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Robert Peter Williams (born 13 February 1974) is a Grammy Award-nominated, 12-time BRIT Award-winning English singer-songwriter. His career started as a member of the pop band Take That in 1990. He left Take That in 1995 to begin his solo career, after selling 25 million records with the group. Out of all the members of Take That, Robbie Williams never really seemed to fit in. Roguishly handsome where his bandmates were merely cute, Williams was tougher and sexier than the rest, which made him more distinctive. He also fought regularly with the other members and their management, primarily because he was occasionally adverse to being so heavily packaged. So it didn't come as a surprise that he was the first to leave the band, departing early in the summer of 1995 to pursue a solo career (by some accounts, he was fired from the group). Although he was the first out of the gate, it took Williams awhile to get started. For most of 1995, he attempted to boost his credibility by tagging along with Oasis, hoping that Noel Gallagher would give him a couple of songs. He never did, but all of his time with Oasis launched Williams into a world of heavy partying, drinking, and drugging. Over the course of 1996, he was only heard from in gossip columns, and every published picture indicated he had put on considerable weight. Occasionally, he was quoted as saying his new music would abandon lightweight dance-pop for traditional Brit-pop, but his first single was a cover of George Michael's "Freedom '90." Released late in 1996, the single was a disaster, but his second single, 1997's "Old Before I Die," was more in the vein of his early pronouncements, featuring a distinct Oasis influence. Since then, Robbie Williams has sold more albums in the United Kingdom than any other British solo artist in history. He has sold 70 million records worldwide. His album sales stand at over 53 million, with singles sales over 17 million. Williams entered in the The Guinness Book of World Records when he announced his World Tour for 2006, selling 1.6 million tickets in one single day. He has been the recipient of many awards, including fifteen BRIT and six ECHO awards. In 2004, he was inducted into the UK Music Hall of Fame, after being voted as the Greatest artist of the 1990s. Robbie Williams is the artist that is currently featured the most times in the UK Now That's What I Call Music! series. In the first 68 Now!'s he has appeared 29 times (including 4 times with Take That). His first appearance was with Take That on Now 22 and his most recent appearance was on Now 66 with "She's Madonna". Robert Peter Williams was born on 13 February 1974 in Burslem, one of the six towns amalgamated to form the city of Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, England. His family is Roman Catholic; Peter, his father, was a comedian who adopted the stage name of Pete Conway and Jan, his mother, was a florist. They divorced when he was three years old. Williams' career started when a manager, Nigel Martin Smith, was looking for some young singers because he wanted to form a boy band. Williams contacted this manager, had an audition, and became the fifth and final person to join Take That. Williams' early pop career started with the pop band Take That. After a brief stint working as a carpet-bagger* to help supplement his music career, he met Howard Donald (also a budding singer/song writer) and formed the band 'Take It'. New members of the band came and went, and after a suite of name changes the group emerged into the national limelight in 1990 with the name to Take That in the United Kingdom. During his time with the group they scored 7 number one hits. The group split soon after Williams left, but reformed in 2005 without him, scoring more chart topping hits. Their popularity led to a succession of similar bands in the United Kingdom. By 1995, Williams, who had been growing frustrated with his life in the band, infamously went partying with Oasis at Glastonbury and then left the band. After leaving the band in 1995, the last Take That album Nobody Else was re-issued in some markets excluding some vocals by Williams, most notably a new recording of "Love Ain't Here Anymore". He didn't actually take any lead vocals on this album – band members later blamed this on his "lack of interest and commitment" in the recording of the album. In November 2005, ITV1 screened a documentary on Take That, including the reasons behind Williams' departure. This bitter-sweet documentary contained interviews with Williams and his former fellow band members. Williams declined the offer to reunite with the band, but spoke to them via a pre-recorded video message. After the band's comeback tour around the United Kingdom (without Williams), Robbie performed the song "Back for Good" in his own worldwide tour in 2006. He had previously performed this song in a mock