Songfacts®:

• This slinky song is Chris Rea's observation on the effects of money, and what it does to people. The way he sees it, many have become obsessed with the almighty dollar, to the point where it is interfering with personal growth and relationships. In a Songfacts interview with Rea, he explained: "We've become obsessed with it in England, and we actually don't do anything. We don't walk, we don't sit in forests and think this is a beautiful day. From my point of view, England is in a bad way in that respect. Everybody is just material, material, material."
• Rea lives modestly, but for an indulgence in sports cars and auto racing. It's a pricy habit he could afford once his albums started selling in the millions, but he could certainly live without it. "When I couldn't have a Ferrari, it never kept me awake at night," he told Songfacts. "That's been lucky for me because my career goes up and down commercially, because I'm not a rock star. So, I've always had this idea in the back of my head, if I ever get some small amount of money, I'm going to keep it."