I climbed this White Ladder, The quality control made me madder! (White Ladder - David Gray)

Member Name: DanielKemp

Product:	White Ladder - David Gray
Date:	26/04/09 (106 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Sail Away and the cover of Soft Cell's Say Hello, Wave Goodbye are excellent

Disadvantages: The middle section of the album is very boring and plain

Released in 1999, White Ladder was David Gray's breakthrough effort and finally allowed him the mainstream success he had so eagerly been chasing for years. While he had actually released his debut album in 1993, he was yet to come to the attention of the general public. Sure, he had an active fan base, and those who had listened to Gray had applauded him on his emotive vocals and talented song writing, but he was still unknown to the majority of people.
After a long two years, White Ladder eventually made it to the number 1 spot in August 2001.

What sets Gray apart from similar singer-songwriters is that he employs the use of electronic equipment and uses programmed loops, sometimes to great effect. This is first shown on the opening song, Please Forgive Me, which is initiated by an unsteady drum beat and then followed by layers of simple, but pleasant enough piano. In my opinion, Gray's vocals are best summed up as a tuneful Bob Dylan singing along to Simply Red. To some that will sound like hell, to some it will sound like heaven. I'm not silly enough to get into such a heated debate, but what I do know is that Please Forgive Me slowly escalates into a great song, growing in quality with every second that goes by.

Babylon was a big single for Gray; it was his first release to get into the top 5. It still sounds great on the album, if perhaps a little too long. Gray obviously realised this because when it got a second single release, he dropped the third verse completely. It isn't really a song driven by a great musical arrangement, but more by Gray's narrative about the end of a relationship and all that results emotionally.

My Oh My and Nightblindness are both average songs. They do nothing revolutionary, in fact they are lacklustre acoustic jams, but David Gray manages to hold your attention with his vocal performance. It is most unfortunate that from this point on things take a turn for the worst. It is no exaggeration when I say that the entire middle section of White Ladder is dull, boring and a most insipid mess.
It seems that the quality control over at Gray headquarters had taken a beating and the result is that one after the other these awful pieces of music come at you, culminating with the dreadful whine of the title track.

A great deal of praise seems to have been heaped upon the single This Years Love; many critics stating that it is a superb love song full of emotion. Personally, I find it the dullest single released from the album and the basic and entirely uninspiring piano chords do nothing to change my mind.

The only thing that elevates this album to the score I have given it is the incredibly well written duo of songs which close the album. Sail Away is an immaculately produced piece of music and is the most genuinely moving moment on the LP. The acoustic guitar is brought high up into the mix and Gray's vocal performance is marvellous. In addition to this, the lyrics are tear-jerking and incredibly well written. The song also moves at a brilliant pace, allowing each verse to slowly sink in before the next begins.

The cover of Soft Cell's Say Hello, Wave Goodbye is an outstanding way to end an otherwise unoriginal and unexciting album. The song is made 3 minutes longer than the original's already impressive 5 minute running time. Structurally it isn't dissimilar to Sail Away; the same production techniques being replicated to great effect. All in all it is an accomplished rendition of the Soft Cell original and I feel that if the album had a few more moments like this, then it would have been an all round victory for Gray.

White Ladder is a very inconsistent album at the best of times, but there's enough good material here for an EP. I feel my final score is a fair reflection of how I feel about the album - when White Ladder hits the spot it is brilliant, but when it is bad it is simply a waste of your time. I suggest that you listen for yourself and make of it what you will.

6.5/10

Daniel Kemp

Read more of my reviews at www.danielkempreviews.co.uk

Summary: I bought White Ladder for a quid, at times I wondered if it was a too high bid!