hard rock style during a well reported feud with former band mate, Gary Barlow. It was widely reported in 2006 that Robbie Williams was to appear on stage with Take That during their UK tour. The likely venue was thought to be Manchester, but although Take That used a hologram of Williams (with re-recorded vocals), he never appeared in person. After leaving Take That, Williams became more popular for his behavior and his boldness, but also for a controversial appearance in concert with rock band Oasis in Glastonbury, Somerset, UK in 1995. The episode was followed by an advertising campaign against drug and alcoholism, during which Williams was seen fed up, wearing grungy clothes and sporting a dirty beard. After a public fall-out with the members of Oasis, Noel Gallagher was reported to have referred to Williams as "the fat dancer from Take That". During this time, as he struggled with his weight, alleged substance and alcohol abuse, as well as episodes of depression, few forecast that Williams would become a successful solo artist. Rather it was Gary Barlow who was tipped for greatness following the break-up of Take That. Williams' solo career started in 1996 covering George Michael's "Freedom", reaching number-two in the UK Singles Chart, twenty-six places higher than George Michael's original. In the interview included on the single, Williams declared "I just needed something quick to put out to keep me in the public eye, so I put Freedom out as a statement." After trying to find his own sound during a harrowing period for him, recordings for the album began at London's Maison Rouge studios in March of that year. Shortly after his introduction to Guy Chambers, Williams released what would be the first single taken from his début album, Old Before I Die. Co-written by Williams with Eric Bazilian and Desmond Child, the single was released in April 1997, hitting number-two on the UK Charts; however, it was largely ignored on international charts. The second single, "Lazy Days", was released in the summer of 1997, amidst William's battle with addiction. He was allowed to check out of rehab to shoot the video for the song, but promotion for the single was non-existent, so whilst the single charted at number eight in the United Kingdom , it struggled to reach the top forty of any European chart. During this time, Robbie Williams was known to "ride the white pony", or take heroin His début album, Life Thru A Lens, was released in September 1997, not long after Williams' stint in rehab – which he embarked upon with much help from Elton John. The album launched with his first live solo gig at the Elysée Monmatre theatre in Paris, France. At first, the album was slow to take off, debuting at number eleven of the UK Album Charts; it was passed to the bargain bin not long after its release, selling a little over 33,000 copies. The third single of the album, "South Of The Border", failed to make a significant impact on the UK Charts. When it was released in September 1997, it reached number fourteen, and many considered this the end of Robbie Williams' career. After Williams met the record company's concerns about his future, he released what would be the fourth single taken from his album, not knowing it would become his biggest single in the United Kingdom so far, and one of his most well-known songs. "Angels" became Williams' best seller in the United Kingdom, being certified 2x Platinum by the BPI. The song, apart from becoming a hit around Europe and Latin America, and selling over two million copies worldwide, caused sales of his album to sky-rocket. It reached number-one on its 28th week on the charts. The album remained forty weeks inside the British top ten and 218 weeks altogether, making it the 58th best selling album in UK History with sales over the 2.4 Million. Despite the album's success in Williams' homeland, it failed to make a bigger impact in the international market, with the exception of Argentina, where the album reached the top ten in early 1998; eventually, the album managed to sell over four million copies worldwide. One of the most popular songs on the album was 'Let Me Entertain You', the lyric of which Williams has described as an ironic attack on the culture industry. Williams says he sees the culture industry as an arena in which critical tendencies or potentialities are eliminated. He has argued that the culture industry, which produces and circulates cultural commodities through the mass media, manipulates the population. Williams claims popular culture is the reason why people become passive; the easy pleasures available through consumption of popular culture make people docile and content, no matter how terrible their economic circumstances. The differences among cultural goods make them appear different, but they are in fact just variations on the same theme. Williams sees this mass-produced culture as a danger to the more difficult high arts and says he believe the culture industries cultivate false needs; that is, needs created and satisfied by capitalism. Robbie believes that true needs, in contrast, are freedom, creativity, and genuine happiness. Williams finally released his first solo album, Life Thru a Lens, in 1997. The album became a big hit in Britain, prompting his second, I've Been Expecting You, in 1998. (The Ego Has Landed, a U.S.