De Burgh was born in Venado Tuerto, Argentina, to Colonel Charles John Davison, MBE, a British diplomat, and Maeve Emily de Burgh, an Irish secretary. His maternal grandfather was Sir Eric de Burgh, a British Army officer who had been Chief of the General Staff in India during the Second World War. He took his mother's name, "de Burgh", when he began performing. His father had substantial farming interests, and Chris spent much of his early years in Malta, Nigeria and Zaire, as he, his mother and brother accompanied Colonel Davison on his diplomatic and engineering work.
The Davisons finally settled in Bargy Castle, County Wexford, Ireland, which was somewhat dilapidated at the time. It was a twelfth-century castle which Eric de Burgh bought in the 1960s. He converted it into a hotel, and the young Chris sang for the guests there.
After attending Marlborough College in Wiltshire, England, de Burgh went on to graduate from Trinity College, Dublin, with a Master of Arts degree in French, English and History.
Chris de Burgh signed his first contract with A&M Records in 1974, and supported Supertramp on their Crime of the Century tour, building himself a small fan base. His début album, Far Beyond These Castle Walls, was a folk-tinged stab at fantasy in the tradition of the Moody Blues. It failed to chart upon its release in late 1974. A few months later, he released a single called "Turning Round" from the album, released outside the UK and Ireland as "Flying". It failed to make an impression in the UK, but it stayed on top of the Brazilian charts for 17 weeks. This became a familiar pattern for the singer/songwriter, as every one of his 1970s albums failed to chart in the UK or US while they racked up big sales in continental European and South American countries.
In 1975 his second album, Spanish Train and Other Stories, was released. Whilst (again) not a huge commercial success, the album and tour expanded the fan base, with de Burgh starting to attract a cult following. Along with the epic title track, other fan favourite tracks from the album included "Patricia The Stripper" and "A Spaceman Came Travelling" (the latter released the following year as a single).
1977's third album, At the End of a Perfect Day, whilst well received and featuring both former Fairport Convention drummer Dave Mattacks and later Fairport drummer Gerry Conway, failed to push de Burgh's career significantly, leading to the release of his fourth album Crusader in 1979. Crusader took a more electric direction, including guitar contributions from Ian Bairnson (formerly of Pilot), bass player David Paton (also of Pilot), and drummer Stuart Elliott (formerly of both Cockney Rebel and of Steve Harley and Cockney Rebel), all of whom were also working, at the time, with Kate Bush. The album also featured Sky keyboard player Francis Monkman and Mike Moran. Whilst it attracted a significant number of new fans, Crusader still failed to break through in the UK and US. 1980's Eastern Wind also failed to build further on the (still cult) following in the major territories.
In 1981 de Burgh had his first UK chart entry with Best Moves, a collection culled from his early albums. It set the stage for 1982's Rupert Hine produced The Getaway, which reached number 30 in the UK charts and number 43 in the US, thanks to the eerie single "Don't Pay the Ferryman". Chris de Burgh's follow-up album, Man on the Line, also performed well, charting at 69 in the US and 11 in the UK.
Chris de Burgh had an across-the-board success with the ballad "The Lady in Red" in late 1986; the single became a number one hit in the UK (number three in America) and its accompanying album, Into the Light, reached number two in the UK (number 25 in the U.S.). That Christmas season, a re-release of de Burgh's 1976 Christmas song "A Spaceman Came Travelling" became a Top 40 hit in the UK. Flying Colours, his follow-up to Into the Light, entered the British charts at number one upon its 1988 release, yet it failed to make the American charts. De Burgh never hit the US charts again and his commercial fortunes began to slide slightly in Britain in the early 1990s, yet he retained a following around the world. This is mainly due to inactivity of his previous recording label A&M Records UK division in the U.S.
In 1997 de Burgh composed a song entitled "There's a New Star Up in Heaven Tonight", dedicated to Diana, Princess of Wales. The song was released as a 100-copy limited edition and included on the compilations The Ultimate Collection (2000) and Now and Then (2009).
In 2007 a concert in Tehran was planned for mid-2008, together with local band Arian, which would have made Chris de Burgh the first western pop singer to perform in Iran since the 1979 revolution. However, the concert never went ahead because he had not been given permission by the Iranian authorities to perform in the country.
He was the first Western act to play in Lebanon after the Lebanese Civil War.
On 25 June 2019, The New York Times Magazine listed Chris de Burgh among hundreds of artists whose material was reportedly destroyed in the 2008 Universal fire.
