Hold Back the River (James Bay song)

"Hold Back the River" is a song by English singer-songwriter James Bay. It was released in the United Kingdom on 17 November 2014 by Republic Records as the second single from Bay's first studio album Chaos and the Calm (2014). The song was written by the Ivor Novello award winner Iain Archer with Bay and produced by Jacquire King. The song peaked at number 2 on the UK Singles Chart. It was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Rock Song. The song was used in the movie, The Space Between Us.

"Hold Back the River"
Single by James Bay
from the album Chaos and the Calm and the EP Hold Back the River
B-side	"Wait in Line" (CD)
Released	17 November 2014
Recorded	2013–2014
Studio	Nashville, Tennessee
Genre	Indie rock folk rock
Length	3:58
Label	Republic
Songwriter(s)	Iain Archer James Bay
Producer(s)	Jacquire King
James Bay singles chronology
"Let It Go" (2014) "Hold Back the River" (2014) "Scars" (2014)

Music video

A music video to accompany the release of "Hold Back the River" was first released onto YouTube on 24 October 2014 at a total length of four minutes and six seconds.^[1]

Charts

Weekly charts Chart (2014–2015) Peak position Australia (ARIA)[2] 4 Austria (Ö3 Austria Top 40)[3] 4 Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders)[4] 7 Belgium (Ultratip Bubbling Under Wallonia)[5] 3 Canada (Canadian Hot 100)[6] 56 Colombia (National-Report Top Rock)[7] 2 Czech Republic (Rádio – Top 100)[8] 50 Czech Republic (Singles Digitál Top 100)[9] 19 Denmark (Tracklisten)[10] 20 Euro Digital Song Sales (Billboard)[11] 2 France (SNEP)[12] 72 Germany (GfK)[13] 4 Hungary (Rádiós Top 40)[14] 27 Hungary (Single Top 40)[15] 32 Ireland (IRMA)[16] 1 Italy (FIMI)[17] 7 Japan (Japan Hot 100)[18] 76 Netherlands (Dutch Top 40)[19] 14 Netherlands (Single Top 100)[20] 12 New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ)[21] 8 Norway (VG-lista)[22] 24 Poland (Polish Airplay Top 100)[23] 16 Scotland (OCC)[24] 2 Slovakia (Rádio Top 100)[25] 14 Slovakia (Singles Digitál Top 100)[26] 16 Slovenia (SloTop50)[27] 5 Spain (PROMUSICAE)[28] 25 Sweden (Sverigetopplistan)[29] 17 Switzerland (Schweizer Hitparade)[30] 4 UK Singles (OCC)[31] 2 US Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles (Billboard)[32] 1 US Adult Alternative Songs (Billboard)[33] 2 US Adult Pop Airplay (Billboard)[34] 16 US Alternative Airplay (Billboard)[35] 9 US Hot Rock & Alternative Songs (Billboard)[36] 8 US Rock Airplay (Billboard)[37] 13

Year-end charts Chart (2015) Position Australia (ARIA)[38] 19 Austria (Ö3 Austria Top 40)[39] 35 Belgium (Ultratop Flanders)[40] 44 France (SNEP)[41] 194 Germany (Official German Charts)[42] 33 Italy (FIMI)[43] 43 Netherlands (Dutch Top 40)[44] 44 Netherlands (Single Top 100)[45] 33 New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ)[46] 24 Slovenia (SloTop50)[47] 9 Sweden (Sverigetopplistan)[48] 45 Switzerland (Schweizer Hitparade)[49] 32 UK Singles (OCC)[50] 8 US Hot Rock Songs (Billboard)[51] 19 Decade-end charts Chart (2010–2019) Position UK Singles (OCC)[52] 64

