and conversational style of songwriting garnering comparisons to Paul McCartney and Randy Newman. O'Sullivan opted not to tour in promotion of the album, but did however make a number of appearances on British television during 1971, most notably recording an edition of BBC In Concert broadcast 18 December 1971. In 1972 O'Sullivan achieved major international fame with "Alone Again (Naturally)", a ballad which touches on suicide and loss. The single peaked at no. 3 in the UK but in America spent six non-consecutive weeks at number one on [[Billboard Hot 100|Billboard'''s Hot 100]], selling nearly two million copies. It peaked at no. 2 in New Zealand (during an 11-week chart run), spent two weeks at number one in Canada (13 weeks in the Top 40); and reached number one in Japan (during a 21-week chart run). In America the single ranked no. 2 (behind Roberta Flack's "The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face") in [[Billboard Year-End Hot 100 singles of 1972|Billboard's year-end chart]], based on both sales and airplay. In 1973 both titles were Grammy-nominated for both Song of the Year and Record of the Year, with Flack winning in both categories. This international success coincided with a new image, with O'Sullivan discarding the appearance he'd used since 1967. He unveiled a more modern 'college-like' look in which he often wore a sweater bearing a large letter 'G'. This was a deliberate attempt to prevent "[making] an impact like Tiny Tim" in the US that "would have taken years to shake off," and the subsequent American edition of Himself, which included "Alone Again (Naturally)", featured an updated image of O'Sullivan on the album artwork. O'Sullivan followed up on the success of "Alone Again (Naturally)" with "Clair", which reached no. 2 in the United States on the Hot 100 and no. 1 in the UK, Norway, France, Belgium, Ireland and Canada (14 weeks in the Canadian Top 40). Its parent album (and O'Sullivan's second), Back to Front, spawned a further hit with "Out of the Question", which reached no. 17 in the US and no. 14 in Canada. O'Sullivan's disc sales exceeded ten million in 1972 and made him the top star of the year. O'Sullivan's success led to his taking part in the BBC's anniversary programme Fifty Years of Music in November 1972. O'Sullivan was ranked by Record Mirror as the number 1 male singer of 1972, and in