-only compilation designed for breaking Williams to American audiences, was released stateside in the spring of 1999.) Sing When You're Winning followed in late 2000, gaining success with the video hit "Rock DJ," while a big-band album of standards (Swing When You're Winning) appeared a year later. Williams and Chambers started the writing process of the album in Jamaica in the spring of 1998. The first single, "Millennium", was inspired by John Barry's James Bond music. The song became Williams' first solo number one single in the United Kingdom when it was released in September of that year, coincidentally knocking All Saints from the top spot. Williams commented, "Someone had to be knocked off, and it may as well be the wife" (Williams and Appleton were engaged at the time of the release of the single). The song went on to sell over 400,000 copies in the UK alone being certified Gold by the BPI in November 1998. It also became a top twenty hit in many European countries, as well becoming a hit in Latin America and Australia. When the album I've Been Expecting You was released in late October 1998, it débuted at number one in the UK Albums Chart, becoming the year's best selling album in the country. This time, the album received more attention outside the United Kingdom, leaving its mark in the European and Latin American market with hits such as "No Regrets", which became one of the most talked-about tracks from the album, due to its references of Williams' Take That days. A collaboration with The Pet Shop Boys' singer Neil Tennant and The Divine Comedy's Neil Hannon, the single was released in November of 1998, reaching number four in the UK Singles Chart, backed with the cover of Adam & The Ants, "Antmusic". The song became a substantial hit worldwide and the single went on to sell over 200,000 copies in the United Kingdom being certified Silver in October 2004, almost six years after its original release. The third single from the album, "Strong" came at a busy time. It was written in a Hotel in Cologne, Germany, inspired by some of Williams' more manic admirers who, he admitted, "scared the living daylights" out of him.[citation needed] The song debuted at number four in the United Kingdom and number nine in New Zealand, peaking within the top forty around Europe and many other countries. The fourth single, "She's the One", a cover of a track from Karl Wallinger's album Egyptology, was a favourite song of Williams after his time in rehab. It became his second number one hit in the United Kingdom and scored a top three place in the New Zealand. The song went on to win a number of awards around the world, including a BRIT Award for "Single of the Year" and a Capital Radio Award for "Best Single". The single was released as a double a-side with "It's Only Us", the official theme for Sony's Playstation FIFA 2000. The single became a massive success selling over 400,000 copies in the UK alone being certified Gold by the BPI in early 2000. Williams finished the year with an extensive European Tour in the autumn of 1999. I've Been Expecting You was a smash hit, selling almost 3 million copies in the United Kingdom alone: certified 10x Platinum by the BPI, it became Williams' best selling album in the country and the 30th best selling album in UK Music History. Worldwide, the album sold around 5 million copies. After his worldwide (especially in Europe), Williams was signed to Capitol Records in the United States, which is a part of EMI. Williams embarked in a US Promotional Tour and when his first American single, "Millennium" was released, it hit number seventy-two in the Billboard Hot 100, the album The Ego Has Landed was released in July 1999 in the United States, not having the success that he enjoyed in Europe, the album peaked at number sixty-three in the Billboard Albums Chart. Despite this, Williams enjoyed good video airplay and received a nomination for the MTV Video Music Awards for "Best Male Video" – he did not win, but the exposure helped the sales of the album. Capitol Records, trying to make Williams a bigger star, released a second single from the album, the ballad "Angels", Williams shot a new video for it, and when it was released in fall of that year, the song became a somewhat bigger hit than "Millennium", charting at number forty-one, but this was not enough for Williams, so he concentrated on the rest of the world where he was already an established act. The album went on to sell 596,000 copies in the United States being certified Gold