Fans ask - Chris de Burgh answers!
Something that you always wanted to know?
Here is your chance to get a reply!
August 21, 2005
Paula Bostock (30) from Wiltshire, UK:
The Traveller - What made you write it? My sister and I love it, and have fond, early childhood memories of it. Mainly travelling up to Scotland with our family. Please let us know your inspiration for such a wonderful tune and song.
Chris de Burgh:
Hi Paula! It’s great that you have these early childhood memories of listening to songs, in particular “The Traveller”. After I had written the song “Spanish Train”, I felt that there was still room for a few more songs about mysticism, about the Devil for example, about the supernatural. Which is why subsequently I came up with “The Devil’s Eye”, “Don’t Pay The Ferryman” and indeed “The Traveller”. “The Traveller” was based on revenge. And I remember being impressed by a film starring Cling Eastwood called “High Planes Drifter”, where a man enters a town and he is beaten senseless by the townsfolk who don’t understand him. They see him as a threat which he isn’t, but he decides to get his revenge and he comes back again. It’s an extraordinary film, it’s almost biblical in its attitudes about life and death, black and white and in this case red as well.
Editor’s note:
And now the Man On (the) Line section is once again taking a break. We will return as soon as we receive new answers from Chris de Burgh. Meanwhile, keep the questions coming! And please be patient while you wait for an answer as we are now dealing with a 8-9 months delay between asking a question and posting the reply...
Paula Bostock (30) from Wiltshire, UK:
The Traveller - What made you write it? My sister and I love it, and have fond, early childhood memories of it. Mainly travelling up to Scotland with our family. Please let us know your inspiration for such a wonderful tune and song.
Chris de Burgh:
Hi Paula! It’s great that you have these early childhood memories of listening to songs, in particular “The Traveller”. After I had written the song “Spanish Train”, I felt that there was still room for a few more songs about mysticism, about the Devil for example, about the supernatural. Which is why subsequently I came up with “The Devil’s Eye”, “Don’t Pay The Ferryman” and indeed “The Traveller”. “The Traveller” was based on revenge. And I remember being impressed by a film starring Cling Eastwood called “High Planes Drifter”, where a man enters a town and he is beaten senseless by the townsfolk who don’t understand him. They see him as a threat which he isn’t, but he decides to get his revenge and he comes back again. It’s an extraordinary film, it’s almost biblical in its attitudes about life and death, black and white and in this case red as well.
Editor’s note:
And now the Man On (the) Line section is once again taking a break. We will return as soon as we receive new answers from Chris de Burgh. Meanwhile, keep the questions coming! And please be patient while you wait for an answer as we are now dealing with a 8-9 months delay between asking a question and posting the reply...
August 20, 2005
Amir (22) from Tehran, Iran:
Wotcha Chris, I would sincerely thank you for your kindness towards us Iranians, as far as I can see on your website. Anyway, my main purpose of leaving a message here is to ask you of your purpose of writing and singing the "Eastern Wind". I was wondering if the old man there is Ayatollah Khomeini and if the people "burning the palace down" are Iranians uprooting the regime of Shah. Thank you so much. With the hope to catch you up in one of your upcoming concerts.
Chris de Burgh:
Well, I don’t need to say anymore here, I think, about my fondness for all the things that you’ve said about me and to me, from my fans in Iran. I’d just like to say “Thank you very much”, and please keep your sentiments coming back to me. The song “Eastern Wind”, which was in the late 70s the title track of that album, was written from the point of view of a farmer in the Mid West of America. And no disrespect to America, but the amount of international news that was available back then, and probably still is the case about the rest of the world, is very very slim. If anybody travels to America and wants to read international news, it is pretty difficult to find. Maybe just a small part of the paper, or the news bulletins. So this farmer is very ignorant about what is happening over in Iran, or indeed Persia. At that time he senses there is a threat coming to him that will threaten his livelihood, his country, his family. And he sees it as a wind that is about to destroy his crops, that is what the Eastern Wind refers to. And yes, you are quite right, it was relevant to Khomeini. But you have to understand that these points of view aren’t necessarily mine. I create these characters, who believe things that they see and hear. So as I say this is not necessarily my point of view. But this farmer feels that something is about to change, and he doesn’t like what is coming. It’s also the cover of the album “Eastern Wind”, illustrating these feelings.
Amir (22) from Tehran, Iran:
Wotcha Chris, I would sincerely thank you for your kindness towards us Iranians, as far as I can see on your website. Anyway, my main purpose of leaving a message here is to ask you of your purpose of writing and singing the "Eastern Wind". I was wondering if the old man there is Ayatollah Khomeini and if the people "burning the palace down" are Iranians uprooting the regime of Shah. Thank you so much. With the hope to catch you up in one of your upcoming concerts.
Chris de Burgh:
Well, I don’t need to say anymore here, I think, about my fondness for all the things that you’ve said about me and to me, from my fans in Iran. I’d just like to say “Thank you very much”, and please keep your sentiments coming back to me. The song “Eastern Wind”, which was in the late 70s the title track of that album, was written from the point of view of a farmer in the Mid West of America. And no disrespect to America, but the amount of international news that was available back then, and probably still is the case about the rest of the world, is very very slim. If anybody travels to America and wants to read international news, it is pretty difficult to find. Maybe just a small part of the paper, or the news bulletins. So this farmer is very ignorant about what is happening over in Iran, or indeed Persia. At that time he senses there is a threat coming to him that will threaten his livelihood, his country, his family. And he sees it as a wind that is about to destroy his crops, that is what the Eastern Wind refers to. And yes, you are quite right, it was relevant to Khomeini. But you have to understand that these points of view aren’t necessarily mine. I create these characters, who believe things that they see and hear. So as I say this is not necessarily my point of view. But this farmer feels that something is about to change, and he doesn’t like what is coming. It’s also the cover of the album “Eastern Wind”, illustrating these feelings.
August 19, 2005
Ian McDonald (40) from Surrey, British Columbia, Canada:
Hi Chris. I am reading a series of 28 books by Alexander Kent on the 18th/19th Century Royal Navy. With 2005 being the 200th anniversary of the Battle of Trafalgar, have you ever thought of writing a song about it? Something similar to Crusader would be great!!
Chris de Burgh:
Hi Ian! I am very familiar with your name. You have always come up with some interesting things to say, and things to talk about and things to suggest for the future. It’s curious that you should be asking this question and several months later I am answering it. Because I believe today, as I am answering this at the end of June 2005, is the anniversary of the battle of Trafalgar! It’s an interesting idea to go to history and look at Admiral Nelson, because it occurs to me now that when I write songs I tend to rely on my own knowledge of history. But for the first time I am becoming very interested in looking at a subject like for example Ian’s idea of the battle of Trafalgar and researching it, reading books about it, and then writing a song about it! This is something I haven’t done in the past. Even the song “Rose Of England”, I went into my knowledge of Elizabeth I, and once I had got the idea for the song, I did a bit of historical reading and research. So this is a very good idea for the future and I am glad that you brought this up, because that’s an incident in history which I am sure a lot of people would be familiar with.
Ian McDonald (40) from Surrey, British Columbia, Canada:
Hi Chris. I am reading a series of 28 books by Alexander Kent on the 18th/19th Century Royal Navy. With 2005 being the 200th anniversary of the Battle of Trafalgar, have you ever thought of writing a song about it? Something similar to Crusader would be great!!
Chris de Burgh:
Hi Ian! I am very familiar with your name. You have always come up with some interesting things to say, and things to talk about and things to suggest for the future. It’s curious that you should be asking this question and several months later I am answering it. Because I believe today, as I am answering this at the end of June 2005, is the anniversary of the battle of Trafalgar! It’s an interesting idea to go to history and look at Admiral Nelson, because it occurs to me now that when I write songs I tend to rely on my own knowledge of history. But for the first time I am becoming very interested in looking at a subject like for example Ian’s idea of the battle of Trafalgar and researching it, reading books about it, and then writing a song about it! This is something I haven’t done in the past. Even the song “Rose Of England”, I went into my knowledge of Elizabeth I, and once I had got the idea for the song, I did a bit of historical reading and research. So this is a very good idea for the future and I am glad that you brought this up, because that’s an incident in history which I am sure a lot of people would be familiar with.
August 18 2005
Kurt Hauke (44) from Wildflecken, Germany:
Hi Chris! I have a question about the orchestral arrangements on the album "Road to Freedom". Did you write the arrangements all by yourself or was there another composer? I like your songs with orchestral background a bit more than the others. By these songs I become a very sentimental feeling. Many thanks for answering my question. Kurt
Chris de Burgh:
The orchestral arrangements on “The Road To Freedom” are by a man called Chris Cameron, where it’s a full orchestra, that is the first three songs. I worked with him initially, when I sent him a demo copy of what I planned to do, what I liked to hear. I talked to him a lot subsequently about ideas, about orchestral movement, about individual pieces of music coming from individual instruments like an oboe for example or a cello. Then on the day of the recording they would do a run-through, and if there was something that I didn’t like or I felt was wrong or wanted to change, that could be done immediately on the floor of the recording studio. I can’t read or write music so I have to leave it up to somebody else. But they always listen very carefully to what I have to say and what I would like to feel and hear. And it helps when you have somebody like for example Chris Cameron or indeed the keyboard player on my record Pete Gordeno, who are very emotional musicians as well, and they understand the feelings that I’m trying to convey. Chris Cameron also did the orchestral arrangements on “Here For You”, after I explained what the song is all about. And I have, down the years, always tried to help musicians to understand what I am talking about in my songs, by writing a short story, a one page story, about what is happening. And for example, in the song “Here For You”, I wrote the story to Chris Cameron about the scene at the airport where everybody is leaving, and how emotional it was. And he understood immediately. And he wrote a beautiful string part for that song.
Kurt Hauke (44) from Wildflecken, Germany:
Hi Chris! I have a question about the orchestral arrangements on the album "Road to Freedom". Did you write the arrangements all by yourself or was there another composer? I like your songs with orchestral background a bit more than the others. By these songs I become a very sentimental feeling. Many thanks for answering my question. Kurt
Chris de Burgh:
The orchestral arrangements on “The Road To Freedom” are by a man called Chris Cameron, where it’s a full orchestra, that is the first three songs. I worked with him initially, when I sent him a demo copy of what I planned to do, what I liked to hear. I talked to him a lot subsequently about ideas, about orchestral movement, about individual pieces of music coming from individual instruments like an oboe for example or a cello. Then on the day of the recording they would do a run-through, and if there was something that I didn’t like or I felt was wrong or wanted to change, that could be done immediately on the floor of the recording studio. I can’t read or write music so I have to leave it up to somebody else. But they always listen very carefully to what I have to say and what I would like to feel and hear. And it helps when you have somebody like for example Chris Cameron or indeed the keyboard player on my record Pete Gordeno, who are very emotional musicians as well, and they understand the feelings that I’m trying to convey. Chris Cameron also did the orchestral arrangements on “Here For You”, after I explained what the song is all about. And I have, down the years, always tried to help musicians to understand what I am talking about in my songs, by writing a short story, a one page story, about what is happening. And for example, in the song “Here For You”, I wrote the story to Chris Cameron about the scene at the airport where everybody is leaving, and how emotional it was. And he understood immediately. And he wrote a beautiful string part for that song.
August 17, 2005
Deborah Moore (49) from Scappoose, Oregon, USA:
Chris, so many of your songs are so very heartfelt...especially for a man...to whom do you attribute this wonderful quality? Who were your heroes growing up?? Also, who is the face on the cover of "Crusader"? I noticed the beautiful eyes and was wondering if they are, indeed, yours? Thanks so much for being! Your friend, Deborah
Chris de Burgh:
I have been to Oregon in the USA in the past, and I intend to return in the future. Thank you for your remarks about my songs. As you’ve pointed out, especially for a man to show and understand deep emotion. I can’t put my finger on why this happens, Deborah, but when I go into an idea or a thought or an emotion, it’s almost like sinking into a swimming pool. You’ve got to let yourself fall, knowing that you can always return again to the surface, but you have to allow yourself to drift down, down, down into your own feelings and emotions and your own thoughts and beliefs. And sometimes it’s actually quite scary. It’s very important for me when I am in this particular phase - it’s almost like the phase between being asleep and awake – that I am not disturbed. So that is the time that I switch off the phone, lock my studio door and make sure that nobody interrupts me. Because then I can really imagine myself in a situation, for example in a song like “The Best That Love Can Be”, where a couple are breaking up and the man is pleading that his memories be left intact, although the break-up may be extremely unpleasant. The memories are all that’s left at the end of the break-up. And although that hasn’t happened to me, it has happened to people around me. And I suppose I have a big capacity, an ability to put myself into somebody else’s shoes. It’s funny, because watching the children grow up and then things happen with them or to them, I always say “well, imagine what it would be like, if it was you.”, to get an understanding what the other person is thinking and feeling. And similarly with songs and feelings and emotions, I am not one of those men who is scared to show my emotions or scared to cry. It’s because I am very much in touch with my inner person and it’s really important to try and go into that in a person, to try and express an emotion, to allow it to be conveyed to somebody else who is listening. The face on the cover of Crusader is me. I remember holding that helmet on my head and it was very heavy and I could not move, because it was a long exposure on the film. That was back in 1978. When I was growing up, my heroes would have been the Beatles, Bob Dylan, Jackson Browne, Paul Simon, great songwriters like that. And as you say, it is rare to find a man who is able to express his emotions. In some ways this exposes me to derision and indeed contempt. and people laugh about a man who can show his emotions, some people. But on the other hand I couldn’t care less. I am who I am and I like me. And that’s the important thing as far as I am concerned, to like yourself.
Deborah Moore (49) from Scappoose, Oregon, USA:
Chris, so many of your songs are so very heartfelt...especially for a man...to whom do you attribute this wonderful quality? Who were your heroes growing up?? Also, who is the face on the cover of "Crusader"? I noticed the beautiful eyes and was wondering if they are, indeed, yours? Thanks so much for being! Your friend, Deborah
Chris de Burgh:
I have been to Oregon in the USA in the past, and I intend to return in the future. Thank you for your remarks about my songs. As you’ve pointed out, especially for a man to show and understand deep emotion. I can’t put my finger on why this happens, Deborah, but when I go into an idea or a thought or an emotion, it’s almost like sinking into a swimming pool. You’ve got to let yourself fall, knowing that you can always return again to the surface, but you have to allow yourself to drift down, down, down into your own feelings and emotions and your own thoughts and beliefs. And sometimes it’s actually quite scary. It’s very important for me when I am in this particular phase - it’s almost like the phase between being asleep and awake – that I am not disturbed. So that is the time that I switch off the phone, lock my studio door and make sure that nobody interrupts me. Because then I can really imagine myself in a situation, for example in a song like “The Best That Love Can Be”, where a couple are breaking up and the man is pleading that his memories be left intact, although the break-up may be extremely unpleasant. The memories are all that’s left at the end of the break-up. And although that hasn’t happened to me, it has happened to people around me. And I suppose I have a big capacity, an ability to put myself into somebody else’s shoes. It’s funny, because watching the children grow up and then things happen with them or to them, I always say “well, imagine what it would be like, if it was you.”, to get an understanding what the other person is thinking and feeling. And similarly with songs and feelings and emotions, I am not one of those men who is scared to show my emotions or scared to cry. It’s because I am very much in touch with my inner person and it’s really important to try and go into that in a person, to try and express an emotion, to allow it to be conveyed to somebody else who is listening. The face on the cover of Crusader is me. I remember holding that helmet on my head and it was very heavy and I could not move, because it was a long exposure on the film. That was back in 1978. When I was growing up, my heroes would have been the Beatles, Bob Dylan, Jackson Browne, Paul Simon, great songwriters like that. And as you say, it is rare to find a man who is able to express his emotions. In some ways this exposes me to derision and indeed contempt. and people laugh about a man who can show his emotions, some people. But on the other hand I couldn’t care less. I am who I am and I like me. And that’s the important thing as far as I am concerned, to like yourself.
August 16, 2005
Jacqueline Ebner (46) from Erskine, Scotland:
Hello Chris, I saw a TV programme last night called Kirsty's Millions, in which you appeared, albeit briefly, at the end, about a delightful little girl who is terminally ill. My question is, how do you choose the charities to support and the ones to decline. Do you find it difficult to say 'No'? Love, as always, Jacqueline
Chris de Burgh:
Hi Jacqueline! I have met you on a number of occasions and you are a great supporter. And thank you for all your kindness down the years, your letters. The choice of charities is a very difficult one. I am the patron of about fifteen different charities, but I tend to only go for charities that involve children. This little girl Kirsty was born with a heart defect, a very serious one. And she was not expected to live beyond her first or even second birthday. However, she just turned 9 years old. And I was asked to go and sing at a birthday party for her, because she loved the song “The Lady In Red”. And I did a little concert at a dinner to about 200 or 300 people in Manchester. My daughter Rosanna came along as well, when she was Miss World. And we had an extraordinary night, very emotional, a very beautiful night. And little Kirsty came up onto the stage, dragging behind her an oxygen tank which is her lifeline, she has to have oxygen all the time. I wish her well in the future! And the difficulty for me is choosing which of the many charities I am asked to support. So I just tend to choose ones that affect me or my family or are connected with illnesses or diseases that have affected people around me that I know. As you have pointed out, Jacqueline, there are so many charities to support. Obviously I can’t do them all, but I do as many as I possibly can. And I hope that my name being involved with some of these charities helps them to raise the much needed funds.
Jacqueline Ebner (46) from Erskine, Scotland:
Hello Chris, I saw a TV programme last night called Kirsty's Millions, in which you appeared, albeit briefly, at the end, about a delightful little girl who is terminally ill. My question is, how do you choose the charities to support and the ones to decline. Do you find it difficult to say 'No'? Love, as always, Jacqueline
Chris de Burgh:
Hi Jacqueline! I have met you on a number of occasions and you are a great supporter. And thank you for all your kindness down the years, your letters. The choice of charities is a very difficult one. I am the patron of about fifteen different charities, but I tend to only go for charities that involve children. This little girl Kirsty was born with a heart defect, a very serious one. And she was not expected to live beyond her first or even second birthday. However, she just turned 9 years old. And I was asked to go and sing at a birthday party for her, because she loved the song “The Lady In Red”. And I did a little concert at a dinner to about 200 or 300 people in Manchester. My daughter Rosanna came along as well, when she was Miss World. And we had an extraordinary night, very emotional, a very beautiful night. And little Kirsty came up onto the stage, dragging behind her an oxygen tank which is her lifeline, she has to have oxygen all the time. I wish her well in the future! And the difficulty for me is choosing which of the many charities I am asked to support. So I just tend to choose ones that affect me or my family or are connected with illnesses or diseases that have affected people around me that I know. As you have pointed out, Jacqueline, there are so many charities to support. Obviously I can’t do them all, but I do as many as I possibly can. And I hope that my name being involved with some of these charities helps them to raise the much needed funds.
August 15, 2005
Willem de Waal (41) from Richards Bay, South Africa:
Hi Chris. Not so much a question, rather than a "touching base". I have not been to your web site for a while now, and coming back here reading the Man on the Line section is bringing back lots of memories! In particular, the comment made on 29 November 2003, about your interaction and respect for audiences and fans. I was the fortunate guy who got to meet you backstage at the Durban concert on 18 October 1998, and handed over the 50th birthday card from your on-line fans. (I see a copy of it is still here on the website - cool!) And then, later in the evening, I was the really fortunate guy who sang "Say Goodbye to it All" with you! An amazing evening, and fond memory. Regarding the respect for audiences: I think you have hit the nail on the head - people are not fools, (well, some of them, anyway!), and they can easily see if a performer is simply going through the motions, or when he is really into his performance. If there is one thing I always try to drum into the performers in the amateur shows I produce, it is this: PASSION! When you set yourself on fire, people love to come and see you burn. And I think that most people who have seen your live performances will agree that the passion is always evident. That said, I realise I DO have a question: Are there albums which you have recorded, which you thought were less "passionate" than others? Where things did not turn out as you would have liked them to? For example: when I listen to the earlier, more romantic albums, or one like "Power of Ten", "Getaway" or "Man on the Line", I can always sense the enthusiasm. This is not the case with "This Way Up" - and this in spite of great tracks like "Here is Your Paradise", "You are the Reason" and "The Snows of New York". As individual tracks, they are great - but the album has always given me the impression that it was not as good as it could have been. Looking forward to seeing you in SA again!
Chris de Burgh:
This is a very interesting question and indeed statement from Willem de Waal, recalling a night in Durban in October 1998, which I remember extremely well. I had the chance to celebrate my birthday in South Africa. Thank you, I remember, Willem, not only coming to sing with me, but also presenting me with this 50th birthday card. You ask a question about passion. Well, I have always said right from the start that unless you can feel an emotion, you will not be able to convey that emotion. I think some people get a little too passionate in performance, you know they wave their arms around. They get a bit uncontrolled. And I think audiences find that uncomfortable. But I think what they want to do is mental stimulation, emotional stimulation, as well as when I play particularly with a band, the rock songs, I love to put my physical side into it and get people dancing and interacting with the people on the stage, which is very important to me. The word “passion” is a word that has sustained me for years. But that said, it is very hard to sustain passion throughout entire records. There is a number of reasons for this. Firstly the songwriting cannot hit the centre of the target every time. Usually if I feel that there are four or maybe five songs on an album of ten or twelve tracks that I feel are really, in my opinion, for me anyway personally, outstanding, then I am very very happy. I am not saying the others are fillers or poor quality. It’s not that at all. It’s just that you have to balance a record. And a very bizarre thing happens sometimes, and I remember it happening in the mid 80s. When you make a record of, say, ten really excellent songs, they don’t sound excellent. But if you take one individually and play it on the radio, then it really stands out. It’s a very strange phenomenon, which I have come across in the past quite a few times. Also, secondly, when you are working with a producer, you are very much in his frame of mind. Although I have worked as a co-producer or indeed the full producer on many of my productions. Working with somebody else, you do allow yourself to be aligned into their production techniques, their recording techniques, to a certain extent. But then again, as it is me singing and co-producing and being totally involved with the music, in fact every aspect of a record, it’s quite hard, as we say in English, to see the wood from the trees. You have to be able to stand back and see it and judge your record and think “this is what I want to achieve”. Most of the time I believe I have been successful in my own desire to have a record turn out the way I wanted it. Not always, but when I listen back as I have been recently in preparation of this tour, to my older records, there is a slight feeling on some other tracks, thinking “I wish I had done this or changed that”. But you see, you must never have regrets. You can’t do that, because life could be full of guilt and regrets. So generally speaking, when I finish a record, I walk out the door and say “That’s that. That’s finished to this day.” I can’t make a judgement about the album “This Way Up”. There are some terrific songs on it, in my opinion, “Up Here In Heaven” being one of them and “Here Is Your Paradise”. But you can’t get it all right all of the time. I do my best.
