“A damsel in distress is looking for a knight in shining armor” – such an advertisement the singer once placed on a well-known online auction site. It was about… his sister. Emily had to go to a funeral in Ireland, but the airlines were on strike and train tickets were unavailable, so she was devastated. The older brother decided to help her in a rather original way. It turned out that a millionaire quickly came forward and offered to fly Emily to the funeral in his helicopter. And now the best part: the man later became the woman’s husband. This may not be Blunt’s most famous success, but it shows well what kind of person the musician is. Although the artist at first glance seems like a rather serious person, don’t be fooled: no one will make fun of you like James.
The singer has an extremely colorful life. He wasn’t a boy who dreamed of playing, he quickly signed a record deal and became a young star. That first part is true, but James’ path to the stage was much more winding than most of his peers. The musician’s life was also slightly different from that of his peers. The artist recalled that he had a great, happy childhood, although he spent 10 years away from home. The singer’s father worked in the army, so the family moved often and lived, among others, in Great Britain, Cyprus and Germany.
The Blunts were not very wealthy people, but the army subsidized the education of their children. Thanks to this, James ended up at a great boarding school. Years later, the musician stated that life outside the home taught him independence and strengthened him mentally, even though the beginnings were not easy. The seven-year-old was shocked when he found out what “boarding school” actually meant. “At the beginning, for a few days, I didn’t know what was happening and I asked: ‘Excuse me, when will my parents come back?’ The manager replied that it was Christmas, which shocked me because it was September,” the artist said in an interview with “The Guardian”.
The singer often repeats that boarding school, and then the winding path to the stage and other experiences taught him to keep his feet firmly on the ground. Blunt says he may own a house in Ibiza or buy a pub, but deep down he will still be the same James he was all those years ago. Just a little smarter. The artist is also very attached to his family, which has supported him for years. When he started his music career, his father retired and even became his son’s accountant.
Before Blunt senior enjoyed retirement, he served in the army as a colonel and was a helicopter pilot. The army is actually a tradition in the musician’s family, because apart from his father, James’ uncle and grandparents worked there. However, the singer did not put on the uniform immediately after high school, because at the beginning he focused on education. The artist studied aerospace engineering and… sociology in Bristol. It may not have been an obvious set of subjects and directions, but the musician has always liked to surprise. It was during his studies that James began writing his first songs, which he later perfected during his military service. That’s right, services.
The army partially covered the costs of the singer’s education, so in return the artist had to serve at least four years. Ultimately, Blunt spent six of them in the army. The musician, like his father, decided to become a pilot and obtained his license as a teenager. The artist served, among others, in NATO forces during the conflict in Kosovo in 1999. James took his guitar with him on this trip, for which his friends were most grateful. The singer strapped the instrument to the tank and from time to time gave concerts for soldiers and local residents. After returning to Britain, Blunt entered the royal service. Before the musician left the army for good in 2002, he had already become a champion among British military alpine skiers.
James was interested in music since childhood, he learned to play the piano and violin, but – as he admitted – he was not very good at it. Perhaps because he lacked the proper motivation. Frequent family moves meant that Blunt had to look for new friends every time. The artist knew perfectly well that he would not impress children by playing Mozart, so he quickly decided: he would become a rock star. The singer learned to play the electric guitar and planned to conquer the world, but he realized that it would take several people to start a band. James didn’t have enough friends at the time, so he changed his plan, switched to an acoustic guitar and started writing sad songs about having few friends. Perhaps being a musician didn’t seem as secure as working in the army or air force, but his mother always supported him. If it weren’t for her, Blunt probably wouldn’t have made it to the stage and he would definitely regret it.
The singer admitted that living to a ripe old age knowing that you haven’t tried something would be terrible. So at one point James made one of the most important decisions in his life: he left the army to record an album. The musician was fed up with the orderly world and military discipline, so he decided to do something new. Fortunately, a friend of the artist put him in touch with Elton John’s manager, his former roommate. Todd Interland listened to Blunt’s material and immediately contacted the singer. The problem arose at the record label stage. The managers of the recommended company liked the songs, but they were afraid that an educated boy with an upper-class accent would not appeal to the average listener. However, James was lucky again because his demo tape ended up in his hands Linda Perry. The former vocalist of 4 Non Blondes and producer was just opening her record company. When she also listened to the artist at a showcase festival in Texas, she had no doubts and offered him a contract. The Briton’s debut album was released several months later.
The artist has many stories from his career that seem almost unbelievable, but this one is one of the best. Who helped James when he flew to the United States to work on his debut album? Carrie Fisherincluding the famous Princess Leia from “Star Wars“. The parents of the singer’s then girlfriend once invited him to a restaurant and it turned out that their friend, Carrie, was also at dinner. James was sitting next to her, so the star asked him what he did for a living. The musician replied that he had just left the army and was going to Los Angeles to record the album. Fisher wanted to know where in the City of Angels the artist was going to stay. When he said he didn’t know yet, Carrie said, “Then you’ll stay at my place.” Blunt was stunned, but then he just smiled and nodded. .
During the first weeks in Los Angeles, Carrie was very busy, so they rarely saw each other at home. James usually passed the actress’ mother, Debbie Reynolds, in the kitchen. Later, however, Fisher visited the place more often, and the artists became so friends that they talked every day, even if one of them did not return from work until the morning. Moreover, Carrie was often visited by famous guests, including Meryl Streep and Joni Mitchell. Song “Dark Thought” tells the story of the void Blunt felt after the death of her friend.
Another surprising friendship in James’ life is the one with Ed Sheeran. Theoretically, musicians are separated by an entire generation, but it turns out that it doesn’t matter. The singers have a similar sense of humor and distance towards each other, so they got along great from the first conversation. The artists have been on tour together, worked on songs, and if necessary, they can stand up for themselves. When Noel Gallagher said in an interview that “We can’t live in a world where Ed Sheeran is selling out Wembley”, Blunt – in his typical style – commented: “It’s time to legalize death on request.”
“You’re Beautiful” is James’ biggest hit and the artist was very lucky that the song was already on his debut album. This made his career much easier. The song still regularly lands on lists of the most romantic songs, although the story behind it is not romantic at all is. One day, Blunt got into the London Underground, tired and already under the influence of stimulants. At one point, the singer saw his ex-girlfriend with her new boyfriend in the carriage. The woman noticed the artist, but after a while she looked away, and then they both passed each other when they left and pretended they didn’t know each other. The musician even regretted not speaking and wondered if it would have helped. The singer returned home and wrote the lyrics quickly.
Ultimately, “You’re Beautiful” is about a stalker who stalks a girl and then commits suicide. James told the story years later, but it didn’t change much. The song is still played at weddings and during proposals, which the author himself often jokes about, as well as the great popularity of the hit. However, the artist had to pay a high price for this popularity. Some of his colleagues thought he wasn’t cool enough to hang out with. “I just got out of the military, where you deal with matters of life and death every day, and into a world where people act like kids. It’s like they’re back in a sandbox and figuring out who gets to be on the crew and who doesn’t.” – Blunt said in an interview with Breakingnews.ie. After a few years, the musician stopped caring about it and appreciated what the hit gave him: fame and a nice, very comfortable life in which being “cool” doesn’t matter at all.