The Famous Mad Mile

"Wistful, elegiac, summery and all 'round gorgeous.”
- Americana UK

"Highlights too plentiful to pin down.”
- Maverick

"A soulful songwriter who sings with immense, gentle strength."
- Mojo

"The stripped down front porch vibe is just right."
- Uncut

"These superb songs unfurl with passion."
- The Independent

For Danny George Wilson, location is both a blessing and a curse. Formerly of UK band Grand Drive, a group capable of Southern soul, deep country, classic rock n' roll and billowing psychedelia, flying in the face of Britpop at it's very height and confronting cynics skeptical that so frayed and personal a take on Americana could come from the "wilds” of South London.

After four fine albums, singer-songwriter Danny George Wilson has decided to strike out on his own and 'The Famous Mad Mile' is a solo debut blessed with Wilson's trademark gift for simple but powerful melodies, played on acoustic guitar, cello, dobro, double bass and only the gentlest smattering of drums. This is a genuinely subtle, sparse and beautiful Americana album.

Rich with hindsight and wisdom, 'The Famous Mad Mile' is a contemplative album, where Wilson's honesty can't be hidden in his voice. It cracks on the soaring 'Every Cloud', throws an optimistic spin on life's darker corners ['Beauty In This Town'], draws all the pathos it can from a simple object like a 'Painted Pebble', steeped in each song's story.

With music, it's more about soul than scenery, location doesn't even enter into it. This is a good thing, because the sweetest, saddest, most sublime country / folk album of 2006 hails from South London. Thanks to Danny George Wilson.