Sailing
Chris de Burgh Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Watching all the ships
As they are heading for the harbor wall
I was just a boy, I was just a boy
Dreaming of the wide world
Dreaming of the wide world
Watching as they disappear
Of all the places I have never been
Looking out to sea, staring out to sea
Dreaming of a wide world
Dreaming of the wide world, uu
I wish I was sailing away, sailing away
Sailing away, with you tonight, with you tonight
Walking down another street
Underneath the red lights
I am watching where the shadows fall
Looking at the girls, listening to the girls
Dreaming of a new world,
Dreaming of that new world, uu
I wish I was sailing away, sailing away
Sailing away, in your arms tonight
In your arms tonight
I wish I was sailing away, sailing away
Sailing away, with you now, with you now
The song "Sailing Away" by Chris de Burgh is a reflection on the singer's childhood memories and longing for adventure. As a young boy, he would wait at the water's edge and watch the ships come in, dreaming of the places they were going and the adventures they would have. He would read the names of the places he had never been and look out to sea, yearning for a wider world beyond his own.
As the singer grew older, he found himself walking down different streets and looking at the shadows in the red lights. He watched the girls and listened to them, dreaming of a new world and new experiences. The song is a yearning for adventure and for the possibility of sailing away to new places with someone else.
Overall, "Sailing Away" is a wistful and nostalgic song about the longing for adventure and the desire to escape the confines of everyday life. It speaks to the universal human desire to explore, to see new things, and to experience the world beyond our own.
Line by Line Meaning
Waiting at the water's edge
Standing at the shore
Watching all the ships
Observing every boat
As they are heading for the harbor wall
As they approach the harbor
I was just a boy, I was just a boy
I was young, very young
Dreaming of the wide world
Imagining far-off places
Watching as they disappear
Observing boats go out of sight
Reading out the names
Pronouncing the destinations
Of all the places I have never been
Of all the locations I haven't visited yet
Looking out to sea, staring out to sea
Gazing at the ocean
Dreaming of a wide world
Fantasizing about a vast world
I wish I was sailing away, sailing away
Desire to travel, to sail across water
Sailing away, with you tonight, with you tonight
Going on the voyage with someone special
Walking down another street
Strolling along a different avenue
Underneath the red lights
Beneath the traffic signals
I am watching where the shadows fall
Noticing the shadows' placement
Looking at the girls, listening to the girls
Observing and hearing the ladies
Dreaming of a new world,
Daydreaming about a novel environment
Dreaming of that new world, uu
Imagining another world
In your arms tonight
Embracing you this evening
Sailing away, with you now, with you now
Embarking on the adventure with you immediately
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management
Written by: CHRIS DE BURGH
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@angelikamuller7160
Ich bin auch ein grosser BEWUNDERER von Chris de Burgh. Viele seiner Songs trösten mich, wenn mein psychischer Zustand im Keller ist. Ich habe als meine Schwester ( welche 18 Jahre älter als ich bin, ich werde nächstes jahr 66) an ihrem Geburtstag LADY IN RED Spielen lassen und obwohl sie in jeder Hinsicht kein Freund von derartigen Songs ist hat es ihr mehr als nur gefallen. Deshalb habe ich ihr das alles übersetzt. Grüße aus Nürnberg
@danielasterling6936
CHRIS DE BURGH ES ARGENTINO...NACIÓ EN VENADO TUERTO...ES MAS ARGENTINO QUE MESSI
@ste9071
Love this, the band are amazing. Chris's vocals are stunning, the drum riff is perfect, keys stunning, guitar and bass beautiful, ❤
@mezellenjohnson2753
I've been listening to Chris for more years than I like to remember and I never get tired of him and his wonderful music. Than you Chris for enjoyment through the years.
@Nine-Signs
Relatively new to me. Which is a good thing :) A bit odd really as I've heard the usual tracks of his on the radio for my 25 adult years but was mostly oblivious, I just remember ever since I was a kid, there was a song I would always hear at christmas everywhere and still do, that I found haunting, but I never knew who wrote and sang it.
The song: A spaceman came travelling.
@mezellenjohnson2753
@@Nine-Signs I love that too sweetheart XOXO
@Nine-Signs
@@mezellenjohnson2753 Bless, Merry Christmas friend. x.
@danielasterling6936
CHRIS DE BURGH IS ARGENTINE...BORN IN VENADO TUERTO
@danielasterling6936
@@Nine-Signs CHRIS DE BURGH IS ARGENTINE...BORN IN VENADO TUERTO
@sandrovollmer
Nach Jahrzehnten noch immer ein schöner Song...
Viele Grüße in Liebe und Dankbarkeit