Willem de Waal (41) from Richards Bay, South Africa:
Hi Chris. Not so much a question, rather than a "touching base". I have not been to your web site for a while now, and coming back here reading the Man on the Line section is bringing back lots of memories! In particular, the comment made on 29 November 2003, about your interaction and respect for audiences and fans. I was the fortunate guy who got to meet you backstage at the Durban concert on 18 October 1998, and handed over the 50th birthday card from your on-line fans. (I see a copy of it is still here on the website - cool!) And then, later in the evening, I was the really fortunate guy who sang "Say Goodbye to it All" with you! An amazing evening, and fond memory. Regarding the respect for audiences: I think you have hit the nail on the head - people are not fools, (well, some of them, anyway!), and they can easily see if a performer is simply going through the motions, or when he is really into his performance. If there is one thing I always try to drum into the performers in the amateur shows I produce, it is this: PASSION! When you set yourself on fire, people love to come and see you burn. And I think that most people who have seen your live performances will agree that the passion is always evident. That said, I realise I DO have a question: Are there albums which you have recorded, which you thought were less "passionate" than others? Where things did not turn out as you would have liked them to? For example: when I listen to the earlier, more romantic albums, or one like "Power of Ten", "Getaway" or "Man on the Line", I can always sense the enthusiasm. This is not the case with "This Way Up" - and this in spite of great tracks like "Here is Your Paradise", "You are the Reason" and "The Snows of New York". As individual tracks, they are great - but the album has always given me the impression that it was not as good as it could have been. Looking forward to seeing you in SA again!
Chris de Burgh:
This is a very interesting question and indeed statement from Willem de Waal, recalling a night in Durban in October 1998, which I remember extremely well. I had the chance to celebrate my birthday in South Africa. Thank you, I remember, Willem, not only coming to sing with me, but also presenting me with this 50th birthday card. You ask a question about passion. Well, I have always said right from the start that unless you can feel an emotion, you will not be able to convey that emotion. I think some people get a little too passionate in performance, you know they wave their arms around. They get a bit uncontrolled. And I think audiences find that uncomfortable. But I think what they want to do is mental stimulation, emotional stimulation, as well as when I play particularly with a band, the rock songs, I love to put my physical side into it and get people dancing and interacting with the people on the stage, which is very important to me. The word “passion” is a word that has sustained me for years. But that said, it is very hard to sustain passion throughout entire records. There is a number of reasons for this. Firstly the songwriting cannot hit the centre of the target every time. Usually if I feel that there are four or maybe five songs on an album of ten or twelve tracks that I feel are really, in my opinion, for me anyway personally, outstanding, then I am very very happy. I am not saying the others are fillers or poor quality. It’s not that at all. It’s just that you have to balance a record. And a very bizarre thing happens sometimes, and I remember it happening in the mid 80s. When you make a record of, say, ten really excellent songs, they don’t sound excellent. But if you take one individually and play it on the radio, then it really stands out. It’s a very strange phenomenon, which I have come across in the past quite a few times. Also, secondly, when you are working with a producer, you are very much in his frame of mind. Although I have worked as a co-producer or indeed the full producer on many of my productions. Working with somebody else, you do allow yourself to be aligned into their production techniques, their recording techniques, to a certain extent. But then again, as it is me singing and co-producing and being totally involved with the music, in fact every aspect of a record, it’s quite hard, as we say in English, to see the wood from the trees. You have to be able to stand back and see it and judge your record and think “this is what I want to achieve”. Most of the time I believe I have been successful in my own desire to have a record turn out the way I wanted it. Not always, but when I listen back as I have been recently in preparation of this tour, to my older records, there is a slight feeling on some other tracks, thinking “I wish I had done this or changed that”. But you see, you must never have regrets. You can’t do that, because life could be full of guilt and regrets. So generally speaking, when I finish a record, I walk out the door and say “That’s that. That’s finished to this day.” I can’t make a judgement about the album “This Way Up”. There are some terrific songs on it, in my opinion, “Up Here In Heaven” being one of them and “Here Is Your Paradise”. But you can’t get it all right all of the time. I do my best.
August 14, 2005
Yvette Jessen (34) from Rüsselsheim, Germany:
I grew up in the US and moved to Germany when I was 24. Being bilingual, I realize not only the difficulties of learning a second language, but also having written lyrics to songs on a semi-professional level, I see how hard it is to take a set of lyrics in one language and translate them into another simply because I have done this myself with German originals, but have never tried it the other way around. My questions stem from this particular area of songwriting. While in Canada, I purchased a copy of 'Notes from Planet Earth', and on the CD are two songs that are sung in French with some parts probably non-translatable and kept in the original format. Do you write the translations for these songs and have you ever considered translating one of your songs into other languages besides French for your concerts in other countries? I know that you have a number of songs with cultural themes, and they are really great, but I'm curious about this and would absolutely love to hear one of your songs performed in German, but only by you, of course.
Chris de Burgh:
Interesting what you are saying about second languages and the acknowledgement of the difficulties of not only writing lyrics, which really are a condensed form of fiction in as much as you can take a story of five or six pages and then condense the whole thing into just a few verses in a song, which is quite difficult to do. And it is also very difficult to translate. As far as the French songs that I have done in the past are concerned, they have been translated by a French writer, presented to me. And I have changed a few things, because I am relatively comfortable with the language of French and translations. Although I wouldn’t be good enough to totally translate any of my songs. I am sure I would make plenty of grammatical mistakes. Sometimes I have to change things round to make sure that the melody movement suits the words. As far as German is concerned, I would be very happy to attempt a song in German. But I am not sure firstly if it would sound very good, or secondly if it would appeal to people. Because I believe the Schlager music is very popular of course, but it’s that sort of area that I am not sure that’s really the area that people would expect me to go into. However, I am prepared to try anything once!
Yvette Jessen (34) from Rüsselsheim, Germany:
I grew up in the US and moved to Germany when I was 24. Being bilingual, I realize not only the difficulties of learning a second language, but also having written lyrics to songs on a semi-professional level, I see how hard it is to take a set of lyrics in one language and translate them into another simply because I have done this myself with German originals, but have never tried it the other way around. My questions stem from this particular area of songwriting. While in Canada, I purchased a copy of 'Notes from Planet Earth', and on the CD are two songs that are sung in French with some parts probably non-translatable and kept in the original format. Do you write the translations for these songs and have you ever considered translating one of your songs into other languages besides French for your concerts in other countries? I know that you have a number of songs with cultural themes, and they are really great, but I'm curious about this and would absolutely love to hear one of your songs performed in German, but only by you, of course.
Chris de Burgh:
Interesting what you are saying about second languages and the acknowledgement of the difficulties of not only writing lyrics, which really are a condensed form of fiction in as much as you can take a story of five or six pages and then condense the whole thing into just a few verses in a song, which is quite difficult to do. And it is also very difficult to translate. As far as the French songs that I have done in the past are concerned, they have been translated by a French writer, presented to me. And I have changed a few things, because I am relatively comfortable with the language of French and translations. Although I wouldn’t be good enough to totally translate any of my songs. I am sure I would make plenty of grammatical mistakes. Sometimes I have to change things round to make sure that the melody movement suits the words. As far as German is concerned, I would be very happy to attempt a song in German. But I am not sure firstly if it would sound very good, or secondly if it would appeal to people. Because I believe the Schlager music is very popular of course, but it’s that sort of area that I am not sure that’s really the area that people would expect me to go into. However, I am prepared to try anything once!
August 13, 2005
Paul Blest (57) from Launceston, Tasmania, Australia:
Dear Chris, you seem to do something of a world tour with your letters, but this beautiful island of Tasmania seems to have slipped off the planet, so I hereby reinstate it! Apart from finding your music moving generally, I have always been fascinated by "Say goodbye to it all", my favourite of all your songs; it reminds me of a time when my family and I ventured north about ten years ago; we were driving northwards through France to take part in the fiftieth anniversary of the Normandy landings. Most vivid in my memory is stopping off at a small town called Oradour sur Glane where an horrific massacre took place in the dying months of the war; four of the inhabitants survived - the town is now a museum and left exactly as it was over sixty years ago. When we finally arrived at the Normandy beaches, we attended a memorial service in a local ceremony near Bayeux; I will never forget the deep and lasting gratitude to allied servicemen expressed by a priest who had lived through that era, and by the townspeople generally. What was the origin of the song? Paul Blest. Tasmania. Australia. P.S. Any plans to come "flying home" over here?
Chris de Burgh:
First of all, please accept my apologies that I have not been to Tasmania. I have heard a lot about the island, and all good things, I have to say. In fact some friends have spent quite a long time there and enjoyed it very much and want to return. The world is a very big place, and although I am fortunate to have an international career, it is difficult to go everywhere. But who knows, it may be some place that I could venture into and discover some more about in the years to come, possibly allied to a tour of Australia. And incidentally you shouldn’t feel too bad, I have not been to New Zealand either, again due to time constraints. The song “Say Goodbye To It All” came as the second part of the song “Borderline”. And as people who know me would also recognize, I have always had a horror of war and how individuals get caught up in war. A book that I have very much enjoyed in the past is called “A Farewell To Arms” by the great writer Ernest Hemingway. A man I have admired for years, and I love the way he writes books. And in the book “A Farewell To Arms”, there is the story of an American caught up in 2nd World War in Italy, and an English nurse. It’s a very very interesting and very emotive book. And if you are reading it for the first time, look out for the word “rain”. Because rain is a symbol of despair, of death. And the first line in my song “Took a boat over Lake Geneva, it was raining all night long” – well, that is a symbol for what is about to come. But in my song I do not want to leave the listener with the feeling of despair. I actually on the contrary want to leave the reader with the feeling of hope, and that it is possible to move sideways in life and move away from something that you find completely repulsive. It’s not explained whether in my song the man deserted or whether he was badly wounded and he had to leave anyway. But nevertheless the couple decides to make their own future in Normandy. Moving to Normandy, I have been there several times. It is one of my favourite places in France. And of course like everybody else, I am very much aware of the history, of the Normandy landings on June 6, 1944. I have visited the American cemetery there, which is absolutely staggering. It’s so awful to see the ages of the young men who died, most of them on June 6th, or on June 7th or 8th. And anybody who has seen the film “Saving Private Ryan” will remember the early scenes, not just the beach landings which incidentally happened in County Wexford in Ireland, but also how the returning old soldier walks to the cemetery. And I think almost uniquely in cinema, within the first two minutes, a lot of people in the cinema were in tears, watching the old man falling to his knees and remembering his comrade, who also died in that conflict. Nevertheless my interest not only in 2nd World War, but more in general, always focuses on the personal, on the individual. I think it’s a very important part of history. If you have the chance to visit Normandy and indeed the Flanders Fields from the First War, it has a vivid and extraordinary impact on those who go. We are in a bizarre time with cinema and film in general, of being able to watch TV and not really distinguish between reality and fiction. And as Paul has discovered by going to this town Oradour sur Glane, these things actually happened. There was real flesh and blood involved in these massacres. It wasn’t just make believe and make up and tomato sauce being splashed around on unfortunate extras in a film. Bayeux is of course the place made famous by the Bayeux tapestry which was commissioned by Bishop Odo of Bayeux who is one of my forefathers. And there is a beautiful cathedral also in Bayeux, which I can thoroughly recommend to people to visit.
Paul Blest (57) from Launceston, Tasmania, Australia:
Dear Chris, you seem to do something of a world tour with your letters, but this beautiful island of Tasmania seems to have slipped off the planet, so I hereby reinstate it! Apart from finding your music moving generally, I have always been fascinated by "Say goodbye to it all", my favourite of all your songs; it reminds me of a time when my family and I ventured north about ten years ago; we were driving northwards through France to take part in the fiftieth anniversary of the Normandy landings. Most vivid in my memory is stopping off at a small town called Oradour sur Glane where an horrific massacre took place in the dying months of the war; four of the inhabitants survived - the town is now a museum and left exactly as it was over sixty years ago. When we finally arrived at the Normandy beaches, we attended a memorial service in a local ceremony near Bayeux; I will never forget the deep and lasting gratitude to allied servicemen expressed by a priest who had lived through that era, and by the townspeople generally. What was the origin of the song? Paul Blest. Tasmania. Australia. P.S. Any plans to come "flying home" over here?
Chris de Burgh:
First of all, please accept my apologies that I have not been to Tasmania. I have heard a lot about the island, and all good things, I have to say. In fact some friends have spent quite a long time there and enjoyed it very much and want to return. The world is a very big place, and although I am fortunate to have an international career, it is difficult to go everywhere. But who knows, it may be some place that I could venture into and discover some more about in the years to come, possibly allied to a tour of Australia. And incidentally you shouldn’t feel too bad, I have not been to New Zealand either, again due to time constraints. The song “Say Goodbye To It All” came as the second part of the song “Borderline”. And as people who know me would also recognize, I have always had a horror of war and how individuals get caught up in war. A book that I have very much enjoyed in the past is called “A Farewell To Arms” by the great writer Ernest Hemingway. A man I have admired for years, and I love the way he writes books. And in the book “A Farewell To Arms”, there is the story of an American caught up in 2nd World War in Italy, and an English nurse. It’s a very very interesting and very emotive book. And if you are reading it for the first time, look out for the word “rain”. Because rain is a symbol of despair, of death. And the first line in my song “Took a boat over Lake Geneva, it was raining all night long” – well, that is a symbol for what is about to come. But in my song I do not want to leave the listener with the feeling of despair. I actually on the contrary want to leave the reader with the feeling of hope, and that it is possible to move sideways in life and move away from something that you find completely repulsive. It’s not explained whether in my song the man deserted or whether he was badly wounded and he had to leave anyway. But nevertheless the couple decides to make their own future in Normandy. Moving to Normandy, I have been there several times. It is one of my favourite places in France. And of course like everybody else, I am very much aware of the history, of the Normandy landings on June 6, 1944. I have visited the American cemetery there, which is absolutely staggering. It’s so awful to see the ages of the young men who died, most of them on June 6th, or on June 7th or 8th. And anybody who has seen the film “Saving Private Ryan” will remember the early scenes, not just the beach landings which incidentally happened in County Wexford in Ireland, but also how the returning old soldier walks to the cemetery. And I think almost uniquely in cinema, within the first two minutes, a lot of people in the cinema were in tears, watching the old man falling to his knees and remembering his comrade, who also died in that conflict. Nevertheless my interest not only in 2nd World War, but more in general, always focuses on the personal, on the individual. I think it’s a very important part of history. If you have the chance to visit Normandy and indeed the Flanders Fields from the First War, it has a vivid and extraordinary impact on those who go. We are in a bizarre time with cinema and film in general, of being able to watch TV and not really distinguish between reality and fiction. And as Paul has discovered by going to this town Oradour sur Glane, these things actually happened. There was real flesh and blood involved in these massacres. It wasn’t just make believe and make up and tomato sauce being splashed around on unfortunate extras in a film. Bayeux is of course the place made famous by the Bayeux tapestry which was commissioned by Bishop Odo of Bayeux who is one of my forefathers. And there is a beautiful cathedral also in Bayeux, which I can thoroughly recommend to people to visit.
August 12, 2005
Christina (24) from Orpington, Kent:
Chris, I think you would make a marvellous friend. You have a lot of tales to tell and a lot of wisdom. But what qualities do you look for in a friend? Is it hard to find true friends when you are famous?
Chris de Burgh:
Thank you for saying that I might make a marvellous friend. The qualities I would look for in a friend are loyalty, support and strength, when there are difficult times in everybody’s lives. And I would also suggest that most people only have about three or four really really close friends, with whom they can feel absolutely comfortable. And then of course a wide circle of acquaintances and other people, who you enjoy their company, but not necessarily a three week hike through the Himalayas. I think friends are people with whom you don’t have to be anybody but yourself. Quite often when we go out in public we are trying to put on a face that is not exactly who we are, but it’s the person we would like people to think we are, which is completely different. But with friends you can absolutely relax. You can get silly, you can get drunk, you can have fun, you can tell jokes, you can have a lot of crazy times with. And most of my friends, if not all of my close friends, are people that I have known for certainly since I was in University, if not before. And the question about is it hard to make friends, if you are famous? Well, if you don’t have friends prior to becoming famous, I would say it is difficult, yeah. Because you are not quite sure why people want to know you. I have always been very guarded about my private life in any case. And as a solo performer, who runs a business from London to here in Ireland, I don’t have a network of business associates and contacts that I can rely on as normal business people do. Nevertheless I am very happy where I am, and I am very happy with the people around me.
Christina (24) from Orpington, Kent:
Chris, I think you would make a marvellous friend. You have a lot of tales to tell and a lot of wisdom. But what qualities do you look for in a friend? Is it hard to find true friends when you are famous?
Chris de Burgh:
Thank you for saying that I might make a marvellous friend. The qualities I would look for in a friend are loyalty, support and strength, when there are difficult times in everybody’s lives. And I would also suggest that most people only have about three or four really really close friends, with whom they can feel absolutely comfortable. And then of course a wide circle of acquaintances and other people, who you enjoy their company, but not necessarily a three week hike through the Himalayas. I think friends are people with whom you don’t have to be anybody but yourself. Quite often when we go out in public we are trying to put on a face that is not exactly who we are, but it’s the person we would like people to think we are, which is completely different. But with friends you can absolutely relax. You can get silly, you can get drunk, you can have fun, you can tell jokes, you can have a lot of crazy times with. And most of my friends, if not all of my close friends, are people that I have known for certainly since I was in University, if not before. And the question about is it hard to make friends, if you are famous? Well, if you don’t have friends prior to becoming famous, I would say it is difficult, yeah. Because you are not quite sure why people want to know you. I have always been very guarded about my private life in any case. And as a solo performer, who runs a business from London to here in Ireland, I don’t have a network of business associates and contacts that I can rely on as normal business people do. Nevertheless I am very happy where I am, and I am very happy with the people around me.
August 11, 2005
Lourdes Villarreal (40) from Mexico City, Mexico:
I had the great opportunity to meet you personally in Bonn, in 1998. As I told you that time, even though I love all of your music, my very favourite song remains "Flying/Turning Round", which was the first I ever heard from you. My questions are, what inspired you to write such an amazing song, and have you ever played it live? If not, would you consider playing it again in the future? I would also like to recommend you to visit my beautiful country in your next vacation :)
Chris de Burgh:
Mexico City is again a place I have never been to, but I am excited about the possibilities of such a visit. And Lourdes, you mention my song “Turning Round” which was renamed “Flying” in South America. It was the first big hit that I ever had. It was unusual, because those of you who have a copy of it from “Far Beyond These Castle Walls” will recall that it was a long song, about 6 or 7 minutes long, and it played an eternal game where I believe the first word of each verse was also the last word of the next verse. So there was an eternal movement around and around. And I was looking at the cycle of life, of birth, growth, death, rebirth, growth and death. This is particularly important, I suppose, when you are brought up on a farm and you see it right in front of your eyes on a daily basis. I don’t know why I started writing this song, but the first word just came out of me and again I pursued it. And I remember at the time having dear friends who lived in a little cottage nearby. They were from America, Joe Gunnells and his wife Julie. And I remember going to them with my guitar one day – this would have been in the early 70s – and playing them two songs. One was called “Windy Night” and the other was called “Turning Round”. And they said “Oh, that is amazing! You have got to record these things!” I am not even sure I had a recording contract at the time. But that particular song “Turning Round” became a major record in quite a few places, but mainly South America, as I said. And maybe it is one of those ones that I need to re-record, because my voice has changed so completely. When I listen to that, well, I sound of course very young, but I sing in a different way now. I don’t know where the inspiration came from. It’s just somewhere from my imagination.
Lourdes Villarreal (40) from Mexico City, Mexico:
I had the great opportunity to meet you personally in Bonn, in 1998. As I told you that time, even though I love all of your music, my very favourite song remains "Flying/Turning Round", which was the first I ever heard from you. My questions are, what inspired you to write such an amazing song, and have you ever played it live? If not, would you consider playing it again in the future? I would also like to recommend you to visit my beautiful country in your next vacation :)
Chris de Burgh:
Mexico City is again a place I have never been to, but I am excited about the possibilities of such a visit. And Lourdes, you mention my song “Turning Round” which was renamed “Flying” in South America. It was the first big hit that I ever had. It was unusual, because those of you who have a copy of it from “Far Beyond These Castle Walls” will recall that it was a long song, about 6 or 7 minutes long, and it played an eternal game where I believe the first word of each verse was also the last word of the next verse. So there was an eternal movement around and around. And I was looking at the cycle of life, of birth, growth, death, rebirth, growth and death. This is particularly important, I suppose, when you are brought up on a farm and you see it right in front of your eyes on a daily basis. I don’t know why I started writing this song, but the first word just came out of me and again I pursued it. And I remember at the time having dear friends who lived in a little cottage nearby. They were from America, Joe Gunnells and his wife Julie. And I remember going to them with my guitar one day – this would have been in the early 70s – and playing them two songs. One was called “Windy Night” and the other was called “Turning Round”. And they said “Oh, that is amazing! You have got to record these things!” I am not even sure I had a recording contract at the time. But that particular song “Turning Round” became a major record in quite a few places, but mainly South America, as I said. And maybe it is one of those ones that I need to re-record, because my voice has changed so completely. When I listen to that, well, I sound of course very young, but I sing in a different way now. I don’t know where the inspiration came from. It’s just somewhere from my imagination.
August 10, 2005
Stephanie Grabowski (36) from Dormagen, Germany:
Dear Chris, I try it again. After being your fan for 25 years I'm still nervous and excited visiting one of your concerts. Again and again there are thoughts like "Maybe I can get an autograph" "Maybe I can get a picture of him" Maybe, maybe, ... But all your concerts still accomplish my expectations, no I never meet you face to face (what a bummer!) but your performance and your music are great, fantastic. My question: Is there any person you ever want to meet and maybe you have the same feelings your fans have? Being nervous and excited like a little boy (sorry!?) waiting for Christmas? Take care, and please never stop writing and singing your songs. Steffi
Chris de Burgh:
Hi Stephanie! I would love to make your dream come true. Funnily enough, my younger boy Michael, he and I were walking down a corridor in our house recently. He had his arms around me and said “Dad, isn’t that amazing?” Because we just got up and we were walking in our dressing gowns. He said “Isn’t that amazing? Some people never get the chance to be close to you, although in their eyes you are something of a hero. But for me you are just my Dad.” And I was smiling. I laughed at that, because yes of course, I am just an ordinary person. For some people perhaps not so, but as far as I am concerned, I am. So I hope we get the chance to say hi to each other, Stephanie, I can give you an autograph and whatever else you would like. You know, talk about songs or music. And as far as anybody I would like to meet – well, yes, there are lots of people. Famous people from the past, and current famous people. But I’ve always had as a hero, not just as a singer, but also as a songwriter, the musician Paul McCartney. And I think, if I were to meet him, which I very much hope to do at some stage, I would be very nervous. I would just say “Paul, you know, I want to thank you for the inspiration you are giving me and millions of other people all over the world, to continue to love music and to respect music and to respect your talent.” If I had the chance to sit down with him, I wouldn’t stop talking, which he may not find particularly interesting. But I would tell him everything that he has done for me. And it’s funny I should say that, because I am sure I am that person for somebody else. Maybe there is somebody else out there who would like to meet me, and offer me the same feelings and emotions. Isn’t that amazing how we all grow and change, but still you are everybody – even everybody reading this – everybody is important to somebody some way.
