Though the first person Morrison himself thought of for the duet was Adele,[7] it was his longstanding A&R man, Colin Barlow who actually suggested the collaboration with Jessie J. "Not that I was doubting Jessie's ability in any way," the singer said, "But I was worried whether she was the right character for the song. She got in the booth and did all this stuff that was amazing – she is a ridiculously good singer, so in tune she's like Autotune. I wanted to tap into the side of her character that is just a normal girl. I was like, you're a Ferrari, Jessie, you're in fifth gear – take it down to third. In the end it worked amazingly: she sang the chorus the way I should've sung it!"[5]
Composition
Lyrically, the song was inspired by Morrison's strained relationship with his late father, Paul. He died in 2010 from heart failure after a protracted and painful battle with alcoholism. "It was basically me saying to him: 'I'm not going to put up with your s--t, but I want you to know you have got the strength to turn it around for yourself' the singer said. "I didn't explain any of that to Jessie, though – I'd only just met her. We just focused on her delivering a s--t-hot vocal."[5]
Critical reception
Lewis Corner of Digital Spy gave the song a negative review stating, Hoping to continue his streak of success, the Rugby-born crooner has called upon the services of diva-du-jour Jessie J for his new single. Morrison pleas in his distinct gravelly tones before giving way to a run of Jessie J ad-libbing that yo-yos faster than an Alton Towers rollercoaster. That said, when it's put against a dreary backdrop of weeping guitars and a melancholy beat, the result is about as tedious as those pesky theme park queues. As such, there's an agonising sense of anticipation, but it just doesn't go anywhere fast.[8] The soft-focus pop soul duet with Jessie J is simply a repeat run of his collaboration with Nelly Furtado, right down to the lack of chemistry between the two singers. Meanwhile, producer Bernard Butler is content to keep things slick, smooth, safe and sellable."[9]
Music video
Jessie J and Morrison in the music video for 'Up'.
The music video was directed by Phil Griffin[10] and was premiered on 15 October 2011. The video follows James Morrison wandering his way through an abandoned-looking building, visiting Jessie J at her top-floor apartment and finally both of them end the song singing on the rooftop.[11] The duo performed the song together at Children in Need Rocks Manchester in 2011. They also performed the song live at Wembley arena on Strictly Come Dancing's results show.
