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.
Seven Bridges
Chris de Burgh Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Sometimes I go down my street without a glance
And I long to see my childhood days again
Sometimes I can hardly even stay still
Needing something new behind the doors I go through
Sometimes I am hot and then I′m cold
In the places that we all have to go
Before we see the right that's in a wrong
There are seven bridges to be crossed
Seven years of darkness to survive
Seven times in oceans to be lost
But then I′ll see the shining light
Sometimes seems the hands of time are standing still
And it feels that things are going round and round
Sometimes we all have the need to get away
And to sit in silence all by yourself
Sometimes hands can reach out to the world
Maybe lucky stars are on the way
Sometimes we are taking when we should give
And hate the things that we still really love
There are seven bridges to be crossed
Seven years of darkness to survive
Seven times in oceans you'll be lost
And then you'll see the shining light
There are seven bridges to be crossed
Seven years of darkness to survive
Seven times in oceans you′ll be lost
And then you will see the shining light
And then you will see the shining light
The lyrics of Chris de Burgh's Seven Bridges are steeped in introspective and reflective elements. The song expresses a sense of nostalgia and yearning for the past, as the character is seen going down his street with "a longing to see my childhood days again." The character longs for something new, something exciting that lies beyond the doors that he goes through, but he also acknowledges that there are times when he is "hot and then cold" due to the events happening in the places that we all have to go through before we can see the right in a wrong.
The overall theme of the song seems to be that life is full of difficulties and challenges (represented by the seven bridges, seven years of darkness, and seven times in oceans), but that we must move through them and overcome them to see the shining light at the end. The song also touches on the idea of taking time for oneself and getting away from it all, as well as the need to be aware of the things we truly love versus the things that we hate.
Overall, the lyrics of Seven Bridges paint a picture of the highs and lows of life, and the need to persevere through the difficult times in order to find the light in the end.
Line by Line Meaning
Sometimes I go down my street without a glance
Sometimes I walk through my life without really observing it
And I long to see my childhood days again
I often feel nostalgia for the simplicity and innocence of my past
Sometimes I can hardly even stay still
Sometimes I feel restless and crave change and new experiences
Needing something new behind the doors I go through
I am always looking for something exciting and different in my everyday life
Sometimes I am hot and then I′m cold
Sometimes my emotions fluctuate rapidly between extremes
When I know that there is something going on
When I suspect that there is a deeper issue causing my unsettled feelings
In the places that we all have to go
In the inevitable experiences that all of us face in life
Before we see the right that's in a wrong
Before we can understand the moral lesson or silver lining in a difficult situation
There are seven bridges to be crossed
Life has seven major obstacles or challenges to overcome
Seven years of darkness to survive
For each of these obstacles, it may take around seven years of pain and struggle to move past them
Seven times in oceans to be lost
During each obstacle, we may find ourselves lost and struggling to find our way again
But then I′ll see the shining light
But eventually, we will find the light at the end of the tunnel and emerge stronger and wiser
Sometimes seems the hands of time are standing still
Sometimes it feels like life is at a standstill and going nowhere
And it feels that things are going round and round
And it feels like we keep facing the same problems and issues over and over again
Sometimes we all have the need to get away
Sometimes we need to take a break from our hectic lives to find peace and clarity
And to sit in silence all by yourself
And to find solace and reflection in moments of solitude
Sometimes hands can reach out to the world
Sometimes we have the power to make a positive impact on the world around us
Maybe lucky stars are on the way
Perhaps fate is working in our favor and good things are on their way
Sometimes we are taking when we should give
Sometimes we are selfish and take from others when we should be giving back
And hate the things that we still really love
And sometimes we develop negative emotions towards things we are still truly fond of
And then you'll see the shining light
And eventually, we will all find that glimmer of hope and positivity in our lives
Writer(s): Chris De Burgh, Helmut Richter
Contributed by Aubrey G. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
mironek448
Wspaniały jak zawsze najdoskonalszy Bard Chris de Burgh piękne wykonanie , cudowny niepowtarzalny głos po prostu uczta dla uszu ! Mirosław Paliciuc.
별지기
7개의 다리를 멋지게 해석하는 영상은 황홀합니다.
낭만시인 크리스 버그의
목소리도 달콤하구요.
잘 들었습니다.^^
Barbara Craveiro
Os vídeos de Chris de Burg São exclusivos sensacionais!
Nadia Bouissaine
Really ❤ we miss you MR CHRIS DE BURGH
Evects
Beautiful Interpretation of 7 Brücken♥️♥️
Mónica Casanueva Goldberg
Me encanta esta canción!!!
Jurgen Gugenson
Fabulous song, great Chris and marvellous video! Thank you!
Michael Stolz
Awesome song, I own the whole album Footsteps II. Although he performs covered songs, he is GREAT!!!
Mar Marco
Love it
Justkate
A wonderful singer...i have enjoyed his music through every "up and down! in my life!!