David Gray New Day At Midnight CD - Import

Welsh singer-songwriter David Gray's story is the classic one of the overnight success that took years to happen. He started out in the mid-'90s as an acoustic-oriented folk-rock performer whose approach was heavily influenced by Van Morrison and Bob Dylan. Several fine-but-ignored albums passed before he reinvented himself via electronica-flavored production techniques to unprecedented success with 1999's WHITE LADDER. Three years later, the highly anticipated follow-up A NEW DAY AT MIDNIGHT boasts production that pretty much picks up where its famed predecessor left off, but this time around the blend of electronic and organic textures is even more deft. Loops, synths, and electronic effects mix seamlessly with acoustic piano and guitar and of course, Gray's rough-hewn vocal style. But the understated elegance of Gray's tunes and the conviction of his performances is even more handily underscored here than on WHITE LADDER.

Japanese edition of the British singer/songwriter's eagerly anticipated followup to his 1999 hit, 'White Ladder', includes one bonus track, 'Lorelei'. East West. 2003.

CD contains bonus track.

Personnel includes: David Gray (various instruments); McClune (various instruments); Tim Bradshaw (electric guitar, lap steel, piano, Wurlitzer piano, synthesizer); B.J. Cole (pedal steel); Rob Malone (bass); Tony Shanaghan (background vocals); Wrecking Crew Orchestra, Wrecking Crew Quartet, Wrecking Crew Brass Quintet.

Entertainment Weekly (11/8/02, p.105) - "...There's more passion in Gray's delivery, a vocal soulfulness his muted tunes have previously only hinted at..." - Rating: B+
Q (11/02, p.94) - 4 stars out of 5 - "...[This album] confirms Gray as the most comforting songwriter of his generation..."
Uncut (12/02, p.130) - 4 stars out of 5 - "...His craft has grown more assured....A record that anybody who cares about songwriting should here..."
CMJ (11/18/01, p.6) - "...David Gray is much more than a one-hit wonder. He's going to be around for a long time..."
Vibe (2/03, p.138) - 4 discs out of 5 - "...Comes off like a rave-era update of Van Morrison's blue-eyed soul..."
Mojo (Publisher) (12/02, p.106) - "...There is much to love....Gray can render uncertainty and longing anthemic in a way that often recalls The Blue Nile..."