The Story Goes ....

Album Review

The Story Goes... was the third album by British R&B singer Craig David, following his breakthrough number one in 2000, Born to Do It, and Slicker Than Your Average. Picking himself up and signing to Warner Bros. after the demise of his Wildstar/Telstar record label, David offered The Story Goes... as a very personal album filled with his own experiences over the past few years, including his own relationship breakdown in "Don't Love You No More (I'm Sorry)," being mesmerized by a woman during his partying phase on the tracks "Hypnotic" and "Just Chillin'," and another doomed liaison on the song "One Last Dance." The song "Johnny" delved deeper into his past as he explored the subject of bullying, and the line "I didn't want to tell you anything in case it made things worse" would strike a chord with many a victim. The first two tracks, "All the Way" and "Don't Love You No More (I'm Sorry)," both became Top Ten hit singles. David had a unique style of singing more words than should have been able to fit into each line, but it worked for him. "Separate Ways" was back to "Fill Me In" standards, and he also had a habit of answering his own lines through a voicebox, as on "Thief in the Night." He strayed into Enrique Iglesias territory on the song "Unbelievable," but without the smoldering Latin passion. Produced by long-term David collaborator Mark Hill, The Story Goes... appeared to fall between an urban R&B-flavored Usher-styled album and his earlier more hip-hop-influenced work with the Artful Dodger. It couldn't be both. [This edition of The Story Goes... featured 20 tracks.]