Certifications

Region	Certification	Certified units/sales
Australia (ARIA)[53]	3× Platinum	210,000‡
Austria (IFPI Austria)[54]	Gold	15,000*
Brazil (Pro-Música Brasil)[55]	2× Platinum	120,000‡
Canada (Music Canada)[56]	2× Platinum	160,000‡
Denmark (IFPI Danmark)[57]	2× Platinum	180,000‡
Germany (BVMI)[58]	Platinum	600,000‡
Italy (FIMI)[59]	3× Platinum	150,000‡
Netherlands (NVPI)[60]	2× Platinum	60,000‡
New Zealand (RMNZ)[61]	Platinum	15,000*
Norway (IFPI Norway)[62]	2× Platinum	20,000‡
Portugal (AFP)[63]	Gold	10,000‡
Spain (PROMUSICAE)[64]	Gold	30,000‡
Sweden (GLF)[65]	3× Platinum	120,000‡
Switzerland (IFPI Switzerland)[66]	Gold	15,000‡
United Kingdom (BPI)[67]	4× Platinum	2,400,000‡
United States (RIAA)[68]	Platinum	1,000,000‡
* Sales figures based on certification alone. ‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

Release history

Region	Date	Format	Label
United Kingdom	17 November 2014[69]	Digital download	Republic
United States	3 March 2015[70]	Modern rock radio

References

1. James Bay - Hold Back The River - YouTube
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7. "ROCK" (in Spanish). National-Report. 27 April 2015. Archived from the original on 7 May 2015.
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32. "Bubbling Under Hot 100 : July 11, 2015". Billboard. 11 July 2015. Retrieved 11 July 2015.
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34. "James Bay Chart History (Adult Pop Songs)". Billboard.
35. "James Bay Chart History (Alternative Airplay)". Billboard.
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42. "Top 100 Single-Jahrescharts". offiziellecharts.de (in German). GfK Entertainment. Retrieved 6 January 2016.
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51. "Hot Rock Songs - Year-End 2015". Billboard. Retrieved 3 January 2016.
52. Copsey, Rob (11 December 2019). "The UK's Official Top 100 biggest songs of the decade". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 12 December 2019.
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54. "Austrian single certifications – James Bay – Hold Back the River" (in German). IFPI Austria. Retrieved 12 January 2018.
55. "Brazilian single certifications – James Bay – Hold Back the River" (in Portuguese). Pro-Música Brasil. Retrieved 10 February 2024.
56. "Canadian single certifications – James Bay – Hold Back the River". Music Canada. Retrieved 29 November 2020.
57. "Danish single certifications – James Bay – Hold Back the River". IFPI Danmark. Retrieved 1 October 2021.
58. "Gold-/Platin-Datenbank (James Bay; 'Hold Back the River')" (in German). Bundesverband Musikindustrie. Retrieved 12 April 2024.
59. "Italian single certifications – James Bay – Hold Back the River" (in Italian). Federazione Industria Musicale Italiana. Retrieved 15 April 2020.
60. "Dutch single certifications – James Bay – Hold Back the River" (in Dutch). Nederlandse Vereniging van Producenten en Importeurs van beeld- en geluidsdragers. Enter Hold Back the River in the "Artiest of titel" box. Select 2015 in the drop-down menu saying "Alle jaargangen".
61. "New Zealand single certifications – James Bay – Hold Back the River". Recorded Music NZ. Retrieved 17 April 2015.^{[dead link‍]}
62. "Norwegian single certifications – James Bay – Hold Back the River" (in Norwegian). IFPI Norway. Retrieved 14 October 2021.
63. "Portuguese single certifications – James Bay – Hold Back the River" (PDF) (in Portuguese). Associação Fonográfica Portuguesa. Retrieved 21 September 2020.
64. "Spanish single certifications – James Bay – Hold Back the River". El portal de Música. Productores de Música de España. Retrieved 18 January 2024.
65. "Sverigetopplistan – James Bay" (in Swedish). Sverigetopplistan. Retrieved 12 November 2021.
66. "The Official Swiss Charts and Music Community: Awards ('Hold Back the River')". IFPI Switzerland. Hung Medien. Retrieved 5 November 2022.
67. "British single certifications – James Bay – Hold Back the River". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 21 April 2023.
68. "American single certifications – James Bay – Hold Back the River". Recording Industry Association of America.
69. iTunes - Music - Hold Back the River - EP by James Bay
70. "AllAccess.com Alternative eWeekly". AllAccess. 3 March 2015. Retrieved 4 July 2016.