[chrismiller]

Does anybody know why Chris slashes all those Strats on Auberge?

I was thinking about it a lot and came to the conclusion that if there's anything senseless Chris ever did, that's it.
I think Auberge video is a fun clip with absolutely no sense; and it's got very-very few to do with the actual meaning of the song.

Chris

[Tina3]

I think Auberge video is a fun clip with absolutely no sense; and it's got very-very few to do with the actual meaning of the song.

I agree with you totally.It's not just Auberge that doesn't make any sense,I find a lot of Chris's videos are like that. They are funny though.
Tina

[imagemkr]

You guys are starting to stray a bit here, but I have been thinking about this for some time .......................

IN A PERFECT WORLD, all of the info from "The Meaning of That Song", to "which albums it's on" and "what versions and lengths" could be included with the lyrics in the site's "The Guitar, Discography, Lyrics" section.

Bart, I know this is an overwelming task and don't expect you to do it, but maybe somehow, if some of us contributed info and all you had to to was edit and copy and paste, it wouldn't be so bad. And little, by little, baboom!

Alan, Lily, Tina, Jim, Everybody,----- willing to contribute?

Thoughts Bart??

Thom

[lilybee]

You guys are starting to stray a bit here, but I have been thinking about this for some time .......................

IN A PERFECT WORLD, all of the info from "The Meaning of That Song", to "which albums it's on" and "what versions and lengths" could be included with the lyrics in the site's "The Guitar, Discography, Lyrics" section.

Bart, I know this is an overwelming task and don't expect you to do it, but maybe somehow, if some of us contributed info and all you had to to was edit and copy and paste, it wouldn't be so bad. And little, by little, baboom!

Alan, Lily, Tina, Jim, Everybody,----- willing to contribute?

Thoughts Bart??

Thom

Hi Thom,

I'm a little confused by your suggestion....
Maybe I didn't understand it in the first place.
Care to elaborate Dear?

Lily

[imagemkr]

Hi Lily -

Sorry for the confusion. I wasn't refering to the board, I was referring to the catagories above us - "Home' "The Man" "The Voice" "The Guitar" " The Site".

What I meant was when you go to find the lyrics to a CR song, that page could tell you the albums the song is on, etc. and basically just putting these little bits of info on the lyrics page.

Does that make any more sense??

Thom

[lilybee]

Phewww!! I thought you didn't like us there for a minute!!!!

I know what you mean, really.

I think we have all given Bart suggestions. Mine was to do a BIO page for Chris Rea,
the main theme of the site.

But I guess Bart must have a long list of things to do on this site,
the most important one being to keep it running,

Lily