Ed Sheeran | ||
| Allmusic Biography : Ed Sheeran may be the quintessential pop star of the 2010s: a singer/songwriter who seems to acknowledge no boundaries between styles or eras, creating a sound thats idiosyncratic and personal. Sheeran borrows from any style that crosses his path -- elements of folk, hip-hop, pop, dance, soul, and rock can be heard in his big hits "The A Team," "Sing," "Thinking Out Loud," and "Shape of You" -- which gives him a broad appeal among different demographics, helping to elevate him to international stardom not long after the release of his 2011 debut, +. When Ed Sheeran released +, he just had turned 20. He had been playing music since he was a child in Framlingham, Suffolk -- he was born in Halifax, West Yorkshire but his family moved when he was young -- enthralled by the classic rock he heard around the house. Sheeran started writing music in his early teens, recording a self-made album called Spinning Man when he was 13 in 2004. In addition to making music at home -- he put out an EP titled The Orange Room in 2005 -- hed busk on the streets and play whatever stage he could find. When he was 16, he dropped out of school and moved to London so he could make a go of a professional career, landing work as a guitar tech for Nizlopi, gigging whenever he could, and auditioning unsuccessfully for the ITV series Britannia High. The self-released EP You Need Me arrived in 2009 -- it followed 2006s eponymous EP and 2007s Want Some? -- but his momentum started to build in 2010 thanks to the EPs Loose Change and Songs I Wrote with Amy and, especially, performance videos he posted to YouTube. Sheeran started to generate considerable buzz -- Jamie Foxx invited him to appear on his Sirius/XM radio show -- and he landed a deal with Asylum Records in late 2010. After a final independent EP, No. 5 Collaborations, arrived in January 2011, he signed a contract with Elton Johns management team. All of this laid the groundwork for a busy 2011. Sheeran entered the studio with Jake Gosling to record his major-label debut. Its first single, "The A Team," arrived in June 2011, entering the charts at number three. August brought "You Need Me, I Dont Need You," setting the stage for the September release of +. Assisted by the success of Novembers single "Lego House," the record became a huge hit in the U.K., a fact underscored by his win of British Breakthrough in the 2012 Brit Awards. Sheerans success soon spread to Australia, Europe, Canada, and then the United States. He received a boost in the U.S. by opening for Snow Patrol in 2012, but that paled in comparison to the exposure he received opening for Taylor Swift on her Red tour in 2013. His endorsement from Swift, combined with his landing of the closing credits song "I See Fire" for The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug, set Sheeran up for an eventful 2014. Along with reuniting with Jake Gosling, Sheeran worked with Rick Rubin and Pharrell for X, the sophomore set that arrived in June 2014. X debuted at number one on both sides of the Atlantic and generated the huge hits "Thinking Out Loud" and "Sing," success that helped Sheeran secure a win for Album of the Year in the 2015 Brit Awards, along with the trophy for Best Male Solo Artist. His success wasnt limited to Britain. X was the second biggest-selling album in the world in 2015, coming in behind Adeles 25, and "Thinking Out Loud" took home the Grammys for Song of the Year and Best Pop Solo Performance in 2016. Sheeran spent the majority of 2016 recuperating and recording his third album with executive producer Benny Blanco. Early in 2017, he released two singles, "Castle on the Hill" and "Shape of You," with the latter reaching number one on the charts throughout the world. Their parent album, ÷, appeared in March. ÷ topped the pop charts in over 20 territories, including the U.K. and U.S., and it generated another international hit in "Galway Girl." Ed Sheerans massive popularity was confirmed in June 2017, when he was awarded an MBE on the occasion of the Queens Birthday Honours. Over the next year, Sheeran stayed busy touring. He also picked up several more accolades including winning the Grammy Award for Best Pop Vocal Album for ÷ and Best Pop Solo Performance for "Shape of You." In 2019, he paired with Justin Bieber for the single "I Dont Care." | ||
