Chris Helmswoth

New Light Through Old Windows is a compilation album by Chris Rea, released in 1988. The album consists primarily of re-recordings of songs released on earlier Rea albums, as well as two new songs, "Working on It" (which gave him a rare U.S. chart single, peaking at #73 on the Billboard Hot 100, and giving him his only #1 single on the Mainstream Rock Tracks chart) and "Driving Home for Christmas.", also the re-recording of "On the Beach" gave him another rare US hit, it peaked #9 on the US AC chart in 1988 and #12 in the UK chart.

Re-imagining the fabled tale of a folklore favourite has been the latest creative challenge for Chris de Burgh. The compelling result breathes music and lyrical life into a centuries-old and much-loved classic. The Legend of Robin Hood finds Chris at his imaginative best, re-telling the story with cinematic vision coupled seamlessly to music of emotional depth and power. The concept for the 27th studio album by Chris emerged from his involvement in 'Robin Hood', a stage musical about the infamous Sherwood Forest nobleman and his band of outlaws. Chris was invited to contribute storylines and melodies to the musical, which will be produced later in the year."Since I was writing songs for this," he explains, "I thought 'Why not expand the story and put an album out, too?'"

During 1953-1955, singer Chris Connor recorded regularly for Bethlehem. This reissue LP has her final recordings for the label (before moving up to Atlantic) with such fine sidemen as Herbie Mann (doubling on flute and tenor), pianist Ralph Sharon, guitarist Joe Puma, bassist Milt Hinton, and drummer Osie Johnson. The two-trombone team of J.J. Johnson and Kai Winding (which had recently become very popular) is prominent on four of the ten selections. Connor's cool tone, subtle, emotional delivery and haunting voice were perfect for the music of the 1950s. Highlights of this superior set include "The Thrill Is Gone," "Blame It on My Youth," and "I Concentrate on You," but all ten numbers are rewarding.

Though Chris Rea has been around for nearly 25 years now, it's good to go back to his beginnings as a songwriter and guitarist who carved out a niche for himself with a late-night brand of very British formalist rock & roll that owes as much to J.J. Cale as it does to Dire Straits. But it's the late-night sound that is his trademark and it was in evidence on this, his very first outing. He has help from drummer Dave Mattacks, keyboardist Pete Wingfield, percussionist Ray Cooper, bassist Dave Paton, and a host of other dignitaries. What separates Rea, and did from the very beginning, is his belief in having his songs finished by the time they were pressed and out the door.

The pop/rock power pent up in "High on Emotion" established the fact that Chris de Burgh could be just as energetic as he could be romantic. Its explosive chorus followed by some dynamic electric guitar riffs highlighted 1984's Man on the Line, making a rocker out of the usually complacent balladeer. Following suit, only with a little less vigor, is the title track that sparks a little bit of dramatic anger in de Burgh's voice. He hasn't left his mellifluous candor behind completely, though, but his slower pieces do seem to be a tad more hearty. "Sound of a Gun" deals with a civilian's outlook of living in a war-torn country, which has de Burgh singing in whispers at one point.

Chris de Burgh is a British-Irish singer-songwriter and instrumentalist. He started out as an art rock performer but subsequently started writing more pop-oriented material. He has had several top 40 hits in the UK and two in the US, but he is more popular in other countries, particularly Norway and Brazil. His 1986 love song "The Lady in Red" reached number one in several countries. De Burgh has sold over 45 million albums worldwide. This Way Up is singer Chris de Burgh's eleventh original album, released in 1994.

Once again combining softened elegance with his gentlemanly approach to the simple love song, Chris de Burgh remains true to form on Quiet Revolution with polished ballads and morning-friendly, mid-tempo material. de Burgh's style hasn't strayed since "The Lady in Red" peaked at number three in 1987, and from that point on he has tried to emulate the same success with his romantic formula of ballroom-type love songs and delicate lyrics. Although Quiet Revolution offers up a handful of these, some of the other tracks exhibit punchy melodies that still display de Burgh's heartfelt voice.