Arc of a Diver

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.

Arc of a Diver
Studio album by Steve Winwood
Released	29 December 1980[1]
Recorded	1980
Studio	Netherturkdonic, Gloucestershire, England
Genre	Soft rock[2] blue-eyed soul[2] pop[3]
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)

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;^[4] he played all the instruments, wrote all the music, producing and engineering it himself.^[5]

Critical reception

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[6]
Christgau's Record Guide	B−[7]
The Encyclopedia of Popular Music	[8]
The Great Rock Discography	8/10[9]
MusicHound Rock	[10]
Record Collector	[11]
Record Mirror	[12]
Rolling Stone	[13]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide	[3]
Smash Hits	5/10[14]

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".^[15] 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."^[16] 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'."^[17]

The album was included in the book 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die,^[18] and was voted number 455 in the third edition (2000) of Colin Larkin's All Time Top 1000 Albums.^[19]

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" [edited US single version] (Winwood, Stanshall) – 4:16
2. "Night Train" [instrumental version] – 6:44
3. "Spanish Dancer" [2010 version] – 6:13
4. "Arc of a Diver: The Steve Winwood Story" [originally aired on BBC Radio 2] – 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

Weekly charts Chart (1981) Peak position Australian Albums (Kent Music Report)[20] 5 Canada Top Albums/CDs (RPM)[21] 1 Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)[22] 6 French Albums (SNEP)[23] 3 German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[24] 26 New Zealand Albums (RMNZ)[25] 3 Norwegian Albums (VG-lista)[26] 24 Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan)[27] 33 UK Albums (OCC)[28] 13 US Billboard 200[29] 3

Year-end charts Chart (1981) Peak position Canada Top Albums/CDs (RPM)[30] 12 Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)[31] 35 German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[32] 49 New Zealand Albums (RMNZ)[33] 15 US Billboard 200[34] 17

Sales and certifications

Region	Certification	Certified units/sales
Australia	—	70,000[35]
Canada (Music Canada)[36]	Platinum	100,000^
United Kingdom (BPI)[37]	Silver	60,000^
United States (RIAA)[38]	Platinum	1,000,000^
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.