Wisemen
2005 single by James Blunt
title: "Wisemen" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["2004-songs", "2006-singles", "atlantic-records-singles", "custard-records-singles", "james-blunt-songs", "song-recordings-produced-by-tom-rothrock", "songs-about-bullying", "songs-written-by-james-blunt", "songs-written-by-jimmy-hogarth", "songs-written-by-sacha-skarbek"] description: "2005 single by James Blunt" topic_path: "arts/music" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wisemen" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0
::summary 2005 single by James Blunt ::
::data[format=table title="Infobox song"]
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| name | Wisemen |
| cover | JamesBluntWisemen.jpg |
| type | single |
| artist | James Blunt |
| album | Back to Bedlam |
| released | |
| recorded | 2003 |
| genre | |
| writer | * James Blunt |
| producer | * Tom Rothrock |
| prev_title | High |
| prev_year | 2004 |
| next_title | You're Beautiful |
| next_year | 2005 |
| misc | |
| :: |
::callout[type=note] the song by James Blunt ::
| name = Wisemen | cover = JamesBluntWisemen.jpg | alt = | type = single | artist = James Blunt | album = Back to Bedlam | released = | recorded = 2003 | studio = | genre = | length =
- 3:42 (album version)
- (radio edit) | label =
- Atlantic
- Custard | writer = * James Blunt
- Jimmy Hogarth
- Sacha Skarbek | producer = * Tom Rothrock
- Jimmy Hogarth | prev_title = High | prev_year = 2004 | next_title = You're Beautiful | next_year = 2005 | misc = "Wisemen" is a song written by British singer James Blunt, Jimmy Hogarth and Sacha Skarbek for Blunt's debut album, Back to Bedlam. The song was produced by Tom Rothrock and Jimmy Hogarth. The song was released as the third single in March 2005 and reached the top 50 in the United Kingdom, peaking at number 44. Following the success of "You're Beautiful" and "Goodbye My Lover", "Wisemen" was re-released in March 2006, reaching number 21 in New Zealand and number 23 in the UK. The song was met with positive reviews.
Release
"Wisemen" was first released on 7 March 2005 on three physical formats. The CD single includes an exclusive live performance of "No Bravery". The DVD includes the original video for "Wisemen", exclusive "Making Of" footage and a live audio recording of "Out of My Mind". The 7-inch vinyl includes a live performance of "Billy". The re-release, issued on 13 March 2006, was also available on three physical formats, containing a similar track listing. CD1 includes a live performance of "Out of My Mind", taken from the initial DVD single; CD2 includes the live performances of "No Bravery" and "Out of My Mind", plus the video for "Wisemen"; and the limited edition one-sided 7-inch vinyl features "Wisemen" only. In Australia, the single was released on 17 April 2006.
Chart performance
During its original release, "Wisemen" became Blunt's first single to chart within the top 100 on the UK Singles Chart, peaking at number 44. Following its UK re-release, the song became his fourth top-40 single when it peaked at number 23 on the same chart, spending a total of six weeks in the top 75. It reached number 11 in Australia and became his third single to reach the top 20. In Canada, the song became an airplay hit, reaching number three on the BDS Airplay chart.
Music videos
The music video was filmed on 3 December 2004, and released in tandem with the first UK release of the single, has Blunt and his band performing in the Café de Paris. The only occupants of the café are three middle-aged men, supposedly businessmen, who are accompanied by a young woman. The woman stands and begins to dance in the middle of the room but is ignored by the men. Three masked men, supposedly the wisemen, then enter and kidnap Blunt, putting him into a car and driving to the shore where he is imprisoned in a hastily constructed shack by the seaside, in reference to the lyric, "Those three wisemen, they've got a semi by the sea." The masks were constructed from moulds cast from Blunt's own face.
