Rock/folk/prog musician and producer Gary Craig released a marvelous new album, Yesterday Into Day,” a while back.
Speaking to the album, Craig shares, “Most of the songs on this album were written in the early ’90s by a younger me but the subject matter was about time, getting older, and reminiscing. I rediscovered these recordings recently, as an older me, and was astonished at how the songs’ contexts really hit home today. It’s as if I went back in time and wrote these tunes as a man who had already lived the life. I was so overwhelmed that I had to record them again with today’s technology and a more seasoned me!”
At the age of nine, Gary Craig began piano lessons with a blind piano instructor. By age 14, he was playing bass guitar in garage bands, followed by music classes in high school, along with the concert and marching bands in which he played trumpet, French horn, baritone, and tuba, as well as bass guitar in the jazz band. In college, he studied music and performing arts, majoring in double bass.
After graduation, he played with various bands, performing all over the world, including Europe, where he played for U.S. Troops. Nowadays, he writes and composes for TV and film under the name G. Edwin Craig.
Comprising eight tracks, the album starts off with “Carousel of Time,” opening on gleaming prog-rock textures flowing into layers of coruscating colors riding a finessed rhythm. Think Emerson, Lake and Palmer merged with Styx and you have an approximation.
Highlights include “The Hobo Song,” rolling out on a sparkling, elegant piano rife with folk-rock flavors. Craig’s voice is reminiscent of the Eagles on this track, rich and evocative. Whereas “It Never Bothered Me” features oscillating, upbeat coloration traveling on a pulsating, compelling rhythm. Slight rasping vocals, with luscious grainy timbres, akin to Don Henley, infuse the lyrics with buoyant energy.
“War Torn” pumps out heavy layers of hard rock topped by gutsy, growling vocals. The last track, “Generations,” delivers low-slung prog-folk savors infused with smooth, velvety surfaces. As the song progresses, it takes on tints of soft, lustrous psychedelia.
At once lush and shimmering with warm hues, Yesterday Into Day is wonderfully beautiful, tantalizing, and intimate.
