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Arc of a Diver
Studio album by Steve Winwood
Released	29 December 1980
Recorded	1980
Studio	Netherturkdonic Studios, Gloucestershire, England
Genre	Soft rock blue-eyed soul pop
Length	39.49
Label	Island
Producer	Steve Winwood
Steve Winwood chronology
Steve Winwood (1977) Arc of a Diver (1980) Talking Back to the Night (1982)

Arc of a Diver is the second solo studio album by singer/multi-instrumentalist Steve Winwood. Released in 1980, Winwood played all of the instruments on the album.

Featuring his first solo hit, "While You See a Chance" (which peaked at number 7 on the Billboard Hot 100 in the United States), this was Winwood's breakthrough album as a solo artist. It peaked at number 3 on the Billboard 200 album chart, establishing him as a commercially viable act.

The cover artwork for the album is by Tony Wright. He took inspiration from Jazz by Henri Matisse, notably VIII: Icarus.

Recording

The album was recorded at Winwood's Netherturkdonic Studios, built at his farm in Gloucestershire; he played all the instruments, wrote all the music, producing and engineering it himself.

Critical reception

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic
Christgau's Record Guide	B−
The Encyclopedia of Popular Music
The Great Rock Discography	8/10
MusicHound Rock
Record Collector
Record Mirror
Rolling Stone
The Rolling Stone Album Guide
Smash Hits	5/10

Reviewing for The Village Voice in June 1981, Robert Christgau credited Winwood for overdubbing all his self-performed instruments, but still found his brand of "British-international groove" more atmospheric than song-oriented and ultimately "lulling". Robert Palmer was more enthusiastic in The New York Times, saying that Winwood has transformed himself into a "rock traditionalist" with the album. While highlighting "Dust" and the album's title track as "first-rate lyrics", Palmer said that "Winwood's impressive playing and arranging and utterly distinctive vocals make several of his collaborations with Will Jennings, especially the brooding 'Night Train,' almost as memorable." In a retrospective review for AllMusic, William Ruhlmann wrote of the album, "Utterly unencumbered by the baggage of his long years in the music business, Winwood reinvents himself as a completely contemporary artist on this outstanding album, leading off with his best solo song, 'While You See a Chance'."

The album was included in the book 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die, and was voted number 455 in the third edition (2000) of Colin Larkin's All Time Top 1000 Albums.

Track listing

All songs written by Steve Winwood and Will Jennings except where noted.

Original release

Side one

1. "While You See a Chance" – 5:12
2. "Arc of a Diver" (Winwood, Vivian Stanshall) – 5:28
3. "Second-Hand Woman" (Winwood, George Fleming) – 3:41
4. "Slowdown Sundown" – 5:27

Side two

1. "Spanish Dancer" – 5:58
2. "Night Train" – 7:51
3. "Dust" (Winwood, Fleming) – 6:20

2012 Deluxe reissue

Tracks 1–7 on disc one, per the 1980 release, with disc two containing bonus tracks.

1. "Arc of a Diver" (Winwood, Stanshall) – 4:16
2. "Night Train" – 6:44
3. "Spanish Dancer" – 6:13
4. "Arc of a Diver: The Steve Winwood Story" – 56:33

Personnel

• Steve Winwood – lead and backing vocals, Prophet-5, Minimoog, Yamaha CS-80, Hammond B3 organ, Steinway piano, Ovation acoustic guitar, Fender Stratocaster electric guitar, Ibanez mandolin, bass guitar, Multimoog (also used for keyboard fretless bass), Hayman and Ludwig drums, Linn LM-1 programming, percussion, producer, engineer, mixing

• John "Nobby" Clarke – additional engineer
• John Dent – mastering at The Sound Clinic (London, UK)
• Tony Wright – artwork
• Fin Costello – photography

