Matthew Jay
| Matthew Jay | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Graham Matthew Jay |
| Born |
10 October 1978 Plymouth, England |
| Died | 25 September 2003 (aged 24) London, England |
| Genres |
Indie rock Folk-pop |
| Occupation(s) | Singer-songwriter |
| Years active | 1999–2003 |
| Labels |
Capitol Records Food Records EMI |
| Website | Matthew Jay.com |
Graham Matthew Jay (10 October 1978 – 25 September 2003) was an English singer-songwriter, who was often likened to artists such as Nick Drake,Badly Drawn Boy, and Jeff Buckley.
The son of two folk musicians, he was born in Plymouth, England, and moved to Abergavenny, South Wales with his family when he was ten. He then moved to Nottingham after getting signed.
Jay began song writing in earnest aged 15, and at this time his primary influences included The Beatles, Queen, David Bowie and The Beach Boys.
In 1999, aged 20, he produced a demo of original songs, recorded with his older brother Eddy. This secured him a record deal with EMI-backed Food Records, and led to the commercial releases in 2000 of the critically acclaimed EPs Four Songs and Friendly Fire.
The next release was the debut album Draw, from which three singles were taken: "Let Your Shoulder Fall", "Please Don't Send Me Away", and "Call My Name Out". "Please Don't Send Me Away" caught the attention of the media, who drew comparisons between Jay and Nick Drake. Further press articles grouped him with Elliott Smith, Jeff Buckley and David Gray.GQ called the album "one of the most impressive debuts of recent times".
However, after Draw was recorded, Jay's creative influences were starting to change, and he was developing wider musical interests, partly due to his involvement in the club scene in Nottingham, the city to which he had relocated shortly after being signed. In later interviews he cited hip-hop as a source of inspiration.
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