Chris de Burgh - Man on the Line

1984 Release from Chris Deburgh, the Man who Would Write and Release the International Hit "Lady in Red" Two Years Later in 1986. Includes the Minor Hit "High on Emotion", plus "Sound of a Gun", "Ecstacy of Flight (I Love the Night)" and Seven More. Album Details

one of my all time favorites!!!

The first time I heard this album was in 1984 or 1985. I fell in love with it immediately. Then I tried to find a similiar work from CDB but I couldn't. This is a unique piece of work. Impeccable! the arrangements, the melodies, the lyrics, guest musicians... ART! With Man on Line I learned that I could love specific albums without really loving an artist. CDB has The Getaway which comes close to this album, but not quite. There are maybe 3 o 4 more songs that I like, like Separate Tables, Sailing Away, Suddenly Love and Lady in Red, but nothing like MOTL. All the songs are perfect! No fillers, nothing out of place. It's a shame that this is just a Chris de Burgh's eccentricity! But I still thank him for having composed such a piece of art, also Chris is a terrific original perfectly tuned high pitched singer. Thanks Chris. This became Christmas music for me! November 26, 2007

One of my very favorites ...

I've listened to other CDB records and this is not only the best for me by far, but it's the one that will always be in my top ten list of records ever, right beside The Beatles' Revolver and Peter Gabriel's So and Lennon's Double Fantasy (without Yoko's songs). Each song is a gem! I generally edit even my favorite albums, but this is one of those that I just play straight. It is simple brilliant from head to toes. Not a single flaw. The Getaway is fabulous, but this one is definetely superior!!! August 25, 2007

Fine Music

The only recording of "Moonlight and Vodka" I could find other than a live version which isn't quite the same. Love that song. August 23, 2007

Good pop rock

Chris de Burgh moved firmly into pop with this album, which was jarring for fans who wanted him to be the perennial bard, writing epics like Crusader and quirky pieces like Patricia the Stripper. But I loved the songs on this album. It was my first real introduction to de Burgh's music after having some memory of "Don't Pay the Ferryman" and thinking my sister was into devil music for listening to "Spanish Train." I have since come to appreciate all of de Burgh's music, even if I have not kept up to date with his music since 1992.
Man on the Line has several great pop songs that I never get tired of hearing. The obvious hit is "High on Emotion." It's a rock anthem. I can even remember the music video for that song, with Chris strutting around a stage in a white open-collar shirt. The title track is another one of the faster pop-rock songs on the album and has a catchy hook. I love the tune and lyric for "Sight and Touch." It's such a romantic song. Other good ballads are "The Head and the Heart" and "Much More than This."
This album is a bit expensive due to the fact there are no local pressings, only imports (mine is a German print). But it's worth getting this solid album by Chris that paved the way for the even more commercially successful Into the Light. January 28, 2006

Overlooked

"Man on the Line" is one of the most overlooked releases in Chris de Burgh's back catalogue, which is both understandable and unwarranted.

Understandable because "Man on the Line" is a blatant and failed attempt to move into the mainstream and expand on the modest US success of "The Getaway" in 1983 (that album reached #43; "Don't Pay the Ferryman" reached #34 on the Billboard singles chart, and "Ship to Shore" reached #71). Producer Rupert Hine pulled out all the stops for "Man on the Line," recruiting his other clients to appear the album. Howard Jones plays keyboards on "The Head and the Heart"; Tina Turner does a vocal on "The Sound of the Gun." Fully half of "Man on the Line" is in the same exact vein as "Don't Pay the Ferryman," and thus represents a deviation in de Burgh's repertoire, which has featured adult-contemporary synth-based pop and period-oriented storytelling material, despite an odd rock song here and there. Nevertheless "Man on the Line" failed to perform, reaching only #69 on the album chart. "High on Emotion" missed cracking the Top 40, peaking at #44.

Unwarranted because, with the exception of the very generic "Taking It To The Top," these are actually solid rock numbers with some teeth, featuring driving beats, sharp horn lines, and bright production that nevertheless doesn't overwhelm the songs. (This is something that has tended to happen with his later material, where the songwriting remains strong but the instrumentation seems less personal, somehow.) There's actually some anger here; it's not all frothy romance. And, one of de Burgh's very best ballads is nestled in the middle of the record, a quiet piano-and-vocals number called "The Head and the Heart." "Much More Than This" is almost as worthy, and while his trademark storytelling is weaker than usual on "Sight and Touch" and "Moonlight and Vodka," the songs nevertheless hold their own.

"Man on the Line" isn't the place to start in De Burgh's back catalogue, but if you like "The Getaway," you'll probably like this.

September 13, 2005

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