Chris Rea - Guitar Street

“King of the Beach“ is the sixteenth studio album by Chris Rea, released in 2000. A sequel of sorts to his earlier On the Beach, King of the Beach continues the laid-back mood of the earlier album but is a more mature and unified work. It’s one of his best albums and is a return to form after the film soundtrack La Passione and the more electronic sounds of The Road to Hell Part 2. Written primarily during a vacation in the Turks and Caicos Islands, it’s replete with lots of beach and summer imagery in the titles (“King of the Beach,“ “All Summer Long,“ “Sandwriting,“ “Sail Away“) as well as the lyrics, which were originally written as poems. After leaving school Rea worked in casual labouring jobs, including working in his father’s ice cream business. It was at the comparatively late age of 21-22 that Rea bought his first guitar, a 1961 Hofner V3. With regards to his guitar playing technique, he developed his own style by listening to Delta blues musicians like Sonny Boy Williamson II and Muddy Waters, and opera to light orchestral classics to develop his style. Rea’s early music career began with inspiration of Charlie Patton, Blind Willie Johnson and Sister Rosetta Tharpe, as well by the success of then contemporary Ry Cooder and Joe Walsh. He recalls that “for many people from working-class backgrounds, rock wasn’t a chosen thing, it was the only thing, the only avenue of creativity available for them“, and that “when I was young wanted most of all to be a writer of films and film music. But Middlesbrough in 1968 wasn’t the place to be if you wanted to do movie scores“. “I was what you might call a late starter, I didn’t start playing ’til I was 21. Those players around me had already been and gone. I found catching up pretty hard – I never really did catch up… four-finger scales drove me manic! I just went sideways into slide guitar, which of course is what I love.” --Chris Rea-- Personnel: Chris Rea - vocals, guitar, bass, keyboards, Hammond organ, drum programming, producer Max Middleton - Rhodes Pete Wingfield - Hammond organ Martin Ditcham - drums, percussion Julie Isaac - backing vocals Debbie Longworth - backing vocals Neil Amor - engineer Arun Chakraverty - mastering Tommy Willis - coordination John Knowles - management Peacock - design, illustrations John Miller - cover painting Lyrics: There’s a crazy sense of duty As he licks between his fingers Wipes the ketchup from his face and hands There’s a strong determination That his teachers never witnessed Never close enough to understand Through the avenues of fashion To the palaces of dreams All the way, all the way down guitar street Down guitar street, down guitar street Down guitar street there he go Down guitar street He’s like a bull just bred for fighting And he don’t deliver nothing Outside the only thing that he knows Mama, papa don’t know what to say They know he’s gonna leave ’em anyway Take a look ’cos there he goes Down guitar street, down guitar street Down guitar street Take a good look, there he goes Down guitar street Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah Down guitar, yeah, yeah, yeah Down guitar, down guitar street Take a good look ’cos there he goes Down guitar street Down guitar street, down guitar street Take a good look ’cos there he goes Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah Down guitar street, down guitar street Yeah, yeah, down guitar street There he goes, down guitar street, guitar street Yeah, yeah, yeah Take a good look ’cos there he goes Down guitar street, all the way... This video has been published with absolute respect and admiration to Chris Rea’s music ! =ntt_mus_teaser?