 | Album: 1 of 20 Title: The Orange Room EP Released: 2005 Tracks: 5 Duration: 00:00 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% AlbumCover | 1 Moody Ballad of Ed (?) 2 Misery (?) 3 Typical Average (?) 4 Addicted (?) 5 I Love You (?) |
 | Album: 2 of 20 Title: Ed Sheeran Released: 2006-03-22 Tracks: 12 Duration: 38:55 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% AlbumCover | 1 Open Your Ears (03:01) 2 Beyond The Pale (04:21) 3 In Memory (03:11) 4 Insomniacs Lullaby (03:30) 5 Quiet Ballad of Ed (03:53) 6 No Luck (03:28) 7 Stevensong (01:22) 8 Billy Ruskin (01:58) 9 Spark (02:52) 10 Pause (featuring Alonestar) (03:12) 11 The Sea (02:11) 12 Way Home (05:56) |
 | Album: 3 of 20 Title: You Need Me Released: 2009 Tracks: 5 Duration: 21:04 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify AlbumCover | 1 You Need Me, I Don’t Need You (04:05) 2 So (04:28) 3 Be Like You (03:38) 4 The City (04:26) 5 Sunburn (04:26) |
 | Album: 4 of 20 Title: Loose Change Released: 2010-02-07 Tracks: 8 Duration: 32:12 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify AlbumCover | 1 The A Team (04:21) 2 Homeless (03:30) 3 Little Bird (03:46) 4 Sofa (03:19) 5 One Night (03:26) 6 Firefly (04:15) 7 The City (live at Sticky Studios) (05:06) 8 Firefly (Bravado Dubstep remix) (04:29) |
 | Album: 5 of 20 Title: Songs I Wrote With Amy Released: 2010-04-04 Tracks: 5 Duration: 16:25 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify AlbumCover | 1 Fall (02:43) 2 Fire Alarms (02:24) 3 Where We Land (03:02) 4 Cold Coffee (04:13) 5 She (04:03) |
 | Album: 6 of 20 Title: No.5 Collaborations Project Released: 2011-01-07 Tracks: 8 Duration: 35:09 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify AlbumCover | 1 Lately (04:31) 2 You (03:22) 3 Family (04:15) 4 Radio (03:41) 5 Little Lady (05:29) 6 Drown Me Out (04:21) 7 Nightmares (04:03) 8 Goodbye to You (05:27) |
 | Album: 7 of 20 Title: iTunes Festival: London 2011 Released: 2011-07-11 Tracks: 5 Duration: 21:47 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify AlbumCover | 1 The City (04:56) 2 Homeless (04:56) 3 The A Team (02:59) 4 Little Lady (05:37) 5 U.N.I. (03:19) |
 | Album: 8 of 20 Title: You Need Me, I Don’t Need You (remixes) Released: 2011-08-26 Tracks: 5 Duration: 23:04 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% AlbumCover | 1 You Need Me, I Don’t Need You (03:40) 2 You Need Me, I Don’t Need You (Live Ustream version) (06:51) 3 You Need Me, I Don’t Need You (03:02) 4 You Need Me, I Don’t Need You (Loadstar remix) (05:00) 5 You Need Me, I Don’t Need You (Gemini remix) (04:29) |
 | Album: 9 of 20 Title: + Released: 2011-09-09 Tracks: 12 Duration: 49:57 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Wikipedia Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 The A Team (04:21) 2 Drunk (03:19) 3 U.N.I. (03:49) 4 Grade 8 (03:01) 5 Wake Me Up (03:49) 6 Small Bump (04:19) 7 This (03:16) 8 The City (03:55) 9 Lego House (03:04) 10 You Need Me, I Don’t Need You (03:40) 11 Kiss Me (04:38) 12 Give Me Love / The Parting Glass (08:46) |
