Back to Bedlam

Back to Bedlam
Over grayscale texture, and a black-and-white bicolor image of Blunt's head, the words "james blunt" (in red) and "back to bedlam" (in white)
Studio album by
Released11 October 2004 (2004-10-11)
RecordedDecember 2003 – June 2004
Studio
Genre
Length39:28
Label
Producer
James Blunt chronology
Back to Bedlam
(2004)
Chasing Time: The Bedlam Sessions
(2006)
Singles from Back to Bedlam
  1. "High"
    Released: 18 October 2004
  2. "Wisemen"
    Released: 7 March 2005
  3. "You're Beautiful"
    Released: 18 May 2005
  4. "High (reissue)"
    Released: 3 October 2005
  5. "Goodbye My Lover"
    Released: 19 December 2005
  6. "Wisemen (reissue)"
    Released: 13 March 2006
  7. "No Bravery"
    Released: 17 April 2006
Alternative cover
2005 reissue cover

Back to Bedlam is the debut studio album by English singer-songwriter James Blunt, released on 11 October 2004 by Custard and Atlantic Records.[1] It is named after the famous psychiatric institution of Bethlem Royal Hospital in London, which is commonly known as "Bedlam".

Initially lingering in the lower regions of the UK Albums Chart in its first few months of release, it became a major worldwide success after its third single, "You're Beautiful", became a worldwide hit in mid-2005. Back to Bedlam would go on to become the highest-selling album of 2005 in the UK, with over 2.4 million copies sold.[2][3] By December 2009, the album had been certified 10× Platinum by the British Phonographic Industry for sales of over 3 million, making it the best-selling album of the 2000s in the UK.[4] In 2011, it was overtaken by Amy Winehouse's Back to Black as the best-selling album of the 21st century in the UK.[5] Back to Bedlam currently ranks as the 18th-best-selling album in UK chart history, and the biggest-selling debut album by a British artist.[6] As of 2017, it has sold 3.33 million copies in the UK,[7] and over 12 million copies worldwide.[8]

  1. ^ "Rhino Factoids: James Blunt's Back to Bedlam Rules 2005". rhino.com. 31 December 2015. Retrieved 14 July 2016.
  2. ^ "Christie Scores Top Selling Uk Single of 2005". contactmusic.com. 3 January 2006.
  3. ^ Cite error: The named reference best-selling album of 2005 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  4. ^ Michaels, Sean (30 December 2009). "James Blunt makes decade's best-selling album". The Guardian. Retrieved 16 January 2014.
  5. ^ "Amy Winehouse's 'Back To Black' becomes UK's biggest-selling album of the 21st century". NME.
  6. ^ "BBC Radio 2 reveals UK's biggest debut LPs for National Album Day 2022". www.musicweek.com. Retrieved 15 October 2022.
  7. ^ Cite error: The named reference UK sales was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  8. ^ Balfe, John (22 October 2012). "James Blunt quits music industry". entertainment.ie.