1) a Br… Read Full Bio ↴There are multiple artists by the name of David Gray, including:
1) a British singer-songwriter
2) an Italian disco musician
3) an American singer-songwriter
4) drummer for the British blackened death metal band Akercocke
5) a musician from South Africa
6) a British classical hornist
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1) David Gray is a British singer-songwriter born on June 13, 1968 in Sale, United Kingdom. He released his first studio album in 1993 and received worldwide attention after the release of White Ladder six years later in 1999.
Gray moved to Wales at age 9 and later returned to the north-west of England to attend the University of Liverpool. His musical career got early support from a dedicated Irish fan base. After a few marginally-successful releases through the 1990s, Gray's breakthrough came with the worldwide release in 1999 of his fourth album, White Ladder; this was a critical and commercial success and included his best-known songs, "This Years Love" and "Babylon". In the United States, the album received a boost from jam-band leader Dave Matthews, who made it the first release by the record company he co-founded, ATO Records.
On August 11, 2001 White Ladder at last reached the top of the UK charts, having been selling steadily since its reissue the previous May, thereby setting a new record for the longest uninterrupted climb to No. 1. The follow-up, A New Day At Midnight, also hit No. 1, and Gray's seventh album, Life in Slow Motion was released on September 12, 2005.
Gray's early music was in a contemporary folk-rock, singer-songwriter mode; his primary instrument was acoustic guitar, with occasional piano. 1996's Sell Sell Sell featured some rock arrangements and electric instrumentation. Starting with the release of White Ladder in 1999, Gray began to make significant use of computer-generated music to accompany his voice and acoustic instrumentation, a technique which differentiates him from many of his peers. Despite the move to more complex music, Gray has used small-scale, often home-based, recording methods and equipment and espoused a "do it yourself" approach to music production. However, Life in Slow Motion is a collaboration with noted producer Marius De Vries.
David Gray's brothers-in-law are Paul and Phillip Hartnoll, formerly of the Techno/Rave band Orbital. Because of this relationship, Gray performed guest vocals on the Orbital single Illuminate, while Paul Hartnoll produced a breakbeat remix of Gray's song "Please Forgive Me".
His successful single "January Rain" was included in the original soundtrack of the movie Serendipity, starring John Cusack and Kate Beckinsale.
Pictures and additional information can be found on his website, www.DavidGray.com.
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2) David Gray was an Italian disco musician who had a hit with "Dead in the Water"
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3) David Gray is an American singer-songwriter
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4) David Gray is drummer for the British blackened death metal band Akercocke
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5) David Gray is a musician from South Africa
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6) British classical hornist, originally from London, England, UK, residing in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.
Studied at the Curtis Institute Of Music. Former Principal Horn with The London Symphony Orchestra (1964-1972). Member of The Newfoundland Symphony Orchestra.
Flying Without Wings
David Gray Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
A change in this place
'cause I'm tearing off the fancy wrapping
Find an empty package
Take for a while your trumpet from your lip
Loosen your hold, loosen your grip
On your old ways that have fallen out of step
Hoist a new flag
Hoist a new flag
Angry sun burn down
Judging us all
Guilty of neglect and disrespect
And thinking small
And death by boredom
And death by greed
If we can't stop taking
More than we need
Across the fractured the landscape
I see the same things
Tired ideas
Birds without wings
Birds without wings
Birds without wings
But these are just thoughts
On lackluster times
And I've no interest
In excuses you can find
Like you've had a hard day
Now you're too tired to care
Now you're too tired to care
You've had a hard day
Well across the fractured landscape
I see the same things
Tired ideas, broken values
Many with the notion
That to share is to lose
A hollow people bound by a lack
Of imagination and too much looking back
Without the courage
To give a new thing a chance
Grounded by this ignorance
When the cat comes
We're just
Birds without wings
Birds without wings
Birds without wings
The lyrics of "Flying Without Wings" by David Gray are powerful and thought-provoking. The opening lines express a deep desire for change, a yearning for something different in a place that has lost its luster. The metaphor of tearing off the fancy wrapping and finding an empty package is a poignant one, suggesting that the things we once valued have lost their meaning and no longer hold any significance.
The next verse beckons the listener to let go of old ways and embrace something new. The trumpet imagery is powerful, symbolizing both the need to loosen our hold on the past and the potential for something beautiful to be created in the present. The lyric "hoist a new flag" is particularly evocative, suggesting that we have the power to shape the future if we are willing to take risks and try something different.
