On 29 February 2012, Aplin announced that she had signed to Parlophone[7] and began recording her debut album in March 2012.

Aplin was confirmed as the soundtrack to the John Lewis 2012 Christmas television advertisement, covering Frankie Goes to Hollywood's "The Power of Love".

Critics praised tracks such as "Salvation" for taking Aplin out of her "comfort zone" and compared "Please Don't Say You Love Me", the album's second single, to Mumford and Sons.

Internationally, the album achieved moderate success, charting at number 11 in Ireland on 19 May;[11][12] 22 in Australia in 2014; 55 in Belgium and 39 in New Zealand.

On 23 July 2013, Aplin revealed on her Facebook page that English Rain had been certified gold (for selling 100,000 copies).

[14] Aplin's cover version of Frankie Goes to Hollywood's 1984 hit "The Power of Love" was released as the album's first and lead single on 9 November 2012 after being sampled in John Lewis' Christmas television advertisement.

[citation needed] Aplin announced live on 17 February Radio 1 Chart Show that her third single would be "Panic Cord", a song taken from the singer's second EP, Never Fade.