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David Gray | the 2005 tour

David Gray was born in Manchester in 1970. By The time he was nine years old he had moved to Wales with his family where he was raised until he left to study at the University of Liverpool. He began playing in punk bands where he lived and also played in a few bands while at college where he began to experiment with a more poetic form of writing. After Liverpool he moved to London where he could be closer to the action and the heart of the music business. Here. he signed to Hut Recordings in the UK and Caroline in the U.S. His first release followed shortly afterwards ' the single 'Birds without Wings ' in 1992.

His debut album, A Century Ends was released to great acclaim in the first half of 1993- ten tracks of anger, love, passion and just about every other emotion you can think of. It has become a classic In its own right and succeeded in winning over

a core of loyal followers who have stayed with him ever since. Following a full tour of Europe, David returned to record his second album Flesh which was again released on Hut Recordings in 1994. After Flesh was largely ignored by record buyers, David and Hut decided to part ways amicably. EMI records quickly snapped him up. Meanwhile his profile and popularity In Ireland began to rise rapidly. "No Disco" (Network 2's groundbreaking) alternative music programme hosted by the now legendary Donal Dineen) played his videos constantly as well as showcasing his live potential in televised sessions.

Gray's third album Sell, Sell, Sell, was released only in the US in 1996. After the phenomenal success of White Ladder, it was finally released for the first time in the UK.
Live performances continued to be David Gray's forte. Enabling him to build up a gigging reputation that is second to none, and causing him to sell out venues whenever he tours. Additionally, his reputation won him a series of prestigious support slots with the likes of Radiohead to Dave Matthews.

Gray's fourth and most recent album, White Ladder. was self financed, recorded in a London Flat with the windows open and

White Ladder went straight into the Irish Top 30 And shot up the charts as his sold out December Tour of Ireland wended its way around the country. Meanwhile, 5 tracks from the album provided the backbone for the soundtrack of Kathy Burke's new film, " This Year's Love." As the world eased itself into 1999, "This Year's Love" was released as the first single from "White Ladder". The album refused to leave the Irish charts. "Babylon" was the second single taken from the album and was followed by sold out 4,500 capacity headline gig at the Big Beat Festival in Galway in July which only served to emphasize David's meteoric rise and brought the album into the Irish top 5(11 months after release).

It wasn't for another two years that David Gray released his next album, A New Day At Midnight. It's darker than its mega-hit

predecessor, and deeper, and all the better for that. Emotionally fuelled by the death of Gray's father and the birth of his son, it possesses much the same tone as White Ladder, being simultaneously celebratory and troubled. The album, though, is slow starting. "Caroline", with its rattling percussion and quasi-Celtic pedal steel excursions is a bit messy, while "Long Distance Call", mixing an orchestra with electronic effects, is an interesting collage but not much of a song. Both give the impression that Gray's trying to appear more cutting-edge than he actually is. It's with "Freedom", when that big piano deepens and the pain enters his voice, that he really gets going. This leads to the excellent "Kangaroo" and "Last Boat to America", both yearning and teeming with striking lyrical images. Then it really takes off, with the Stones-y rock groove of "Real Love" and the gospel feel of "Knowhere", leading to the quite brilliant unrequited love song "Be Mine" and crushing

closer "The Other Side".

Recorded between October 2003 and May 2005, David took a different approach to writing and recording Life In Slow Motion. Of the change, David says, "I don’t think you can remain the underdog forever and work in that way. I really wanted to get away from that lo-fi bedroom programming. All the records that have inspired me this time have been far more of a soundscape. The Sigur Ros records, Sparklehorse’s It’s A Wonderful Life, Lucinda Williams’ World Without Tears and albums like Deserter’s Songs, where things are more architectural." From the sparse, structured intro of the opener, "Alibi", a song David

| David Gray biography | David Gray discography | David Gray merchandise | David Gray tour dates | David Gray links |