CHRIS REA : KING OF THE BEACH

 

  1. King Of The Beach
  2. All Summer Long
  3. Sail Away
  4. Still Beautiful
  5. The Bones Of Angels
  6. Guitar Street
  7. Who Do You Love
  8. The Memory Of A Good Friend
  9. Sandwriting
  10. Tamatave
  11. God Gave Me An Angel
  12. Waiting For A Blue Sky

Label : Magnet

Release Date : October 31, 2000

Length : 55:15

Review (AllMusic) : 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 (despite the goofy title) 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. A remix of "All Summer Long" was a big dance hit in Ibiza and other Mediterranean hot spots. A good album for a summer day, with a soulful mellowness flowing through the tracks.

Review (Hot Press) : After the commercial disaster that was La Passione (both the film and Rea's over-indulgent soundtrack) and last year's less than spectacular revisit to the Road To Hell (Part Two) the Middelsboro' bottle blonde returns to yet another familiar theme. After the commercial disaster that was La Passione (both the film and Rea's over-indulgent soundtrack) and last year's less than spectacular revisit to the Road To Hell (Part Two) the Middelsboro' bottle blonde returns to yet another familiar theme. King Of The Beach, as its title suggests, is replete with nostalgically evocative summer imagery and warm, hazy melodies – imagine Don Henley's 'Boys Of Summer' slowed down a tad and spread over an entire album and you've got the picture. 'All Summer Long' the current single and a close relative of his previous hit 'On The Beach' is pleasant enough in a radio-friendly sort of way. The title track is even more typical Chris Rea fare, his lazily assured vocals and meandering slide-guitar over a mid-tempo, reggae-lite rhythm. But it's the more subdued tracks which predominate here. Among them 'Sail Away' is a gorgeous get-away-from-it all ballad, while 'Still Beautiful' and 'Who Do You Love' yearn for long lost loves over similarly brooding melodies. 'Sandwriting' and 'Waiting for a Blue Sky' pick up the beach boy theme again and only 'Guitar Street' a more bluesy excursion, and 'Mississippi', which broaches Randy Newman territory, depart from the predominant theme. Rea has an engaging, instantly recognisable voice, he can write strong melodies and is a skilful guitar player. Only thing is, he's done it so many times before in precisely the same manner. If you want more of it, here it is.