From Now On (Will Young album)

Did You Know?

• "Anything Is Possible" was awarded the Ivor Novello Award for Bestselling Song of 2002.
• From Now On was certified platinum by the BPI on 18 October 2002 and reached double platinum status on 15 November 2002.

Promotion

From Now On was launched with a double A-side lead single that paired a cover of Westlife's "Evergreen" with "Anything Is Possible," a new track written for the Pop Idol champion by Chris Braide and Cathy Dennis. When it came out in March 2002, it set a record as the fastest-selling debut single in UK chart history, moving 403,027 copies on its first day and 1,108,659 in its opening week. Total sales eventually exceeded 1.7 million, and later that year it landed at number eleven on the official list of the UK's all-time best-selling singles. In 2008, the Official Charts Company ranked Young's "Evergreen" at the top of the Top 40 Biggest Selling Singles of the 21st century so far, and on 31 December 2009, BBC Radio 1 declared it the biggest selling single of the 2000s decade in the UK. The second single, "Light My Fire," was a cover of The Doors' 1967 hit, performed in the style of José Feliciano's 1968 version. It entered the UK Singles Chart at number one, selling 177,000 copies in its first week and holding the top spot for two weeks. It also cracked the top ten in Ireland and Italy. A duet with fellow Pop Idol contestant Gareth Gates, a cover of The Beatles' "The Long and Winding Road," was issued as a double A-side with Gates's "Suspicious Minds" and became Young's third consecutive UK number one. The final single, another double A-side featuring "Don't Let Me Down" and "You and I," was released to support Children in Need and reached the top five in both the Netherlands and the UK.

Critical reception

Julie Broadfoot from BBC Music wrote that Young "got on with making an impressive, timeless, debut album" and singled out "Lovestruck" for praise, calling the album "a fab album that won't disappoint anyone." Michael Osborn of musicOMH noted that the album "seems to have struck a balance between making the best of Will Young's particular talents – and the musical niche where he excels" and felt it should silence critics, though he thought Young appeared not entirely comfortable with "sweet, candied pop." Allmusic editor Jon O'Brien found that "Young proved himself to be one of the most gifted and unique vocalists a U.K. talent show has seen" but called From Now On "an inconsistent effort." He disliked the singles but added that the album contains "a well-produced and well-crafted collection of mature pop songs." RTÉ critic David Byrne wrote that "what this album needs is less humming and strumming, and more of the intensity evident in 'Fine Line' and 'Side By Side'" and felt the music did not seem to fit Young. Alexis Petridis of The Guardian stated that "Young does not exist as an artist in his own right" and expressed a wish that "this wretched business would stop." In a retrospective review, Pop Rescue gave the album four stars out of five, commenting they were "somewhat surprised by how good this album is" and praising Young's vocals and numbers such as "Light My Fire", "Lovestruck", "Fine Line", and "What's in a Goodbye."