Wikipedia

1973 (song)

"1973" is a song by English recording artist James Blunt. It was released as the lead single from his second studio album, All the Lost Souls (2007).

"1973"
Single by James Blunt
from the album All the Lost Souls
Released23 July 2007 (2007-07-23)
GenrePop rock
Length4:42
LabelAtlantic
Songwriter(s)James Blunt, Mark Batson
Producer(s)Tom Rothrock
James Blunt singles chronology
"Wisemen"
(2006) 		"1973"
(2007) 		"Carry You Home"
(2007)

First performed by James Blunt during his autumn 2006 North American tour, "1973" was released for radio play on 23 July 2007, to selected radio stations around the world. It was made available for download exclusively from the Verizon Wireless network in the United States on the same date.[1] Starting on 7 August 2007, the song was made widely available for digital download, with physical releases being made available from 3 September 2007. The single peaked at number four on the UK Singles Chart.

Background edit

"1973" was written by James Blunt and Mark Batson. "He was trying to write an English singer-songwriter song, and I was trying the Dr. Dre end of the scale", says Blunt.[2] The song was inspired by the club scene in Ibiza, where Blunt maintains a residence and enjoys the social scene.[3] The song has been remixed by Pete Tong and Dave Spoon as part of their Ibiza 2007 Remix Project, and Tong started playing the remix in July 2007 when acting as DJ at Pacha, the Ibiza club that inspired the song and opened in 1973.

The lyrics include references to a few American popular songs: "As Time Goes By", written in 1931 by Herman Hupfeld and popularised by Dooley Wilson playing the character of 'Sam' in the 1942 film Casablanca; "It's the Same Old Song", written by the legendary songwriting team Holland–Dozier–Holland and recorded in 1965 on the Motown label by the Four Tops; "Here We Go Again", popularised in 1967 by Ray Charles and re-popularized as a duet with Norah Jones upon the 2005 posthumous release of Charles' masterwork album, Genius Loves Company, and; "I Can See Clearly Now", written and recorded by Johnny Nash, a song which spent November at the No. 1 spot of the Billboard Hot 100 in 1972.

Release edit

The single was released on three physical formats. CD1 features a brand new track, "Dear Katie", which was written by Blunt's long-time keyboardist Paul Beard. Beard also provides backing vocals for the song. CD2 includes a live version of "Annie", the video for "1973", plus a further new track, "So Happy", which was written by Felix Howard and Blunt. The 7" vinyl also includes "So Happy".[4]

Music video edit

The video (directed by Paul R Brown), in which a modern-day Blunt strolls among '70s street scenes, reflects the song's nostalgic tone. "The '70s sound like they were a time of excess and great flamboyance", he says, "but a sense of fun as well."[2] The video was shot in the Universal Studios Lot in Los Angeles.

Track listings edit

CD 1

  1. "1973" – 4:44
  2. "Dear Katie" – 2:20

CD 2

  1. "1973" – 4:44
  2. "Annie" (Live from The Garden Shed) – 3:26
  3. "So Happy" – 3:36
  4. "1973" (video) – 3:58

7" vinyl

  1. "1973" – 4:44
  2. "So Happy" – 3:36

Reception edit

Billboard reviewer Chuck Taylor said that the song's "[m]idtempo pacing" resembles 10,000 Maniacs's "Trouble Me",[5] a song from the band's 1989 album Blind Man's Zoo.

Chart performance edit

The song debuted at number 10 on the UK Singles Chart, then peaked at number four, making it Blunt's third top 10 single and his fifth-released single debuting in the UK Singles Chart. In Switzerland, the song debuted at number one, making it his second top 10 hit, and also reached number one in Venezuela, Austria, the Wallonia region of Belgium, Slovakia, and Turkey.

In the United States, the song first appeared on the Billboard Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles, where it peaked at number two. After the song's parent album All the Lost Souls was released on 14 September 2007, the song debuted and peaked at number 73 on the Billboard Hot 100 the week of 6 October 2007,[6] spending just three consecutive weeks on the chart before exiting at number 100. The song peaked at number 60 on the Pop 100. From number 86, the song made a jump to number two on Billboard's Eurochart Hot 100 Singles, then peaked at number one on 29 September and 6 October 2007.

