"Hold Back the River" is a song by the English singer-songwriter James Bay. It was released in the United Kingdom on 17 November 2014 by Republic Records as the second single from Bay's first studio album Chaos and the Calm (2014). The song was written by the Ivor Novello award winner Iain Archer with Bay and produced by Jacquire King. The song peaked at number 2 on the UK Singles Chart. It was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Rock Song. The song was used in the movie, The Space Between Us.