The Gray Race

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The Gray Race is the ninth full-length album of the punk rock band Bad Religion, which was released in 1996. It was the follow-up to the band's highly successful 1994 album Stranger Than Fiction.

This was the band's first album not recorded with original guitarist Brett Gurewitz (since the 1985 EP Back to the Known) and is their first release with Brian Baker, who replaced him during the Stranger Than Fiction tour.

Some songs on the album are considered fan favorites, such as, "Them And Us", "A Walk", "Punk Rock Song", "Spirit Shine", "Ten in 2010", "Come Join Us", and "Cease".

Although not as successful as Stranger Than Fiction, The Gray Race achieved modest success when MTV ran a commercial for the album during its release. The album was re-released by Epitaph Records on September 15, 2008.

Production and marketing

Template:Expand section After the 10-month Stranger Than Fiction tour, frontman Graffin soon began writing songs for Stranger Than FictionTemplate:'s follow-up. The band recorded it at Electric Lady Studios, New York City with producer Ric Ocasek (of the Cars, Bad Brains and Weezer fame). The recording lasted throughout much of October and November 1995.

Reception

Template:Music ratings Template:Expand section The Gray Race was released on February 27, 1996, and peaked at No. 56 on the Billboard 200 album chart.<ref name="Billboard">Template:Cite magazine</ref> It spawned the moderately successful single "A Walk" in the United States. In Europe, the album also reached the German charts at No. 6 as well as earn the group a gold record for sales in Scandinavia. Then-former and now current guitarist Brett Gurewitz disliked the album, however, and commented that it was "BR's worst-selling record to date" and described it as "uninspired." He has since taken that back. <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Author Dave Thompson, in his book Alternative Rock (2000), wrote that Baker "not only brings new blood to the band, but also some superior guitar work. Gritty classics, tougher than recent offerings, dance on an edge not visited since the days of Generator."<ref name=Thompson170/>

Track listing

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Personnel

Adapted from the album liner notes.<ref>Template:Cite AV media notes</ref>

Bad Religion

Greg Graffin – lead vocals, backing vocals
Greg Hetson – guitar
Brian Baker – guitar, backing vocals
Jay Bentley – bass, backing vocals
Bobby Schayer – drums, backing vocals

Technical

Ric Ocasek – production
Bad Religion – production
Bruce Calder – engineer
Andy Salas – assistant engineer
George Marino – mastering
Frank Gargiulo – art direction, design
STAIN – design
Ryan J. McGuiness – design assistance
Richard Burbridge – photography (portraits)
Frank Ockenfels 3 – photography (band)

Notes and trivia

Due to Gurewitz's departure a year before the album was recorded, all tracks for this album were written by Greg Graffin, though guitarist Brian Baker co-wrote 4 out of 15 of the songs.
The track "Cease" was later re-recorded for Greg Graffin's 1997 solo album, American Lesion, this time as a piano and vocal arrangement. This version was played by Graffin on their 2006 DVD Live at the Palladium.
The album liner contains ten portraits of faces in black and white. Different versions exist, with different pictures as the front cover.
The album would earn Bad Religion a gold record for sales in Scandinavia and reach # 6 on the German charts for the single "Punk Rock Song".
The songs "Them and Us" and "Ten in 2010" were featured in the 1999 game Crazy Taxi.
The album was re-released by Epitaph Records on September 15, 2008.