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.
I Tremble for You
David Gray Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
This loneliness cuts me and tears at my soul
I'm no child of destiny, no fortune's son
I've just chased you so long now, I'm too weak to run
So here I return to a back street of thrills
Back to any warm shoulder till she's got her fill
And then I treat shame like an old friend from home
A new day is here yet nothing is new
You're still gone and I tremble for you
I cry out at bedtime no, please not tonight
But again there's your footsteps and I turn on the light
Of course you're not there, no, you never are
Then I try to forget that there's always a bar
And well, I win that battle, yes, sometimes I do
But sleep doesn't come when I tremble for you
In "I Tremble for You," David Gray speaks of his feelings of loneliness and his struggle to cope with the absence of the person he loves. He suggests that he has been chasing this person for a long time and has now grown too tired to keep running. The only way he knows how to handle his pain is by returning to his old ways of finding comfort in the company of other women. He describes this as going back to a backstreet of thrills and relying on shame to help him feel better.
Gray seems haunted by memories of his lover as he struggles to fall asleep at night. He imagines he can hear their footsteps in his home, but of course, they are never there. He tries to push his sorrow aside by distracting himself with alcohol, but this never brings him the rest he so desperately needs. The pain of missing his lover is weighing heavily on him and causing him to tremble with emotion.
The lyrics in "I Tremble for You" are a relatable portrayal of the after-effects of a failed relationship. Gray's words speak to the deep-seated sense of loneliness, desperation, and feelings of abandonment that can accompany the end of a romance.
Line by Line Meaning
This world that I live in is empty and cold
The world I reside in is barren and desolate, devoid of any warmth or comfort.
This loneliness cuts me and tears at my soul
The isolation lacerates my emotions and hearts me in my innermost being.
I'm no child of destiny, no fortune's son
I'm an ordinary person with no exceptional fate or luck.
I've just chased you so long now, I'm too weak to run
I've been pursuing you tirelessly for so long that I don't have the strength to keep chasing you.
So here I return to a back street of thrills
I go back to seeking short-lived pleasures in unremarkable areas.
Back to any warm shoulder till she's got her fill
I find any available person to fill the temporary void until they have had enough.
And then I treat shame like an old friend from home
After the empty encounter, I welcome and embrace my feeling of guilt, accustomed to its presence.
That I can lean on till the misery is gone
It serves as a crutch that I rely on until the pain goes away.
A new day is here yet nothing is new
Despite a new beginning, everything remains unaltered, especially your absence.
You're still gone and I tremble for you
You are still not here, and I'm afraid of the consequences of your absence.
I cry out at bedtime no, please not tonight
As I get into bed, I plead against the recurring thoughts that haunt me every night.
But again there's your footsteps and I turn on the light
My imagination conjures up your presence through auditory hallucinations, making me switch on the lights.
Of course you're not there, no, you never are
Logically, I know that you are not there, and you never have been there.
Then I try to forget that there's always a bar
I attempt to distract myself from this realization by indulging in alcohol.
And well, I win that battle, yes, sometimes I do
Occasionally, I succeed in this battle against my inner demons.
But sleep doesn't come when I tremble for you
However, despite the respite, I still can't sleep knowing that I'm still afraid of your absence.
Contributed by Allison G. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Liz Cilliers
So beautiful. I keep coming back to this track.