Call Off the Search is the debut album by Georgian-born British jazz and blues singer Katie Melua, released in 2003 (see 2003 in music).

Recording and release

British songwriter, producer and arranger Mike Batt signed Melua to his Dramatico recording and management label after she performed at a showcase at the Brit School for the Performing Arts in early 2003. Batt was looking for a young artist capable of "performing jazz and blues in an interesting way". Melua went into the studio soon after with Batt as the producer. She recorded songs written by Batt, John Mayall, Delores J. Silver, herself, Randy Newman, and James Shelton. Melua wrote "Faraway Voice" about singer Eva Cassidy. "Belfast (Penguins and Cats)" refers to Melua's upbringing in Belfast, Northern Ireland: "Penguins" referring to Protestants and "Cats" to Catholics.

Call Off the Search was released in the UK on 3 November 2003. It became a hit, reaching number one on the UK album chart in January 2004 and the top twenty of the Australian album chart in June 2004. It spent 87 weeks in the ARIA Top 100, certified Platinum for shipments of 70,000+. First single "The Closest Thing to Crazy", written by Batt, reached the top five in Ireland, top ten in the UK, top twenty in Norway, and top fifty in Australia. The second single from the album was the title track, "Call off the Search", which gave Melua her second UK top twenty hit. The third single, a cover of Mayall's "Crawling up a Hill", was top twenty on a composite world jazz tracks chart as of early July 2004 and was released on 18 July as the third single in the UK. In the UK the album sold 1.2 million copies within its first five months of release, making it four times platinum. It spent six weeks at the top of the chart.

Track listing

1. "Call off the Search" (Mike Batt) – 3:24
2. "Crawling up a Hill" (John Mayall) – 3:25
3. "The Closest Thing to Crazy" (Batt) – 4:12
4. "My Aphrodisiac Is You" (Batt) – 3:34
5. "Learnin' the Blues" (Delores J. Silver) – 3:23
6. "Blame It on the Moon" (Batt) – 3:47
7. "Belfast (Penguins and Cats)" (Katie Melua) – 3:21
8. "I Think It's Going to Rain Today" (Randy Newman) – 2:30
9. "Mockingbird Song" (Batt) – 3:06
10. "Tiger in the Night" (Batt) – 3:07
11. "Faraway Voice" (Melua) – 3:13
12. "Lilac Wine" (James Shelton) – 6:42

Personnel

• Katie Melua - guitar, vocals
• Mike Batt - organ, piano, conductor
• Jim Cregan - guitar
• Tim Harries - bass
• The Irish Film Orchestra - orchestra
• Michael Kruk - drums
• Alan Smale - leader
• Chris Spedding - guitar
• Henry Spinetti - drums

Production

• Producer: Mike Batt
• Engineer: Steve Sale
• Arranger: Mike Batt
• Photography: Simon Fowler
• Cover photo: Michael Halsband

Charts

2,000,000

1,800,000

3.5 million

Chart (2003/2004)	Peak position	Certification	Sales
Australia	13	Platinum	70,000
Denmark	1	Platinum	30,000
Ireland	2	x 2 Platinum	30,000
European Billboard (IFPI)		x2 Platinum	align="center"
France	41
Germany	8	x 2 Platinum	400,000
the Netherlands		Gold	35,000
Hong Kong		Gold	10,000
Italy	59
Japan	top 5
Netherlands	6
New Zealand	4	Platinum	15,000
Norway	2	x 2 Platinum	40,000
Poland	19
South Africa		x 2 Platinum
Switzerland	29	Gold	30,000
Sweden	22	Gold	20,000
United Kingdom	1	x6 Platinum	align="center"
U.S. Billboard Top Contemporary Jazz	3
U.S. Billboard 200	161
U.S. Billboard Top Heatseekers (U.S.)	7
World Albums	12		align="center"