Born To Do It - Craig David

Craig David shot to fame in 2000, after releasing “Fill Me In”, “Seven Days” and “Re-Rewind”. His fresh faced look appealed to teenagers and young adults alike, as well as for old wrinklies like myself. At the age of 19, Craig seemed to almost have it all – looks, talent, a huge following, but NO girlfriend.

“Fill Me In” set the trend in April 2000, and following the No. 1 chart success of the single and the video, Craig had a lot ...
...Days” in July 2000, which again shot to the top of the charts. At the same time, Craig released “Born to Do It”, his first album, which topped the charts in the UK and stopped at No. 11 in The US.

The album received rave reviews, and Craig was hailed “the new face of R&B”.

So, what was all the fuss about? I bought “Born to Do It” about three months after it was first released, and have to say it takes pride of place ... more

Craig David shot to fame in 2000, after releasing “Fill Me In”, “Seven Days” and “Re-Rewind”. His fresh faced look appealed to teenagers and young adults alike, as well as for old wrinklies like myself. At the age of 19, Craig seemed to almost have it all – looks, talent, a huge following, but NO girlfriend.

“Fill Me In” set the trend in April 2000, and following the No. 1 chart success of the single and the video, Craig had a lot of hype to live up to. He released “Seven Days” in July 2000, which again shot to the top of the charts. At the same time, Craig released “Born to Do It”, his first album, which topped the charts in the UK and stopped at No. 11 in The US.

The album received rave reviews, and Craig was hailed “the new face of R&B”.

So, what was all the fuss about? I bought “Born to Do It” about three months after it was first released, and have to say it takes pride of place in my CD collection. We are on our second copy, as it has been played so frequently.

The album can be purchased from CD Wow for £8.99

Fill me in kicks off the album, and the beginning riff, with soft guitars and drums, is distinctive, due to it’s massive airplay all over the country. Craig almost speaks the verses in the song, and it does have to be listened to a few times, as the words are not easily distinguishable, because of the speed of the vocals. The song tells the story of a relationship, where the girl has strict parents, who impose strict curfews and is sung partly from a parents point of view, and partly from the man’s viewpoint. A wonderful R&B rhythm throughout with some great echoing backing vocals.

“Saying why were you creeping round late last night
Why did I see two shadows moving in your bedroom light
Now you're dressed in black
When I left you were dressed in white
Can you fill me in
Calls diverted to answerphone
Red wine bottle half the contents gone
Midnight return Jacuzzi turned on
Can you fill me in”

My rating: 10/10

Can’t be Messing Around begins with Craig talking a rap, before his vocals burst forth. A fast track, with brushed drums, and the use of a snare, with what sounds like bells in the background. The song tells of a man in a relationship who is followed consistently by another female, and tells how he doesn’t want to hurt his girlfriend. For a young man, Craig certainly has morals.

“One day minding my own business
girl from the back won't keep her distance
she was all over me
just won't let it be
so i said to her i got a girl at home
she said she didn't want to listen to me
knew what exactly she wanted to be
my baby
I must admit she was getting to me
wating for me
wanting me to hold her oh so tightly”

My rating 9/10

Rendezvous, originally released in March 2001, begins with a harpsichord, before Craig’s voice comes in with the distinctive backing for the beginning of the track, and the snare drum. A slow track which tells the tale of a chance meeting, which develops into a relationship. The words are so poignant to Steve and I, as this was released at the beginning of our relationship. Craig’s voice in this track is wonderful and full of soul, although much slower but the emotion conveyed in this track, would be expected from someone of much maturer years than the fresh faced Mr. David. The only negative aspect of the song is the reference to “getting jiggy”!

“Our eyes met as you passed me by
two souls entwined in the blink of an eye
and I had to figure out what I'd be missing
so I turned to you and asked you if you wanted to
(you know we'll be getting some getting jiggy just for fun)”

My rating 10/10

Seven Days begins with a Spanish guitar, and Craig singing his name before the main vocals come in. The ever present snare drum provides a catchy rhythmic beat, throughout the track which covers the story of meeting a girl in a subway, and the events that happen during the relationship over the course of a week, which basically turned into a shagfest. The video to this track shows Craig in a barber shop, telling the story as he sings the song. Again Craig shows he is a man with feelings (!) with the classic line “I’m not a man to play around baby, cos a one night stand isn’t really fair”. The Spanish guitar finishes the track with the accompaniment of the snare, fading to the end.

