Track Listing

1. Steel River
2. Stainsby Girls
3. Chisel Hill
4. Josephine
5. One Golden Rule
6. All Summer Long
7. Stone
8. Shamrock Diaries
9. Love Turns To Lies
10. Hired Gun

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #13253 in Music
• Released on: 1988-07-18
• Number of discs: 1
• Dimensions: .20 pounds

Customer Reviews

Fantastic early Rea
This was actually one of the last Chris rea albums i got round to hearing but that doesn't make abit of difference. These songs are excellent. Stainsby girls , josephine and steel river are all on the new compilation of reas music if you're unsure.

Steel river is good- it gets better towards the end, and the piano part towards the jazzy bit at the end, is great!

Stainsby girls is another classic, and being a single from the album of course its good.

Chisel hill bears a certain relationship to Heaven from Auberge.
It grows on you.

Josephine and the title track are good , the opening of the latter sounding vaguely like a bon jovi song. The opening of josephine is fantastic.

All summer long ( nothing like the song of the same name on king of the beach )is particularly moving. Stone is good.

Hired gun is also poignant but at the same time inspiring. One golden rule, with its almost gospel backing vocals is good too.

Which juat leaves my favourite- Love turns to lies. This is one of reas best ever songs the saxophone part being really haunting, and the line ' whats that you say- you were going to
leave me anyway' is so moving.

Yes- buy this album!!

The making of Chris Rea as we know him today
This was the first Chris Rea album that many people heard. Apart from Diamonds in the 70's he had gone unnoticed by many until the Springsteenesque Stainsby Girls entered the charts in the 80s. Shamrock diaries was a real development for Chris Rea, forming the basis of the style and structure which he has developed with such huge success over the past 2 decades. This album is a real forgotten gem, with absolutely no fillers whatsoever. You sense a relaxed nostalgia from the opening bars of Steel River to the powerful trademark guitar crescendo of hired gun. The gravelly voice, perfectly complemented by strong guitar chords are totally involving throughout. Apart from Stainsby Girl, standouts are Josephine, All Summer Long, Stone, and the title track itself. If you like Chris Rea, you will love this album.

The album is commercial and not original
I'm a big fan of chris rea and i bought this album about 4 month ago and this was a bit dissapointment...

The title "Josephine" did not appear as it's original version on this album, even on this album!
They put a simple commercial remix insteed and i call it making fun of chris rea's old hard work

Don't buy this album if you want the orginal tracks, buy rather the old vinyl shamrock diaries from 1985/6

This album turned to be commercial