Someone to Watch Over Me (album)

Someone to Watch Over Me is the third album by Scottish singer Susan Boyle, released on 7 November 2011 in the United Kingdom and 1 November 2011 in the United States. The album has been described as a "diverse mix of music" which includes songs inspired by the stories of Boyle's fans who write letters to her.

Someone to Watch Over Me
Studio album by Susan Boyle
Released	1 November 2011
Recorded	2010–2011
Genre	Operatic pop adult contemporary crossover
Length	33:36
Label	Syco Columbia (US)
Producer	Steve Mac[1]
Susan Boyle chronology
The Gift (2010) Someone to Watch Over Me (2011) Standing Ovation: The Greatest Songs from the Stage (2012)
Singles from Someone to Watch Over Me
"You Have to Be There" Released: 20 September 2011 "Enjoy the Silence" Released: 30 September 2011 "Unchained Melody" Released: 14 October 2011 "Autumn Leaves" Released: 25 October 2011

Professional ratings

Aggregate scores
Source	Rating
Metacritic	56/100[2]
Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[3]

Background

Boyle announced the album title and release date on 1 September 2011, on the semi-final results show of America's Got Talent, after performing a track from "You Have to Be There". The song was written by ABBA members Benny Andersson and Björn Ulvaeus, from their musical Kristina från Duvemåla. After Boyle performed on America's Got Talent she said: "I was also a little nervous introducing something new. America's Got Talent - it's where I started with my first album, so it was wonderful to be back and for the support."^[4]

Commercial performance

In the United Kingdom, the album debuted in the top position of the UK Albums Chart, her third consecutive album to do so.^[5] It sold 72,000 copies in its debut week.^[6] As of 22 December 2011, the album has sold 416,000 copies in the US.^[7]

In Australia, the album debuted in the top position of the Australian Album Chart, so far it has been certified double platinum.

In the United States, the album debuted at number four on the Billboard 200, becoming her third top five album on the chart. It sold 132,000 copies in its first week.^[8] In its second week, the album was number seven selling 72,000 copies.^[9]

Track listing

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Original artist	Length
1.	"You Have to Be There"	Benny Andersson, Björn Ulvaeus	Helen Sjöholm, from Kristina från Duvemåla	3:53
2.	"Unchained Melody"	Hy Zaret, Alex North	Todd Duncan, from Unchained	3:47
3.	"Enjoy the Silence"	Martin Gore	Depeche Mode	4:11
4.	"Both Sides, Now"	Joni Mitchell	Joni Mitchell	3:29
5.	"Lilac Wine"	James Shelton	Hope Foye, from Dance Me a Song	3:15
6.	"Mad World"	Roland Orzabal	Tears for Fears	4:00
7.	"Autumn Leaves"	Jim Duguidi, Paolo Giovanni Nutini	Paolo Giovanni Nutini	2:54
8.	"This Will Be the Year"	Emeli Sandé, Josh Kear, Shahid Khan	Original Composition	3:53
9.	"Return"	Steve Mac, Wayne Hector	Original Composition	2:58
10.	"Someone to Watch Over Me"	George Gershwin, Ira Gershwin	Gertrude Lawrence, from Oh, Kay!	1:17

Japanese bonus tracks^[10]

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
11.	"Ue o Muite Arukō/The First Star"	Rokusuke Ei, Hachidai Nakamura	4:01
12.	"Third Man Theme"	Anton Karas	1:22

QVC bonus CD^[11]

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
1.	"Don't Give Up on Me"	Dan Penn, Carson Whitsett, Hoy Lindsey
2.	"You Are My Sunshine"	Jimmie Davis, Charles Mitchell
3.	"Perfect Day"	Lou Reed	4:31
4.	"I Dreamed a Dream"	Claude-Michel Schönberg, Alain Boublil, Herbert Kretzmer	4:33

• The album is also available in a Special Edition that features a bonus DVD with music videos of the songs "You Have to Be There", "Unchained Melody", "Autumn Leaves", and "Perfect Day".^[12]

Charts

Weekly charts Chart (2011) Peak position Australian Albums (ARIA)[13] 1 Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[14] 4 Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia)[15] 39 Canadian Albums (Billboard)[16] 6 Danish Albums (Hitlisten)[17] 36 Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)[18] 18 Finnish Albums (Suomen virallinen lista)[19] 38 French Albums (SNEP)[20] 145 Greek Albums (IFPI)[21] 17 Hungarian Albums (MAHASZ)[22] 34 Irish Albums (IRMA)[23] 11 New Zealand Albums (RMNZ)[24] 2 Norwegian Albums (VG-lista)[25] 20 Scottish Albums (OCC)[26] 1 Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan)[27] 9 Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)[28] 47 UK Albums (OCC)[29] 1 US Billboard 200[30] 4

Year-end charts Chart (2011) Position Australian Albums (ARIA)[31] 7 Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[32] 70 Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan)[33] 59 UK Albums (OCC)[34] 33 US Billboard 200[35] 156 Chart (2012) Position Canadian Albums (Billboard)[36] 35 US Billboard 200[37] 94 Decade-end charts Chart (2010-2019) Position Australian Albums (ARIA)[38] 86

Certifications

Region	Certification	Certified units/sales
Australia (ARIA)[39]	2× Platinum	140,000^
Belgium (BEA)[40]	Gold	15,000*
Ireland (IRMA)[41]	Gold	7,500^
New Zealand (RMNZ)[42]	Platinum	15,000^
United Kingdom (BPI)[43]	Platinum	300,000*
United States (RIAA)[44]	Gold	500,000^
* Sales figures based on certification alone. ^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

Release history

Region	Date	Format	Label
United Kingdom[45]	7 November 2011	CD, digital download	Syco Music, Sony Music Entertainment
United States	1 November 2011		Columbia Records
Japan[10]	2 November 2011		Sony Music
Germany[46]	4 November 2011		Syco, Sony Music

References

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2. "Reviews for Someone To Watch over Me by Susan Boyle - Metacritic". metacritic.com. Retrieved 28 July 2016.
3. Erlewine, Review: Someone to Watch Over Me. AllMusic. Retrieved 17 November 2011.
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6. "Susan Boyle, Rihanna Rise Again on U.K. Charts". Billboard. Retrieved 16 November 2011.
7. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 15 November 2011. Retrieved 26 December 2011.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
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41. "The Irish Charts - 2012 Certification Awards - Gold". Irish Recorded Music Association.
42. "New Zealand album certifications – Susan Boyle – Someone To Watch Over Me". Recorded Music NZ. Retrieved 20 November 2024.
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