My rating 10/10

Follow Me begins with a harpsichord, and the clicking of fingers, with a slow drum beat and at some points has the feeling of Heart of Glass by Blondie. The song is almost spoken rather than sung, and tells of a letter from a woman to a man telling him there is nothing more that she would rather do than have a night of passion. The lyrics invite the listener to follow Craig into the bedroom while he proceeds to get on top. Ah well, I thought the maturity was too good to be true. His innocence shows through on this track. He obviously doesn’t realise there are other ways J A slow beat throughout the track, which has backing tracks laid over the vocals for the duration of the song.

My rating 9/10

Last Night is a faster track, which leaps straight into backing vocals which are full of echoes, and tells the story of the meeting of two people in a club, and the feelings that washed over the male, when he first spotted her. This is the first track on the album, where the backing vocals are provided by a woman. There is almost a Spanish feel to the track, not only due to the foreign sounding voice of the female backing track, but due to the Spanish guitar and Craig’s reference to “Senorita”. Craig provides a rap in the middle of the track, before it softens out, into an R&B beat again.

My rating 10/10

Walking Away was released in December 2000, and is the story of the ending of a destructive relationship, and the beginning of a new life. The track begins with a Spanish guitar, and the drum, before Craig’s vocals come in. Craig conveys the sadness in his voice well in this track, and manages to send a shiver down my spine every time I hear the opening vocal to the first track. At times in the song, it sounds as though there is a catch in his voice, as if he is close to tears. As this song was released before the album, it was just before my divorce was made final, and really did become my theme tune. Again, a great R&B feel to the song, and a very emotional one for me.

My rating 10/10

Time to Party takes the tempo back up a notch. The track begins with a guitar and Craig talking over the music, before the music speeds up with the introduction of drums. In the middle of the first verse, there is a split second where there is a real 80’s feel to the track and you almost believe the The Sugarhill Gang are going to start rapping. A real feel good song about the end of the week, looking forward to the weekend and having a good time, with some wonderful rapping and great R&B beat.

My rating 9/10

Booty Man is a slower track, and begins with Craig backing before an almost nursery rhyme feel to the first verse with the first line “One, two buckle my shoe”. However, the song again has a R&B beat although the lyrics are a bit strange and nonsensical in this one, and Craig even advertises his website in the song. Lyrics aside, the beat is great, and Craig’s voice is at its best.

My rating 9/10

Once in a Lifetime is mine and Steve’s song. The song begins with the tinkling of bells before Craig’s vocals come in and is a slow song, full of emotion with a great beat provided by the drum which is the most predominant instrument throughout the track. There is a riff borrowed from Sexual Haling in this track and Craig shows that he can reach the high notes with no problem. The song is about finding true love once in your lifetime, and grabbing it when you find it. The track never fails to make me have tears in my eyes.

”Once in a lifetime I have the chance to find the key to my dreams
and I know, that it's so good for me

I was lost couldn't find my way
you took my hand and chased my blues away
your inspiration is guiding me through
I'm feeling brand new
memories of days gone by
hurting always hurting
you've taken my pain away finally
you set me free babe”

My rating 10/10

You Know What is a break again from slushy stuff, and although the song is about the breakdown of a relationship, it has a faster beat and Craig tells of feeling that he was in a perfect relationship, but realising when it was over, that he was living in a fantasy world. The second verse is sung, with Craig also providing the backing vocals, and his voice is at its strongest in this track.

My rating 9/10

The final track on the album is Rewind, a track Craig released with Artful Dodger. The track begins with Craig singing “Inter Selecta” with a bassy drum beat and has a great house beat, with the insertion of a squealing car tyres and breaking windows over the lyrics, together with “boinging” springs. Classic.

My rating 9/10

With the exception of a couple of tracks, all the songs on the album are about love and relationships. It constantly amazes me how Craig has been able to write the lyrics at such a young age, with his obviously limited experience, as far as girls are concerned. Some of the words are juvenile, but on the whole, the album is wonderful, and there is not one weak track on it.

So was Craig “Born to Do It”? I’d say so, and I hope that he will do it again and again repeatedly. The answer to whether he can keep it going for seven days can only be provided by the man himself, so until I am able to tie him down to an interview for a week, that one will remain unanswered. All jokes aside, for someone who was 19, when this album was released, Craig proved he could cut it with the best of the R&B artists in the UK.

It remains to be seen whether Craig will ever be able to surpass this outstanding first album, but you will find out when I review his follow up “Slicker than your Average” at some point.

I would recommend this album unreservedly and would agree that Craig is “The Booty Man” and he is welcome to “Fill Me In” for “Seven Days” anytime.
 

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