"Busy" is a pop song performed by British singer-songwriter

Olly Murs Oliver Stanley Murs (born 14 May 1984) is an English singer, songwriter, and television presenter. He was runner-up on the sixth series of '' The X Factor'' in 2009 and was subsequently signed to RCA Records and Sony Music in the United Kingdom ...

, taken from his debut studio album, ''

''. It was written by Murs, Adam Argyle, Martin Brammer, and was released as the fourth and final single from the album on 27 May 2011. It was his second single to not be accompanied by a physical CD single. The song was also Murs' first single release to fail to reach the UK Top 40.

Background

The song was co-written by Murs, along with Adam Argyle and Martin Brammer, for his debut album, ''

''. The single was released featuring two B-sides, new song "Takes a Lot", and an acoustic version of "

Please Don't Let Me Go "Please Don't Let Me Go" is a song by British singer Olly Murs. Written by Murs, Claude Kelly and Steve Robson, the song served as the lead single from the ''X Factor'' runner-up's eponymous debut album and it was his debut single. The song wa ...

". The song instrumental was used as a backing track for

Marks & Spencer Marks and Spencer Group plc (commonly abbreviated to M&S and colloquially known as Marks's or Marks & Sparks) is a major British multinational retailer with headquarters in Paddington, London that specialises in selling clothing, beauty, home ...

food adverts from the year of release to May 2013 and as the theme tune to the

BBC One BBC One is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network owned and operated by the BBC. It is the corporation's flagship network and is known for broadcasting mainstream programming, which includes BBC News television bulletins, ...

sitcom ''

Me and Mrs Jones "Me and Mrs. Jones" is a 1972 soul song written by Kenny Gamble, Leon Huff, and Cary Gilbert, and originally recorded by Billy Paul. It describes an extramarital affair between a man and his lover, Mrs. Jones. In the song, the two meet in sec ...

''. The single's release fell right in the middle of Murs' first ever theatre tour, so promotion, as with his previous release, was limited. The song was performed at

Radio 1's Big Weekend BBC Radio 1's Big Weekend (R1BW) (previously known as One Big Weekend, for 2012 as Radio 1's Hackney Weekend, and for 2018 as BBC Music's Biggest Weekend) is a British music festival run by the BBC's radio station. It is held once a year, in a ...

in Carlisle on 15 May 2011, on '' Paul O'Grady Live'' on 27 May 2011, and on '' This Morning'' on 2 'June 2011.

Critical reception

David Griffiths from

4Music 4Music is a British music television channel owned and operated by Channel Four Television Corporation. The original incarnation was launched on 15 August 2008, and until 29 June 2022, showed a mix of music and entertainment programming. I ...

described "Busy" as "another slice of breezy, feel-good pop".

Music video

The music video for "Busy" was uploaded onto Murs's Vevo account on 6 April 2011 and was directed by Corin Hardy, who has previously shot videos for Keane and

McFly McFly are an English pop rock band formed in London in 2003. The band took their name from the '' Back to the Future'' character Marty McFly. The band consists of Tom Fletcher (lead vocals, guitar, and piano), Danny Jones (lead vocals, har ...

, and takes its inspiration from the independent film ''

Lars and the Real Girl ''Lars and the Real Girl'' is a 2007 romantic comedy-drama film written by Nancy Oliver and directed by Craig Gillespie. It stars Ryan Gosling, Emily Mortimer, Paul Schneider, Kelli Garner, and Patricia Clarkson. The film follows Lars (Gosling) ...

'', as well as a number of other American independent films. Hardy wanted a "sweet and colourful" video to accompany the "catchy" song, and to "bend the rules" of the usual pop video. It features Murs playing an eccentric character dressed in 1970s clothing, who creates a life-size girlfriend (his "perfect girl") named Rose out of

papier-mâché upright=1.3, Mardi Gras papier-mâché masks, Haiti upright=1.3, Papier-mâché Catrinas, traditional figures for day of the dead celebrations in Mexico Papier-mâché (, ; , literally "chewed paper") is a composite material consisting of p ...

, then spends time with her, such as reading books, playing a guitar and going for a drive, and eventually falls in love with her. At the end of the video, Rose becomes a real person. The video stars Brazilian student and actress Patricia Duarte as Murs' girlfriend. David Renshaw from PopDash called the video "slightly creepy but fun".

Track listing

Charts

Release history

References

{{Olly Murs 2011 singles Olly Murs songs Songs written by Olly Murs Songs written by Martin Brammer Songs written by Adam Argyle