Chris de Burgh
By the late 80s, it had taken Chris de Burgh more than a decade to become the "overnight success" so many mistakenly believed him to be. To those unfamiliar with his steady, determined rise to the top, he appeared to have arrived suddenly - out of nowhere - clutching major, world-wide hits with The Lady In Red and its accompanying album, Into The Light. The reality is not so fanciful. In a music industry which so often reacts to fashionable flavour and superficial appeal, Chris remains unique. He is an island of inspiration nestling amid an ocean of popularity. He is proof positive that while trends come and go on freak tides, true talent will weather the passing storms to eventually win through.
His first international break-through came during 1975 in the unlikeliest of territories, Brazil - where Chris’ debut single, ’Flying’, remained at No. 1 for 17 weeks. The North American market demanded its own specially-compiled ’greatest hits’ compilation during the mid-80s, and Chris remains a sell-out concert draw in Canada to this day. His hugely popular live favourite, the anthemic rock single ’High On Emotion’, reached No.1 in ten European countries. His classic single ’The Lady In Red’ reached Number 1 in the UK and 24 other territories, Number 2 in the US - and has amassed worldwide sales of eight million.
Countless tours of the world have seen Chris perform in concert more than 3000 times, a remarkable rate equivalent to one show every three-and-a-half days since 1975. During 28 years as a major label recording artist, Chris has been presented with in excess of 200 gold and platinum sales awards. Royalty and world leaders alike have joined his army of fans, from the late Princess of Wales to Boris Yeltsin and Helmut Kohl.
Chris has repeatedly traversed the globe with sell-out tours, covering almost every influential record-buying country and continent of the world, America, Japan, UK, Germany, Scandinavia, Australia, South Africa, Canada, Central Europe, Eastern Europe and the Far East.