Reviewed by Ian Phillips.
By James Blunt, Warner Music UK 2019.
James Blunt is back with his sixth studio album and on first listen it is up there with his best work.
His classic 2004 debut release Back To Bedlam stands out as the high point of his recording career to this point and was one of the top 10 best-selling albums of that decade.
Once Upon A Mind is an album of remarkably beautiful songs and stands as a worthy successor to the incredible impact of his debut album.
James Blunt writes honest, emotional and personal songs that we can all relate to and maybe that’s his greatest strength and weakness.
For a while there in the mid to late 2000s you couldn’t turn on the radio without hearing You’re Beautiful and, like all things, you can have too much of a good thing. They say familiarity breeds contempt and the inevitable backlash occurred.
Back To Bedlam (and particularly the albums that followed it) went the way of Hot August Night – everyone had a copy but no one acknowledged or played it.
During the years of partial rejection, James Blunt continued to release wonderful and successful albums to critical acclaim but a lower level of hysteria.
I think this was an era of recalibration for James and out of it he’s returned stronger and possibly even more creative.
James is once again being feted by the media – he recently appeared on The One Show and Good Morning Britain.
His recent appearance on The Graham Norton Show was notable on several fronts. He performed a heartfelt rendition of the album’s first single Cold with a backing gospel choir, then joined a sofa of guests that included Bruce Springsteen and Robert De Niro.
Apparently he stole the show with his quick wit and charm.
Is this album about to set off another bout of Blunt mania?
The album is certainly good enough. It is probably his best album since his debut one.
As the reviewer for Mail on Sunday Event stated: “If Back To Bedlam was his songs of innocence then Once Upon A Mind is his songs of experience.”
