EMI Classics will release Fifty Shades of Grey – The Classical Album, a 15-track album featuring classical music personally selected by author E L James herself and referenced in her bestselling Fifty Shades book trilogy. Says James of the new album: “I am thrilled that the classical pieces that inspired me while I wrote the Fifty Shades Trilogy are being brought together in one collection for all lovers of the books to enjoy.”

The three novels in the Fifty Shades trilogy (Fifty Shades of Grey, Fifty Shades Darker and Fifty Shades Freed) are published by Random House Australia. In Australia Fifty Shades of Grey has been Number One for 14 weeks and all three books have held the number 1, 2 and 3 positions for the last 12 weeks and have been in the top ten for the past 13 weeks. So far the trilogy has sold over 2.4 million copies in just 17 weeks, comprising over 1 900 000 print copies according to Neilsen Bookscan and over 489 000 copies in ebooks.

The books’ various references to classical music have spurred sales of the pieces mentioned – even going so far as to cause Spem in Alium, a 16th century motet for 40 voices by Thomas Tallis, to jump to the top of the classical charts in the UK.

Fifty Shades of Grey – The Classical Album aims to provide the perfect accompaniment to the Fifty Shades reading experience, setting a mysterious and alluring atmosphere with just the slightest hint of danger…the music on the album includes The Tallis Scholars’ sweeping version of Spem in Alium featured in the first novel, along with 14 other works from the books, such as the ‘Flower Duet’ from Lakmé, Pachelbel’s Canon in D, the ‘aria’ from Bach’s Goldberg Variations and more. The recording artists include such world-class performers as Sir Simon Rattle, King’s College Choir, Barbara Hendricks, and Alexandre Tharaud, and the album features cover art based on the novels.