British Rock and Blues Singer Chris Rea Dies at 74 — Was the Musician Married?

British rock and blues singer Chris Rea has died. The musician was 74 and had been suffering from a short illness, and he was in the hospital at the time of his death. The artist is best known for his hits "Driving Home for Christmas," "The Road to Hell," and "On the Beach."

Chris was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer back in 2001 and had his pancreas removed. According to The Guardian, he also had some of his stomach and small intestine removed during the procedure, which led to him becoming a diabetic. The artist also suffered from a stroke in 2016, but the cause of his death has not yet been released. As the world learns about his sudden death, people wonder if he was married and if he had a family.

Yes, Chris Rea was married to Joan Rea. The artist was born in Middlesbrough in 1951, and Chris began dating Joan when he was just 17. The duo eventually married and had two children.

Chris spoke with the Daily Mail back in 2017 about how lucky he was to have such a long, happy marriage while working in the music business.

"People always say, 'Forty-eight years together, in the music business, how did this happen?' I’m lucky," he said. "All my education is from her. I came out of Middlesbrough hardly being able to read. The nice thing is that when it’s just me and her, it’s still boyfriend and girlfriend. My girls tell me I’m a romantic. I’m a soft touch."

Chris and Joan had two daughters together — Josephine and Julia. The artist wrote songs about each of his children — the 1985 hit "Josephine" and the 1993 hit "Julia."

The family released a statement to announce the recording artist's death.

"It is with immense sadness that we announce the death of our beloved Chris," read the statement, per The Independent. "He passed away peacefully in hospital earlier today following a short illness, surrounded by his family.”

Just a few days before his death, Chris told The Independent that he wrote "Driving Home for Christmas" while he and Joan were stuck in traffic.

"It has that hope and warmth to it, like all the classic Christmas songs,” he said. "That and the frustration of being stuck in the motorway traffic – that’s what people relate to. ... What’s funny is that I’d been banned from driving just before I wrote it, and we originally thought we’d give it to Van Morrison. It was a Fifties jazz thing, like he used to do. Then the record label put it out as a B-side of mine, and a DJ started playing it. And here we are today.”

Chris is also known for hits such as "Looking for the Summer," "Do They Know It's Christmas," "Let's Dance," "Hello Friend," and "The Blue Cafe."

Our condolences go out to his family.