Stephanie Grabowski (36) from Dormagen, Germany:
Dear Chris, I try it again. After being your fan for 25 years I'm still nervous and excited visiting one of your concerts. Again and again there are thoughts like "Maybe I can get an autograph" "Maybe I can get a picture of him" Maybe, maybe, ... But all your concerts still accomplish my expectations, no I never meet you face to face (what a bummer!) but your performance and your music are great, fantastic. My question: Is there any person you ever want to meet and maybe you have the same feelings your fans have? Being nervous and excited like a little boy (sorry!?) waiting for Christmas? Take care, and please never stop writing and singing your songs. Steffi
Chris de Burgh:
Hi Stephanie! I would love to make your dream come true. Funnily enough, my younger boy Michael, he and I were walking down a corridor in our house recently. He had his arms around me and said “Dad, isn’t that amazing?” Because we just got up and we were walking in our dressing gowns. He said “Isn’t that amazing? Some people never get the chance to be close to you, although in their eyes you are something of a hero. But for me you are just my Dad.” And I was smiling. I laughed at that, because yes of course, I am just an ordinary person. For some people perhaps not so, but as far as I am concerned, I am. So I hope we get the chance to say hi to each other, Stephanie, I can give you an autograph and whatever else you would like. You know, talk about songs or music. And as far as anybody I would like to meet – well, yes, there are lots of people. Famous people from the past, and current famous people. But I’ve always had as a hero, not just as a singer, but also as a songwriter, the musician Paul McCartney. And I think, if I were to meet him, which I very much hope to do at some stage, I would be very nervous. I would just say “Paul, you know, I want to thank you for the inspiration you are giving me and millions of other people all over the world, to continue to love music and to respect music and to respect your talent.” If I had the chance to sit down with him, I wouldn’t stop talking, which he may not find particularly interesting. But I would tell him everything that he has done for me. And it’s funny I should say that, because I am sure I am that person for somebody else. Maybe there is somebody else out there who would like to meet me, and offer me the same feelings and emotions. Isn’t that amazing how we all grow and change, but still you are everybody – even everybody reading this – everybody is important to somebody some way.
August 9, 2005
Babak Shakiba (18) from Tehran, Iran:
Dear Chris, I just can't find the words to thank you for the great music that you make. Last year my father passed away and the only thing that could comfort me, was listening to your music and for that, I am very appreciative. As you know you have millions and millions of fans in Iran and most of them are from the younger generation and you probably already know that the youth in Iran are under a lot of pressure because of many different kinds of problems and difficulties and your music is like a medicine for them that heals their wounds and gives them some time to let go of all the daily troubles and relax for a while. If you were to dedicate one of your songs to the Iranian youth, which one would it be? And I would also like to know what does "the snow" mean in your song "Snow is falling" is it the metaphor of something else and does it contain another meaning rather than the actual snow?
Chris de Burgh:
First of all, I would like to say again thank you so much for the wonderful things you are saying. Just reading all the things you are saying lifts my spirits enormously. And yet again I must tell you that it is a dream of mine to come and sing for you people in Iran. Let us pray that the day will come soon! The word that you use “medicine” is also extraordinary. And to know that, as I sit in my small studio, playing the piano, playing the guitar, writing the song, that the impact that this can have to the people across the other side of the world from different cultures, different backgrounds, different languages, different beliefs, different ways of life, I think that is an extraordinary thing. And I feel humbled and honoured to be in the position that I am. The word “snow” is referring specifically to cold water, when it becomes iced and falls as snow. It has no extra metaphor to be perfectly honest. Except I will say, when snow falls, it is a time for people to be indoors, for people to be in warmth, in comfort around hopefully a fire, or with people that they love. And if you are left outside in the snow, then you are a person that needs help and needs to get into the heat as quickly as possible. So with that in mind, I would probably refer to a song called “The Snows Of New York”, which I would like to dedicate to the Iranian youth, because it tells of friendship, of people going far away from their homeland. And I refer to many Iranians who have left their home country and are dreaming of those at home on a regular basis. And just to offer hope and to say things will be ok, things will change eventually. And hopefully in the short term, I am quite sure that the authorities from your country who read this website to see if I am somebody who wants to pervert the youth, or change the administration. Well, this is completely incorrect. I am a humanist. I believe in international barriers being broken down through love and music. And I am not a threat to anybody, least of all the Iranian youth. I am a solid family man with children of my own, and strong beliefs that we are all one in the eyes of whichever god that you believe in.
Babak Shakiba (18) from Tehran, Iran:
Dear Chris, I just can't find the words to thank you for the great music that you make. Last year my father passed away and the only thing that could comfort me, was listening to your music and for that, I am very appreciative. As you know you have millions and millions of fans in Iran and most of them are from the younger generation and you probably already know that the youth in Iran are under a lot of pressure because of many different kinds of problems and difficulties and your music is like a medicine for them that heals their wounds and gives them some time to let go of all the daily troubles and relax for a while. If you were to dedicate one of your songs to the Iranian youth, which one would it be? And I would also like to know what does "the snow" mean in your song "Snow is falling" is it the metaphor of something else and does it contain another meaning rather than the actual snow?
Chris de Burgh:
First of all, I would like to say again thank you so much for the wonderful things you are saying. Just reading all the things you are saying lifts my spirits enormously. And yet again I must tell you that it is a dream of mine to come and sing for you people in Iran. Let us pray that the day will come soon! The word that you use “medicine” is also extraordinary. And to know that, as I sit in my small studio, playing the piano, playing the guitar, writing the song, that the impact that this can have to the people across the other side of the world from different cultures, different backgrounds, different languages, different beliefs, different ways of life, I think that is an extraordinary thing. And I feel humbled and honoured to be in the position that I am. The word “snow” is referring specifically to cold water, when it becomes iced and falls as snow. It has no extra metaphor to be perfectly honest. Except I will say, when snow falls, it is a time for people to be indoors, for people to be in warmth, in comfort around hopefully a fire, or with people that they love. And if you are left outside in the snow, then you are a person that needs help and needs to get into the heat as quickly as possible. So with that in mind, I would probably refer to a song called “The Snows Of New York”, which I would like to dedicate to the Iranian youth, because it tells of friendship, of people going far away from their homeland. And I refer to many Iranians who have left their home country and are dreaming of those at home on a regular basis. And just to offer hope and to say things will be ok, things will change eventually. And hopefully in the short term, I am quite sure that the authorities from your country who read this website to see if I am somebody who wants to pervert the youth, or change the administration. Well, this is completely incorrect. I am a humanist. I believe in international barriers being broken down through love and music. And I am not a threat to anybody, least of all the Iranian youth. I am a solid family man with children of my own, and strong beliefs that we are all one in the eyes of whichever god that you believe in.
August 8, 2005
Melanie Edwards (42) from Liverpool, England:
Hello Chris, during the soundcheck in Dortmund on 6 November (which I must say a huge 'Thank you' to you for allowing our group from the Mailing List to be present at, it was just fantastic) you paid particular attention to the positioning of the 'sound boxes' (technical name?) by the piano. I can't remember ever having seen you using personal earplugs during a performance. Do you find the boxes easier to use? In which case, how do you manage during the 'walkabout', not being able to hear yourself? And, is it difficult to concentrate on what you are singing when we start hugging and kissing you (which I was fortunate enough to do in Manchester (ending up on the floor if you remember!!!), Liverpool and Dortmund. Thank you.
Chris de Burgh:
Hi Melanie! Yes, I remember the hugs and kisses. Thank you for them, and I hope to get many more again in the future! The soundcheck in Dortmund involved not only the sound out front, obviously through the main speakers. And every hall is different, that is why it is important to hear what is happening from in the hall from the stage. And the two boxes in front of me are called monitors. In those, I can hear myself. It’s really important. If you can’t hear yourself, you will sing completely out of tune. Because of the speed of sound, by the time the sound waves come back to you, they are distorted and you can’t hear the original pitching. So these boxes are absolutely vital. And particularly when you are playing with a band. They can all hear themselves, and I don’t want anything in my monitor at all except just me. I can hear the drums, I can hear the keyboards coming out of their own systems. So part of the complexity of this is you must also have a very good sound engineer, and I have been fortunate to work with a lot of great sound engineers. So it makes a huge difference, particularly in a band situation where you’ve got a lot of noise on stage. Having the clarity to be able to hear yourself, and your own part of the music that is being made, is really down to a very good sound engineer. And also you are saying to the sound engineer, even during the concert, what you require. During the walkabouts I listen to the speakers that every body else hears, in front of the stage. The only curious thing is, when I am a quite long way away from the stage, and I am playing the guitar, my hand is moving at a certain speed and I am hearing it back again at the speed of sound a millisecond late, that’s quite disconcerting. And the same thing with my voice. So you have to be ready for that, if you are going to do such a thing in the future, Melanie, which you may or may not. Some people use personal earplugs. I don’t like them, because they tend to fall out and I become very aware of them. I have tried earplugs, they are called in-ear-monitors, but I am not mad about them. Particularly if I am dancing around a little bit, or somebody grabs a hold of me and kisses me, they can fall out and then I won’t hear what I am doing.
Melanie Edwards (42) from Liverpool, England:
Hello Chris, during the soundcheck in Dortmund on 6 November (which I must say a huge 'Thank you' to you for allowing our group from the Mailing List to be present at, it was just fantastic) you paid particular attention to the positioning of the 'sound boxes' (technical name?) by the piano. I can't remember ever having seen you using personal earplugs during a performance. Do you find the boxes easier to use? In which case, how do you manage during the 'walkabout', not being able to hear yourself? And, is it difficult to concentrate on what you are singing when we start hugging and kissing you (which I was fortunate enough to do in Manchester (ending up on the floor if you remember!!!), Liverpool and Dortmund. Thank you.
Chris de Burgh:
Hi Melanie! Yes, I remember the hugs and kisses. Thank you for them, and I hope to get many more again in the future! The soundcheck in Dortmund involved not only the sound out front, obviously through the main speakers. And every hall is different, that is why it is important to hear what is happening from in the hall from the stage. And the two boxes in front of me are called monitors. In those, I can hear myself. It’s really important. If you can’t hear yourself, you will sing completely out of tune. Because of the speed of sound, by the time the sound waves come back to you, they are distorted and you can’t hear the original pitching. So these boxes are absolutely vital. And particularly when you are playing with a band. They can all hear themselves, and I don’t want anything in my monitor at all except just me. I can hear the drums, I can hear the keyboards coming out of their own systems. So part of the complexity of this is you must also have a very good sound engineer, and I have been fortunate to work with a lot of great sound engineers. So it makes a huge difference, particularly in a band situation where you’ve got a lot of noise on stage. Having the clarity to be able to hear yourself, and your own part of the music that is being made, is really down to a very good sound engineer. And also you are saying to the sound engineer, even during the concert, what you require. During the walkabouts I listen to the speakers that every body else hears, in front of the stage. The only curious thing is, when I am a quite long way away from the stage, and I am playing the guitar, my hand is moving at a certain speed and I am hearing it back again at the speed of sound a millisecond late, that’s quite disconcerting. And the same thing with my voice. So you have to be ready for that, if you are going to do such a thing in the future, Melanie, which you may or may not. Some people use personal earplugs. I don’t like them, because they tend to fall out and I become very aware of them. I have tried earplugs, they are called in-ear-monitors, but I am not mad about them. Particularly if I am dancing around a little bit, or somebody grabs a hold of me and kisses me, they can fall out and then I won’t hear what I am doing.
August 7, 2005
Susanne Krah (30) from Bochum, Germany:
Hello Chris, I just bought the special edition of "The Road To Freedom" and I was so glad to find the song "Little Angel" on it. What is the story and meaning behind this song for you? For me it is really a very emotional and touching song, I can not listen to it without starting to cry at the moment. It touches my heart very deeply, it brings up strong emotions for me. Please do not laugh but as someone who has and had animals I hope you can understand me: my cat Lawina died a few weeks ago, she was 17 1/2 years old, I spent more than half my life together with her. She died peacefully in sleep and was not suffering in the end but for me it was a shock and after her death I felt lonely for the first time ever since I can remember. I missed and miss her so much. Your song "Little Angel" expresses very much what I feel so I was wondering what your story behind the song might be. With lots of love (and best greetings from my two new cats Moira and Monty, I adopted them from the animal home), Susanne
Chris de Burgh:
Hi Susanne! We have come across each other many times in the past, and thank you very much for your question. The song “Little Angel” was written as a spontaneous response to the murder of two little girls in England about 3 or 4 years ago. And I was so shocked and horrified that a man could murder two 10 year olds who were walking down the street in England one moment, the next minute they were killed and their bodies turned up in a ditch several weeks later. I wrote this song from the point of view of the parents of that poor little girl, and also from any other parent whose worst worst nightmare it is to suddenly lose a child like that. I also put the singer of the song in the bedroom of the child, and looking around at all the childhood memories, and the memorabilia, and the toys and the photographs. And it’s just that absolute, dreadful aching in the heart, which is why I have written “My heart is not broken, it is shattered”. It is absolutely destroyed, those people’s lives are broken forever. And you know I am not laughing about your cat, because people get very very close to animals, and they become a member of your family, and it is well-known that pets can allow outpouring of affection and love that it is very difficult sometimes for people to give to each other ironically. So I know that people get very very close to their pets. We have a dog called Milly, a black Labrador. She is 9 years old and she is a member of the family. And actually I am quite convinced that she does not think of herself as a dog at all, I think she thinks of herself as a human being like the rest of us. And she doesn’t like being left behind on trips and things like that. She stares at us. You know how they can look at you in that way to make you feel guilty because you haven’t taken them somewhere? And all the other things, they really always know when there is about to be a trip by somebody in the family, even before the suitcase turns up. So to be honest, I am not surprised that the song “Little Angel” touches you in that way, because memories are intensely moving and emotional.
Susanne Krah (30) from Bochum, Germany:
Hello Chris, I just bought the special edition of "The Road To Freedom" and I was so glad to find the song "Little Angel" on it. What is the story and meaning behind this song for you? For me it is really a very emotional and touching song, I can not listen to it without starting to cry at the moment. It touches my heart very deeply, it brings up strong emotions for me. Please do not laugh but as someone who has and had animals I hope you can understand me: my cat Lawina died a few weeks ago, she was 17 1/2 years old, I spent more than half my life together with her. She died peacefully in sleep and was not suffering in the end but for me it was a shock and after her death I felt lonely for the first time ever since I can remember. I missed and miss her so much. Your song "Little Angel" expresses very much what I feel so I was wondering what your story behind the song might be. With lots of love (and best greetings from my two new cats Moira and Monty, I adopted them from the animal home), Susanne
Chris de Burgh:
Hi Susanne! We have come across each other many times in the past, and thank you very much for your question. The song “Little Angel” was written as a spontaneous response to the murder of two little girls in England about 3 or 4 years ago. And I was so shocked and horrified that a man could murder two 10 year olds who were walking down the street in England one moment, the next minute they were killed and their bodies turned up in a ditch several weeks later. I wrote this song from the point of view of the parents of that poor little girl, and also from any other parent whose worst worst nightmare it is to suddenly lose a child like that. I also put the singer of the song in the bedroom of the child, and looking around at all the childhood memories, and the memorabilia, and the toys and the photographs. And it’s just that absolute, dreadful aching in the heart, which is why I have written “My heart is not broken, it is shattered”. It is absolutely destroyed, those people’s lives are broken forever. And you know I am not laughing about your cat, because people get very very close to animals, and they become a member of your family, and it is well-known that pets can allow outpouring of affection and love that it is very difficult sometimes for people to give to each other ironically. So I know that people get very very close to their pets. We have a dog called Milly, a black Labrador. She is 9 years old and she is a member of the family. And actually I am quite convinced that she does not think of herself as a dog at all, I think she thinks of herself as a human being like the rest of us. And she doesn’t like being left behind on trips and things like that. She stares at us. You know how they can look at you in that way to make you feel guilty because you haven’t taken them somewhere? And all the other things, they really always know when there is about to be a trip by somebody in the family, even before the suitcase turns up. So to be honest, I am not surprised that the song “Little Angel” touches you in that way, because memories are intensely moving and emotional.
August 6, 2005
Marie (26) from Tehran, Iran:
Hi Chris, as you've decided to leave the closing words in "When Winter Comes" as a mystery (which I am determined to solve) would you give us a hint and say if the words are English at all, or are they in another language? I am dreaming, no, hoping for the day when I will attend your concert in my own country, Iran, which, if it seemed impossible before, doesn't seem so out of reach today. Maybe, just maybe.
Chris de Burgh:
Curiously enough, I was recently reading a piece from a newspaper report from Scotland talking about the people in Iran and the elections and what was happening there. One girl was talking about how music can change things, sometimes not for the better, sometimes for the better. And a friend was disagreeing, saying that she loves music. And just saying that this fellow Chris de Burgh, you can hear him coming out of all the radio stations, in every café, in internet cafés, in restaurants, which made me smile. So, as you know in the past, I am determined to come to Iran to sing hopefully at some stage when people allow me to come into the country to sing! And I am sure I will get a very very good reception. The words at the end of “When Winter Comes” will remain a mystery, because I think somebody some day will figure them out. But as you probably know, they are not English. And it’s not actually English backwards either, as once I did on the song “Carry On” on the album Crusader many years ago.
Marie (26) from Tehran, Iran:
Hi Chris, as you've decided to leave the closing words in "When Winter Comes" as a mystery (which I am determined to solve) would you give us a hint and say if the words are English at all, or are they in another language? I am dreaming, no, hoping for the day when I will attend your concert in my own country, Iran, which, if it seemed impossible before, doesn't seem so out of reach today. Maybe, just maybe.
Chris de Burgh:
Curiously enough, I was recently reading a piece from a newspaper report from Scotland talking about the people in Iran and the elections and what was happening there. One girl was talking about how music can change things, sometimes not for the better, sometimes for the better. And a friend was disagreeing, saying that she loves music. And just saying that this fellow Chris de Burgh, you can hear him coming out of all the radio stations, in every café, in internet cafés, in restaurants, which made me smile. So, as you know in the past, I am determined to come to Iran to sing hopefully at some stage when people allow me to come into the country to sing! And I am sure I will get a very very good reception. The words at the end of “When Winter Comes” will remain a mystery, because I think somebody some day will figure them out. But as you probably know, they are not English. And it’s not actually English backwards either, as once I did on the song “Carry On” on the album Crusader many years ago.
August 5, 2005
Christina Nissen (20) from Krusaa, Denmark:
Dear Chris, On your album "Road to Freedom" you have a song called "Here for you". I've just spent 10 months in Georgia, USA and one day when I was over there, my dad tells me that he has a song I need to hear, when he sees me again. Turns out that he had been watching some show on German TV with you and heard you talk about your daughter. He bought your CD shortly after that and went home to my mom. Told her to sit down in the couch and just listen. Then he put on "Here for you" and she started crying in a second. Same thing happened to me when I finally saw them again after my stay in the States. I cried and cried. I just want to thank you for making a song so powerful to me and my parents. I would love to ask you, what made you write this song and what your own feelings are about it? Love, Christina
Chris de Burgh:
Well, Christina, I was very moved to read your beautiful story. And I am moved for two reasons. Firstly, that the intention that I had initially when I wrote the song was really from the parents point of view. And I know that the second point, which is to hear it from the child’s point of view, is just as important. I haven’t heard it expressed as beautifully as you have just expressed it in your story about your mother and father. I have said before that I remember playing the song to Diane, my wife, with thinking about our little girl, who would have been about 16 or 17 at the time, going away. And I couldn’t get past verse one, having described the scene at the airport. It’s something that’s going to come to most parents, if not all parents, when their child finally leaves the nest. But hearing it so eloquently written as you have, Christina, from the point of view of yourself and saying thanks to have created a bond between yourself and your parents, that is on a different scale. And it’s funny to say also, I am delighted that the tears flowed, because this is another expression of joy. People cry when great things happen, and people cry when they are terribly, terribly sad. But I think the recognition of something that has moved you or touched you, it’s also a release of emotions that too many of us hold inside us too often and for too long. The inspiration behind the song is in fact very mundane. I was in the Hyatt hotel in Cologne, which is one of my favourite, if not my favourite hotel in Europe for many reasons. It’s right across the river Rhine to the beautiful cathedral of Cologne. I have had fantastic nights in that hotel with friends and fans, you know, the bar downstairs and elsewhere and had a lot of fun. But I was waiting for somebody to come to see me to do some singing. I had a piano in my room, and I was waiting for this particular singer to come from England with my manager and a couple of other people. And there was a cleaner, walking around the room, doing some cleaning. And I was fiddling at the piano, and this melody came out which is the first part of the song. And I immediately completely ignored what was going on in the room. I went into a shell of my own, when I started imagining what the music was trying to tell me. And I found myself in the airport. Perhaps this particular thing had been on my mind? Whatever happened, the music sat beautifully with the idea. Subsequently I turned it to a song. So, Christina, if you ever manage to come to one of my concerts, or your parents, hopefully I’ll be singing it that night. And maybe the tears will flow again.
