Chris Rea, the artist behind "Driving Home For Christmas," has passed away, aged 74. His family issued a statement to The Guardian regarding his passing.
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"It is with immense sadness that we announce the death of our beloved Chris," the statement read. "He passed away peacefully in hospital earlier today following a short illness, surrounded by his family."
Rea, who was born in Middelsborough, England, released 25 studio albums throughout his career. His unique sound often blended blues, soft rock, soul and even pop. He had a UK No.1 album with "The Road To Hell," with the single by the same name also becoming a significant hit.
Throughout his career, Rea sold more than 30 million albums. He also has a huge following on streaming platforms, with north of 21 million monthly listeners on Spotify.
Rea also had sizeable success with some other releases, such as, On the Beach", and "Josephine. Before deciding to take his career solo in 1974, he dabbled in being part of a band. However, it would appear that his decision to go it alone paid dividends, judging by his sustainable success.
Chris Rea Used To Be Worried His Christmas Hit Would Ruin His Career
During a 2016 interview with The Guardian, Rea admitted that upon the release of his hit Christmas song, he was concerned that it would ruin his credibility in the industry.
"I used to be terrified the song would ruin any credibility I had left, but now we have a laugh with it," he said. "If I'm ever stuck on the M25, I'll wind the window down and start singing, 'I'm driving home for Christmas' at people in cars alongside. They love it."
Rea was so concerned about the song that he held off from performing it live. However, he eventually succumbed to the demand and debuted the live version during a concert at the Hammersmith Odeon.
"I'd never played it live until one year at Hammersmith Odeon: the gig was on 21 December, so the road crew kept badgering me to do it. I went, "If I'm going to sing this f-----g song, we're gonna do it properly." So we hired 12 snow cannons. When we started the song, you couldn't hear it for the noise of the crowd, and we let go with the machines. We put three feet of artificial snow in the stalls. The venue charged me £12,000 to clean it up."
Rea's music will be missed. There is currently no information regarding his funeral or service. However, given the brevity of the statement from his family, his final goodbye will likely be a private affair for loved ones and close friends.