The second version, which was released in tandem with the UK re-release of the single, has Blunt burning his personal papers and passport in a forest before slowly internally combusting. The video was filmed on 13 February 2006, and released for the U.S. market. During a guest-hosting slot on the BBC2 programme "Never Mind the Buzzcocks", Blunt was asked what the line meant and said that "Semi" referred to a "semi-automatic rifle".
Track listings
2005
CD
- "Wisemen" - 3:45
- "No Bravery" (Live) - 3:24
DVD
- "Wisemen" (Audio) - 3:45
- "Wisemen" (Video) - 3:50
- "High" (Video) - 3:45
- "Wisemen" (The Making of the Video) - 3:00
7-inch vinyl
- "Wisemen" - 3:45
- "Billy" (Live) - 4:12
2006
CD1
- "Wisemen" - 3:45
- "Out of My Mind" (Live at the Bowery Ballroom, NYC) - 3:22
CD2
- "Wisemen" - 3:45
- "No Bravery" (Live) - 3:16
- "Out of My Mind" (Live at the Bowery Ballroom, NYC) - 3:00
7-inch vinyl
- "Wisemen" - 3:45
Personnel
- James Blunt – lead vocals, classical guitar, organ, Rhodes piano
- Jimmy Hogarth – acoustic guitar, keyboards
- John Nau – Hammond organ, Wurlitzer electric piano
- Sacha Skarbek – Rhodes piano
- John Goodwin – electric guitar
- Amanda Ghost – backing vocals
- Sasha Krivtsov – bass guitar
- Charlie Paxton – drums
Charts
Weekly charts
::data[format=table] | Chart (2005) | Peak position | |---|---| ::
::data[format=table] | Chart (2006) | Peak position | |---|---| | Canada Digital Song Sales (Billboard) | 10 | | Canada AC Top 30 (Radio & Records) | 27 | | Canada CHR/Pop Top 30 (Radio & Records) | 24 | | Canada Hot AC Top 40 (Radio & Records) | 2 | | Italy (FIMI) | 12 | | UK Singles (OCC) | 23 | ::
Year-end charts
::data[format=table]
| Chart (2006) | Position |
|---|---|
| Australia (ARIA) | 75 |
| Italy (FIMI) | 44 |
| Netherlands (Dutch Top 40) | 28 |
| Netherlands (Single Top 100) | 61 |
| UK Singles (OCC) | 184 |
| :: |
Certifications
References
References
- (26 February 2005). "Reviews: Singles".
- (11 March 2006). "New Releases: Singles".
- (17 April 2006). "The ARIA Report: New Releases Singles – Week Commencing 17th April 2006". [[Australian Recording Industry Association.
- (2006). "James Blunt - Wisemen (Making Of)".
- (21 July 2011). "James Blunt Wisemen UK 3 DISC CD/DVD SET (542826)". Eil.com.
- (10 March 2011). "JAMES BLUNT-WISEMEN-3 TRACK SINGLE-BRAND NEW-COLLECTABL | eBay". Cgi.ebay.co.uk.
- "James Blunt Chart History (Canadian Digital Songs)".
- (June 23, 2006). "R&R Canada AC Top 30".
- (April 14, 2006). "R&R Canada CHR/Pop Top 30".
- (May 26, 2006). "R&R Canada Hot AC Top 40".
- "Top Singoli – Classifica settimanale WK 19 2006". [[Federazione Industria Musicale Italiana]].
- "ARIA Top 100 Singles for 2006". ARIA.
- "Classifica annuale 2006". [[Federazione Industria Musicale Italiana]].
- "Top 100–Jaaroverzicht van 2006". Dutch Top 40.
- "Jaaroverzichten – Single 2006". MegaCharts.
- "2006 UK Singles Chart". ChartsPlus.
- "Guld Og Platin November/December/Januar".
::callout[type=info title="Wikipedia Source"] This article was imported from Wikipedia and is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Content has been adapted to SurfDoc format. Original contributors can be found on the article history page. ::