Christina Nissen (20) from Krusaa, Denmark:
Dear Chris, On your album "Road to Freedom" you have a song called "Here for you". I've just spent 10 months in Georgia, USA and one day when I was over there, my dad tells me that he has a song I need to hear, when he sees me again. Turns out that he had been watching some show on German TV with you and heard you talk about your daughter. He bought your CD shortly after that and went home to my mom. Told her to sit down in the couch and just listen. Then he put on "Here for you" and she started crying in a second. Same thing happened to me when I finally saw them again after my stay in the States. I cried and cried. I just want to thank you for making a song so powerful to me and my parents. I would love to ask you, what made you write this song and what your own feelings are about it? Love, Christina
Chris de Burgh:
Well, Christina, I was very moved to read your beautiful story. And I am moved for two reasons. Firstly, that the intention that I had initially when I wrote the song was really from the parents point of view. And I know that the second point, which is to hear it from the child’s point of view, is just as important. I haven’t heard it expressed as beautifully as you have just expressed it in your story about your mother and father. I have said before that I remember playing the song to Diane, my wife, with thinking about our little girl, who would have been about 16 or 17 at the time, going away. And I couldn’t get past verse one, having described the scene at the airport. It’s something that’s going to come to most parents, if not all parents, when their child finally leaves the nest. But hearing it so eloquently written as you have, Christina, from the point of view of yourself and saying thanks to have created a bond between yourself and your parents, that is on a different scale. And it’s funny to say also, I am delighted that the tears flowed, because this is another expression of joy. People cry when great things happen, and people cry when they are terribly, terribly sad. But I think the recognition of something that has moved you or touched you, it’s also a release of emotions that too many of us hold inside us too often and for too long. The inspiration behind the song is in fact very mundane. I was in the Hyatt hotel in Cologne, which is one of my favourite, if not my favourite hotel in Europe for many reasons. It’s right across the river Rhine to the beautiful cathedral of Cologne. I have had fantastic nights in that hotel with friends and fans, you know, the bar downstairs and elsewhere and had a lot of fun. But I was waiting for somebody to come to see me to do some singing. I had a piano in my room, and I was waiting for this particular singer to come from England with my manager and a couple of other people. And there was a cleaner, walking around the room, doing some cleaning. And I was fiddling at the piano, and this melody came out which is the first part of the song. And I immediately completely ignored what was going on in the room. I went into a shell of my own, when I started imagining what the music was trying to tell me. And I found myself in the airport. Perhaps this particular thing had been on my mind? Whatever happened, the music sat beautifully with the idea. Subsequently I turned it to a song. So, Christina, if you ever manage to come to one of my concerts, or your parents, hopefully I’ll be singing it that night. And maybe the tears will flow again.
August 4, 2005
Chris de Burgh:
Now that the summer tour is over, I want to say that I had a really fantastic time, seeing new places and making new friends. I am constantly amazed at the support and affection that I feel from the audience when I perform my concerts, and I am also reminded of the saying “you cannot expect your fans to love you if you don't love them”! I think it was pretty obvious from the two and a half hour concerts that I was enjoying myself immensely, and I always looked forward to walking around the audience to sing with them during the show. I have been reading interesting comments about why I sometimes sing falsetto, and is it because my voice is finding it hard to hit the high notes? As a matter of fact, I still hit the same notes as I did thirty years ago, and if anything, my voice is stronger and fuller now than it ever has been. The reason I occasionally use falsetto - like in the first chorus of Borderline - comes down to one word: dynamics. If you are doing a long solo show, there is little chance to show much change in sound, so I use my voice in different ways, so when I sing the second chorus in Borderline and belt out the words full voice, it definitely has an impact!! I feel very fortunate not only to have such a huge amount of support from all over the world, but to also have a strong and healthy voice! I look forward to singing in Ireland later this month, and of course returning to the stage and the mutual affection I have with my fans as soon as possible.
Chris de Burgh:
Now that the summer tour is over, I want to say that I had a really fantastic time, seeing new places and making new friends. I am constantly amazed at the support and affection that I feel from the audience when I perform my concerts, and I am also reminded of the saying “you cannot expect your fans to love you if you don't love them”! I think it was pretty obvious from the two and a half hour concerts that I was enjoying myself immensely, and I always looked forward to walking around the audience to sing with them during the show. I have been reading interesting comments about why I sometimes sing falsetto, and is it because my voice is finding it hard to hit the high notes? As a matter of fact, I still hit the same notes as I did thirty years ago, and if anything, my voice is stronger and fuller now than it ever has been. The reason I occasionally use falsetto - like in the first chorus of Borderline - comes down to one word: dynamics. If you are doing a long solo show, there is little chance to show much change in sound, so I use my voice in different ways, so when I sing the second chorus in Borderline and belt out the words full voice, it definitely has an impact!! I feel very fortunate not only to have such a huge amount of support from all over the world, but to also have a strong and healthy voice! I look forward to singing in Ireland later this month, and of course returning to the stage and the mutual affection I have with my fans as soon as possible.
August 3, 2005
Joe Griffith (45) from Concord, North Carolina, USA:
Hi Chris! My name is Joe Griffith. I am 45 years old and live in Concord, NC U.S. My sister recently started dating a man who claims to have written 'Lady In Red' and sold the rights to this song. Now I know from previous answers that you are the lone penman to this wonderful song. My question is why do people claim to have written this song and how does this make you feel when people are falsely trying to take credit for your creative talent? Do you have any idea how these rumors get started? I'm willing to bet you have never collaborated with or bought the rights to any song from someone named Pedro (Nick) Berg. By the way, Don't Pay The Ferryman is one of my all-time favorites! Thank You, take care, and God Bless!
Chris de Burgh:
Thanks for your extraordinary question. Funnily enough I have had strange letters from people, claiming to have written my songs. Some of them use pretty foul language, saying “Chris de Burgh, give me the f...ing money! I wrote Lady in Red! Send it to the above address!” This is absolute nonsense. I wrote “Lady In Red”. I have never heard of Pedro (Nick) Berg. He absolutely did not write “The Lady In Red”. I did, I was there at the time. And thanks for what you say about “Don’t Pay The Ferryman”. I have spoken about it before, but it is probably one of my strongest favourites on my all-time list as well. I think incidentally the reason your sister has a man saying that he wrote “The Lady In Red” is that he was trying to impress her. Maybe this won’t impress her much anymore, if she is still going out with him, to know that he told her a complete falsehood.
Joe Griffith (45) from Concord, North Carolina, USA:
Hi Chris! My name is Joe Griffith. I am 45 years old and live in Concord, NC U.S. My sister recently started dating a man who claims to have written 'Lady In Red' and sold the rights to this song. Now I know from previous answers that you are the lone penman to this wonderful song. My question is why do people claim to have written this song and how does this make you feel when people are falsely trying to take credit for your creative talent? Do you have any idea how these rumors get started? I'm willing to bet you have never collaborated with or bought the rights to any song from someone named Pedro (Nick) Berg. By the way, Don't Pay The Ferryman is one of my all-time favorites! Thank You, take care, and God Bless!
Chris de Burgh:
Thanks for your extraordinary question. Funnily enough I have had strange letters from people, claiming to have written my songs. Some of them use pretty foul language, saying “Chris de Burgh, give me the f...ing money! I wrote Lady in Red! Send it to the above address!” This is absolute nonsense. I wrote “Lady In Red”. I have never heard of Pedro (Nick) Berg. He absolutely did not write “The Lady In Red”. I did, I was there at the time. And thanks for what you say about “Don’t Pay The Ferryman”. I have spoken about it before, but it is probably one of my strongest favourites on my all-time list as well. I think incidentally the reason your sister has a man saying that he wrote “The Lady In Red” is that he was trying to impress her. Maybe this won’t impress her much anymore, if she is still going out with him, to know that he told her a complete falsehood.
August 2, 2005
Silvia Eggert (37) from Cologne, now Berlin, Germany:
Hi Chris! At first thank you for your emotional tour this year. It was the best, I've heard in these 20 years (and I've heard many of your concerts....). My question today: Why do you look so serious most of the time (concert in Berlin)? Are you not happy on stage? What do you feel, when you are on stage? Thanks a lot and excuse me for my terrible English...........
Chris de Burgh:
Thank you for your kind words. I may look serious, but actually inside I am laughing and dancing. The thing is, to carry a concert on your own for two and a half hours, maybe longer, you have to concentrate. It’s a very very concentrated thing. I am always thinking not only 20 seconds ahead, but also what the next song is, what I am planning to be saying between the songs, trying to remember the words. There’s a lot going on in my little head as I stand on the stage. I think possibly when I am with the band, I spend a bit more time laughing and joking. But I have to tell you I am actually relaxed on stage all the time, I am never ever nervous, because my energy comes from the love and affection of the audience. But I must apologize, if you think I am being serious, but I am not. Actually I am always wanting to break into a smile. But another thing you should know, Silvia, is that when I sing a song, I want to get right into the heart of the song. I want to be the person in the song. When I am singing “Rose Of England”, I am with Queen Elizabeth I. And this is a serious story, and I have to try and convey the emotions that I am feeling. So I have always believed you cannot convey an emotion unless you feel it yourself. So that’s the point at which I begin. I have to feel the emotion. That’s why sometimes I look a little serious, but I am in the song, deep inside it. I think you also know that when I do my walk around with my headphones on, I am not so serious then, I am laughing and joking quite a bit.
Silvia Eggert (37) from Cologne, now Berlin, Germany:
Hi Chris! At first thank you for your emotional tour this year. It was the best, I've heard in these 20 years (and I've heard many of your concerts....). My question today: Why do you look so serious most of the time (concert in Berlin)? Are you not happy on stage? What do you feel, when you are on stage? Thanks a lot and excuse me for my terrible English...........
Chris de Burgh:
Thank you for your kind words. I may look serious, but actually inside I am laughing and dancing. The thing is, to carry a concert on your own for two and a half hours, maybe longer, you have to concentrate. It’s a very very concentrated thing. I am always thinking not only 20 seconds ahead, but also what the next song is, what I am planning to be saying between the songs, trying to remember the words. There’s a lot going on in my little head as I stand on the stage. I think possibly when I am with the band, I spend a bit more time laughing and joking. But I have to tell you I am actually relaxed on stage all the time, I am never ever nervous, because my energy comes from the love and affection of the audience. But I must apologize, if you think I am being serious, but I am not. Actually I am always wanting to break into a smile. But another thing you should know, Silvia, is that when I sing a song, I want to get right into the heart of the song. I want to be the person in the song. When I am singing “Rose Of England”, I am with Queen Elizabeth I. And this is a serious story, and I have to try and convey the emotions that I am feeling. So I have always believed you cannot convey an emotion unless you feel it yourself. So that’s the point at which I begin. I have to feel the emotion. That’s why sometimes I look a little serious, but I am in the song, deep inside it. I think you also know that when I do my walk around with my headphones on, I am not so serious then, I am laughing and joking quite a bit.
August 1, 2005
Renate Meyer (44) from Herford, Germany:
We've seen you at the 50 years Rock Special in Bremen where Thomas Gottschalk said he would like to have you in a separate show, performing some older love songs, too. Will there be any chance?
Chris de Burgh:
By the time you read this, I have already been on Thomas Gottschalk’s chat show, and I will be well into my tour. Thomas was speaking about another show doing some older love songs, and the answer is yes, I would absolutely love to do this. Because I have a voice that suits some kinds of music much better than others. I don’t think I would be particularly good at doing Rolling Stones covers or Jimi Hendrix songs, but it’s the older love songs like for example one of my favourites, the Harry Nilsson song “Without You” or a lot of the Beatles songs, or much older than that, maybe from the 30s and 40s, that I would be very happy to give my hand at trying and give my voice an attempt to get round those melodies from the past. Yes, I would love to try this one day, and I hope it happens. So, Thomas Gottschalk, if you are reading this, it’s up to you now!
Renate Meyer (44) from Herford, Germany:
We've seen you at the 50 years Rock Special in Bremen where Thomas Gottschalk said he would like to have you in a separate show, performing some older love songs, too. Will there be any chance?
Chris de Burgh:
By the time you read this, I have already been on Thomas Gottschalk’s chat show, and I will be well into my tour. Thomas was speaking about another show doing some older love songs, and the answer is yes, I would absolutely love to do this. Because I have a voice that suits some kinds of music much better than others. I don’t think I would be particularly good at doing Rolling Stones covers or Jimi Hendrix songs, but it’s the older love songs like for example one of my favourites, the Harry Nilsson song “Without You” or a lot of the Beatles songs, or much older than that, maybe from the 30s and 40s, that I would be very happy to give my hand at trying and give my voice an attempt to get round those melodies from the past. Yes, I would love to try this one day, and I hope it happens. So, Thomas Gottschalk, if you are reading this, it’s up to you now!
July 31, 2005
Rita (45) from Frankfurt, Germany:
Hi Chris, just a few lines to tell you that I'm a fan of your music since many years and that I hope, you'll have still many years with new songs for your fans. In the chatroom after the 50 years rock party in the German TV you told about a film-project you'll join next year. What kind of film will it be and what's your part?
Chris de Burgh:
Yes, I recall being in the chatroom after the 50 years rock party, and I spoke about the film project. Well, I have spoken about it before, but I’ll just refresh your memory. Which is, it’s called “Through These Eyes”, it’s the story of an old lady who is in a nursing home at the end of her life. And she has written a diary about her life. And a young nurse finds the diary as the old lady is sleeping. And the young nurse and the old lady are very close. It’s a flashback of this lady’s life, and all the extraordinary things that have happened to her. The idea for this really is that when you look at an old person like your grandfather, your grandmother, you know that, if it is somebody close to you, you know how lovely they are, or if they are unwell, how much they need your help and attention and your care and your love. And you know also that they have had an extraordinary life, because everybody has a story to tell. And if you look at an old person, say an old man going down to the shops with a shopping bag or coming back, or even more interesting is when you have an elderly couple walking along very slowly, holding hands, you know you should never laugh at them, just because you can run faster than they can. Because they have had a wealth of experience, a huge amount of living that has gone into their years. So it’s really about this lady’s story and what has happened to her, the changes in her life, the tragedies, the high points, the photographs, the memories. This is something we all have to face eventually, if we are lucky, to go into old age supported by a loving and strong family behind us who would care for us in our old age. So the bottom line is, have respect for old people, as one day, if you are lucky, you may become like them.
Rita (45) from Frankfurt, Germany:
Hi Chris, just a few lines to tell you that I'm a fan of your music since many years and that I hope, you'll have still many years with new songs for your fans. In the chatroom after the 50 years rock party in the German TV you told about a film-project you'll join next year. What kind of film will it be and what's your part?
Chris de Burgh:
Yes, I recall being in the chatroom after the 50 years rock party, and I spoke about the film project. Well, I have spoken about it before, but I’ll just refresh your memory. Which is, it’s called “Through These Eyes”, it’s the story of an old lady who is in a nursing home at the end of her life. And she has written a diary about her life. And a young nurse finds the diary as the old lady is sleeping. And the young nurse and the old lady are very close. It’s a flashback of this lady’s life, and all the extraordinary things that have happened to her. The idea for this really is that when you look at an old person like your grandfather, your grandmother, you know that, if it is somebody close to you, you know how lovely they are, or if they are unwell, how much they need your help and attention and your care and your love. And you know also that they have had an extraordinary life, because everybody has a story to tell. And if you look at an old person, say an old man going down to the shops with a shopping bag or coming back, or even more interesting is when you have an elderly couple walking along very slowly, holding hands, you know you should never laugh at them, just because you can run faster than they can. Because they have had a wealth of experience, a huge amount of living that has gone into their years. So it’s really about this lady’s story and what has happened to her, the changes in her life, the tragedies, the high points, the photographs, the memories. This is something we all have to face eventually, if we are lucky, to go into old age supported by a loving and strong family behind us who would care for us in our old age. So the bottom line is, have respect for old people, as one day, if you are lucky, you may become like them.
July 30, 2005
Mandy Smart (36) from Skegness, UK:
Hi Chris, remember Martyn Joseph who opened some shows for you years back? Well he has just released a covers album of his favourite songs, past and present. My question is, have you ever thought of releasing such an album, and maybe include Without You (which you sang years ago at a Liverpool concert), Hotel California, Hey Jude, etc?
Chris de Burgh:
I’d like to say hello to Mandy Smart, who claims she is 36, but I think you are only about 24. You’re still looking great. I am very fond of Martyn Joseph, he’s such a talented man. And a very good golfer incidentally as well. And I am delighted to hear that he has released an album of covers. It’s funny, I have often thought about it, you know particularly when you are in a situation where you are between records and you want to have what we call product out in the market place. But there is no room for such a record in my life at the moment, I suppose because I am still doing fairly extensive tours. Not that Martyn isn’t incidentally. But it is, I suppose, something to do one day. Maybe a collection of ten of my favourites and get them on record, and probably do a tour incorporating them.
Mandy Smart (36) from Skegness, UK:
Hi Chris, remember Martyn Joseph who opened some shows for you years back? Well he has just released a covers album of his favourite songs, past and present. My question is, have you ever thought of releasing such an album, and maybe include Without You (which you sang years ago at a Liverpool concert), Hotel California, Hey Jude, etc?
Chris de Burgh:
I’d like to say hello to Mandy Smart, who claims she is 36, but I think you are only about 24. You’re still looking great. I am very fond of Martyn Joseph, he’s such a talented man. And a very good golfer incidentally as well. And I am delighted to hear that he has released an album of covers. It’s funny, I have often thought about it, you know particularly when you are in a situation where you are between records and you want to have what we call product out in the market place. But there is no room for such a record in my life at the moment, I suppose because I am still doing fairly extensive tours. Not that Martyn isn’t incidentally. But it is, I suppose, something to do one day. Maybe a collection of ten of my favourites and get them on record, and probably do a tour incorporating them.
July 29, 2005
Renate Sambale (49) from Göttingen, Germany:
Dear Chris, thank you for your personal note to the meet and greet in Dortmund, hope you got my present which I gave to someone standing in front in the "chaos". My question to you: Who had the idea of the very nice film on "Making of" TRTF and would you do it again on a next album? It is very nice to see you working and to listen to your comments. Thanks for a short answer and all the best to you, Renate
Chris de Burgh:
Yes, thank you about the meet and greet in Dortmund that I referred to as the rush and crush. We certainly won’t make that mistake again, we’ll organize it better next time. But I think those who went to the Dortmund concert probably forgave me, because the concert itself was extraordinary. The “making of” the Road To Freedom album, well Kenny Thomson and I had this idea about a behind the scenes film, which is actually most of it shot by my brother-in-law David Morley, that’s my wife’s brother who is a professional photographer and very interested in making videos. And I just thought people might be interested to know as well about what happens in recording studios, in the recording process. It’s something that again in the future I would very much like to do.
Renate Sambale (49) from Göttingen, Germany:
Dear Chris, thank you for your personal note to the meet and greet in Dortmund, hope you got my present which I gave to someone standing in front in the "chaos". My question to you: Who had the idea of the very nice film on "Making of" TRTF and would you do it again on a next album? It is very nice to see you working and to listen to your comments. Thanks for a short answer and all the best to you, Renate
Chris de Burgh:
Yes, thank you about the meet and greet in Dortmund that I referred to as the rush and crush. We certainly won’t make that mistake again, we’ll organize it better next time. But I think those who went to the Dortmund concert probably forgave me, because the concert itself was extraordinary. The “making of” the Road To Freedom album, well Kenny Thomson and I had this idea about a behind the scenes film, which is actually most of it shot by my brother-in-law David Morley, that’s my wife’s brother who is a professional photographer and very interested in making videos. And I just thought people might be interested to know as well about what happens in recording studios, in the recording process. It’s something that again in the future I would very much like to do.
July 28 2005
Dione (38) from Taiwan:
Dear Chris, you have been my favourite singer more than 20 years. And I have your albums from "Far Beyond The Castle Walls" to "The Road To Freedom". I am a Chinese, so I don't understand Western culture very much. I have a simple question for you. Why are you so interested in "ferryman"? Does this word have a special meaning for you or your culture? Sorry, maybe my English is not good.
Chris de Burgh:
Again stressing how fortunate I feel to have an international fan base. Your question is very interesting and the things you have said about Taiwan. I don’t know if you had the chance to come and see me performing in Taipei about 6 or 7 years ago. I really thoroughly enjoyed my visit there. That was when we were working with the string quartet. Peter Oxendale was playing the piano. And I remember checking into my hotel suite and it was enormous. And one of the two or three young ladies who were the butlers said “Oh, Michael Jackson was just in this suite.” So I looked everywhere to see if he has left his chimpanzee behind, but he hadn’t. It’s an interesting thing hearing that you do come from a Chinsee culture and background. Moving to the ferryman, I think that word only occurs in one of the songs, although I may be wrong about that. The ferryman in ancient mythology used to ferry the souls of the dead across the river. Some people think it was the river Styx or the river Hades, anyway it was the gateway to hell. And I tried to put together the idea of having a story with this wild horseman who is thundering through the night, heading for this river. And I can see it in my mind’s eye every time I listen to the song. And the river with the moon on it, and the ferryman waiting. Basically it is a story about destiny and the time when you have to make an important decision in your life. The word does not have any particular significance, apart from what I have suggested, ancient mythology. But also there are many many thousands of boats all over the world which are called ferries and I am quite sure they would have a ferryman involved with the movement of the passage of this boat or ship.
Dione (38) from Taiwan:
Dear Chris, you have been my favourite singer more than 20 years. And I have your albums from "Far Beyond The Castle Walls" to "The Road To Freedom". I am a Chinese, so I don't understand Western culture very much. I have a simple question for you. Why are you so interested in "ferryman"? Does this word have a special meaning for you or your culture? Sorry, maybe my English is not good.
Chris de Burgh:
Again stressing how fortunate I feel to have an international fan base. Your question is very interesting and the things you have said about Taiwan. I don’t know if you had the chance to come and see me performing in Taipei about 6 or 7 years ago. I really thoroughly enjoyed my visit there. That was when we were working with the string quartet. Peter Oxendale was playing the piano. And I remember checking into my hotel suite and it was enormous. And one of the two or three young ladies who were the butlers said “Oh, Michael Jackson was just in this suite.” So I looked everywhere to see if he has left his chimpanzee behind, but he hadn’t. It’s an interesting thing hearing that you do come from a Chinsee culture and background. Moving to the ferryman, I think that word only occurs in one of the songs, although I may be wrong about that. The ferryman in ancient mythology used to ferry the souls of the dead across the river. Some people think it was the river Styx or the river Hades, anyway it was the gateway to hell. And I tried to put together the idea of having a story with this wild horseman who is thundering through the night, heading for this river. And I can see it in my mind’s eye every time I listen to the song. And the river with the moon on it, and the ferryman waiting. Basically it is a story about destiny and the time when you have to make an important decision in your life. The word does not have any particular significance, apart from what I have suggested, ancient mythology. But also there are many many thousands of boats all over the world which are called ferries and I am quite sure they would have a ferryman involved with the movement of the passage of this boat or ship.
