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.
The Long and Winding Road
Chris de Burgh Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Will never disappear,
I've seen that road before, It always leads me here,
Lead me to your door,
The wild and windy night that the rain washed away,
Has left a pool of tears crying for the day,
Why leave me standing here, let me know the way,
Many times I've been alone and many times I've cried,
Anyway you'll never know the many ways I've tried,
But still they lead me back to the long winding road,
You left me standing here a long, long time ago,
Don't leave me waiting here, lead me to your door,
But still they lead me back to the long winding road,
You left me standing here a long, long time ago,
Don't keep me waiting here, lead me to your door,
Yeah yeah yeah yeah.
Chris de Burgh's "The Long and Winding Road" is a song that speaks to the universal experiences of longing and heartache. It is a song that speaks to the comfort we feel in familiar places, even if they are the sources of our pain. The first verse sets the stage for the song, with the image of a long and winding road that leads to the door of the person he is singing to. This road is a metaphor for the journey he has taken to reach this person, and the pain that has come along with it. The road never disappears, and he always ends up back at the same place, at her door.
The second verse builds on this idea of pain and heartache. The wild and windy night that the rain washed away has left a pool of tears crying for the day. This image of a pool of tears adds depth to the theme of heartache that runs through the song. He pleads with her to let him know the way, to not leave him standing here alone. He has been alone and crying many times, and he wants her to understand the many ways he has tried to reach her. But despite all of this, he is still lead back to the long winding road, back to her door. He is left waiting, hoping that she will let him in.
Line by Line Meaning
The long and winding road that leads to your door,
The difficult and unpredictable journey that brings me to you will never cease to exist.
Will never disappear,
The road will always be present and challenging.
I've seen that road before, It always leads me here,
Although I have been on this road before, it always seems to bring me to you.
Lead me to your door,
Guide me to your presence and your love.
The wild and windy night that the rain washed away,
The tumultuous experiences that have shaped me have been wiped away by the tears I have shed.
Has left a pool of tears crying for the day,
I am left with overwhelming sorrow for the past and hope for the future.
Why leave me standing here, let me know the way,
Please don't abandon me to decipher this journey alone. Show me the path.
Many times I've been alone and many times I've cried,
I have spent countless hours in solitude and heartache.
Anyway you'll never know the many ways I've tried,
Despite my efforts, you may never truly comprehend the extent to which I have attempted to reach you.
But still they lead me back to the long winding road,
No matter how many diversions and obstacles I encounter, I am inexorably drawn back to you and the journey that leads to you.
You left me standing here a long, long time ago,
You abandoned me at some point in the past, leaving me to wander hopelessly until now.
Don't leave me waiting here, lead me to your door,
Please don't let me endure the uncertainty and anxiety of waiting again. Take me safely to you.
Yeah yeah yeah yeah.
An expression of longing and the urgency to be reunited
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: JOHN LENNON, PAUL MCCARTNEY
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Simou London
l une des meilleures interpretation .jai la chair de poule .
Yuchin Robb
I've been in love with Chris De Burgh for such a long time....how is he? Wish him all the best!
DMG Soul'togetherness
He back on tour v soon
Kelly Mark
So glad that you enjoyed your listen :)
ray munro
Well Done Kelly Mark, For Listing this great rendition of this Great Beatles Song - Chris de Burgh, was one of my early days favourites, And this track reminds me this great Artist always worked with brilliant Backing as a matter of course.
ray munro
Enjoying playing it Over-and-Over. Paul McCartney has recently pulled all the Beatles recordings from Public 'free play' Left all his own 'Winging-it' renditions as Free play though.
Kelly Mark
+ray munro I am so glad that you enjoyed it Ray! I have to agree Chris De Burgh is one hell of a great artist and his band is always top notch :)
DMG Soul'togetherness
Beautiful
Kelly Mark
Glad that you liked it
ray munro
This Version is SO Close to the Original Abbey Road Beatles Version (Just a few word emphasis difference) I'd Swear it was the same backing Orchestra though (lets not forget the Original was two overlaid Abbey-Road recordings. Beatles and Orchestra) Love to All