The man The voice The guitar
Still, not so long ago, Chris produced songs with wonderful lyrics, especially on the Blue Jukebox album back in 2004, but also on in many songs on the Blue Guitars album in 2005, so we can't say 'it's over', I think.daveid wrote:What happened to lyrics like "In this garden I shall burn my callous robes" (Light of Hope).
I totally agree you you Chris and with Lily and Rich tooChris Rea has a certain style (a unique one, that is, and - in fact - it's his trade mark), which hasn't changed much (even with blues) since his first recordings. Hence, the title of his current single leading to the new album, "Come so far, yet still so far to go". You can sense his credo in it: "I'm chained to the highway; the's no other way for me to go...", "always looking for a new day"..., "always a dream ahead of me"...,"but I still like the show.."
Lyrics?, well he's not a great poet (he never claimed he was one) and you could say he had his ups and downs with words but basically he sticks to his vocabulary and uses it best he can. Chris admitted in interviews that he "kept on re-writing his old songs, changing them a bit" etc., so for me there's no surprise there either.
I admire him for his style and treasure for what he's done and he still does because all of his songs come directly from him. He writes his own texts and music. Music comes straight from his heart and goes into our harts and minds. Words are expressing his feelings and life's experiences including: his happy and sad moments, childhood and youth days, birth of his two daughters, reminiscence of his parents, brothers and sisters, friends and places he visited (beaches ((Spain, Italy)), islands (mostly Caribbean: Parrot Cay,Turks and Caicos Islands) , cities (Duesseldorf, Hamburg, Cologne, London, Dublin, Warsaw), rivers, far away places (in his imagination) as well as (yes!) hospitals.
And as far as "burning himself out", "running out of ideas", "coming to the end of the line", "being finished" (because the party is - allegedly - over) etc., I mostly take him for what he had done throughout his life and still want to hear him perform and record. I'm of the opinion he's predictable. At least he was and still is for me.
I think you are being very harsh.I assume Bart has put the various titles on fan's avitar's as a laugh and it does not represent the length of time you have been a fan of Chris.daveid wrote:I've been a fan of Chris Rea for 16 years (despite the "starter Chris Rea fan" bollocks top right)[/quote
I don´t think that lyrics of "I Can't Dance To That" is any better than lyrics of this new song.tobi777 wrote:Hi all,
guess I'm a bit heretic, too. I always regard a song as a total work of art. The formula: blues = bad production + cheesy lyrics + uninspired guitar playing + simple chords doesn't work for me, either. That's the reason I don't like many highly regarded blues players. I know it's a matter of personal taste and every artists changes slightly over such a long time but nevertheless I'm disappointed with the development of Chris' music over the last years.
If you listen to "I Can't Dance To That" from DWS - a great blues song - you'll hear the difference. Great arrangement, interesting lyrics, more than just three chords (although it may sound simple), clean production, evolving guitar solos, cool drumming, professional recording and so on. Remember this song was recorded in 1987 - an era not particularly famous for great guitar records and -sounds...
His slide playing now all sounds the same. Just loud and scratchy. No precise soloing we used to hear. One reason may be the absence of a really good producer, maybe Chris lost his ability to hear. I'll always try to find good songs on Chris' new records but to be honest I think his heyday was between 1987 and 1993. Melodies and elaborate arrangements are crucial parts of his records and without these ingredients it just sounds all the same.
REAgards
Tobi