July 27, 2005
Geoff Dickson (37) from Canberra, Australia:
Chris, your music is great, but you seem to have two major problems in your life. Firstly, you don't spend enough time in Australia entertaining us with your music, but more to the point your second problem.... Liverpool football club? Oh dear, surely you could do better than Liverpool! Apart from the minor fact that the ball is the wrong shape (come to Australia and watch some good southern Hemisphere Super 12's Rugby Union), Liverpool..... how did you end up following a team like that?? Seriously... you're not a native of Liverpool, why them?
Chris de Burgh:
I know this question was asked quite a long time ago, but I am having a very very big smile to myself about Liverpool football club and the way they won the Champions League. I am sure as everybody knows by now, my family and I went out there, and witnessed one of the most extraordinary games of football in history. Liverpool has been a place that I have been extremely fond of for years. It first came up on my radar screen as it were when the Beatles came out and all that wonderful music coming out of Liverpool. And in my early years as a performer, it was one of the two places in the UK that you could rely on having a really supportive, emotional and exciting crowd. One was Glasgow, the second was Liverpool. We regularly did British tours in the 70s, if we ground our way around the countryside of England and Scotland, saying “don’t worry, we will soon be in Liverpool” or “don’t worry, we will soon be in Glasgow”. So Liverpool has got such an affectionate place in my heart. I have always had friends there, and I was a huge supporter of Liverpool FC in the 70s and 80s and subsequently obviously. Now just going back to rugby, I have also been a big fan of rugby. I have had tickets for Landsdown Road, which is the venue for Irish Rugby internationals, for at least ten years and I have got another ten years with a new ticketing arrangement. My two boys are mad for rugby, and I like it very much as a sport at the top level. I used to play probably more rugby than football as a youngster, and cricket of course, when I was at school. And it is a game that I certainly admire. I like Rugby Union more than I would Rugby League, because of different rules and so on, but it is a thrilling game at the top level. I am sorry about Australia by the way. I have been to Australia four times, and you are right, Geoff, I think I should go back there.
Geoff Dickson (37) from Canberra, Australia:
Chris, your music is great, but you seem to have two major problems in your life. Firstly, you don't spend enough time in Australia entertaining us with your music, but more to the point your second problem.... Liverpool football club? Oh dear, surely you could do better than Liverpool! Apart from the minor fact that the ball is the wrong shape (come to Australia and watch some good southern Hemisphere Super 12's Rugby Union), Liverpool..... how did you end up following a team like that?? Seriously... you're not a native of Liverpool, why them?
Chris de Burgh:
I know this question was asked quite a long time ago, but I am having a very very big smile to myself about Liverpool football club and the way they won the Champions League. I am sure as everybody knows by now, my family and I went out there, and witnessed one of the most extraordinary games of football in history. Liverpool has been a place that I have been extremely fond of for years. It first came up on my radar screen as it were when the Beatles came out and all that wonderful music coming out of Liverpool. And in my early years as a performer, it was one of the two places in the UK that you could rely on having a really supportive, emotional and exciting crowd. One was Glasgow, the second was Liverpool. We regularly did British tours in the 70s, if we ground our way around the countryside of England and Scotland, saying “don’t worry, we will soon be in Liverpool” or “don’t worry, we will soon be in Glasgow”. So Liverpool has got such an affectionate place in my heart. I have always had friends there, and I was a huge supporter of Liverpool FC in the 70s and 80s and subsequently obviously. Now just going back to rugby, I have also been a big fan of rugby. I have had tickets for Landsdown Road, which is the venue for Irish Rugby internationals, for at least ten years and I have got another ten years with a new ticketing arrangement. My two boys are mad for rugby, and I like it very much as a sport at the top level. I used to play probably more rugby than football as a youngster, and cricket of course, when I was at school. And it is a game that I certainly admire. I like Rugby Union more than I would Rugby League, because of different rules and so on, but it is a thrilling game at the top level. I am sorry about Australia by the way. I have been to Australia four times, and you are right, Geoff, I think I should go back there.
July 26, 2005
Mylène (42) from Nederweert, The Netherlands:
Chris, First of all, thanks for your music and concerts. I visit as many as possible... Now for the question: In one of your MOtL answers, you say "When you hear a song, enjoy it for what it is, certainly initially without looking for deep meanings". Ironically most of the questions are about the meaning of the song or what you inspired writing it. I wonder how you feel about people who have very different feelings about one song or another than you had when writing it (considered I don't think anyone could get "hate“ feelings about any of your songs).
Chris de Burgh:
Hi Mylène! What I am suggesting here is that, in my opinion and obviously it is clearly just my opinion, music is at like looking at a picture. People get all sorts of different things from a painting as they do from music. After all, one of the great things about art is that various things appeal to various people in completely different ways. I am not a big fan of modern art particularly, because I don’t see why something has to be explained to me. Like a red blob on a white background. I think some people are very foolish indeed about parting with enormous sums of money to give for example for a painting that you have to have an explanation for. But that’s their opinion, and I prefer more realistic art. I am a huge fan for example of the French expressionists of the late 1800s, early 1900s. And some people don’t like that kind of painting. Similarly with music, there are a lot of people who listen to songs on a superficial basis, because I believe that the way music is translated into people’s emotions is by two methods. One is by hearing, and the second by listening. People hear music most of the time as background in cars, you know, in the bath, when you are falling asleep, on television, whatever. But when you actually listen to music, that is by giving it a hard listen and working out what’s going on inside it, working on what the lyrics mean, that kind of thing. That’s what I mean when you listen to music, to try and figure out what was the artist, the musician, the composer, the songwriter thinking of. And that’s what I do for my music. I like to think that people can hear it, but also spend a bit of time listening to it and working out the meanings behind what I have produced. And clearly people have different reactions to different pieces of music.
Mylène (42) from Nederweert, The Netherlands:
Chris, First of all, thanks for your music and concerts. I visit as many as possible... Now for the question: In one of your MOtL answers, you say "When you hear a song, enjoy it for what it is, certainly initially without looking for deep meanings". Ironically most of the questions are about the meaning of the song or what you inspired writing it. I wonder how you feel about people who have very different feelings about one song or another than you had when writing it (considered I don't think anyone could get "hate“ feelings about any of your songs).
Chris de Burgh:
Hi Mylène! What I am suggesting here is that, in my opinion and obviously it is clearly just my opinion, music is at like looking at a picture. People get all sorts of different things from a painting as they do from music. After all, one of the great things about art is that various things appeal to various people in completely different ways. I am not a big fan of modern art particularly, because I don’t see why something has to be explained to me. Like a red blob on a white background. I think some people are very foolish indeed about parting with enormous sums of money to give for example for a painting that you have to have an explanation for. But that’s their opinion, and I prefer more realistic art. I am a huge fan for example of the French expressionists of the late 1800s, early 1900s. And some people don’t like that kind of painting. Similarly with music, there are a lot of people who listen to songs on a superficial basis, because I believe that the way music is translated into people’s emotions is by two methods. One is by hearing, and the second by listening. People hear music most of the time as background in cars, you know, in the bath, when you are falling asleep, on television, whatever. But when you actually listen to music, that is by giving it a hard listen and working out what’s going on inside it, working on what the lyrics mean, that kind of thing. That’s what I mean when you listen to music, to try and figure out what was the artist, the musician, the composer, the songwriter thinking of. And that’s what I do for my music. I like to think that people can hear it, but also spend a bit of time listening to it and working out the meanings behind what I have produced. And clearly people have different reactions to different pieces of music.
July 25, 2005
Jan McKenzie (48) from Herne Bay Kent, Kent, UK:
Is it true Chris, that you are involved in some way with supporting research for the blood cancer – LYMPHOMA? My husband was diagnosed with a rare form - WALDENSTROMS MACROGLOBULINEMIA. Quite a mouthful. Considered treatable but not as yet curable! I wonder if you could either confirm something or squash the idea, if it is true! WHY Lymphoma? I know.. getting personal.. but I am sure other fans would like this one out of the bag, so to speak. LOVE your music! Hope I have not made this too long! OH what the Hell! Here's a P.S.: Michael is fine! He has had chemo/antibody therapy for just under a year (shingles twice in one year), got addicted to pain killers for shingles, weaned himself off (quite a challenge!) (breast nodules) In remission now! In fact (rampant rabbit!), if you get what I mean!! Full of youthfulness! He stopped all treatments December last year and his body is supporting him in wellness. I know you are a man of heart and deep feelings, I hope I am right that you are a patron of something. Lymphomas seem to be on the increase! And you have such charisma and profile… and GREAT MUSIC talent (of course). It would make so many feel so much hope! Warmest wishes, Jan
Chris de Burgh:
Again I want to tell everybody reading MOtL how impressed I am by the things that people write to me. They aren’t just questions, they incorporate a whole lot of other things of personal stories, like this one, of feelings, of emotions, of gratitude. And all I can say in response is that I’ve been a professional musician for 30 years, and I am constantly overwhelmed by the love and support that I am getting from all you people out there. Thank you! And if I may be so bold to ask, please keep it coming. Lymphoma is a dreadful form of cancer. And my interest, unfortunately, came from a personal situation with Glenn Morrow, the keyboard player from my last band, you know the Canadian boys. And he died of Non-Hodgkins Lymphoma. And I took a keen interest in this particular disease. I am not sure if your husband has got Non-Hodgkins or a different sort of Lymphoma. But I am delighted to hear that he is doing well, and that he is, as you say, a rampant rabbit. And that he is enjoying life and you are as well. And thank you for what you say about my music. Although I am not a patron of a Lymphoma society, I am very much involved with ways of reducing the spread and onset of cancer and the early recognition of cancer in people.
Jan McKenzie (48) from Herne Bay Kent, Kent, UK:
Is it true Chris, that you are involved in some way with supporting research for the blood cancer – LYMPHOMA? My husband was diagnosed with a rare form - WALDENSTROMS MACROGLOBULINEMIA. Quite a mouthful. Considered treatable but not as yet curable! I wonder if you could either confirm something or squash the idea, if it is true! WHY Lymphoma? I know.. getting personal.. but I am sure other fans would like this one out of the bag, so to speak. LOVE your music! Hope I have not made this too long! OH what the Hell! Here's a P.S.: Michael is fine! He has had chemo/antibody therapy for just under a year (shingles twice in one year), got addicted to pain killers for shingles, weaned himself off (quite a challenge!) (breast nodules) In remission now! In fact (rampant rabbit!), if you get what I mean!! Full of youthfulness! He stopped all treatments December last year and his body is supporting him in wellness. I know you are a man of heart and deep feelings, I hope I am right that you are a patron of something. Lymphomas seem to be on the increase! And you have such charisma and profile… and GREAT MUSIC talent (of course). It would make so many feel so much hope! Warmest wishes, Jan
Chris de Burgh:
Again I want to tell everybody reading MOtL how impressed I am by the things that people write to me. They aren’t just questions, they incorporate a whole lot of other things of personal stories, like this one, of feelings, of emotions, of gratitude. And all I can say in response is that I’ve been a professional musician for 30 years, and I am constantly overwhelmed by the love and support that I am getting from all you people out there. Thank you! And if I may be so bold to ask, please keep it coming. Lymphoma is a dreadful form of cancer. And my interest, unfortunately, came from a personal situation with Glenn Morrow, the keyboard player from my last band, you know the Canadian boys. And he died of Non-Hodgkins Lymphoma. And I took a keen interest in this particular disease. I am not sure if your husband has got Non-Hodgkins or a different sort of Lymphoma. But I am delighted to hear that he is doing well, and that he is, as you say, a rampant rabbit. And that he is enjoying life and you are as well. And thank you for what you say about my music. Although I am not a patron of a Lymphoma society, I am very much involved with ways of reducing the spread and onset of cancer and the early recognition of cancer in people.
July 24, 2005
Stephanie Grabowski (36) from Dormagen, Germany:
Hi Chris, first congratulations for your 20th anniversary. I love your music since I'm 11 years old, now I'm 36, so it's an anniversary (25th) for me too. Needless to say that I have visited THE CONCERT in Dortmund. FANTASTIC, INCREDIBLE !!! Now my question: What were your feelings, seeing a young boy (Cesar) performing your song (of course PATRICIA)? To see how he got the audience to support him? Take care and keep on! Your fan forever, Steffi
Chris de Burgh:
I have spoken, Steffi, in a previous reply all about my feelings about the Dortmund show, so I won’t repeat them now. Except to say it was absolutely fantastic, and the live record that we have (“Live in Dortmund”) reflects very accurately the excitement that everybody, including myself, felt on that night. As far as the young fellow Cesar getting up to sing “Patricia The Stripper”, I think some people felt that was a bit of a fix. You know, I actually fixed the result or somebody did. Well, I think I have gone through that already. Obviously somebody coming up to sing a song that I wasn’t going to do on the night was important to get that into the hat from where I chose Cesar. But I am delighted for people to come up on stage, it’s something that I have always liked to incorporate into my shows. I suppose for a couple of reasons: People love to get up and maybe be close to their star/hero, and maybe not for that matter, but people do like to stand up and sing a little bit. Some people are very good, and some people are not very good. But it’s just a chance to get up on stage and show what they can do. I think a lot of people also are surprised certainly at how difficult it is. It seems easy to stand up on stage and sing, but it is actually not that easy. You have to really concentrate, you have to concentrate on the way you talk between songs for example, which is very slowly. And singing you have to be very aware of your tuning. But good luck to Cesar Quintero – I was delighted that he did a very good version of “Patricia The Stripper”. We obviously hadn’t planned it in front, but I thought he was excellent.
Stephanie Grabowski (36) from Dormagen, Germany:
Hi Chris, first congratulations for your 20th anniversary. I love your music since I'm 11 years old, now I'm 36, so it's an anniversary (25th) for me too. Needless to say that I have visited THE CONCERT in Dortmund. FANTASTIC, INCREDIBLE !!! Now my question: What were your feelings, seeing a young boy (Cesar) performing your song (of course PATRICIA)? To see how he got the audience to support him? Take care and keep on! Your fan forever, Steffi
Chris de Burgh:
I have spoken, Steffi, in a previous reply all about my feelings about the Dortmund show, so I won’t repeat them now. Except to say it was absolutely fantastic, and the live record that we have (“Live in Dortmund”) reflects very accurately the excitement that everybody, including myself, felt on that night. As far as the young fellow Cesar getting up to sing “Patricia The Stripper”, I think some people felt that was a bit of a fix. You know, I actually fixed the result or somebody did. Well, I think I have gone through that already. Obviously somebody coming up to sing a song that I wasn’t going to do on the night was important to get that into the hat from where I chose Cesar. But I am delighted for people to come up on stage, it’s something that I have always liked to incorporate into my shows. I suppose for a couple of reasons: People love to get up and maybe be close to their star/hero, and maybe not for that matter, but people do like to stand up and sing a little bit. Some people are very good, and some people are not very good. But it’s just a chance to get up on stage and show what they can do. I think a lot of people also are surprised certainly at how difficult it is. It seems easy to stand up on stage and sing, but it is actually not that easy. You have to really concentrate, you have to concentrate on the way you talk between songs for example, which is very slowly. And singing you have to be very aware of your tuning. But good luck to Cesar Quintero – I was delighted that he did a very good version of “Patricia The Stripper”. We obviously hadn’t planned it in front, but I thought he was excellent.
July 23, 2005
Christina Martin (24) from Orpington, Kent, UK:
What is your favourite day? You don't have a "9 to 5" working week like the rest of us, so do you enjoy the weekend as much as say someone who works in an office?
Chris de Burgh:
I don’t have a 9 to 5 working life, although in many regards I do have a structure to my life, particularly during school time. Because we get up early on school days every morning, five mornings a week. Actually six mornings a week, because there are frequently things on a Saturday morning early. I take my two sons to school. My daughter Rosanna now drives herself to University College in Dublin. And just on that particular point, she had an extraordinary year as Miss World and we were all thoroughly relieved that when she handed over the crown to the new Miss World in December last year, that at least she could now put some further structure back into her life, and concentrate on her studies plus other projects that she wanted to do. And she managed to get through her Christmas exams with great results, although she had missed most of the course and worked extremely hard. And then we just recently heard that her end of year results, bearing in mind that she probably missed about 70% of the course and she had to really really catch up missed seminars, missed lectures, missed important essays that had to go in. She got a 2.1 grade in sociology and history of art, which is a tremendous achievement for somebody who wasn’t there most of the time. So we are absolutely chuffed and thrilled about that. Now she is working, as I am sure a lot of people know, with the team who put Holiday On Ice together. And she is the European face of the Holiday On Ice group, so you are going to be seeing her on television a lot, and the newspapers a lot, and on big giant billboards. And she’s got a year coming up of interesting places to go and travel to. And these people treat her with a respect and a kindness and an understanding, and giving her breaks, not crazy travel plans. For her this is a complete change from what she had to put up with during the year she was Miss World. But back to the question: My favourite day? Well, I don’t really have a favourite day. I must admit, it’s fantastic when the school holidays come round, so we can just relax. We don’t have to go through the thing of leaving the house at 8 o’clock in the morning or having to pick the boys up at 4 o’clock or 5:30 in the evening. And late study for my elder boy, actually all three of them have got big exams coming up towards the end of 2005/2006. So today for example, as I speak to you, Christina, it’s an absolutely gorgeous Sunday. And friends have been dropping round, we have been sitting out on our terrace. It’s been extremely hot. We’ve got beautiful views of the countryside, of the hills, across the fields there are sheep which thankfully don’t belong to me, but we can still enjoy their company. And you can feel the grateful earth as a response not only to rain, but also to sun. So I would say Sunday is a nice day, because there is nobody else around us, there is nobody working in the house for example, it’s just a very personal, private day. And I think like everybody else we love the weekends.
Christina Martin (24) from Orpington, Kent, UK:
What is your favourite day? You don't have a "9 to 5" working week like the rest of us, so do you enjoy the weekend as much as say someone who works in an office?
Chris de Burgh:
I don’t have a 9 to 5 working life, although in many regards I do have a structure to my life, particularly during school time. Because we get up early on school days every morning, five mornings a week. Actually six mornings a week, because there are frequently things on a Saturday morning early. I take my two sons to school. My daughter Rosanna now drives herself to University College in Dublin. And just on that particular point, she had an extraordinary year as Miss World and we were all thoroughly relieved that when she handed over the crown to the new Miss World in December last year, that at least she could now put some further structure back into her life, and concentrate on her studies plus other projects that she wanted to do. And she managed to get through her Christmas exams with great results, although she had missed most of the course and worked extremely hard. And then we just recently heard that her end of year results, bearing in mind that she probably missed about 70% of the course and she had to really really catch up missed seminars, missed lectures, missed important essays that had to go in. She got a 2.1 grade in sociology and history of art, which is a tremendous achievement for somebody who wasn’t there most of the time. So we are absolutely chuffed and thrilled about that. Now she is working, as I am sure a lot of people know, with the team who put Holiday On Ice together. And she is the European face of the Holiday On Ice group, so you are going to be seeing her on television a lot, and the newspapers a lot, and on big giant billboards. And she’s got a year coming up of interesting places to go and travel to. And these people treat her with a respect and a kindness and an understanding, and giving her breaks, not crazy travel plans. For her this is a complete change from what she had to put up with during the year she was Miss World. But back to the question: My favourite day? Well, I don’t really have a favourite day. I must admit, it’s fantastic when the school holidays come round, so we can just relax. We don’t have to go through the thing of leaving the house at 8 o’clock in the morning or having to pick the boys up at 4 o’clock or 5:30 in the evening. And late study for my elder boy, actually all three of them have got big exams coming up towards the end of 2005/2006. So today for example, as I speak to you, Christina, it’s an absolutely gorgeous Sunday. And friends have been dropping round, we have been sitting out on our terrace. It’s been extremely hot. We’ve got beautiful views of the countryside, of the hills, across the fields there are sheep which thankfully don’t belong to me, but we can still enjoy their company. And you can feel the grateful earth as a response not only to rain, but also to sun. So I would say Sunday is a nice day, because there is nobody else around us, there is nobody working in the house for example, it’s just a very personal, private day. And I think like everybody else we love the weekends.
July 22, 2005
Brigga (34) from Germany:
Hi Chris! First of all - thank you for a great show in Dortmund last night!! Are you aware of the fact that people - total strangers - become friends during your show? That people who are standing next to each other and who have never met before at the end hold each other and sing and dance together? (And here I don't mean the big crowd right at the stage!) Music is obviously powerful but do you ever notice the changes in people while you sing? You surely intend to bring a bit more happiness into everybody's life. Not only by playing fantastic music but by touching the people somehow. You seem to reach out and actually get hold of them. (Of course I am speaking for myself, too, I can't count anymore how often I thought "yes, true" listening to your songs.) It's so amazing to watch and I wonder if you know/see/plan that!?? Anyway, I wish you and your family all the best and for myself I wish that you keep doing what you do because you are doing it more than great!! Listening to your music is not just to 'sing and dance', it's so much more to me and I bet it is for so many others, too. Thank you - Brigga
Chris de Burgh:
Well the answer to your question is no, I am not especially aware that people make friends during the show. I know a lot of people like to get together before and after the show with people that they know, people who have come from overseas for a concert. The Dortmund concert in particular was absolutely extraordinary. I can’t remember in my life enjoying a concert as much. I was so relaxed going into it. It was a way of saying thank you to everybody for the 20 years of support in the Westfalenhalle, and to say thank you for the years of support that I have had from people all over the world. And it was just a fun night. For me it wasn’t like a concert at all, it was like a party. That‘s why at the end of it, I think I was on stage for more than 3 hours, I did some extra songs and said “this is like a party, we can’t go to bed now”. But it’s delightful reading what you’ve just said about what happens during my concerts. And I hope if these things do happen, you do get in touch with each other and exchange phone numbers, exchange websites, email addresses and so on, and build up the friendship that does exist around my music that goes around the world. Because it gives me a tremendous source of inspiration. Although in the last few months I have been creatively quite quiet, indeed I have been creatively bored to be honest, because I haven’t been able to focus on any particular direction. Because plans have been slow in developing. Not because of something that I have done or haven’t done, it’s because other people are involved and other projects. And trying to for example get the film project up and running has been frustrating. But the stage musical project looks like it is going to come through, but that took 6 months longer than anybody expected. However I am now focussed personally on another project for the end of next year which is very exciting for me, and I am writing new songs towards that. Maybe I’ll be able to bring that show to Dortmund. But Dortmund, Westfalenhalle, is a very special place for me. And it’s wonderful to hear what you are saying, Brigga, about people making friends.
