Christopher Anton Rea (born 4 March 1951) is an English rock and blues sing… Read Full Bio ↴Christopher Anton Rea (born 4 March 1951) is an English rock and blues singer and guitarist from Middlesbrough. A "gravel-voiced guitar stalwart" known for his slide guitar playing, Rea has recorded twenty five solo albums, two of which topped the UK Albums Chart. Described as "rock's ultimate survivor", given his recovery from several bouts of serious illness, Rea was "a major European star by the time he finally cracked the UK Top 10" with his single "The Road to Hell (Part 2)". The album, The Road to Hell (1989), topped the album chart, as did its successor, Auberge (1991). His many hit songs include "I Can Hear Your Heartbeat", "Stainsby Girls", "Josephine", "On the Beach", "Let's Dance", "Driving Home for Christmas", "Working on It", "Tell Me There's a Heaven", "Auberge" and "Julia". He also recorded a duet with Elton John, "If You Were Me". Rea was nominated three times for the Brit Award for Best British Male Artist: in 1988, 1989 and 1990.

He has never toured the United States, where he is best known for the 1978 single "Fool (If You Think It's Over)", which reached No. 12 on the Billboard Hot 100 and spent three weeks at No. 1 on the Adult Contemporary chart, earning him a Grammy nomination as Best New Artist in 1978. A decade later, "Working On It" topped the Mainstream Rock chart. He has sold more than 40 million records worldwide.

Full Wikipedia article: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chris_Rea

Studio albums
Whatever Happened to Benny Santini? (Magnet, 1978)
Deltics (Magnet, 1979)
Tennis (Magnet, 1980)
Chris Rea (Magnet, 1981)
Water Sign (Magnet, 1983)
Wired to the Moon (Magnet, 1984)
Shamrock Diaries (Magnet, 1985)
On the Beach (Magnet, 1986)
Dancing with Strangers (Magnet, 1987)
The Road to Hell (WEA, 1989)
Auberge (EastWest, 1991)
God's Great Banana Skin (EastWest, 1992)
Espresso Logic (EastWest, 1993)
La Passione (soundtrack, EastWest, 1996)
The Blue Cafe (EastWest, 1998)
The Road to Hell: Part 2 (EastWest, 1999)
King of the Beach (EastWest, 2000)
Dancing Down the Stony Road/Stony Road (Jazzee Blue, 2002
Blue Street (Five Guitars) (Jazzee Blue, 2003)
Hofner Blue Notes (Jazzee Blue, 2003)
The Blue Jukebox (Jazzee Blue, 2004)
Blue Guitars (Jazzee Blue, 2005)
The Return of the Fabulous Hofner Bluenotes (Jazzee Blue, 2008)
Santo Spirito Blues (Jazzee Blue, 2011)
Road Songs for Lovers (Jazzee Blue, 2017)
One Fine Day (Rhino, limited release, 2019)

When the Good Lord Talked to Jesus
Chris Rea Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

See me moving without warning.
Fast as mt legs can run
And I'm hanging by a thin wire,
Been that way since I was young

Only the good Lord got his reasons,
For turning on his own son.

And he beat up on me real bad.
Bad as a dog can be
He took every smile that I had
And he threw it all back at me

Only the good Lord got his reasons,
Make yo cry until your eyes can't see
Well he burned down all that I had
And he left me beat and blind

Oh he dealt me pain and sorrow
And every fear that he could find
When the good Lord talked to Jesus
Guess I ain't what he had in mind

Oh when the good Lord talked to Jesus
I guess I ain't what he had in mind

Overall Meaning

The lyrics to Chris Rea's song "When the Good Lord Talked to Jesus" speak of a person who is constantly moving and hanging by a thin wire. The individual has faced hard times since their youth and has been beaten and broken down by life. The lyrics imply that the individual feels as though they have been abandoned by God as he has allowed them to suffer so much. However, the individual understands that there must be a reason for their pain and suffering which only the good Lord knows. The lyrics paint a bleak picture of a life marked by deprivation and suffering.

The central theme of this song is the idea that sometimes in life, people can be hit hard by circumstances beyond their control. In such situations, people may question their faith in God and feel abandoned. The lyrics of this song also highlight the sense of injustice that is often perceived when bad things happen to good people. The singer is asking why he is suffering and why he is not getting the help he deserves.

Line by Line Meaning

See me moving without warning.
I'm constantly on the move, without any direction or pre-planning.

Fast as my legs can run
I'm always moving as fast as I can go.

And I'm hanging by a thin wire,
I feel as though I'm constantly on the edge of a breakdown, just barely holding on.

Been that way since I was young
I've felt this way for as long as I can remember.

Only the good Lord got his reasons,
I don't understand why everything happens the way it does, but I trust that there's some purpose behind it all.

For turning on his own son.
Even Jesus experienced suffering and pain, despite being the son of God.

And he beat up on me real bad.
Life has dealt me a lot of hardships and challenges.

Bad as a dog can be
These experiences have been so painful and difficult that it feels like I've been attacked by a vicious animal.

He took every smile that I had
All the joy and happiness I once had has been taken away from me.

And he threw it all back at me
To make matters worse, everything I've lost has been thrown back in my face, reminding me of what I used to have.

Make you cry until your eyes can't see
These experiences have been so overwhelming that I've cried tears until I physically can't anymore.

Well he burned down all that I had
It feels like everything I once had has been destroyed or taken away from me.

And he left me beat and blind
I feel defeated and helpless, unable to see a way out of my struggles.

Oh he dealt me pain and sorrow
My life has been filled with so much pain and sadness.

And every fear that he could find
All my fears and anxieties have been magnified and seem to be constantly present.

When the good Lord talked to Jesus
This song is reflecting on the idea that even Jesus struggled and experienced pain and that God has a plan for each of us, even if we don't understand it.

Guess I ain't what he had in mind
Although I may not understand why I'm going through such difficult experiences, I trust that there's a larger plan and purpose for my life.

Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS

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