Driving Home For Christmas singer Chris Rea dies aged 74
The iconic singer died after a 'short illness', his family said.
Driving Home For Christmas singer Chris Rea has died at the age of 74, his family have confirmed.
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Rea, known for his iconic hit 'Driving Home For Christmas', passed away following a short illness, his family said.
Beloved for his gravelly voice and latterly for his slide guitar playing, he was nominated for a slew of top awards, including Brit Awards, at the height of his success and sold millions of records.
A statement issued by his wife and children read: “It is with immense sadness that we announce the death of our beloved Chris.
"He passed away peacefully in hospital earlier today following a short illness, surrounded by his family.”
Read more: Why it could be a ‘white Christmas’ even if you see no snow this year
Rea’s debut album titled Whatever Happened To Benny Santini?, a reference to the stage name his record label wanted him to adopt, was released in 1978.
The track Fool (If You Think It’s Over) went on to be nominated for a Grammy.
He did not find such success again for a few years but by the time his eighth album On The Beach, spawning a hit single of the same name, was released, he was a star in the UK and around Europe, with sporadic hits in the US.
When Road To Hell was released in 1989, he became one of the biggest solo stars in the UK, and cemented himself as a favourite among a predominantly male audience of a certain age.
Two of his studio albums – The Road To Hell (1989) and Auberge (1991) – went to number one in the UK. His famous song Driving Home For Christmas features in this year’s M&S Food Christmas advert.
It was first released in 1986.
Opening up about writing the Christmas hit, Rea previously said: "I was on the dole when I wrote that.
“My manager had just left me. I’d just been banned from driving.
“My now wife, Joan, had to drive down to London to pick me up in the Mini and take me home, and that’s when I wrote it.”
Rea was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer at the age of 33 and underwent nine separate operations.
He went on to struggle with his mental health and drug abuse, at one point saying he was taking "34 pills per day."
“I wasn’t frightened of dying,” he once said in an interview.
“It did look like the end but what got me through was the thought of leaving a record that my two teenage daughters could say, ‘That’s what Papa did – not the pop stuff, but the blues music. That’s what he was about’.”
Paying tribute to the singer, Middlesbrough FC said in a post to X: "We're deeply saddened to learn of the passing of Chris Rea. A Teesside icon. Rest in peace, Chris."
Rea shared two daughters, Josephine and Julia, with his wife Joan, who he had been with since they met aged 16.
He credited his family with helping him to cope after his ill health.
"It's music and family with me. I'm only one of four, that's how I am. I'm 25% of a unit. It's always been that way and we like it that way. In between that there's music," Rea once said.