Chris Rea – Dancing With Strangers

Chris Rea – Dancing With Strangers

Originally released in 1987, Dancing With Strangers is the ninth studio album from British singer-songwriter and guitarist Chris Rea. Released through Magnet Records, the album marked a major commercial breakthrough for Rea in the UK, reaching No. 2 on the UK Albums Chart and spending 46 weeks in the chart. Recorded between February and June 1987 at studios in Montreux, Le Val and Bavaria, it captures Rea's increasingly distinctive blend of melodic rock, blues-influenced guitar and sophisticated adult contemporary songwriting.

The album opens with Joys Of Christmas, a reflective seasonal song inspired by Rea's childhood in Middlesbrough, before moving through the laid-back rock of I Can't Dance To That and Windy Town. The latter became one of the album's memorable songs, while Gonna Buy A Hat and the six-minute Curse Of The Traveller demonstrate Rea's ability to combine atmospheric guitar work with detailed storytelling and unhurried arrangements.

The second half begins with Let's Dance, the album's first single and a UK Top 20 hit, followed by Que Sera, Josie's Tune and Loving You Again. Let's Dance reached No. 12 in the UK, while Loving You Again and Que Sera were subsequently released as singles. Rea is joined on the album by a strong supporting cast including drummer Dave Mattacks, keyboard player Max Middleton, guitarist Jerry Donahue and Irish piper Davy Spillane, whose distinctive playing adds another texture to the record.

Your CD edition contains all 14 tracks, extending beyond the original 11-track LP with the instrumental pieces I Don't Care Any More, Donahue's Broken Wheel and Danielle's Breakfast. Josie's Tune and Donahue's Broken Wheel in particular highlight Rea's interest in instrumental guitar-led music, an aspect that would become increasingly important in his later career.

Dancing With Strangers sits at an important point in Chris Rea's career, arriving between On The Beach (1986) and the huge commercial success of New Light Through Old Windows (1988). It combines the soft rock, blues rock, melodic guitar and adult contemporary characteristics that had developed across Rea's earlier albums with the polished production and songwriting that helped establish him as one of Britain's most recognisable singer-songwriters of the late 1980s.

Tracklist

1. Joys Of Christmas – 5:11
2. I Can't Dance To That – 4:18
3. Windy Town – 4:24
4. Gonna Buy A Hat – 4:22
5. Curse Of The Traveller – 6:26
6. Let's Dance – 4:05
7. Que Sera – 5:17
8. Josie's Tune – 2:21
9. Loving You Again – 5:37
10. That Girl Of Mine – 3:36
11. September Blue – 3:05
12. I Don't Care Any More – 2:10
13. Donahue's Broken Wheel – 3:00
14. Danielle's Breakfast – 4:35