Driving Home For Christmas star Chris Rea dies at 74
Singer-songwriter Chris Rea – the man behind the festive classic Driving Home For Christmas – has died aged 74.
His wife Joan and two daughters Josephine and Julia confirmed in a statement that Rea died “peacefully in hospital… following a short illness”.
Born in Middlesbrough, England in 1951, Rea went on to find considerable success as a musician, releasing 25 studio albums over his multi-decade career – touching on a multitude of genres including pop, blues and rock – and selling more than 30 million albums.
While Driving Home For Christmas has enjoyed a perpetual place on Christmas playlists every year since its release in 1988, Rea had hits with tracks including Looking for the Summer, Fool (If You Think It’s Over), Let’s Dance, Josephine and On the Beach, to name a few.
Chris Rea suffered a number of health issues throughout his life; in the early 2000s he was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer, and had his pancreas removed in 2001. He later suffered a stroke in 2016.
Per the Guardian, he later described the stroke as a “very scary moment,” adding: “I got it into my head that my perception of pitch had gone with the stroke. And it took a lot of convincing from people saying there’s nothing wrong with what you’re playing.”
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