Damon Gough, who performs as Badly Drawn Boy, wrote, produced, and played several instruments on the album's eighteen tracks, several of which also feature accompaniment by members of the British indie rock bands Alfie and Doves.

The Hour of Bewilderbeast was released to great critical acclaim and went on to win the 2000 Mercury Prize,[1] and has sold 455,000 copies in the United Kingdom as of September 2011.

[2] The cover art, designed by Andy Votel, is a collage loosely based on Leonardo da Vinci's drawing Vitruvian Man.

[17] Calling the album a "concise tour through the gentler side of British songwriting history", Brent DiCrescenzo of Pitchfork wrote that the varied instrumentation "[attaches] insect wings to the lovely songs" and concluded that with The Hour of Bewilderbeast, "Badly Drawn Boy proves what shallow saps American liberal arts majors can be behind a guitar.

[22] All music is composed by Badly Drawn Boy (Damon Gough)Credits for The Hour of Bewilderbeast adapted from album liner notes.