Charts

Chart singles

References

1. "Winwood LP" (PDF). Record Mirror. 22 November 1980. p. 4. Retrieved 19 August 2022.
2. ^ Elliott, Paul (23 March 2021). "Steve Winwood: A guide to his best albums". Louder Sound.
3. ^ Evans, Paul (2004). "Steve Winwood". In Brackett, Nathan; Hoard, Christian (eds.). The Rolling Stone Album Guide (4th ed.). Simon & Schuster. p. 882-883. ISBN 0-7432-0169-8.
4. 1001 Albums: You Must Hear Before You Die. Hachette UK. 5 December 2011. p. 1315. ISBN 9781844037148. Retrieved 3 August 2012.
5. Robert Palmer (21 January 1981). "Arc of a Diver Review : New York Times : Steve Winwood". The New York Times. Retrieved 3 August 2012.
6. Allmusic review
7. Christgau, Robert (1990). "W". Christgau's Record Guide: The '80s. Pantheon Books. ISBN 0-679-73015-X. Retrieved 10 July 2020 – via robertchristgau.com.
8. Larkin, Colin, ed. (2007). The Encyclopedia of Popular Music (5th concise ed.). Omnibus. p. 1517. OL 11913831M.
9. Strong, Martin C. (2004). "Steve Winwood". The Great Rock Discography (7 ed.). Canongate Books. p. 1678. ISBN 1-84195-615-5.
10. Graff, Gary; Durchholz, Daniel, eds. (1999). "Steve Winwood". MusicHound Rock: The Essential Album Guide. Visible Ink Press. p. 1237. ISBN 1-57859-061-2.
11. Bell, Max (7 October 2012). "Arc Of A Diver: Deluxe Edition". Record Collector. Retrieved 25 July 2024.
12. Nicholls, Mike (3 January 1981). "Winwood – Solid Oak". Record Mirror. Vol. 28. Retrieved 25 July 2024.
13. White, Timothy (30 April 1981). "Steve Winwood: Arc Of A Driver". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on 15 November 2002. Retrieved 25 July 2024.
14. Hepworth, David (22 January 1981). "Steve Winwood: Arc Of A Driver". Smash Hits. No. 56. Retrieved 25 July 2024.
15. Christgau, Robert (8 June 1981). "Christgau's Consumer Guide". The Village Voice. Retrieved 10 July 2020 – via robertchristgau.com.
16. "Official Site".
17. "Arc of a Diver - Steve Winwood | Songs, Reviews, Credits | AllMusic". AllMusic.
18. Robert Dimery; Michael Lydon (7 February 2006). 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die: Revised and Updated Edition. Universe. ISBN 0-7893-1371-5.
19. Colin Larkin, ed. (2000). All Time Top 1000 Albums (3rd ed.). Virgin Books. p. 164. ISBN 0-7535-0493-6.
20. Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992. St Ives, NSW: Australian Chart Book. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
21. "Top Albums/CDs – Volume 34, No. 23" (PHP). RPM. 16 May 1981. Retrieved 10 October 2013.
22. "dutchcharts.nl Steve Winwood – Arc of a Diver". dutchcharts.nl. MegaCharts. Archived from the original (ASP) on 28 October 2013. Retrieved 10 October 2013.
23. "charts.nz Steve Winwood – Arc of a Diver" (ASP). Recording Industry Association of New Zealand. Retrieved 1 May 2014.
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25. "swedishcharts.com Steve Winwood – Arc of a Diver". Sverigetopplistan. Archived from the original (ASP) on 28 January 2015. Retrieved 1 May 2014.
26. "Steve Winwood > Artists > Official Charts". UK Albums Chart. Retrieved 1 May 2014.
27. "allmusic ((( Arc of a Diver > Charts & Awards > Billboard Albums )))". AllMusic. Retrieved 1 May 2014.
28. "Album Search: Steve Winwood – Arc of a Diver" (ASP) (in German). Media Control. Retrieved 1 May 2014.
29. "RPM Top 100 Albums of 1981". RPM. 26 December 1981. Retrieved 1 May 2014.
30. "Dutch charts jaaroverzichten 1981" (ASP) (in Dutch). Retrieved 1 May 2014.
31. "Top 100 Album-Jahrescharts" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. 1981. Archived from the original on 19 October 2021. Retrieved 3 April 2022.
32. "Top Selling Albums of 1981 — The Official New Zealand Music Chart". Recorded Music New Zealand. Retrieved 1 February 2022.
33. "Billboard Top Pop Albums of 1981". Billboard. 26 December 1981. Retrieved 29 July 2016.
34. "Steve Winwood: Arc of a Diver Production Notes". 28 May 2020.
35. "Major fight economics with quirky rock originals". Billboard. 12 June 1982. Retrieved 31 December 2018.
36. "Canadian album certifications – Steve Winwood – Arc of a Diver". Music Canada. Retrieved 10 October 2013.
37. "British album certifications – Steve Winwood – Arc of a Diver". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 10 October 2013.
38. "American album certifications – Steve Winwood – Arc of a Diver". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved 10 October 2013.

External links

• Arc of a Diver (Adobe Flash) at Radio3Net (streamed copy where licensed)

• 1980 albums
• Steve Winwood albums
• Island Records albums
• Albums produced by Steve Winwood
• Soft rock albums by English artists
• Blue-eyed soul albums