James Blunt has an edge

BURBANK -- On a stage at NBC Studios, James Blunt is rehearsing You're Beautiful, the runaway global hit now saturating U.S. airwaves. By the third run-through with his band in preparation for a TV appearance, he seems merely satisfied with the sound. Visitors and staffers loitering nearby seem spellbound, echoing the reaction this 29-year-old Brit has generated since emerging in the U.K. 16 months ago with his Back to Bedlam debut, a melodic batch of literate and emotionally resonant pop songs.

The music's romantic aspects and the singer's poster appeal -- tousled hair, bedroom eyes, chiseled features and full mouth -- have cast him as the latest pop pin-up. Less superficial scribes tend to label Blunt a sensitive singer/songwriter, a tag that irks him.

"Bob Dylan is a singer/songwriter and therefore is 'sensitive' or aware, maybe, but do you anticipate him crying on ...