| + : Allmusic album Review : Adopting the old-fashioned route to success by playing a grueling 300 gigs in 2009 alone, Ed Sheerans blend of singer/songwriter balladry and acoustic hip-hop has built up quite the fan base, ensuring his debut full-length album, simply titled Plus, is one of the most hotly anticipated releases of the year. Unfortunately, its the former, rather than the latter, which dominates the follow-up to his grime-inspired introductory No.5 Collaborations Project EP. Indeed, the unexpected hugely popular response to lead single "The A Team," an achingly tender tale of a heroin-addicted prostitute (think a socially aware James Blunt) seems to have thrown him off course, as rather than pursue the more urban direction that set him apart from his contemporaries, the majority of Plus 12 tracks feel like self-conscious attempts to replicate its sound. The sparse piano chords and stream-of-consciousness delivery ("I knew you loved Shrek cos weve watched it twelve times") of "Wake Me Up," the gentle percussion and lilting piano hooks of "Small Bump," and the melancholic wistful folk of "This" are all melodic, Damien Rice-esque numbers that would no doubt go down like a storm on one of the many open-mike nights Sheeran used to frequent. But for an artist who has built up a reputation for his inventive fusion of sounds, they are disappointingly back-to-basics affairs which offer little that hasnt been heard before. However, Sheeran is a much more interesting prospect when his unassuming manner is accompanied by an array of skittering hip-hop beats and staccato R&B licks. "You Dont Need Me, I Dont Need You" is a blistering swipe at the music industry which shows that while he may not have the conventional image of a rapper, he certainly possesses the quick-witted attitude; "U.N.I." combines Snow Patrol-esque guitar hooks with a breakneck-speed delivery reminiscent of Craig Davids early 2000s output; while some dirty, scuzzy guitars and electronic bleeps are thrown into the mix on "The City," which deals with his experience of moving from his hometown of to the bright lights of London. With his casual jeans and hoodie, and relatable tales of relationship woes, university, and getting drunk, its easy to see why Sheeran has struck such a chord with the late-teens/early-twenties crowd. But his debuts failure to capitalize on his unique selling point means its likely to leave everyone else nonplussed. | ||
 | Album: 10 of 20 Title: Thank You EP Released: 2011-09-18 Tracks: 3 Duration: 10:41 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% AlbumCover | 1 She (02:32) 2 Fire Alarms (04:12) 3 You Need Me (True Tiger Remix) (03:57) |
 | Album: 11 of 20 Title: Lego House Released: 2011-11-11 Tracks: 5 Duration: 19:32 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify AlbumCover | 1 Lego House (acoustic) (03:06) 2 Lego House (Gosling Remix) (03:50) 3 Lego House (The Prototypes remix) (04:24) 4 Lego House (Subscape remix) (05:10) 5 Grade 8 (acoustic) (03:00) |
 | Album: 12 of 20 Title: Live at the Bedford Released: 2011-12-09 Tracks: 6 Duration: 31:37 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify AlbumCover | 1 The A Team (05:22) 2 Homeless (03:45) 3 The City (05:07) 4 Fall (02:31) 5 Wake Me Up (05:00) 6 You Need Me, I Don’t Need You (09:50) |
 | Album: 13 of 20 Title: The Slumdon Bridge Released: 2012-02-14 Tracks: 4 Duration: 14:00 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% AlbumCover | 1 London Bridge (04:54) 2 You Don’t Know (For Fuck’s Sake) (03:33) 3 Faces (03:17) 4 Outro (02:16) |
 | Album: 14 of 20 Title: Drunk (remixes) Released: 2012-02-17 Tracks: 5 Duration: 23:18 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% AlbumCover | 1 Drunk (Rudimental remix) (04:42) 2 Drunk (Doctor P remix) (03:46) 3 Drunk (Lazy Jay’s Wasted in London remix) (05:18) 4 Drunk (Lazy Jay’s Rave-O-Lution dub) (05:00) 5 Drunk (Jayglo remix) (04:31) |
 | Album: 15 of 20 Title: Watchtower Released: 2012-08-16 Tracks: 4 Duration: 14:55 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% AlbumCover | 1 Watchtower (radio edit) (03:39) 2 London City, Pt. 2 (02:52) 3 My Moving Picture (03:52) 4 Watchtower (instrumental) (04:32) |
 | Album: 16 of 20 Title: iTunes Festival: London 2012 Released: 2012-09-03 Tracks: 8 Duration: 52:10 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% AlbumCover | 1 Drunk (03:28) 2 The A Team (04:59) 3 Small Bump (04:40) 4 Lego House (04:10) 5 Chasing Cars (05:04) 6 You Need Me, I Dont Need You (19:46) 7 Chasing Cars (05:04) 8 The A Team (04:59) |
