Legend has it that
at this point in time Ricky Gervais offered to be Playground's manager,
but fortunately for everyone concerned he chose a career in comedy instead.
After a first UK tour of rave reviews and general adulation, "life
differences" and "fear of flying" were cited as the causes
of Playground's split, and so Dan decided to move to Edinburgh, where
he studied physics.
Inspired by Nick
Drake and John Martyn, and with Julian Cope as prescriber of pearls
of nonsense and wisdom, Dan gravitated towards acoustic guitar and started
to adopt Drake's more complex guitar techniques. Influenced by the sweet
melodies, simple structure and heavenly harmonies of Glasgow's Teenage
Fanclub, the songs soon began to flow and Dan began to evolve his unique
style, playing clubs and venues throughout the UK.
Signed exclusively to London label, Just Music, Dan's first album 'Around in Circles' was released in 2006 to rave reviews, having been produced by the "blissfully ambient" (Independent) Jon Hopkins and mastered by Simon Heyworth, who remastered all of Nick Drake's seminal recordings. It reached No 16 in reveal Records Top Albums of 2006.
A nationwide tour followed, making a real impact in folk clubs, acoustic music venues, festivals and arts centres throughout the UK, including supporting Thea Gilmore on her national tour, going down a storm at Ullapool Guitar Festival and THREE sell-out nights at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. Dan was Artist of the Month in October and November 2006 for Caffe Nero, who promoted his music throughout their 285 retail outlets. In 2007 Dan was the official support for John Martyn's 'Solid Air' at Celtic Connections and 'Around in Circles' became the seventh best-selling album in the Celtic Connections Festival Shop Sales Chart. It also reached the No 2 spot in Mike Harding's Top Ten Folk Albums on BBC Radio Two.
Dan’s second album ‘Of Tide and Trail’ was released in August 2009 and is a musically uplifting mix of dazzlingly innovative guitar sounds and poignant intimate vocals. 'Days Even Years' was iTunes Single of the Week in 2009.
Dan's tender and haunting voice is the perfect match for his evocative and rhythmic guitar-picking. Expect unusual open tunings, songs that develop into instrumentals, and instrumentals that grow into songs, and a beautiful acoustic guitar sound that is frequently transformed but never compromised by some amazing electronic guitar effects. "Through a quartet of fragile and haunting songs he captured and captivated an audience who had come to hear him….. A seriously talented musician." (Maverick)
