CHRIS Rea revealed he was banned from driving and on the dole when he wrote his classic Christmas single.
The singer, 74, from Middlesbrough, was down on his luck when he penned Driving Home For Christmas in 1978.
The song has grown to become a festive favourite, but it failed to crack the top 40 when it was released a decade later, peaking at number 53 in 1988.
It’s now a chart regular at this time of year, reaching its highest position in 2021 when it made it to number 10.
Speaking to Bob Mortimer about its origins, Chris previously said: “I was on the dole when I wrote that.
“My manager had just left me. I’d just been banned from driving. My now wife, Joan, had to drive down to London to pick me up in the Mini and take me home, and that’s when I wrote it.”
He had plenty of time to concentrate. Snowy conditions meant the trip too six hours and the couple didn’t arrive home until 3am.
“I’d look across at the other drivers, who all looked so miserable,” Chris told the Guardian in 2016. “Jokingly, I started singing: ‘We’re driving home for Christmas…’ Then, whenever the street lights shone inside the car, I started writing down lyrics.”
That Christmas drive up north was a magical one indeed, not only did he write a famous song, he also received a cheque for £15,000 upon stepping through his front door.
His song Fool (if you think it’s over) had become a hit in America and earned him a pretty sum. The timing couldn’t have been better given he was down to his last £200.
It was a while before Driving Home would make any money.
The song was shelved for eight years before seeing the light of day as the B-side to Hello Friend in 1986.
Two years later it was re-released as the lead track on his Christmas EP.
Slowly but surely it made its way into the public consciousness and re-entered the charts in 2007 at 33 and has become an annual fixture ever since.
It reportedly now brings in around £200,000 every December such is its popularity.
Over the course of his career, Chris has sold 40million records, earned a Best New Artist Grammy nod – despite never touring the States – two number one UK albums and three Brit Award nominations.