Brigga (34) from Germany:
Hi Chris! First of all - thank you for a great show in Dortmund last night!! Are you aware of the fact that people - total strangers - become friends during your show? That people who are standing next to each other and who have never met before at the end hold each other and sing and dance together? (And here I don't mean the big crowd right at the stage!) Music is obviously powerful but do you ever notice the changes in people while you sing? You surely intend to bring a bit more happiness into everybody's life. Not only by playing fantastic music but by touching the people somehow. You seem to reach out and actually get hold of them. (Of course I am speaking for myself, too, I can't count anymore how often I thought "yes, true" listening to your songs.) It's so amazing to watch and I wonder if you know/see/plan that!?? Anyway, I wish you and your family all the best and for myself I wish that you keep doing what you do because you are doing it more than great!! Listening to your music is not just to 'sing and dance', it's so much more to me and I bet it is for so many others, too. Thank you - Brigga
Chris de Burgh:
Well the answer to your question is no, I am not especially aware that people make friends during the show. I know a lot of people like to get together before and after the show with people that they know, people who have come from overseas for a concert. The Dortmund concert in particular was absolutely extraordinary. I can’t remember in my life enjoying a concert as much. I was so relaxed going into it. It was a way of saying thank you to everybody for the 20 years of support in the Westfalenhalle, and to say thank you for the years of support that I have had from people all over the world. And it was just a fun night. For me it wasn’t like a concert at all, it was like a party. That‘s why at the end of it, I think I was on stage for more than 3 hours, I did some extra songs and said “this is like a party, we can’t go to bed now”. But it’s delightful reading what you’ve just said about what happens during my concerts. And I hope if these things do happen, you do get in touch with each other and exchange phone numbers, exchange websites, email addresses and so on, and build up the friendship that does exist around my music that goes around the world. Because it gives me a tremendous source of inspiration. Although in the last few months I have been creatively quite quiet, indeed I have been creatively bored to be honest, because I haven’t been able to focus on any particular direction. Because plans have been slow in developing. Not because of something that I have done or haven’t done, it’s because other people are involved and other projects. And trying to for example get the film project up and running has been frustrating. But the stage musical project looks like it is going to come through, but that took 6 months longer than anybody expected. However I am now focussed personally on another project for the end of next year which is very exciting for me, and I am writing new songs towards that. Maybe I’ll be able to bring that show to Dortmund. But Dortmund, Westfalenhalle, is a very special place for me. And it’s wonderful to hear what you are saying, Brigga, about people making friends.
July 21, 2005
Declan (33) from Cork, Ireland:
Hi again Chris, my family and I were in Florida last September for our summer vacation. Yes September in Florida is hurricane season. We got tangled up in the frenzy and panic of Hurricane Francis. I must say it was an experience "Waiting for the Hurricane" to hit. We lost three days of our holiday however that was a small loss as in the aftermath many Floridians had lost homes and many businesses had been seriously damaged. Florida was still recovering from Hurricane Charlie when Francis hit. My question is did you get the inspiration to write your song "Waiting for the Hurricane" from being caught in one in Florida also and if so when?
Chris de Burgh:
It sounds absolutely terrifying to be caught up in a hurricane. In fact we were in Mauritius when the Tsunami struck in the Indian ocean. We were very lucky to be nowhere near it, but we could see the impact and the force of the power of nature. And how many were killed, I think it was coming up to 300,000 to date. And a hurricane is also absolutely terrifying. My bass player, Al Marnie, lives in Florida. And I have called him from time to time, as I have seen a hurricane hitting the Florida coast, just to see how he is doing. And I rang him once when he was in the middle of it. And the noise was just absolutely appalling. Coming to the song “Waiting For The Hurricane”, I did not have any intention writing a song about a group of people waiting for a hurricane. That just developed, I think, as these things often do from the first line, which was “Standing in the foyer of the grand hotel, suitcase in his hand, looking for a bill.” Then it began to me to sound like an old Humphrey Bogart film. Which often happens, you know, once I start a line of a song, I go into the mental film mode. And this one appeared to be exactly that. A group of people like perhaps in an Agatha Christie film, something where you are unable to leave a place and you are enclosed with other people that you barely know. And there will be a few days of interaction with these people, and probably the terror of being caught in a cataclysm like a very bad hurricane. I have never been in one, although I have been in very very severe storms and winds. I remember in the Midwest of America being caught up in a Tornado, and it was very close to where I was and that was scary. But not thankfully a hurricane.
Declan (33) from Cork, Ireland:
Hi again Chris, my family and I were in Florida last September for our summer vacation. Yes September in Florida is hurricane season. We got tangled up in the frenzy and panic of Hurricane Francis. I must say it was an experience "Waiting for the Hurricane" to hit. We lost three days of our holiday however that was a small loss as in the aftermath many Floridians had lost homes and many businesses had been seriously damaged. Florida was still recovering from Hurricane Charlie when Francis hit. My question is did you get the inspiration to write your song "Waiting for the Hurricane" from being caught in one in Florida also and if so when?
Chris de Burgh:
It sounds absolutely terrifying to be caught up in a hurricane. In fact we were in Mauritius when the Tsunami struck in the Indian ocean. We were very lucky to be nowhere near it, but we could see the impact and the force of the power of nature. And how many were killed, I think it was coming up to 300,000 to date. And a hurricane is also absolutely terrifying. My bass player, Al Marnie, lives in Florida. And I have called him from time to time, as I have seen a hurricane hitting the Florida coast, just to see how he is doing. And I rang him once when he was in the middle of it. And the noise was just absolutely appalling. Coming to the song “Waiting For The Hurricane”, I did not have any intention writing a song about a group of people waiting for a hurricane. That just developed, I think, as these things often do from the first line, which was “Standing in the foyer of the grand hotel, suitcase in his hand, looking for a bill.” Then it began to me to sound like an old Humphrey Bogart film. Which often happens, you know, once I start a line of a song, I go into the mental film mode. And this one appeared to be exactly that. A group of people like perhaps in an Agatha Christie film, something where you are unable to leave a place and you are enclosed with other people that you barely know. And there will be a few days of interaction with these people, and probably the terror of being caught in a cataclysm like a very bad hurricane. I have never been in one, although I have been in very very severe storms and winds. I remember in the Midwest of America being caught up in a Tornado, and it was very close to where I was and that was scary. But not thankfully a hurricane.
July 20, 2005
Adrian Brittlebank (17) from Leighton Buzzard, England:
Hey Chris! I really enjoyed the Royal Albert Hall concert this year. My question is, if asked, would you do a theme song for a James Bond film? Cheers Chris
Chris de Burgh:
I am glad to see a youngster like you, the same age as my son Hubie, coming to the Royal Albert Hall concert. And the quick answer to your question is, if I was asked to do a theme song for a James Bond film, I would say yes immediately. But I think it is unlikely at this point that I will be asked to be the singer. Maybe I could be asked to be the songwriter. But you never know, one can keep on dreaming of these things. I have always been a huge fan of James Bond films, but in particular since, I think, the best James Bond was Sean Connery. And he is also a friend of mine that I meet from time to time. He’s a charming man, but I think he was the best Bond. And I am sure most people agree. So if he comes back and does a, you know, Bond aged 60+, whatever he is, then maybe they’ll ask me to write a song for him.
Adrian Brittlebank (17) from Leighton Buzzard, England:
Hey Chris! I really enjoyed the Royal Albert Hall concert this year. My question is, if asked, would you do a theme song for a James Bond film? Cheers Chris
Chris de Burgh:
I am glad to see a youngster like you, the same age as my son Hubie, coming to the Royal Albert Hall concert. And the quick answer to your question is, if I was asked to do a theme song for a James Bond film, I would say yes immediately. But I think it is unlikely at this point that I will be asked to be the singer. Maybe I could be asked to be the songwriter. But you never know, one can keep on dreaming of these things. I have always been a huge fan of James Bond films, but in particular since, I think, the best James Bond was Sean Connery. And he is also a friend of mine that I meet from time to time. He’s a charming man, but I think he was the best Bond. And I am sure most people agree. So if he comes back and does a, you know, Bond aged 60+, whatever he is, then maybe they’ll ask me to write a song for him.
July 19, 2005
Chris de Burgh:
A quick note to say that I am thoroughly enjoying the summer tour. Apart from a short rain shower in Hannover, we have been blessed with good weather, and I hope it stays like this till the end of the tour. Great to see so many new places, and new faces - and of course I am always amazed at the continuing support from fans who seem to go to every show, and do as much travelling as I do! The audience response has been absolutely fantastic, with most concerts sold out beyond capacity, and although I rarely read reviews by music journalists, I believe that most have been excellent. After all, if we go to a fantastic show, we like to read an accurate and fair reflection of what is was really like - even if the writer confesses he is not really a great fan, just doing his job. I hear that there was a bad review of the Krefeld concert, but remember that the writer of the piece was probably forced to go by his Editor, got a free ticket, could not understand why so many people adored the show, was unfamiliar with most of the songs, is a failed musician, had a row with his wife, felt sour that a small singer was getting all that female admiration, and to top it all, most likely got stopped by the police on the way home for speeding! All this adds up to a lousy review. However, on a more serious note, he has also enraged hundreds, maybe thousands of regular readers of his paper, because of an unbalanced and unfair description of what really happened in the concert, so I would urge all of you to e-mail or write to this journalist and indicate your feelings about his article. That may make him have a bit more respect for the public who pay good money to go to a concert. As for me, I have had so many brilliant or dreadful reviews of the same show that I don't bother to read them any more. Thanks to all for your wonderful support, love, Chris de Burgh
Chris de Burgh:
A quick note to say that I am thoroughly enjoying the summer tour. Apart from a short rain shower in Hannover, we have been blessed with good weather, and I hope it stays like this till the end of the tour. Great to see so many new places, and new faces - and of course I am always amazed at the continuing support from fans who seem to go to every show, and do as much travelling as I do! The audience response has been absolutely fantastic, with most concerts sold out beyond capacity, and although I rarely read reviews by music journalists, I believe that most have been excellent. After all, if we go to a fantastic show, we like to read an accurate and fair reflection of what is was really like - even if the writer confesses he is not really a great fan, just doing his job. I hear that there was a bad review of the Krefeld concert, but remember that the writer of the piece was probably forced to go by his Editor, got a free ticket, could not understand why so many people adored the show, was unfamiliar with most of the songs, is a failed musician, had a row with his wife, felt sour that a small singer was getting all that female admiration, and to top it all, most likely got stopped by the police on the way home for speeding! All this adds up to a lousy review. However, on a more serious note, he has also enraged hundreds, maybe thousands of regular readers of his paper, because of an unbalanced and unfair description of what really happened in the concert, so I would urge all of you to e-mail or write to this journalist and indicate your feelings about his article. That may make him have a bit more respect for the public who pay good money to go to a concert. As for me, I have had so many brilliant or dreadful reviews of the same show that I don't bother to read them any more. Thanks to all for your wonderful support, love, Chris de Burgh
July 18, 2005
Lanning Schiller (57 going on 29) from Boulder, Colorado, USA:
Apologies to your brother and your nieces......Since you are always 29 years old, I asked your brother in the ROYAL ALBERT HALL if he was your father in law....oops.....THANK YOU for putting signed discs and posters out in BRIGHTON......The UK tour was life-changing for my disabled son....unable to work, READ MY NAME and ST. PETER'S GATE and others and even the title ROAD TO FREEDOM offers him so much hope that he can have a future......and LEBANON and NATASHA and always talking to a woman using a FRENCH NOT BRITISH accent keeps him romantic and alive.....and we cried all the way from London to Denver about the young men who will not be coming home in your songs and for real. The QUESTION? Why did you write about fathers and sons in I LOVE YOU? Keep them coming. The bittersweet, weltschmerz tone of this album is haunting and lovely.....
Chris de Burgh:
Great to hear that you came over to the Royal Albert Hall for the concert last year in October, and I hope you enjoyed it. I am flattered by the fact you asked my brother if he is my father in law. I suppose one of the inevitabilities of life is obviously getting older, but I have a job that in some ways is very stressful and in other ways is not. Because I love what I do, maybe it keeps me looking a little bit younger. At least I haven’t got too many grey hairs quite yet. I just really like your question and the things you have said before the question itself. I wrote about fathers and sons in “The Words ‘I Love You’”, because it’s a theme that I have actually referred to in the past at least twice in my songs, about the difficulties that fathers and sons have sometimes. I am so happy that my relationship with my two boys and my daughter is just really rock solid. We were away recently on holiday for two weeks, and quite a few people kept coming up to say “How come that the six of you (we brought Rosie’s boyfriend along) always eat together, like breakfast, lunch and dinner? And you always seem to be having a laugh together and having fun and enjoy each other’s company.” I said well we are just lucky, we are a very close family. So the difficulty I had with my own father, I am quite sure stemmed from the fact that I was away a lot at boarding school and he was living with my mother abroad a lot. And, you know, my advice to new fathers is, the bonding starts instantly, at birth. And it must go on forever. And you’ve got to keep that love and affection. You can’t suddenly turn out to be an authority figure the moment they become teenagers. You’ve got to be there for them through thick and thin. And for me it’s been quite the juggling act to try and make sure that my career doesn’t interfere with my family life and vice versa. And judging from the way that I get on with my family, I think I have been successful in both counts. But again going back to the question, saying the words “I love you” can be very very difficult. And I think people who know this song will also know that I am referring to the tolerance we must have for other people’s religions. And saying in a broad sense to your neighbour and to somebody you have never even met, somebody across the other side of the world: We are all human beings. We all have the same fears. We all have the same internal systems, the same immune systems. We all live and die the same way in terms of our physical make up. So we really are one people. And it’s worth remembering that in your dealings with people from different cultures and religions.
Lanning Schiller (57 going on 29) from Boulder, Colorado, USA:
Apologies to your brother and your nieces......Since you are always 29 years old, I asked your brother in the ROYAL ALBERT HALL if he was your father in law....oops.....THANK YOU for putting signed discs and posters out in BRIGHTON......The UK tour was life-changing for my disabled son....unable to work, READ MY NAME and ST. PETER'S GATE and others and even the title ROAD TO FREEDOM offers him so much hope that he can have a future......and LEBANON and NATASHA and always talking to a woman using a FRENCH NOT BRITISH accent keeps him romantic and alive.....and we cried all the way from London to Denver about the young men who will not be coming home in your songs and for real. The QUESTION? Why did you write about fathers and sons in I LOVE YOU? Keep them coming. The bittersweet, weltschmerz tone of this album is haunting and lovely.....
Chris de Burgh:
Great to hear that you came over to the Royal Albert Hall for the concert last year in October, and I hope you enjoyed it. I am flattered by the fact you asked my brother if he is my father in law. I suppose one of the inevitabilities of life is obviously getting older, but I have a job that in some ways is very stressful and in other ways is not. Because I love what I do, maybe it keeps me looking a little bit younger. At least I haven’t got too many grey hairs quite yet. I just really like your question and the things you have said before the question itself. I wrote about fathers and sons in “The Words ‘I Love You’”, because it’s a theme that I have actually referred to in the past at least twice in my songs, about the difficulties that fathers and sons have sometimes. I am so happy that my relationship with my two boys and my daughter is just really rock solid. We were away recently on holiday for two weeks, and quite a few people kept coming up to say “How come that the six of you (we brought Rosie’s boyfriend along) always eat together, like breakfast, lunch and dinner? And you always seem to be having a laugh together and having fun and enjoy each other’s company.” I said well we are just lucky, we are a very close family. So the difficulty I had with my own father, I am quite sure stemmed from the fact that I was away a lot at boarding school and he was living with my mother abroad a lot. And, you know, my advice to new fathers is, the bonding starts instantly, at birth. And it must go on forever. And you’ve got to keep that love and affection. You can’t suddenly turn out to be an authority figure the moment they become teenagers. You’ve got to be there for them through thick and thin. And for me it’s been quite the juggling act to try and make sure that my career doesn’t interfere with my family life and vice versa. And judging from the way that I get on with my family, I think I have been successful in both counts. But again going back to the question, saying the words “I love you” can be very very difficult. And I think people who know this song will also know that I am referring to the tolerance we must have for other people’s religions. And saying in a broad sense to your neighbour and to somebody you have never even met, somebody across the other side of the world: We are all human beings. We all have the same fears. We all have the same internal systems, the same immune systems. We all live and die the same way in terms of our physical make up. So we really are one people. And it’s worth remembering that in your dealings with people from different cultures and religions.
July 17, 2005
Mandy Chadburn (36) from Sheffield, UK:
Hi Chris once again. Hope you’re keeping well. I've already asked you a question once, can't wait for you to answer. I sing myself, I've also taught myself how to play guitar. I do admire how far you have got in your career. I wish I was in your shoes given the chance. Anyway, my question: I know you're a professional singer and this sometimes does happen, do you ever sing out of tune and think "oh my god what’s up with my voice today"? Hope you are not offended by my question, Chris! See you, take care, yours Mandy.
Chris de Burgh:
Playing the guitar has been something I have always wanted to do. When I was 14 or 15, all my friends had guitars and we formed little bands. It was a great way of meeting girls, if you are a shy boy like me. For me it’s also a natural way of putting across my creative ideas, that and the piano. Coming to the singing, when you look at the voice as purely a muscle that is controlled by the brain, there are times when you are not hearing yourself right. For example in the recording studio, having a lot of experience recording. I know that if I have my voice too what we call dry, which means there is no reverb or no echo added to it, it can make you slightly out of tune. Similarly, if you have too much reverb, you start listening to the reverb coming back again and that can put you slightly out of tune. One of the reasons I always do a sound check before the concert is to check out the hall, if we are indoors, because there is a big reflective wall at the back, and the sides and the roof. And if it’s a very big hall, which I have often played in the past, you are getting your voice coming back again at the speed of sound. But as it comes back due to various effects, I think including the Doppler effect, it’s coming back slightly flat. And if you are not aware of this and your monitor is not loud enough, you will start pitching your voice to what you are hearing coming back at you, rather than what you should be hearing directly as you sing. Similarly I find that a base guitar in such a big hall can have a similar effect, because it is very loud, a very big sound. If you start pitching to a bass guitar that is coming back to you from the other end of the hall, you will pitch flat. So apart from that I am lucky enough that I very rarely, at least I hope that I very rarely sing out of tune. I am pretty tuneful except when I am sick, and if I have a sore throat or something, I have to push quite hard to make sure I hit the right notes. But generally speaking I am lucky and I sing in tune.
Mandy Chadburn (36) from Sheffield, UK:
Hi Chris once again. Hope you’re keeping well. I've already asked you a question once, can't wait for you to answer. I sing myself, I've also taught myself how to play guitar. I do admire how far you have got in your career. I wish I was in your shoes given the chance. Anyway, my question: I know you're a professional singer and this sometimes does happen, do you ever sing out of tune and think "oh my god what’s up with my voice today"? Hope you are not offended by my question, Chris! See you, take care, yours Mandy.
Chris de Burgh:
Playing the guitar has been something I have always wanted to do. When I was 14 or 15, all my friends had guitars and we formed little bands. It was a great way of meeting girls, if you are a shy boy like me. For me it’s also a natural way of putting across my creative ideas, that and the piano. Coming to the singing, when you look at the voice as purely a muscle that is controlled by the brain, there are times when you are not hearing yourself right. For example in the recording studio, having a lot of experience recording. I know that if I have my voice too what we call dry, which means there is no reverb or no echo added to it, it can make you slightly out of tune. Similarly, if you have too much reverb, you start listening to the reverb coming back again and that can put you slightly out of tune. One of the reasons I always do a sound check before the concert is to check out the hall, if we are indoors, because there is a big reflective wall at the back, and the sides and the roof. And if it’s a very big hall, which I have often played in the past, you are getting your voice coming back again at the speed of sound. But as it comes back due to various effects, I think including the Doppler effect, it’s coming back slightly flat. And if you are not aware of this and your monitor is not loud enough, you will start pitching your voice to what you are hearing coming back at you, rather than what you should be hearing directly as you sing. Similarly I find that a base guitar in such a big hall can have a similar effect, because it is very loud, a very big sound. If you start pitching to a bass guitar that is coming back to you from the other end of the hall, you will pitch flat. So apart from that I am lucky enough that I very rarely, at least I hope that I very rarely sing out of tune. I am pretty tuneful except when I am sick, and if I have a sore throat or something, I have to push quite hard to make sure I hit the right notes. But generally speaking I am lucky and I sing in tune.
July 16, 2005
Tillman Graach (24) from Augsburg, Germany:
Hi Chris! Lately I was listening to the song "I Started A Joke" from the very early days of the Bee Gees. It struck me that - unless my ears are playing tricks on me - this sounds a lot like your first album. The melody could be one of yours from those days, but most of all it's the arrangement and the production that really remind me of the typical "Castle Walls" sound (no particular song in mind), if you know what I mean. Finally, also the lyrics seem to bear some resemblance to "Turning Round/Flying". Here's my question: have you been aware of these similarities, were they perhaps even intentional? Or is it just pure chance? One more question concerning heroes of the 70s: What do you think about Agnetha, Björn, Benny & Frida, better known as Abba? Like them or not?
Chris de Burgh:
It’s possible that the chords and the production do resemble “I Started A Joke”, but it was unintentional. And unfortunately as a songwriter you are limited to only a certain number of chords. The chords in that particular song are what we call the standard round and round chords, you know, D F# minor, E minor, A. And I think “I Started A Joke” is fairly similar. But if you look back at a lot of other songs, they are fairly similar. I am not sure about the words though, because it’s been a while since I heard the Bee Gees song. But I am sure it was purely unintentional, pure chance. And about Abba – I admire Abba enormously, I am a big big fan of Abba. And I am very interested in deconstructing their songs. Because we have two songwriters, Benny and Bjorn, who were very talented musicians, particularly the keyboard player, and came up with almost mini stories, mini epics like Fernando, which really appealed to me. I love those stories and they manage to paint a beautiful picture of the drums, Fernando, and so on. I like the production for example of S.O.S. If you listen to that, you’ll hear the build up of tension and then, when the chorus comes in, the drums come in. And it is exceptional. It is very obvious, and it is very basic, but unfortunately very few people have got the skill to use simplicity to such great effect. And another thing I noticed about Abba is, when the girls sing, they sing full voice most of the time. And luckily for them their songwriters have given them long notes to sing. So it’s thrilling stuff, and they really sound terrific when they are singing full on.
Tillman Graach (24) from Augsburg, Germany:
Hi Chris! Lately I was listening to the song "I Started A Joke" from the very early days of the Bee Gees. It struck me that - unless my ears are playing tricks on me - this sounds a lot like your first album. The melody could be one of yours from those days, but most of all it's the arrangement and the production that really remind me of the typical "Castle Walls" sound (no particular song in mind), if you know what I mean. Finally, also the lyrics seem to bear some resemblance to "Turning Round/Flying". Here's my question: have you been aware of these similarities, were they perhaps even intentional? Or is it just pure chance? One more question concerning heroes of the 70s: What do you think about Agnetha, Björn, Benny & Frida, better known as Abba? Like them or not?
