Someday, when the world finally loses Willie Nelson, there will be an eruption of sadness. But, what it does do is bring another musician into the fray who is just as deserving to be proudly listed among the lot. It doesn’t bring anything new to the sound carved out by the likes of Elliott Smith, Damien Rice, or Angie Aparo. The same goes for Back to Bedlam as a whole. It closes with Blunt, sounding near tears, belting a line as simple as “I’m so hollow, baby, I’m so hollow / I’m so, I’m so, I’m so hollow.” A line you’ve surely heard a thousand times before, but it’s still touching on some kernel level of your emotions. The song closes in such a passionate cliché, that it almost echoes the sentiment of the record itself. Slowly sung to the base of growing piano and echoing vocals, it leaves a haunting image long after the album’s close.Īnother piano led track that stands most strong among the lot is “Goodbye My Lover.” It is just a gorgeous piece, sung with such passion, and crafted so well that it all just flows deeply. Also, the album closing “No Bravery ” a song about the war fields he so recently left. True highlights include “Tears and Rain,” a fairly simple, but truly heartfelt tune. The album opening “High” is slightly lacking but still enjoyable, and the mid-album tracks hold up well enough after repeated listens. Clocking in at an average ten tracks, there are barely any truly weak tracks to be found here. I can’t seem to argue much-the song is both catchy and strong and makes a fair introduction to Blunt’s direction and style. If I’m not mistaken, the second track on the record, “You’re Beautiful,” is being released as the first single. Sadly, accompanying this album across the continents also comes the hype that Blunt has garnered in Europe as the ‘next-even-bigger thing than before.’ But, I’m happy to say that once you rip all the press kits, Rolling Stone spotlights, and comparisons away a strong record, and a strong musician really does lie at the heart of this project.
Taking everyday heartache, as well as vague-ish political woes and critiques into account for song fodder Blunt delivers quite an entertaining collection of songs. He traded in his gun for a guitar and the grueling life of military service for the grueling life of a touring musician. Both comparisons are actually pretty accurate but his voice holds an almost spot-on similarity to one of the most overlooked talents in indie music today: Angie Aparo.Īs I mentioned earlier, heralding from England, Blunt garnered his label-contract nearly directly after leaving the British Army.
I had first heard of Blunt when he was featured in Rolling Stone’s fairly recent “Artists to Watch” feature-he caught my attention for the never-ending comparisons to the immensely talented Elliott Smith, and Irish wunder-fellow Damien Rice. Since then, Blunt has supported MSF by holding meet-and-greet auctions at many of his concerts.Already a media darling back in his homeland of Great Britain, singer-songwriter James Blunt has finally made his long-threatened stateside debut. While posted to Kosovo, Blunt was introduced to the work of Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF or "Doctors Without Borders"). Worldwide, Blunt has sold over 18 million albums, and his debut album, Back to Bedlam, is the best-selling album of the 2000s in the UK.īlunt was an officer in the Life Guards, a cavalry regiment of the British Army, and served under NATO in Kosovo during the conflict there in 1999. Blunt's third studio album, Some Kind of Trouble, was released in November 2010. The following year, he released his second album All the Lost Souls (2007). After recording on the independent American label Custard Records, Blunt won two Brit Awards, two MTV Video Music Awards, two Ivor Novello Awards, and by 2006 was nominated for five Grammy Awards. His repertoire can be best described as a mix of acoustic-tinged pop, rock and folk. Real Name James Hillier Blount Profile James Hillier Blount (born 22 February 1974), better known by his stage name James Blunt, is an English singer-songwriter and former army officer, whose debut album, Back to Bedlam and single releases, including "You're Beautiful" and "Goodbye My Lover", brought him to fame in 2005.
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