On the Beach (Chris Rea album)


On the Beach is the eighth studio album by British singer-songwriter Chris Rea, released in April 1986, and built on the success of the preceding Shamrock Diaries. It reached No. 11 on the UK Albums Chart, topped the Dutch charts, reached number two in West Germany and No. 4 in New Zealand. It also reached the top 10 in Norway. In 2019, a deluxe remastered version of the album was released.

Songs

In an interview for the deluxe edition of the album, Rea said of the song Giverny, written after a visit to Monet's celebrated home, "I didn't want to be there. I was only there because she was there... so there's kinda, a funny twist to it".

Critical reception

AllMusic notes that, "while The Road to Hell shows the darker side of Rea's worldview, On the Beach is an excellent introduction to his brighter, more optimistic songwriting".
A retrospective review finds that the album "taps into the same kind of jazzy, introspective pop/soul sound that the likes of John Martyn, Joni Mitchell and Van Morrison were flirting with in the same period, helped by an excellent band including Fairport Convention/XTC drummer Dave Mattacks", adding that Little Blonde Plaits is "a vehicle for Max Middleton| Middleton's expressive Mini Moog, very redolent of his atmospheric playing on John Martyn’s Glorious Fool".

Personnel

Musicians

Production

Singles

  1. "It's All Gone" b/w "Crack That Mould", "Look Out For Me", "Bless Them All", "Let's Dance"
  2. "On the Beach" b/w "On the Beach ", "If Anybody Asks You", "One Golden Rule", "Midnight Blue"
  3. "Hello Friend" b/w "Driving Home for Christmas", "It's All Gone", "Steel River"