Chris de Burgh:
It’s possible that the chords and the production do resemble “I Started A Joke”, but it was unintentional. And unfortunately as a songwriter you are limited to only a certain number of chords. The chords in that particular song are what we call the standard round and round chords, you know, D F# minor, E minor, A. And I think “I Started A Joke” is fairly similar. But if you look back at a lot of other songs, they are fairly similar. I am not sure about the words though, because it’s been a while since I heard the Bee Gees song. But I am sure it was purely unintentional, pure chance. And about Abba – I admire Abba enormously, I am a big big fan of Abba. And I am very interested in deconstructing their songs. Because we have two songwriters, Benny and Bjorn, who were very talented musicians, particularly the keyboard player, and came up with almost mini stories, mini epics like Fernando, which really appealed to me. I love those stories and they manage to paint a beautiful picture of the drums, Fernando, and so on. I like the production for example of S.O.S. If you listen to that, you’ll hear the build up of tension and then, when the chorus comes in, the drums come in. And it is exceptional. It is very obvious, and it is very basic, but unfortunately very few people have got the skill to use simplicity to such great effect. And another thing I noticed about Abba is, when the girls sing, they sing full voice most of the time. And luckily for them their songwriters have given them long notes to sing. So it’s thrilling stuff, and they really sound terrific when they are singing full on.
July 15, 2005
Angelo Auriti (40) from Calgary, Canada:
Hello Mr. de Burgh, I have been a big fan of your music for many, many years. I do like some of your love songs but am especially fond of your songs about the tragedy of war. Over the last several albums I have noticed you have not had the epic songs like Crusader or Revolution/Light a Fire/Liberty or most recently The Leader/The Vision/What About Me. These songs are by far my favourite. Do you derive a certain inspiration to write these songs? Is there a chance that an epic like one of these would ever be published? I have had the pleasure of seeing you twice in the mid eighties in Winnipeg, Manitoba. I have ranked these two shows as some of my all time favourites, even twenty years later. I discovered this website by accident and impressed by its details. I realise how busy you must be but I would be honoured if you would be able to answer these questions. Thank you very much.
Chris de Burgh:
Well, Angelo, I have been to Calgary many times in the past. I’ve really enjoyed myself in your city. I have been there during your boom times and in your bust times, when things haven’t gone so well, and I have always thoroughly enjoyed my trips across there. I am sorry that the upcoming tour of Canada does not take in the Western section. For those who live in the West, Vancouver, Saskatoon, Regina or Calgary for example, please accept my humble apologies. It is always a question of time. Trying to play the West of Canada means you have to add at least a week to ten days, maybe longer onto your tour. And unfortunately I have got so many obligations back in Europe. I know that you think that I don’t think you are important, but that is not true. It’s just that other things have already been filed into my fairly full diary. So, I will return, I promise you, to perform in those places that hold many great memories for me. Just going back to your question about the epics. I started getting interested in these epic songs like Crusader and so on way back, and I think perhaps because I come from this background of storytelling, and also having been on tour with a band like Supertramp who did not do those kinds of songs necessarily, but they liked to have a big epic sweep to some of the productions, particularly on stage. Even their seminal album “Crime Of The Century” was supposed to have been a concept album, but I think it was more a series of songs that sort of ran into each other and joined up in a very specific way, but I think by accident. But having shown a great interest in literature in early years, I wanted to bring that into history. History has always been a keen interest of mine. Furthermore, a track like “The Leader/The Vision/What About Me” was very much inspired by a specific moment which was looking at a painting, and wondering what people from way back, forefathers, many previous generations behind us, what they would have made of the current methods of war in relation to what they believed which was in biblical terms it was the hell and damnation in The Book Of Revelations. So I had this vision that all this kind of stuff was going on in the sky above these people. But the point of it was, and also in “The Revolution” and “Crusader”, there is a point like in Crusader all these warring nations decided to put aside their wars and fight what they felt to be a common enemy. In “The Revolution” it is about how people get very excited about change, and then it often comes to nothing. And change is just repeated, it’s as they say in France “Plus ça change, plus c’est la même chose.” That is: “The more things change, the more they stay the same.” And “The Leader/The Vision/What About Me?” was about modern warfare and how in modern warfare, if there is a cataclysmic war, started by either one of the superpowers, everybody will be affected, so they don’t really gain anything. I would very much like to publish these stories in a longer, broader form one day, and this is a little plan in the back of my head. Finally, what has always interested me about the scale of war is to take it from the point of view of an individual of a family suffering during the onset and the prosecution of a war.
Angelo Auriti (40) from Calgary, Canada:
Hello Mr. de Burgh, I have been a big fan of your music for many, many years. I do like some of your love songs but am especially fond of your songs about the tragedy of war. Over the last several albums I have noticed you have not had the epic songs like Crusader or Revolution/Light a Fire/Liberty or most recently The Leader/The Vision/What About Me. These songs are by far my favourite. Do you derive a certain inspiration to write these songs? Is there a chance that an epic like one of these would ever be published? I have had the pleasure of seeing you twice in the mid eighties in Winnipeg, Manitoba. I have ranked these two shows as some of my all time favourites, even twenty years later. I discovered this website by accident and impressed by its details. I realise how busy you must be but I would be honoured if you would be able to answer these questions. Thank you very much.
Chris de Burgh:
Well, Angelo, I have been to Calgary many times in the past. I’ve really enjoyed myself in your city. I have been there during your boom times and in your bust times, when things haven’t gone so well, and I have always thoroughly enjoyed my trips across there. I am sorry that the upcoming tour of Canada does not take in the Western section. For those who live in the West, Vancouver, Saskatoon, Regina or Calgary for example, please accept my humble apologies. It is always a question of time. Trying to play the West of Canada means you have to add at least a week to ten days, maybe longer onto your tour. And unfortunately I have got so many obligations back in Europe. I know that you think that I don’t think you are important, but that is not true. It’s just that other things have already been filed into my fairly full diary. So, I will return, I promise you, to perform in those places that hold many great memories for me. Just going back to your question about the epics. I started getting interested in these epic songs like Crusader and so on way back, and I think perhaps because I come from this background of storytelling, and also having been on tour with a band like Supertramp who did not do those kinds of songs necessarily, but they liked to have a big epic sweep to some of the productions, particularly on stage. Even their seminal album “Crime Of The Century” was supposed to have been a concept album, but I think it was more a series of songs that sort of ran into each other and joined up in a very specific way, but I think by accident. But having shown a great interest in literature in early years, I wanted to bring that into history. History has always been a keen interest of mine. Furthermore, a track like “The Leader/The Vision/What About Me” was very much inspired by a specific moment which was looking at a painting, and wondering what people from way back, forefathers, many previous generations behind us, what they would have made of the current methods of war in relation to what they believed which was in biblical terms it was the hell and damnation in The Book Of Revelations. So I had this vision that all this kind of stuff was going on in the sky above these people. But the point of it was, and also in “The Revolution” and “Crusader”, there is a point like in Crusader all these warring nations decided to put aside their wars and fight what they felt to be a common enemy. In “The Revolution” it is about how people get very excited about change, and then it often comes to nothing. And change is just repeated, it’s as they say in France “Plus ça change, plus c’est la même chose.” That is: “The more things change, the more they stay the same.” And “The Leader/The Vision/What About Me?” was about modern warfare and how in modern warfare, if there is a cataclysmic war, started by either one of the superpowers, everybody will be affected, so they don’t really gain anything. I would very much like to publish these stories in a longer, broader form one day, and this is a little plan in the back of my head. Finally, what has always interested me about the scale of war is to take it from the point of view of an individual of a family suffering during the onset and the prosecution of a war.
July 14, 2005
Necip Tiynak (30) from Istanbul, Turkey:
Dear Chris, I am a very big fan of you following your music for 18 years. I have got every album of you from the beginning to the end (1974-2005 equal to my age). Your third concert in Istanbul Cemil Topuzlu Theatre in 1992 was one of the most amazing times of my life. It was the 19th of July, but it rained very hardly, but we didn't mind about it and danced for 3 hours with your wonderful music under the rain; do you remember that concert? My question is about the world we live in: Yesterday when I was listening to your song "The Devil's Eye" which is in the album Crusader (1979), I thought about the lyrics. It was the second part of Spanish Train, actually. At that song, the devil says to people: "I have blacked out your television, every station in the world is mine, And there are millions who are just like you as you sit there, paralysed! I have some orders which you will follow, and there's nothing you can do. 'Cos as you're looking at your TV screen, I am looking back at you..! ." Now let's look at the world we live in today: 9/11 event in New York, blasts in Istanbul, blasts in a SPANISH TRAIN in Madrid, disasters in Iraq, Palestine, Bosnia, Kosovo... Do you think that your nightmare came true? By the way, congratulations for your wonderful last album and the last single "Read My Name" which is going to be a huge hit. Your name will be read forever! We are looking forward to seeing you in Istanbul. Take care....
Chris de Burgh:
Those of you who know that I love football will know that I went to Istanbul with my family to watch Liverpool beating AC Milan in the European cup final, which was one of the most outstanding nights in my life. And I wrote about this on the website a few weeks back. The concert that you are referring to, when it poured with rain, I have never forgotten. Not just that one, but also the warmth of the fans in Istanbul and in Turkey, in Izmir, playing the concert in that extraordinary place Ephesus, and various other places in Turkey. But the night when it rained, it was warm rain, and I remember it so well. I remember meeting a whole lot of fans afterwards, and they were absolutely drenched and they were just smiling and smiling and smiling. It was an amazing sight. And I remember starting the show with the song “Where Will We Be Going” slightly off the stage and coming down. It was one of those nights, you know, you want to go back to in your memory. Thank you for reminding me of that show. Moving on to your question about “The Devil’s Eye”, well I have often thought about the surveillance that goes on in people’s public lives. Everybody knows about the cameras all over the place, speed cameras, cameras in stores, cameras following on the street. Now anything you do on the internet can be followed and found and scrutinised. Every word we say on the telephone can be overheard, every text message you send is stored in a database. Now it comes to the point where, in privacy, how much of what we do in private is actually being observed. And I had this nightmare scenario, perhaps the camera in the TV is actually two-way. We are not just looking at a camera showing us images from elsewhere, but perhaps the technology of course exists where you could put a camera into a television. In fact we have often seen reality shows where there is a camera broadcasting from people’s homes and showing what they are up to, you know, the Big Brother scenario, which, I think, either currently exists or shortly will exist. So, in terms of anti-terrorism obviously it’s very important to make sure that we are, all of us, kept in safety, and that we are not at the whim of terrorists, which is why, for example, we have such a tough time, going through security at airports. The 9-11 disaster in New York and Washington just showed how easy it is for terrorists to break through the security screens and threaten ordinary people. My firm belief is that there is no way that firstly we can ever be entirely private in our lives, and secondly I do not believe there is a way that we can live without the threat of terror. I think this is part of man’s make up, in his physical and spiritual personality is the desire to wreak revenge and wreak havoc on other human beings, just to prove a point. And sadly a huge amount of it is based on religious believes and religious discrimination. I have said it many times in the past that, if only people had more tolerance towards another man’s beliefs, I am sure a lot of this terrorism would not happen. Of course you have to ally that to the ongoing needs of consumerism and the consumer societies who are trying to protect their own economies which is why oil is the currency of life and it’s also the currency of death.
Necip Tiynak (30) from Istanbul, Turkey:
Dear Chris, I am a very big fan of you following your music for 18 years. I have got every album of you from the beginning to the end (1974-2005 equal to my age). Your third concert in Istanbul Cemil Topuzlu Theatre in 1992 was one of the most amazing times of my life. It was the 19th of July, but it rained very hardly, but we didn't mind about it and danced for 3 hours with your wonderful music under the rain; do you remember that concert? My question is about the world we live in: Yesterday when I was listening to your song "The Devil's Eye" which is in the album Crusader (1979), I thought about the lyrics. It was the second part of Spanish Train, actually. At that song, the devil says to people: "I have blacked out your television, every station in the world is mine, And there are millions who are just like you as you sit there, paralysed! I have some orders which you will follow, and there's nothing you can do. 'Cos as you're looking at your TV screen, I am looking back at you..! ." Now let's look at the world we live in today: 9/11 event in New York, blasts in Istanbul, blasts in a SPANISH TRAIN in Madrid, disasters in Iraq, Palestine, Bosnia, Kosovo... Do you think that your nightmare came true? By the way, congratulations for your wonderful last album and the last single "Read My Name" which is going to be a huge hit. Your name will be read forever! We are looking forward to seeing you in Istanbul. Take care....
Chris de Burgh:
Those of you who know that I love football will know that I went to Istanbul with my family to watch Liverpool beating AC Milan in the European cup final, which was one of the most outstanding nights in my life. And I wrote about this on the website a few weeks back. The concert that you are referring to, when it poured with rain, I have never forgotten. Not just that one, but also the warmth of the fans in Istanbul and in Turkey, in Izmir, playing the concert in that extraordinary place Ephesus, and various other places in Turkey. But the night when it rained, it was warm rain, and I remember it so well. I remember meeting a whole lot of fans afterwards, and they were absolutely drenched and they were just smiling and smiling and smiling. It was an amazing sight. And I remember starting the show with the song “Where Will We Be Going” slightly off the stage and coming down. It was one of those nights, you know, you want to go back to in your memory. Thank you for reminding me of that show. Moving on to your question about “The Devil’s Eye”, well I have often thought about the surveillance that goes on in people’s public lives. Everybody knows about the cameras all over the place, speed cameras, cameras in stores, cameras following on the street. Now anything you do on the internet can be followed and found and scrutinised. Every word we say on the telephone can be overheard, every text message you send is stored in a database. Now it comes to the point where, in privacy, how much of what we do in private is actually being observed. And I had this nightmare scenario, perhaps the camera in the TV is actually two-way. We are not just looking at a camera showing us images from elsewhere, but perhaps the technology of course exists where you could put a camera into a television. In fact we have often seen reality shows where there is a camera broadcasting from people’s homes and showing what they are up to, you know, the Big Brother scenario, which, I think, either currently exists or shortly will exist. So, in terms of anti-terrorism obviously it’s very important to make sure that we are, all of us, kept in safety, and that we are not at the whim of terrorists, which is why, for example, we have such a tough time, going through security at airports. The 9-11 disaster in New York and Washington just showed how easy it is for terrorists to break through the security screens and threaten ordinary people. My firm belief is that there is no way that firstly we can ever be entirely private in our lives, and secondly I do not believe there is a way that we can live without the threat of terror. I think this is part of man’s make up, in his physical and spiritual personality is the desire to wreak revenge and wreak havoc on other human beings, just to prove a point. And sadly a huge amount of it is based on religious believes and religious discrimination. I have said it many times in the past that, if only people had more tolerance towards another man’s beliefs, I am sure a lot of this terrorism would not happen. Of course you have to ally that to the ongoing needs of consumerism and the consumer societies who are trying to protect their own economies which is why oil is the currency of life and it’s also the currency of death.
July 13, 2005
Ina Stöcker (35) from Bergisch Gladbach, Germany:
Hi Chris! I often heard that you are collecting wine. For me, as I enjoy cooking, eating and having a nice glass of wine - I often ask myself if you have one wine you ever come back to or if you change your taste from time to time and if you follow the "wine rules" (which wine to cheese etc.). After a hard day or week - as example - I love to sit down in a quiet atmosphere, hearing your music (with all the pictures in my head this music gives to me!) and have a glass of Merlot. Or sitting together with good friends, enjoying a meal, having a nice chat. I especially like Merlot wines from France, the area Languedoc, Roussillon. But there are interesting wines from Australia and South Africa, too. For me it´s not so important that a wine did cost a lot of money - also cheaper wines can have a very good taste. Is there a grape and wine-area you prefer? I enjoyed so many concerts now together with my friends from all over Germany and at least in England - we always have a great time together, when we meet again. After your shows we enjoy to talk and laugh until deep in the night, having something to eat and a glass of wine together - it´s always "The end of a perfect day". Hope you answer this question! All the best to you from Ina
Chris de Burgh:
Well, Ina, this is a terrific subject, because it’s one in which I have a huge interest. I have been collecting wines for many many years, and hardly a day goes by without me reading about wine, or trying a wine, or learning a little bit more about wine. I think the most important thing for me about wine is it’s something to share with friends. Two weeks ago for example I had a barbecue. And selecting wines to be enjoyed for barbecue is interesting, because it’s a fairly broad area of appeal. Because some people like a good, tough wine with their hamburgers or steaks, other people like to start with a nice and gentle wine. So in fact I brought out a few bottles of a Sauvignon Blanc from France, which was delicious. And I followed that up with a good rough ‘97 Bordeaux and at the end opened a bottle of something very special, which was called Chateau Cheval Blanc 1981. And people reading this, who know about their wines, will say, well, ’81 wasn’t a very good year. This is correct. But I also believe that, if you are dealing with a company or a chateau as fantastic as for example Chateau Cheval Blanc, the quality will always be there. And I urge people to try the second wines of French chateaus like, for example, Chateau Leoville Barton. That is delicious! And quite often you will find the second wines of great chateaus perhaps not being as fine as the key wine of that place, but it can also be extremely good. Following wine rules is, I suppose, very much down to people’s taste. As far as I am concerned, because I don’t eat fish, I try to present a white wine that does go with fish for those who are eating it in my house. And there are some things that do not work, for example spinach or eggs are very very hard to match wine with. Also spicy foods like curries, spicy foods that we adore in our house like Chinese foods for example. And for those I recommend a wine that has got a lot of fruit in it. Some of those German wines, not the very subtle ones like the Rieslings, but more fruity ones are absolutely delicious with those kinds of hot and spicy dishes. For example wines from the Alsace area go very well with spicy foods. With meat I would recommend anything full-bodied. And as you can tell I am beginning to get into my stride here! I could go on talking about wines for the rest of the day. So I’ll just finish and conclude by saying that I don’t actually have any area I particularly enjoy, but in my opinion the finest red wines do come from France and the Bordeaux area in particular. Although I like Burgundy wines, I much prefer the white Burgundies to the red Burgundies. And I like wines from Beaujolais as well, and the Rhone valley. And some of the places you mentioned, for example Languedoc, Roussillon and so on. They would form in my cellar, I would say, about 60 percent of the wines. But I am a huge of Italian wines, the whites and the reds. Some of the top Italian wines and some of the red ones from Tuscany are absolutely stunning. And I am also a big fan of South African wines. Strangely enough I have never been a great fan of Australian wines. I know there are some terrific wines made down there, in particular Penfolds which is, I suppose, the leading red wine maker in Australia. And there are some great wines coming out of Argentina at the moment. Malbec is a great grape and a lovely tasting wine. And some terrific wines are being made in Chile. Even in Canada there are some good wines coming through. I have a preference for what we call old world wines to new world wines, which is why quite honestly I do not know much about American wines. But they, like Australian wines, tend to be a little unsubtle to my taste. They tend to be very strong, very fruity. And for example the Chardonnays sometimes for me can taste like boiled sweets, put in water, it’s not very pleasant. I suppose being a lover of white Burgundies, I am looking for the slightly more refined taste. But this is a matter of opinion of course. Those of you who know my music and the lyrics will also have noticed that I mention the words “wine” (“sitting down with a glass of wine”) quite a bit during my songs. In fact, I’d be curious to know if anybody out there can send back a list of all the songs in which I mention the word wine. Because as I said right from the start it’s a wonderful thing to share with friends. Another reason I love wine is, because it is also a great way to look into history, the history of vineyards, the history of winemakers, the history of the buildings that occupy the area where the vineyards are growing and so on.
Ina Stöcker (35) from Bergisch Gladbach, Germany:
Hi Chris! I often heard that you are collecting wine. For me, as I enjoy cooking, eating and having a nice glass of wine - I often ask myself if you have one wine you ever come back to or if you change your taste from time to time and if you follow the "wine rules" (which wine to cheese etc.). After a hard day or week - as example - I love to sit down in a quiet atmosphere, hearing your music (with all the pictures in my head this music gives to me!) and have a glass of Merlot. Or sitting together with good friends, enjoying a meal, having a nice chat. I especially like Merlot wines from France, the area Languedoc, Roussillon. But there are interesting wines from Australia and South Africa, too. For me it´s not so important that a wine did cost a lot of money - also cheaper wines can have a very good taste. Is there a grape and wine-area you prefer? I enjoyed so many concerts now together with my friends from all over Germany and at least in England - we always have a great time together, when we meet again. After your shows we enjoy to talk and laugh until deep in the night, having something to eat and a glass of wine together - it´s always "The end of a perfect day". Hope you answer this question! All the best to you from Ina
Chris de Burgh:
Well, Ina, this is a terrific subject, because it’s one in which I have a huge interest. I have been collecting wines for many many years, and hardly a day goes by without me reading about wine, or trying a wine, or learning a little bit more about wine. I think the most important thing for me about wine is it’s something to share with friends. Two weeks ago for example I had a barbecue. And selecting wines to be enjoyed for barbecue is interesting, because it’s a fairly broad area of appeal. Because some people like a good, tough wine with their hamburgers or steaks, other people like to start with a nice and gentle wine. So in fact I brought out a few bottles of a Sauvignon Blanc from France, which was delicious. And I followed that up with a good rough ‘97 Bordeaux and at the end opened a bottle of something very special, which was called Chateau Cheval Blanc 1981. And people reading this, who know about their wines, will say, well, ’81 wasn’t a very good year. This is correct. But I also believe that, if you are dealing with a company or a chateau as fantastic as for example Chateau Cheval Blanc, the quality will always be there. And I urge people to try the second wines of French chateaus like, for example, Chateau Leoville Barton. That is delicious! And quite often you will find the second wines of great chateaus perhaps not being as fine as the key wine of that place, but it can also be extremely good. Following wine rules is, I suppose, very much down to people’s taste. As far as I am concerned, because I don’t eat fish, I try to present a white wine that does go with fish for those who are eating it in my house. And there are some things that do not work, for example spinach or eggs are very very hard to match wine with. Also spicy foods like curries, spicy foods that we adore in our house like Chinese foods for example. And for those I recommend a wine that has got a lot of fruit in it. Some of those German wines, not the very subtle ones like the Rieslings, but more fruity ones are absolutely delicious with those kinds of hot and spicy dishes. For example wines from the Alsace area go very well with spicy foods. With meat I would recommend anything full-bodied. And as you can tell I am beginning to get into my stride here! I could go on talking about wines for the rest of the day. So I’ll just finish and conclude by saying that I don’t actually have any area I particularly enjoy, but in my opinion the finest red wines do come from France and the Bordeaux area in particular. Although I like Burgundy wines, I much prefer the white Burgundies to the red Burgundies. And I like wines from Beaujolais as well, and the Rhone valley. And some of the places you mentioned, for example Languedoc, Roussillon and so on. They would form in my cellar, I would say, about 60 percent of the wines. But I am a huge of Italian wines, the whites and the reds. Some of the top Italian wines and some of the red ones from Tuscany are absolutely stunning. And I am also a big fan of South African wines. Strangely enough I have never been a great fan of Australian wines. I know there are some terrific wines made down there, in particular Penfolds which is, I suppose, the leading red wine maker in Australia. And there are some great wines coming out of Argentina at the moment. Malbec is a great grape and a lovely tasting wine. And some terrific wines are being made in Chile. Even in Canada there are some good wines coming through. I have a preference for what we call old world wines to new world wines, which is why quite honestly I do not know much about American wines. But they, like Australian wines, tend to be a little unsubtle to my taste. They tend to be very strong, very fruity. And for example the Chardonnays sometimes for me can taste like boiled sweets, put in water, it’s not very pleasant. I suppose being a lover of white Burgundies, I am looking for the slightly more refined taste. But this is a matter of opinion of course. Those of you who know my music and the lyrics will also have noticed that I mention the words “wine” (“sitting down with a glass of wine”) quite a bit during my songs. In fact, I’d be curious to know if anybody out there can send back a list of all the songs in which I mention the word wine. Because as I said right from the start it’s a wonderful thing to share with friends. Another reason I love wine is, because it is also a great way to look into history, the history of vineyards, the history of winemakers, the history of the buildings that occupy the area where the vineyards are growing and so on.