Certifications edit

Sales certifications for "1973"
Region Certification Certified units/sales
Austria (IFPI Austria)[57] Gold 15,000*
Belgium (BEA)[58] Gold 25,000*
Denmark (IFPI Danmark)[59] Gold 7,500^
Germany (BVMI)[60] Gold 150,000^
Italy (FIMI)[61] Gold 25,000‡
United Kingdom (BPI)[62] Platinum 600,000‡

* Sales figures based on certification alone.
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.
‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

References edit

  1. ^ Poletta, Michael (21 July 2007). "Beautiful and the Beat". Billboard. Billboard.
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  3. ^ "I4U News – Story is Expired". I4u.com. Retrieved 9 September 2011.
  4. ^ "James Blunt – 1973 (CD) at Discogs". Discogs.com. 3 September 2007. Retrieved 9 September 2011.
  5. ^ Taylor, Chuck (11 August 2007). "James Blunt: '1973' (3:59)". Billboard. p. 36.
  6. ^ "The Hot 100". Billboard. 2 January 2013.
  7. ^ "James Blunt – 1973". ARIA Top 50 Singles. Retrieved 27 June 2013.
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  17. ^ "James Blunt – 1973". Tracklisten. Retrieved 27 June 2013.
  18. ^ "Hits of the World – Eurocharts" (PDF). Billboard. Vol. 119, no. 40. 6 October 2007. p. 63. Retrieved 30 July 2020.
  19. ^ "James Blunt: 1973" (in Finnish). Musiikkituottajat. Retrieved 27 June 2013.
  20. ^ "James Blunt – 1973" (in German). GfK Entertainment charts. Retrieved 10 October 2018.
  21. ^ "Nielsen Music Control Airplay - Germany Top 5". Nielsen Music Control on behalf of BVMI. Archived from the original on 2 October 2007. Retrieved 17 February 2023.
  22. ^ "Archívum – Slágerlisták – MAHASZ" (in Hungarian). Rádiós Top 40 játszási lista. Magyar Hanglemezkiadók Szövetsége. Retrieved 21 April 2021.
  23. ^ "The Irish Charts – Search Results – 1973". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved 21 April 2021.
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  29. ^ "Nielsen Music Control". Archived from the original on 6 November 2007.
  30. ^ "Romanian Top 100 – Issue nr: 42/2007 (29 Octombrie - 04 Noiembrie 2007)" (in Romanian). Romanian Top 100. Archived from the original on 30 October 2007. Retrieved 22 May 2023.
  31. ^ "Official Scottish Singles Sales Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 21 April 2021.
  32. ^ "ČNS IFPI" (in Slovak). Hitparáda – Radio Top 100 Oficiálna. IFPI Czech Republic. Note: insert 200744 into search. Retrieved 21 April 2021.
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  40. ^ "Pop Rock". Recordreport.com.ve. Archived from the original on 27 August 2007. Retrieved 27 August 2007.
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  57. ^ "Austrian single certifications – James Blunt – 1973" (in German). IFPI Austria. Retrieved 27 March 2020.
  58. ^ "Ultratop − Goud en Platina – singles 2007". Ultratop. Hung Medien.
  59. ^ "Danish single certifications". IFPI Danmark. Retrieved 14 October 2021.
  60. ^ "Gold-/Platin-Datenbank (James Blunt; '1973')" (in German). Bundesverband Musikindustrie.
  61. ^ "Italian single certifications – James Blunt – 1973" (in Italian). Federazione Industria Musicale Italiana. Retrieved 23 September 2019. Select "2019" in the "Anno" drop-down menu. Select "1973" in the "Filtra" field. Select "Singoli" under "Sezione".
  62. ^ "British single certifications – James Blunt – 1973". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 19 March 2022.
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