Now that British singer/songwriter James Blunt has topped the American charts with his weepy ballad, “You’re Beautiful,” and managed to move more units than Coldplay last year, it’s time to take a peek under the hood and see if all the hype is worth a listen.

“Back To Bedlam” is Blunt’s ten-song debut, which he refers to as “like a book, with ten chapters.” Most of these chapters are heartfelt ballads in the same vein as David Gray and Damien Rice, dominated by either acoustic guitar or piano. The understated arrangements compliment the bleeding heart lyrics, which are punctuated by Blunt’s falsetto vocals. Only “No Bravery” steps out of the love and loss tone to recount Blunt’s experiences as a soldier during the Kosovo conflict in 1999.

With “You’re Beautiful” bordering on overkill, it’s not hard to imagine the number of television commercials that will use the song as a backdrop (“Need a credit card? That’s cause You’re Beautiful…”). And for that exact reason, “Bedlam” is one of those CD’s that the record label must hate. The astounding popularity of the single practically screams to be downloaded, with the rest of the tracks left in its emotional dust.

It’s the definitive example of the “15 bucks for one good song?” syndrome.

The rest of “Bedlam’s” numbers are not far from “Beautiful’s” overall sincere attitude. “Wisemen” and “Cry” are steeped in the mature conviction of the songwriter and it’s easy to see that everything is genuine and comes from Blunt’s heart. But the curious thing about “Back To Bedlam” is the multiple references to getting high and the trippy lifestyle. From the lead track title (“High”) to the 20mg pill of unknown origin etched into the CD itself, the guy is like an excessively romantic Dead Head. Even his name is a bit suspect…

Where the previous generation of singer/songwriters brought us the resilient talents of artists like Cat Stevens, Paul Simon, and James Taylor, the 00’s will have it’s own breed of emotional troubadours, most of which will sound like day-old Coldplay. James Blunt could be on his way to becoming one of the more popular of the bunch.

Source: http://www.timesleader.com/