Line by Line Meaning
Wishing that something would happen
Desiring a change or transformation in the current situation
A change in this place
Envisioning a change in the environment or surroundings
'cause I'm tearing off the fancy wrapping
Feeling disillusioned and frustrated with surface-level appearances
Find an empty package
Discovering that the situation is lacking substance or meaning
Take for a while your trumpet from your lip
Temporarily putting down one's self-promotion or ego
Loosen your hold, loosen your grip
Releasing one's control or attachment to old ways of doing things
On your old ways that have fallen out of step
Acknowledging that previous methods may no longer be effective or appropriate
In a changing time
Recognizing that the current era or period is characterized by flux and unpredictability
Hoist a new flag
Embracing a new, fresh perspective or approach
Angry sun burn down
Feeling that the forces of nature or circumstance are hostile or unforgiving
Judging us all
Feeling that society as a whole is being held accountable or criticized
Guilty of neglect and disrespect
Failing to attend to things that deserve attention and disregarding others' needs or feelings
And thinking small
Limited in one's perspective or ambition
And death by boredom
Feeling that a monotonous, dull existence is equivalent to a kind of death
And death by greed
Believing that an excessive desire for wealth or possessions can lead to a kind of spiritual decay
If we can't stop taking
Recognizing that a pattern of taking without giving back or sharing is unsustainable
More than we need
Consuming beyond what is necessary or beneficial
Across the fractured the landscape
Observing a society or world that is divided or damaged
I see the same things
Noticing recurring problems or patterns
Tired ideas
Not finding fresh or innovative solutions to problems
Birds without wings
Seeing individuals or groups who are unable to fly or reach their full potential
But these are just thoughts
Acknowledging that the perspective is subjective and not necessarily an accurate reflection of reality
On lackluster times
Reflecting on an era marked by low energy, motivation, or creativity
And I've no interest
Feeling indifferent or unmotivated
In excuses you can find
Not seeing value in explanations or rationalizations for the current state of affairs
Like you've had a hard day
Expressing skepticism toward excuses or justifications for inaction or complacency
Now you're too tired to care
Feeling exhausted or overwhelmed to the point of indifference
Well across the fractured landscape
Again acknowledging the division or fragmentation in the environment
Tired ideas, broken values
Reiterating the exhaustion of traditional methods and the erosion of moral principles
Many with the notion
Noting a prevalent attitude or belief
That to share is to lose
Believing that giving or cooperating is a disadvantage or loss
A hollow people bound by a lack
Portraying individuals or society as empty or shallow due to a deficiency or limitation
Of imagination and too much looking back
Identifying a lack of creativity and an over-reliance on nostalgia
Without the courage
Recognizing a deficiency of bravery or boldness
To give a new thing a chance
Not being willing to try novel or unconventional approaches
Grounded by this ignorance
Being held back or constrained by a lack of knowledge or insight
When the cat comes
Referring to an event or circumstance that has a significant impact or changes things fundamentally
We're just
Suggesting that human beings are insignificant or powerless in the face of certain phenomena
Birds without wings
Repeating the earlier metaphor to emphasize the theme of unrealized potential or capability
Birds without wings
Affirming the previous message for poetic effect
Birds without wings
Repeating for emphasis and to conclude the song powerfully
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Written by: DAVID GRAY
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
philip nunn
Best album he ever made
Craig cassidy
had this album for years got it with the white ladder. never listened to it until a few weeks ago now it's my favourite cd of all time
whatthegunks
I have been thinking about the oil in the gulf and came across this song and it struck a chord. "Angry sun burn down judging us all, guilty of neglect and disrespect and thinking small....and death by boredom and death by greed if we can't stop taking more than we need". And we can't and we won't and so it goes that we remain birds without wings.
Ruth Bainbridge
This man says what so many of us wish we could. I'd love to meet him. He is a burning emerald among so many colorless diamonds. Wish I could stand out enough for him to notice me. Not as a crazy fan but as a fellow human being.
Chris Atherton
‘Bound by a lack of Imagination and too much looking back’. Glorious. Just beautiful this early work of his.
: POSTMASTER.
GEORGEOUS MASTERPIECE! >~~~}
Thaulopi
Absolutely true and very well perceived. David is the one singer I love and foremost because he is so perceptive too. Thank you for your comment
Robb Davies
What a great song
Bryan Palmer
His best work.
Southern Gentleman
@june1932 - INCREDIBLE SONG, remember when I first heard it in 1998, I was living in Paris, blew me away, he touches on the boredom, the waste that can be life when stuck in a rut.........the dead life, rightly angry at it, so many just going through the motions, taking the cheque and move closer to the end, we need a revolution of the human spirit.