This is a nice enough "Best of" album by one of the best blues guitarists out there. Chris Rea is well known in Europe, South Africa and Australia it seems, but quite unheard of in the US. He has a unique sound, different from many American bluesmen in that he incorporates some world music sounds, most notably Caribbean influences, and he has some happier, poppier songs sprinkled throughout his works.
This collection is different from his earlier Best of (New Light Through Old Windows), in that it obviously includes more recent material while foregoing some of the older, more familiar hits. It's too heavy with songs from Auberge in particular (tracks 5, 10, 14 and 15). I probably like New Light better, but this compilation serves well as an introduction to Chris Rea.

A friend of mine at work just recently introduced me to the music of Chris Rea via this very nice Best Of comp. He also recommended getting his Road To Hell cd. Both of these cd's were money well spent. I'm surprised that this artist flew by my radar screen in the 80's when he was at the peak of his songwriting and popularity, mainly due to his top 20 hit "Fool (If You Think It's Over)". For some reason I never equated that song with this artist. The thing I like most about Rea is his musical diversity. He can lay down a very memorable AM pop hit like "Fool" or "Let's Dance" and then turn around and make a great blues rock album like "Road To Hell". No matter what the genre of music, this artist is very good at laying down a nice groove. There's plenty of catchy tunes to be found throughout this cd. "Auberge" and especially the wonderful "On The Beach" stuck out for me. But you get many styles here. And each song sets a different mood. From the easy listening "Winter Song" or the catchy "Looking For Summer". Or some excellent blues rock like "Road To Hell", "God's Great Banana Skin" or the excellent instrumental hidden track at the end of the cd that shows off Rea's tasty slide guitar skills. I don't know how I missed this artist after all of these years. But I'm a new Rea fan who now looks forward to his next album. Whatever style that it might be, I'm betting it will have some versatile playing and some very well composed melodies like this superb Best Of. This is a nice place to start listening to this fine artist. If your like me, after hearing this cd you'll probably want to search out some of his individual albums. I've since picked up his late 80's album "Dancing With Strangers". Another very nice cd. Most of the music on this Best Of cd is almost 20 years old, but it feels like it could have been written today. In other words it's well composed music that holds up very well over time. And I'm sure if your like me and not familiar with Rea's music, the minute you hear "Fool" or "On The Beach" it's going to bring the good part of the 80's back to you. Greatest hits cd's should all be this good. Highly recommended!

I originally bought this for "Road to Hell." However, I was pleasantly surprised at how many great songs are on this CD!! I am definitely a huge Chris Rea fan now!! My top picks on this CD are: "Josephine"(in my opinion, the best song on the CD), "Road to hell", "0n the Beach", and "Fool if you think it's over." Chris Rea certainly has one of the most unique and sexiest voices I've ever heard. Something about his voice just gets my juices flowing!!! Very sexy indeed!!! I can now say, Chris Rea is one of my favorite artists. He is a truly talented writer and singer. Unfortunately, he doesn't get the recognition he deserves here in the States...

Some call Chris Rea the Mark Knopfler of the slide guitar, either as a put down or a compliment. Whichever way you choose it is true...like Knopfler you either like him or you don't. Rea fills the category of smooth British rock with strong beats and catchy lyrics. Images of cars and women fill his songs covering thirteen albums from 1978 to 1993 on this compilation. Rea's deep and gravely voice is perfect for delivering his lyrics over the bluesy-rock feel of his songs. Add in his ability to play slide-guitar without making it feel country-ish while mixing in solos and rhythms with ease.

There's a lot of good music on this album with a variety of sounds. From the very first notes of "Road to Hell" it's easy to hear the mix of music and voice that makes Rea. The slide solo in the middle is pretty good, and the lyrics are poignant. One of my favorites is "Auberge" opening with a repeating blues theme that runs the course of the song. The guitar work is shared between an electric and acoustic slide giving it a contrasting feeling in the song itself. The outro solo is pretty cool slides on the electric. The perfect song to begin a long drive with. Rea pairs up with Sir Elton John on "If You Were Me" allowing his voice to make a perfect contrast with John's. Drums open up "Julia", and the acoustic rhythm is bright as he sings of the girl separating the verses with a good slide solo. Other greats fill this album like "Stainsby Girls," "Looking for the Summer," and "Fool".

Rea's music is good. If you like Dire Straits or Knopfler's solo stuff, you might find this fairly similar. Rea's guitar work isn't over the top, but he holds his own. I think his real talent is his writing, and his voice has a soothing quality to it even though it sounds pretty rough. Even though this album doesn't contain all of his greatest hits, the ones included here are pretty good too.

If you're looking for the hits as they were originally recorded, this is NOT it. These are remakes from the original artist. His voice has changed considerably, and not for the better.