A Soldier's Story: James Blunt

A Soldier's Story: James Blunt

So Blunt: Aidin Vaziri | James Blunt lets out a long sigh at the very mention of his resume. But it's simply too good to ignore: Before becoming a chart-topping sensitive singer-songwriter in the United Kingdom, where this year his debut album, "Back to Bedlam," has sold more than Coldplay's "X&Y," Blunt was a captain in the British Army, leading 30,000 troops on a peacekeeping mission in Kosovo, serving as one of the queen's mounted bodyguards, and even guarding the Queen Mother's coffin at her funeral. For one thing, the tousle-haired Blunt contends, "I'm not that sensitive." (Although after a little prodding he will concede, "OK, I do admit I sing like a girl.") Then there is the fact that the 28-year-old Hampshire native never intended for anyone in the music business to know about his military past. He says his record company cajoled him to include a few interesting details in his official biography before the release of "Back to Bedlam" in the hopes of setting him apart from the likes of Damien Rice and Jamie Cullum, and he relented. It's a decision he's regretted ever since. "I thought it was a curse from day one," says Blunt. "To me, it was just a day job. I'm just glad I wasn't a banker because otherwise the interviews would be really boring." Besides, how many "No. 1 With a Bullet" headlines can someone take?