DAVID GRAY: AN INTIMATE CRAFTSMAN WORKS A BIG HOUSE.

Byline: Rob Lowman Entertainment Editor

David Gray didn't wait until the end of his concert at Universal Ampitheatre on Friday night to unleash his hit, ``Babylon.''

Instead the British singer-songwriter dove into the delicious number - probably one of the best radio driving songs in a while - midway through the evening. While the tune really amped up the sold-out house (and Gray and his backup band performed a lively rendition), it was also a bit of a declaration by the artist that there was more to him than a single.

It's not that the audience needed much convincing. They all seemed fairly familiar with Gray's latest album, ``White Ladders,'' which has sold more than 1 million copies and continues to sell. It wasn't long ago that Gray was a cult favorite playing at small venues, but the success of ``Babylon'' changed that. Gray went through a metamorphosis. He changed his production values, adding some electronics, drum machines and funk lines, and suddenly the folkie is a hipster.

As he introduced the song, Gray noted that ``Babylon,'' with its insistent rhythm, was written in a bedroom in north London. And that still seems to define Gray - an introverted singer/songwriter. While ``Babylon'' works amazingly well and a number of other songs performed Friday - ``Please Forgive Me'' ``Sail Away,'' for instance - fit into Gray's new scheme, there were others that are just dressed up personal tunes.

It's interesting to note that at one point during ``Say Hello Wave Goodbye,'' which is on ``Ladders'' and was originally by Soft Cell, Gray referenced Van Morrison with lines from ``Into the Mystic'' and ``Madame George.'' Gray's voice has a soulfulness like Morrison's and can really grab onto a note, but unlike the Irish legend, Gray doesn't draw from as deep a creative well. Morrison at his best weaves everything from Celtic to rock to jazz to blues into his music, and until Gray is able to bring something like that into his writing, he'll remain a likable artist with a great hit.

Opening for Gray was Nelly Furtado, another singer-songwriter but with a more hip-hop, r&b flavor. The Canadian singer's first album, ``Whoa Nelly'' - with its mix of pop, folk, dance, and Latin - has gotten strong reviews, but her performance Friday didn't show her off in the best light musically. Energetic and personable, Furtado skipped across the stage scatting every time she didn't have lyrics to sing. The result was that her set seemed at the same frantic pace. When she performed ``Party,'' she kept reminding us of the title, as if the audience was going to party because of it.

Somehow Furtado and her band didn't seem on the same wavelength (at least Gray and his three-piece backup group worked well together and didn't spit out mere clones of the songs as they sound on ``Ladders''). Furtado seemed to be trying to sing over her six-piece band rather than with them. That was too bad because much of the subtleness in ``I'm Like a Bird,'' Furtado's lovely hit, was lost in her performance.

But what wasn't lost was her potential. She has an interesting voice and she writes offbeat - but again, interesting - songs.

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Photo:

David Gray has rocketed from cult figure to mainstream music star thanks to a smash album and single.

David Sprague/Staff Photographer