 | Album: 17 of 20 Title: x Released: 2014-06-20 Tracks: 17 Duration: 1:12:42 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Wikipedia Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 One (04:12) 2 I’m a Mess (04:04) 3 Sing (03:55) 4 Don’t (03:39) 5 Nina (03:45) 6 Photograph (04:18) 7 Bloodstream (05:00) 8 Tenerife Sea (04:01) 9 Runaway (03:25) 10 The Man (04:10) 11 Thinking Out Loud (04:41) 12 Afire Love (05:14) 1 Everything You Are (03:58) 2 Friends (03:10) 3 Sing (live / 1LIVE Radiokonzert) (06:49) 4 I’m a Mess (live from Lightship 95) (04:01) 5 Don’t (remix) (04:17) |
| x : Allmusic album Review : Its a little glib to call Ed Sheeran the U.K.s answer to Jason Mraz, yet theres a grain of truth in that statement. Like Mraz, Sheeran plays around with hip-hop cadences but at his core hes a singer/songwriter, and a sensitive one at that, one who prefers love tunes to songs of protest, something that is quite evident on X, his second collection of original songs. Although he sometimes pours out his heart armed with no more than an acoustic guitar, hes not a troubadour; those hip-hop roots means hell not only ramble out a rap, but hes also quite comfortable with luxurious, shimmering textures and buoyant melodies. Naturally, these traits surface clearly on "Sing," a collaboration with Pharrell Williams that contains some of the natural ebullience of "Happy," along with the upscale whitebread rap of "The Man," but this good cheer surfaces on songs that are far removed from rhythm. When Sheeran sings slow, he rarely sings sad: hes a hybrid of Chris Martin and David Grey, a boy next door who hasnt lost his shaggy romanticism. His sweetness isnt cloying, not even when the productions are aimed straight down the middle of the road, which they often are on . His boyishness doesnt give these immaculate confections grit so much as a wet, wide-eyed puppy dog heart. Sheeran is so good at this AAA gloss that whenever the mildly manic rapping surfaces -- which X does about every three songs or so -- its a bit of sand in the Vaseline, preventing X from operating as smoothly as itd like. Nevertheless, these gangly excursions in rap are evidence of Sheerans youth and his generation, something that keeps X from being merely a bit of excellently crafted mature pop and gives it some appealing character. | ||
 | Album: 18 of 20 Title: Don’t Released: 2014-08-12 Tracks: 4 Duration: 19:16 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify AlbumCover | 1 Don’t (remix) (04:17) 2 Be My Husband (live From Glastonbury) (07:50) 3 Everything You Are (03:58) 4 Friends (03:10) |
 | Album: 19 of 20 Title: 5 Released: 2015-05-12 Tracks: 32 Duration: 2:15:58 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify AlbumCover | 1 You Need Me, I Don’t Need You (04:05) 2 So (04:28) 3 Be Like You (03:38) 4 The City (04:26) 5 Sunburn (04:26) 1 Let It Out (03:51) 2 Homeless (03:30) 3 Little Bird (03:46) 4 Sofa (03:19) 5 One Night (03:26) 6 Firefly (04:15) 7 The City (live at Sticky Studios) (05:06) 8 Firefly (Bravado Dubstep remix) (04:29) 1 Fall (02:43) 2 Fire Alarms (02:24) 3 Where We Land (03:02) 4 Cold Coffee (04:13) 5 She (04:03) 1 The A Team (05:22) 2 Homeless (03:45) 3 The City (05:07) 4 Fall (02:31) 5 Wake Me Up (05:00) 6 You Need Me, I Don’t Need You (09:50) 1 Lately (04:31) 2 You (03:22) 3 Family (04:15) 4 Radio (03:41) 5 Little Lady (05:29) 6 Drown Me Out (04:21) 7 Nightmares (04:03) 8 Goodbye to You (05:27) |
 | Album: 20 of 20 Title: No.6 Collaborations Project Released: 2019-07-12 Tracks: 15 Duration: 07:05 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% AlbumCover | 1 Beautiful People (?) 2 South of the Border (?) 3 Cross Me (03:26) 4 Take Me Back to London (?) 5 Best Part of Me (?) 6 I Don’t Care (03:39) 7 Antisocial (?) 8 Remember the Name (?) 9 Feels (?) 10 Put It All on Me (?) 11 Nothing on You (?) 12 I Don’t Want Your Money (?) 13 1000 Nights (?) 14 Way to Break My Heart (?) 15 BLOW (?) |