''The Blue Cafe'' is the fourteenth studio album by British singer-songwriter

Chris Rea Christopher Anton Rea ( ; born 4 March 1951) is an English rock and blues Blues is a music genre and musical form which originated in the Deep South of the United States around the 1860s. Blues incorporated spirituals, work songs, fie ...

, released in 1998. The singles released for the album were "The Blue Cafe", "Thinking of You", "Sweet Summer Day" and "Square Peg, Round Hole". There was also a Japanese version with three bonus tracks, "Kyoto Blue", "Ameno Nakano Kiirono Herumetto" and "On the Beach". It was Rea's sixth successive album to reach the UK Top Ten, peaking at No. 10.

Critical reception

The Irish Times ''The Irish Times'' is an Irish daily broadsheet newspaper and online digital publication. It launched on 29 March 1859. The editor is Ruadhán Mac Cormaic. It is published every day except Sundays. ''The Irish Times'' is considered a newspaper ...

noted the "menacing atmosphere" evident on the album, "rooted mostly in Rea's sandpaper voice. And the twisted blues lines he plays on guitar". ''Shadows Of The Big Man'' is "focused, multifaceted...But best of all is the title song, ''The Blue Cafe''. An album that is bound to be a pure delight for fans of the man."

Track listing

All songs by

. # "Square Peg, Round Hole" – 3:58 # "Miss Your Kiss" – 4:05 # "Shadows of the Big Man" – 4:49 # "Where Do We Go from Here?" – 4:32 # "Since I Found You" – 4:37 # "Thinking of You" – 3:31 # "As Long as I Have Your Love" – 4:44 # "Anyone Quite Like You" – 4:49 # "Sweet Summer Day" – 4:45 # "Stick by You" – 4:05 # "I'm Still Holding On" – 4:55 # "The Blue Cafe" – 4:49 # "Kyoto Blue" – 4:44 # "Ameno Nakano Kiirono Herumetto" – 4:12 # "On the Beach" – 5:03 Tracks 13, 14 and 15 are bonus tracks on the Japanese edition of the album.

Personnel

– vocals, guitars *

Max Middleton David Maxwell Middleton (born 4 August 1946) is an English composer and keyboardist who was originally a docker on the London docks. Middleton is known for his work on the Fender Rhodes Electric piano, the Minimoog synthesiser and his percussiv ...

– keyboards * Sylvin Marc – bass *

Martin Ditcham Martin Ditcham is an English drummer, percussionist and songwriter. Ditcham is a prolific session musician, working with artists such as Henry Cow, Status Quo, Elton John, The Rolling Stones, Roger Daltrey, Sade, Mary Black, Nik Kershaw, Chris ...

– drums, percussion

Production

* Chris Rea – producer * Frédéric Blanc-Garin – engineer * Ian Cooper – mastering * Tommy Willis – guitar and amplifier technician * John Carver – art direction * Insect – design, artwork * Brian R. Brown – photography * Terry O'Neill – cover photography

Critical reception

Track listing

Personnel

Production

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

References