While cynics have put Jane Birkin's motivations for this concert recording in question, their suspicions say more about them than about this music. Arabesque, which is finally available in America, is singer and actress Birkin's tribute to the music of the late Serge Gainsbourg, her mentor, late (and ex) husband, and producer. Recorded in March 2002 at the Olympia Theater in Paris, Arabesque puts the music of Gainsbourg, one of France's most unlikely and beloved national heroes, into an altogether different context: North African folk music as it meets new age exotica.

Back to Bedlam is the debut studio album by the English singer-songwriter James Blunt, released on 11 October 2004 through Atlantic Records. It is named after the famous psychiatric institution of Bethlem Royal Hospital, which is commonly known as Bedlam.
Initially lingering in the lower regions of the UK Albums Chart in its first few months of release, it became a major international success after its third single, "You're Beautiful", became a worldwide hit in the summer of 2005. Back to Bedlam would go on to become the highest-selling album of 2005 in the UK, with over 2.4 million copies sold. By December 2009, the album had been certified 10× Platinum by the British Phonographic Industry for sales of over 3 million, making it the best-selling album of the 2000s in the UK. In 2011, it was overtaken by Amy Winehouse's Back to Black as the best-selling album of the 21st century in the UK. Back to Bedlam currently ranks as the 18th best-selling album in UK chart history. As of 2017, it has sold 3.33 million copies in the UK and over 11 million copies worldwide.

Everything in Transit is the debut album of American band Jack's Mannequin, released on August 23, 2005, by Maverick Records. Andrew McMahon wrote most of the lyrics during his first summer outside of his band Something Corporate. McMahon spent almost all of his savings on recording the album before Maverick Records picked him up. The album was produced by both McMahon and Jim Wirt.