Singer Chris Rea, widely known for the festive hit Driving Home for Christmas and the Road To Hell, has died aged 74, his family confirmed today.
A somewhat reluctant popstar, the Middlesbrough native was shy of the spotlight, and even admitted rallying against the record label’s decision to release his biggest hit – though accepted he was thankful when they eventually did in 1986.
The drive-time anthem came to exist while Rea was on a driving ban – more on that in our earlier post.
Reluctant or otherwise, he even resisted a more marketable name swap, the fame the track brought Rea is indisputable; nearly 40 years on, the single took a spot at 30 in this year’s UK Christmas top 40.
A proud guitarist with influences stretching deep into the blues, Rea recorded 25 solo albums, two of which topped the UK albums chart.
Rea‘s success came despite the singer suffering a string of health issues. A pancreatic cancer diagnosis at just 33-years-old was followed by operations on his liver and then a stroke later in life.
Tributes have been coming in since his family announced Rea‘s death in hospital following a short illness earlier today.
Middlesbrough-born Chris Rea found fame in the ’70s and ’80s and had two UK number one studio albums.