I write about random things a lot. I write a lot about random things. There's a Spanish train that runs between Guadalquivir and old Saville, and at the dead of night the whistle blows, and people hear she's running still...

Or so begins "Spanish Train", the title track from Chris de Burgh's brilliant 1975 album Spanish Train and Other Stories, and as the next few minutes pass you hear the most compelling song about a train of lost damned souls you ever will.

People don't write songs like they used to. Decades ago, storytelling was still very much at the heart of songwriting and all the greatest epics were generally stories being told: The Eagles gave us "Hotel California"; Hendrix's "Hey Joe" told the story of a man on the run after shooting his wife; and The Police's "Don't Stand So Close To Me" is a scandal just waiting to happen.

Chris de Burgh is a British/Irish pop singer that rose to prominence in the early 1970s. If you've heard of him at all, it's very likely for his smash hit "Lady In Red", an immutable staple ever since its release in 1986. Before that song was released, however, de Burgh spent over a decade honing his craft with concept work and a willingness to take a chance on the power of storytelling.

Not that the idea was a risky one back in 1974; at that time, Elton John was just wrapping up an incredible run of over 10 albums released from 1970 to 1974 (the number changes whether you include soundtracks, greatest hits collections, etc.), and artists everywhere were shaping what rock and pop music were going to become. Echoes of Bob Dylan and folk of the 1960s still very much hung on the air and artists like James Taylor and Joni Mitchell were riding high on the charts.

de Burgh was born in Argentina in 1948 to a British diplomat, and as such got a head start travelling the world taking in stories and experiencing other cultures. His family finally settled in a castle in Ireland that would become a hotel, where he performed to his first audiences.

Signing with A&M Records in 1974, de Burgh wasted no time in releasing his first album, Far Beyond These Castle Walls. Although the record didn't make a big splash at the time —except in Brazil, where it would hit number one — he threw himself into work on Spanish Train and Other Stories, his sophomore label release. The effort is evident; if quality is truly a measurement of the care put into a given project, then this album is of a high quality.

Opening with the title track, the album plunges deep into a battle between good and evil centered around a train of souls. The music soars with "Lonely Sky", a classic pop song unlike so many and a real highlight. "Patricia The Stripper" is a raucous cabaret about an exotic dancer in old England, while "A Spaceman Came Traveling" reimagines the angel Gabriel appearing before shepherds as a spaceman in a UFO.

The album is still an amusing listen, all these years later. de Burgh really makes the act of songwriting look very easy with this album, a triumph coming only from the success of taking a chance.

It's in bravery, in having the wherewithal as a songwriter to write about something bigger than yourself. Even on this album, so early in his career, de Burgh displayed a level of mastery when it came to visually recreating such moments in time with his music. Albeit paradoxically, he demonstrates how by preserving moments in time in music you can often stumble upon timelessness.

If you'd like to learn more about Chris de Burgh or his music — like listen to a few of the songs I mentioned above, for example — you can do so by visiting his website at cdeb.com. Still actively recording and engaging audiences, you can find him on Twitter as well @cdebofficial.

As always, I'm happy to help you stay up on the latest music news, views and streams online if you'd consider following me on Twitter @fsu_bobbyisms or on Tumblr at bobbyisms.com. There's also the Music Recommendations thread on our FSU social network, check it out for new tips and links all the time. Have a great week, I'm out of words.