June 29, 2005
Marjorie Scott (40) from North Glasgow, Scotland:
Dear Chris, My question relates to Crusader and "Carry on"! I wrote to you when I was 18 regarding the strength this song gave me after the sudden passing of my father. I acknowledge that this belief may be personal, however: Do you firmly believe that we do "Carry on"? I still look at the stars in the sky and think of the souls who have passed over! I hope we do "Carry On", with love and great regard, Marjorie
Chris de Burgh:
I think since time began really for mankind, we have always wanted to believe there is something beyond there. And if you look at the raw statistics, if there were in the 14th century one billion people on the planet, they all died and similarly the 16th century. There have been billions and billions of deaths in humanity and there will be billions more to come. In this time in 150 years, I think without question, every single living person on this planet will be dead. So we are searching for some kind of longevity, we are searching for some kind of future. I think this is where religion comes in. And I think it is a very good thing that people are offered hope. But I think the way that most organized religions, if not all organized religions, have abused the trust and the spiritual faith put in them by the masses, because leadership and authority and power is a very corrupting thing. So coming back to personal feelings, I think this is where I went with my album “Quiet Revolution”. The title track is that a lot of people do think there is a renaissance going on, a spiritual renaissance revival. Perhaps allied to the collapse of religion, which is happening in many places in the world. People are beginning to question their leaders in that respect. But for me I think it would be foolish for us to think that there is nothing else around us or out there as it were. I personally believe that we are surrounded by forces and a power that is absolutely awesome. The trouble is we don’t listen very often. And speaking on a personal basis again, perhaps I don’t listen as often as I should to the inner voice, but I think that’s what we can learn from those who have gone before. Because there have been so many millions of cases of people believing, and it still happens today that they are being touched by a greater force from beyond. So in answer to your question, I do believe that we do carry on.
Editor's note:
The MOtL section is taking a short break now, and will be back online hopefully in a few days. Stay tuned for more fans questions and answers by Chris de Burgh! For the Germans - remember to watch CdeB on "Gottschalk and Friends" tonight (ZDF), and also his performance at Live 8 Berlin on Saturday!
Marjorie Scott (40) from North Glasgow, Scotland:
Dear Chris, My question relates to Crusader and "Carry on"! I wrote to you when I was 18 regarding the strength this song gave me after the sudden passing of my father. I acknowledge that this belief may be personal, however: Do you firmly believe that we do "Carry on"? I still look at the stars in the sky and think of the souls who have passed over! I hope we do "Carry On", with love and great regard, Marjorie
Chris de Burgh:
I think since time began really for mankind, we have always wanted to believe there is something beyond there. And if you look at the raw statistics, if there were in the 14th century one billion people on the planet, they all died and similarly the 16th century. There have been billions and billions of deaths in humanity and there will be billions more to come. In this time in 150 years, I think without question, every single living person on this planet will be dead. So we are searching for some kind of longevity, we are searching for some kind of future. I think this is where religion comes in. And I think it is a very good thing that people are offered hope. But I think the way that most organized religions, if not all organized religions, have abused the trust and the spiritual faith put in them by the masses, because leadership and authority and power is a very corrupting thing. So coming back to personal feelings, I think this is where I went with my album “Quiet Revolution”. The title track is that a lot of people do think there is a renaissance going on, a spiritual renaissance revival. Perhaps allied to the collapse of religion, which is happening in many places in the world. People are beginning to question their leaders in that respect. But for me I think it would be foolish for us to think that there is nothing else around us or out there as it were. I personally believe that we are surrounded by forces and a power that is absolutely awesome. The trouble is we don’t listen very often. And speaking on a personal basis again, perhaps I don’t listen as often as I should to the inner voice, but I think that’s what we can learn from those who have gone before. Because there have been so many millions of cases of people believing, and it still happens today that they are being touched by a greater force from beyond. So in answer to your question, I do believe that we do carry on.
Editor's note:
The MOtL section is taking a short break now, and will be back online hopefully in a few days. Stay tuned for more fans questions and answers by Chris de Burgh! For the Germans - remember to watch CdeB on "Gottschalk and Friends" tonight (ZDF), and also his performance at Live 8 Berlin on Saturday!
June 28, 2005
Zeina (20) from Lebanon:
Hi, I always wonder about the variety of songs you perform and the sensation that comes with every song as if giving it a soul and mind. In the song "Classical dilemma between the head and the heart", you've chosen the heart and this is just applicable to fantasy. Do you believe that in this real life, someone can ignore the head and go with the heart especially to a man like you who is brilliant enough to give his mind a big deal so that he achieved all this marvellous success? I wish to you all the success for you've been a relief in the presence of all difficult situation. Thanks for you and your great music. Wish you the best, take care, bye.
Chris de Burgh:
I have to say, I enjoyed reading this question very much. It’s very flattering, even more flattering that it’s coming from a young woman of 20 years old in Lebanon. In real life it often happens that your sensible part is saying “no, I can’t do this”, but your emotional part says “but I have to!”. The trouble is, you see, if you go with the sensible side of you, the head in this particular situation, in years to come you can be feeling guilty and say “oh, did I make the right decision?”. This is the trouble when you are presented with such a dilemma that in future years you may say “oh, I think I made a mistake”. Therefore I think the one constant is your emotion, because your heart can tell you what’s really deep inside whereas your head is saying what you should do. I was once told that you should never, and I have just used it, you should never use the word “should”. I should do this, I should do that. You must decide whether to do it or not. Not feel this kind of half guilt about whether you should do something. So in that respect, although the head is often ruled by current circumstances and what people are saying to you at the time, in later years you may regret that. So make a decision, if it’s an emotional decision based on your heart, but be very very careful that you cannot come back in later years and say that was a mistake. That’s why, when you make a decision based on your emotions, make sure that you are sitting in a quiet place and your emotions aren’t flooding all through you, taking over your whole body and spirit. You must try your best to perhaps bring a bit of head into your heart, but not exclusively the head or exclusively the heart.
Zeina (20) from Lebanon:
Hi, I always wonder about the variety of songs you perform and the sensation that comes with every song as if giving it a soul and mind. In the song "Classical dilemma between the head and the heart", you've chosen the heart and this is just applicable to fantasy. Do you believe that in this real life, someone can ignore the head and go with the heart especially to a man like you who is brilliant enough to give his mind a big deal so that he achieved all this marvellous success? I wish to you all the success for you've been a relief in the presence of all difficult situation. Thanks for you and your great music. Wish you the best, take care, bye.
Chris de Burgh:
I have to say, I enjoyed reading this question very much. It’s very flattering, even more flattering that it’s coming from a young woman of 20 years old in Lebanon. In real life it often happens that your sensible part is saying “no, I can’t do this”, but your emotional part says “but I have to!”. The trouble is, you see, if you go with the sensible side of you, the head in this particular situation, in years to come you can be feeling guilty and say “oh, did I make the right decision?”. This is the trouble when you are presented with such a dilemma that in future years you may say “oh, I think I made a mistake”. Therefore I think the one constant is your emotion, because your heart can tell you what’s really deep inside whereas your head is saying what you should do. I was once told that you should never, and I have just used it, you should never use the word “should”. I should do this, I should do that. You must decide whether to do it or not. Not feel this kind of half guilt about whether you should do something. So in that respect, although the head is often ruled by current circumstances and what people are saying to you at the time, in later years you may regret that. So make a decision, if it’s an emotional decision based on your heart, but be very very careful that you cannot come back in later years and say that was a mistake. That’s why, when you make a decision based on your emotions, make sure that you are sitting in a quiet place and your emotions aren’t flooding all through you, taking over your whole body and spirit. You must try your best to perhaps bring a bit of head into your heart, but not exclusively the head or exclusively the heart.
June 27, 2005
Kelly Preston (36) from Riverview, New Brunswick, Canada:
I just read your reply to Mr. Puett from the US and you talk of the song, Borderline (from my favorite album, by the way)... which happens to have one of my favorite lines; "..and I will never know how men can see the wisdom in a war". I've often wondered if you've ever had any political interests in that have you ever talked with a world leader or two regarding that exact thing? If yes, then who was it and when and what did you take away from the experience. If no, then would you ever lead, or take part in a "Crusade for Peace"? Thanks again for your music... God Bless! Kelly
Chris de Burgh:
Well, this line, virtually every time I sing it, gets a massive response from the audience who have been brought up looking up into our fairly recent history at the horrors of large scale global war. In fact I am sending you this answer shortly after the celebrations for the 60th anniversary of victory in Europe, the VE day. And some absolutely astounding statistics are available. For example, in the Soviet Union, 27 million people died as a result of the hostilities in the Second World War. 27 million people, that’s nearly half the population of Germany for example. It’s 6 or 7 times the population of Ireland. And that’s just the Soviet Union. Many other countries had terrible things happen to their population. And it comes back to that one question I asked myself. And perhaps I mentioned it on the website, that people might like to ponder. How many men does it take to start a war? I reckon, it takes about 3 or 4 maximum of men in positions of utter power, who make decisions. They may take advice from a lot more people than that, but I reckon the decisions come down to 3 or 4 people. And can you imagine being one of those 3 or 4 people that launched a war? In an aggressive way rather than a defensive way. And having to live with the consequences. Something to think about! And as far as meeting politicians and leaders, the answer is well I have met many of them, but I haven’t discussed peace, because I don’t think singers can do much. I think it’s populations who are the only people that can respond to situations like the outbreak of war. I am still amazed that the chain of command has meant that people say “yes, I am going to go and fight”. Particularly, if it is an aggressive war. This question came up by one of my sons recently about “is bloodshed ever justified?” And he and I decided that yes, it is justified if you are defending yourself. But it is not justified if you are aggressively attacking in a case of warfare. Obviously I am committed to peace and we are very fortunate to be living, broadly speaking, in a peaceful world at the moment.
Kelly Preston (36) from Riverview, New Brunswick, Canada:
I just read your reply to Mr. Puett from the US and you talk of the song, Borderline (from my favorite album, by the way)... which happens to have one of my favorite lines; "..and I will never know how men can see the wisdom in a war". I've often wondered if you've ever had any political interests in that have you ever talked with a world leader or two regarding that exact thing? If yes, then who was it and when and what did you take away from the experience. If no, then would you ever lead, or take part in a "Crusade for Peace"? Thanks again for your music... God Bless! Kelly
Chris de Burgh:
Well, this line, virtually every time I sing it, gets a massive response from the audience who have been brought up looking up into our fairly recent history at the horrors of large scale global war. In fact I am sending you this answer shortly after the celebrations for the 60th anniversary of victory in Europe, the VE day. And some absolutely astounding statistics are available. For example, in the Soviet Union, 27 million people died as a result of the hostilities in the Second World War. 27 million people, that’s nearly half the population of Germany for example. It’s 6 or 7 times the population of Ireland. And that’s just the Soviet Union. Many other countries had terrible things happen to their population. And it comes back to that one question I asked myself. And perhaps I mentioned it on the website, that people might like to ponder. How many men does it take to start a war? I reckon, it takes about 3 or 4 maximum of men in positions of utter power, who make decisions. They may take advice from a lot more people than that, but I reckon the decisions come down to 3 or 4 people. And can you imagine being one of those 3 or 4 people that launched a war? In an aggressive way rather than a defensive way. And having to live with the consequences. Something to think about! And as far as meeting politicians and leaders, the answer is well I have met many of them, but I haven’t discussed peace, because I don’t think singers can do much. I think it’s populations who are the only people that can respond to situations like the outbreak of war. I am still amazed that the chain of command has meant that people say “yes, I am going to go and fight”. Particularly, if it is an aggressive war. This question came up by one of my sons recently about “is bloodshed ever justified?” And he and I decided that yes, it is justified if you are defending yourself. But it is not justified if you are aggressively attacking in a case of warfare. Obviously I am committed to peace and we are very fortunate to be living, broadly speaking, in a peaceful world at the moment.
June 26, 2005
Jayne Simmons (38) from Ashford, Middx, UK:
For many years myself and my husband have enjoyed your music, particularly your ability to tell stories in song. One of our other favourite artists who is another accomplished story teller is Al Stewart. I really think that a combination of the two of you in song would be great - in many ways your musical styles are very similar and I for one would be interested in hearing such a collaboration. Have you any plans to record with any artists in the future or is there anyone you would especially like to record with? Thanks again for a great concert at the Albert Hall (Oct 18th) - we very much enjoyed the evening and hope one day we will be nearby when you do a 'walkabout' around the audience - it would be the greatest of pleasures to meet you one day.
Chris de Burgh:
It’s funny you should say that, because I have just in the last answer discussed storytelling. And my storytelling ability is something that really began, I suppose, in the early years. The first album for example: “Lonesome Cowboy” or on the second album “Spanish Train And Other Stories”. If people like those kinds of things, they may be interested to hear that I am looking very strongly at a next project around the idea of stories. Back to where I was before, I suppose. But also not being one to look backwards, as you may have noticed. I am looking forward to a time when stories can be put together maybe in an entire performance, stories from the past linked with visuals. And I just find writing stories is an interesting way of getting across a point, perhaps a morality point. A point about history, a point about sympathy for people’s situations. There are all sorts of things you can do with a good story. And what’s more, stories then can become part of people’s lives. They can apply to themselves and they are hard to forget, if it’s a good story. As far as collaboration with other artists is concerned, it’s not something that happens very often. And usually the reason that there are collaborations is for a commercial one. These duets quite often involve a well-established star picking up somebody virtually unknown trying to advance that career, an entourage. One is known and the other isn’t. And it has the opposite effect, if you have somebody who is very well known and one entourage that you are not known in and you do a collaboration. It’s often a commercial decision. But moving on from that, I would say that yes, there are some great voices out there. There’s a young Welsh girl called Katherine Jenkins, who is an opera singer. Not only is she absolutely gorgeous, but she has got a fantastic voice. I have never been a great fan of opera, because I find that the emotion has been squeezed out of the voices by too much training. I would love to sing a song beside an opera singer that has some kind of emotion to it and see who gets across the emotion better to an audience listening, myself or the trained voice. And I suspect it would be probably me for the simple reason that too much training tends to squeeze out the emotion. But I think Katherine Jenkins has got that rare quality of being able to touch your heart as well, as she is having an absolutely pure and beautiful voice.
Jayne Simmons (38) from Ashford, Middx, UK:
For many years myself and my husband have enjoyed your music, particularly your ability to tell stories in song. One of our other favourite artists who is another accomplished story teller is Al Stewart. I really think that a combination of the two of you in song would be great - in many ways your musical styles are very similar and I for one would be interested in hearing such a collaboration. Have you any plans to record with any artists in the future or is there anyone you would especially like to record with? Thanks again for a great concert at the Albert Hall (Oct 18th) - we very much enjoyed the evening and hope one day we will be nearby when you do a 'walkabout' around the audience - it would be the greatest of pleasures to meet you one day.
Chris de Burgh:
It’s funny you should say that, because I have just in the last answer discussed storytelling. And my storytelling ability is something that really began, I suppose, in the early years. The first album for example: “Lonesome Cowboy” or on the second album “Spanish Train And Other Stories”. If people like those kinds of things, they may be interested to hear that I am looking very strongly at a next project around the idea of stories. Back to where I was before, I suppose. But also not being one to look backwards, as you may have noticed. I am looking forward to a time when stories can be put together maybe in an entire performance, stories from the past linked with visuals. And I just find writing stories is an interesting way of getting across a point, perhaps a morality point. A point about history, a point about sympathy for people’s situations. There are all sorts of things you can do with a good story. And what’s more, stories then can become part of people’s lives. They can apply to themselves and they are hard to forget, if it’s a good story. As far as collaboration with other artists is concerned, it’s not something that happens very often. And usually the reason that there are collaborations is for a commercial one. These duets quite often involve a well-established star picking up somebody virtually unknown trying to advance that career, an entourage. One is known and the other isn’t. And it has the opposite effect, if you have somebody who is very well known and one entourage that you are not known in and you do a collaboration. It’s often a commercial decision. But moving on from that, I would say that yes, there are some great voices out there. There’s a young Welsh girl called Katherine Jenkins, who is an opera singer. Not only is she absolutely gorgeous, but she has got a fantastic voice. I have never been a great fan of opera, because I find that the emotion has been squeezed out of the voices by too much training. I would love to sing a song beside an opera singer that has some kind of emotion to it and see who gets across the emotion better to an audience listening, myself or the trained voice. And I suspect it would be probably me for the simple reason that too much training tends to squeeze out the emotion. But I think Katherine Jenkins has got that rare quality of being able to touch your heart as well, as she is having an absolutely pure and beautiful voice.
June 25, 2005
Elie Waked (19) from Lebanon:
Hi Chris, I am a big fan of yours from Lebanon and I have seen your 2 live concerts on tape since I wasn’t old enough to see them live. But my question is why didn’t you play Crusader and have you ever played it live? If yes, in which concert?
Chris de Burgh:
Well, when I wrote that song in 1978, and I went on tour, I played that song a lot with the band. It was one of the key songs of the Crusader tour. And I think subsequently I did play it a few more times. It became superseded by other songs from albums like “The Getaway”, when I did the “Revolution” trilogy. And then in 1986 the “Into The Light” album with “The Leader”, “What About Me” and “The Vision”. But, because it is a story, I do return to it from time to time. Because after all I am a storyteller. And it’s something that I listen to occasionally and I know that I have been asked “is it historically accurate?”. Well, it depends really which angle you come from. I am actually just creating a song, not necessarily recreating a piece of history.
Elie Waked (19) from Lebanon:
Hi Chris, I am a big fan of yours from Lebanon and I have seen your 2 live concerts on tape since I wasn’t old enough to see them live. But my question is why didn’t you play Crusader and have you ever played it live? If yes, in which concert?
Chris de Burgh:
Well, when I wrote that song in 1978, and I went on tour, I played that song a lot with the band. It was one of the key songs of the Crusader tour. And I think subsequently I did play it a few more times. It became superseded by other songs from albums like “The Getaway”, when I did the “Revolution” trilogy. And then in 1986 the “Into The Light” album with “The Leader”, “What About Me” and “The Vision”. But, because it is a story, I do return to it from time to time. Because after all I am a storyteller. And it’s something that I listen to occasionally and I know that I have been asked “is it historically accurate?”. Well, it depends really which angle you come from. I am actually just creating a song, not necessarily recreating a piece of history.
June 24, 2005
Lesley Macindoe (42) from Balloch, Dunbartonshire, Scotland:
I was at your concert in Edinburgh's Usher Hall on 6 October which was fantastic. The excitement I felt at seeing you live is still with me but I am missing you already and hope you come to Scotland again soon - perhaps Glasgow this time? Anyway my question is: When you sang Read My Name, I noticed lots of names on the curtains behind you. What names were actually flashing up as I couldn’t take my eyes off you for long enough to see if I recognised any? I enjoy reading all the different sections of your website and am so grateful for it. With love forever - Lesley xx
Chris de Burgh:
I am glad you enjoyed the concert in Edinburgh and as always I was given a wonderful greeting from my Scottish fans. I look forward to going back there again. It’s a part of the world that historically I find fascinating and architecturally as well. Edinburgh is one of the most beautiful cities in Scotland, indeed in the whole island of the United Kingdom. And it’s a pleasure to be there again. The names that were going up behind me during “Read My Name” were a lot of different names from the website for example, people who have put their names down for these kinds of questions. We did an entire database and added a few more besides to suit the occasion. For example one night when my own family was there, their names came up. You know, that kind of thing. We have the flexibility to add more and more. And I am glad you noticed that. But I know that, when I am singing that song, a lot of people do look at the screen and wait for names they recognize to come up. And you can hear shouts of joy from time to time.
Lesley Macindoe (42) from Balloch, Dunbartonshire, Scotland:
I was at your concert in Edinburgh's Usher Hall on 6 October which was fantastic. The excitement I felt at seeing you live is still with me but I am missing you already and hope you come to Scotland again soon - perhaps Glasgow this time? Anyway my question is: When you sang Read My Name, I noticed lots of names on the curtains behind you. What names were actually flashing up as I couldn’t take my eyes off you for long enough to see if I recognised any? I enjoy reading all the different sections of your website and am so grateful for it. With love forever - Lesley xx
Chris de Burgh:
I am glad you enjoyed the concert in Edinburgh and as always I was given a wonderful greeting from my Scottish fans. I look forward to going back there again. It’s a part of the world that historically I find fascinating and architecturally as well. Edinburgh is one of the most beautiful cities in Scotland, indeed in the whole island of the United Kingdom. And it’s a pleasure to be there again. The names that were going up behind me during “Read My Name” were a lot of different names from the website for example, people who have put their names down for these kinds of questions. We did an entire database and added a few more besides to suit the occasion. For example one night when my own family was there, their names came up. You know, that kind of thing. We have the flexibility to add more and more. And I am glad you noticed that. But I know that, when I am singing that song, a lot of people do look at the screen and wait for names they recognize to come up. And you can hear shouts of joy from time to time.