Far Beyond These Castle Walls is the first album by Chris de Burgh, released by A&M Records in 1974. The title refers to Bargy Castle, which is shown on the back of the album cover.
| Far Beyond These Castle Walls | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | 1974 | |||
| Genre | Rock | |||
| Length | 44:26 | |||
| Label | A&M | |||
| Producer | Robin Geoffrey Cable | |||
| Chris de Burgh chronology | ||||
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| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| allmusic |   [1] |
Reception
editBillboard in its review of 29 March 1975 considered the album's "sophisticated lyrics and production are good for college market" and expressed a hope that A&M Records will found "another deserving artist" in face of Chris De Burg.[2] Mike DeGagne of AllMusic retrospectively praised the album, saying: "His gentle, beguiling vocal style is introduced, which instantly trademarks him as a genuine master of the soft ballad... What is most important about this album is the manner in which it reveals de Burgh as one of the finest mood-invoking artists ever."[1]
Track listing
editAll compositions by Chris de Burgh
- "Hold On" – 4:03
- "The Key" – 4:08
- "Windy Night" – 4:53
- "Sin City" – 4:35
- "New Moon" – 4:59
- "Watching the World" – 3:32
- "Lonesome Cowboy" – 4:23
- "Satin Green Shutters" – 5:02
- "Turning Round", released outside the UK and Ireland as "Flying" – 6:24
- "Goodnight" – 2:07
Musicians
edit- Chris de Burgh – vocals, acoustic guitars, additional synthesizers
- Ronnie Leahy – keyboards
- Ken Freeman – string synthesizer
- Phillip Goodhand-Tait – harmonium
- Ray Glynn – electric guitars
- B.J. Cole – pedal steel guitar
- Ray Jackson – harmonica, mandolin
- Brian Odgers – bass guitar
- Chris Laurence – double bass
- Barry De Souza – drums
- Lennox Laington – percussion
- Del Newman – arrangements (1, 8)
- Richard Hewson – arrangements (2, 9)
- Chris Hughes – brass arrangements
- Madeleine Bell – backing vocals
- Liza Strike – backing vocals
- Joy Yates – backing vocals
Production
edit- Produced and Engineered by Robin Geoffrey Cable
- Assistant Engineers – Mark Dodson and Mike Stavrou
- Recorded at Ramport Studios and AIR Studios (London, UK).
- Mixed at AIR Studios and Trident Studios (London, UK).
- Art Direction – Fabio Nicoli
- Design – Nick Marshall
- Photography – Dave Morse
Notes
edit- ^ a b DeGagne, Mike. "Far Beyond These Castle Walls". AllMusic. Retrieved 10 August 2014.
- ^ "Review: Chris De Burg – Far Beyond These Castle Walls" (PDF). Billboard. Vol. 87, no. 13. New York: Billboard Publications Inc. 29 March 1975. p. 48. ISSN 0006-2510. Archived from the original (PDF) on 8 April 2022. Retrieved 25 August 2022 – via World Radio History.