VIDEO: Musician from Glaisdale, near Whitby, who raised money for NHS, crowdfunding new album

David Neil Crabtree currently works as a full-time musician and has been playing in bands and as a solo artist since he was 13 years old.

He is lead vocalist of award-winning rock band The Mentulls and also plays guitar for Hayley Mckay.

David's most recent song Miniature Sun, which was released on October 1, will appear on the album and is about brother Mike, who has Down’s Syndrome.

Mike appeared alongside David every day during the NHS fundraisers (in a variety of hats) and certainly lights up the lives of all around him.

David has worked with some leading names in the industry to bring the album together.

These include Danny Schogger, known for his work with George Michael and Paul Young and John Gallen, one of the engineers who worked on Queen’s Bohemian Rhapsody.

David said: “I’ve got so many great musicians playing on the record, now it’s just a case of paying them.

“I spent six days in the studio in London and then I suddenly thought 'how the heck am I going to pay for all this?"

The situation hasn’t been helped as The Mentulls have recently had their European tour cancelled due to coronavirus.

Not one to be beaten, David decided to take an innovative approach to raising money and launched a crowdfunding campaign.

People who sponsor him can benefit from a range of rewards including albums, guitar lessons, performances and for the lucky few, David will even write them their own song.

David said: “It's going to cost around £10,000 to put everything together for the album and sufficiently promote it. and that’s only because friends are doing me a favour.

“While there are ways of keeping costs as low as possible, there are ultimately certain things that can't be compromised on."

David has also engaged a radio plugger who’s working to try to get the record on the playlist on Radio 2.

To date, the crowdfunding campaign has raised almost £800.

David said: “The response has been amazing so far.

“Two people have donated £100 in return for a song and one has paid £250 for a house concert.”

With a target of £10,000 there is still a way to go, so you can choose from the range of rewards here if you’d like to support David.