by the RIAA in November of that year. The compilation was released worldwide (as a limited edition in Europe, pressings for the album are still going strong in Latin America, Asia and New Zealand to this day), the album was a success in New Zealand reaching number-one on the official album charts, it went on to sell 140,000 copies being certified 9x Platinum, in Australia, the album ensured platinum sales over 700,000 copies. The album was promoted in Latin America as well, Williams recorded a Spanish version of his hit "Angels" and was included as a bonus track on the album and then released as a single (almost two years after its original release in English), the Spanish version was a substantial hit in most Latin American countries, but as the single had already been big in 1997, most video and radio outlets focused on the tracks from his album "I've Been Expecting You", despite of this, the compilation proved to be a medium success giving him Gold sales in Mexico and Argentina. It has sold over 1 million copies worldwide. In the middle of promotion and the tours in 1999, becoming an established worldwide pop star, Williams found time to start the work on what would be his third studio album, this time he had finally found his confidence, not only to be more brash, but also vulnerable. The first single taken from the album was "Rock DJ", a song inspired by Williams' UNICEF mentor, the late Ian Dury. The video was censored by Top Of The Pops for its gore content, many other channels followed the suit and it caused a controversy in the United Kingdom and many other countries. The video showed Williams tearing chunks of skin and muscle from his body while performing a strip show in an attempt to get noticed by a group of women, the track became an instant hit around the globe, hitting number-one in the United Kingdom, becoming his third number-one single as a solo artist and exactly a year after his sell-out concert at the Slane Castle, the song also reached number-one in Ireland, New Zealand, Mexico, Nepal, and Argentina and hit top ten placings all over Europe, Australasia and Latin America, despite of the worldwide success, the song failed to break in the United States charts, it did get some TV Airplay in channels such as MTV and VH1. The song went on to win several awards, among them, "Best Song of 2000" at the MTV Europe Music Awards, "Best Single of the Year" at the BRIT Awards and an MTV Video Music Award for Best Special Effects, the single went on to sell over 600,000 copies in the UK alone, being certified Platinum by the BPI. When the album, Sing When You're Winning was released in August 2000, it became a smash hit all over the world, débuting at number-one in the United Kingdom being certified 2x Platinum on its first week of release, the album also topped the charts in New Zealand, Ireland and Germany, and secured top ten placings in Argentina, Austria, Australia, Finland, Mexico, Sweden, and Switzerland among many others. Snapped by photographer Paul M. Smith, the album artwork – along with Williams' complete football strip (including a signed jockstrap) – was later sold at Williams' Bid It Sum auction to raise money for his charity, Give It Sum. The second single, a collaboration with Australian pop icon Kylie Minogue titled "Kids", was written when Minogue approached Williams to write her some songs for what would be her first album under Parlophone, Light Years; it was then, when Williams felt the chemistry and decided to include the track on his album and release it as a single, it was an instant hit when it was released in October of that year, hitting number-two in the United Kingdom and reached top ten placings in Australia, New Zealand, Latvia, Mexico and other countries becoming one of the biggest hits of that year selling over 200,000 copies in the UK alone being certified Silver. Williams toured the United Kingdom with Minogue in October and November of 2000 selling-out in every venue. Further singles, such as "Supreme" (which Williams recorded in French), "Let Love Be Your Energy" and "Better Man" (which Williams recorded in Spanish) became big hits reaching the top ten around the world. "Eternity", a track that was not featured on the album, was released in the summer of 2001 backed with "The Road to Mandalay", the former was written by Williams in what he called "the most amazing summer", after years of non-stop work he took a month off and recorded this track, when it was released it became his fourth number-one single in the United Kingdom, selling over 70,000 copies in its first week in the UK alone, and also hit the top ten hit all over Europe. Williams toured around the United Kingdom and the rest of Europe in the summer of 2001. The album had spent 91 weeks inside the UK Charts, going on to sell 2.4 Million copies in the UK alone being certified 8x Platinum by the BPI, the album became the best selling album of 2000 in the country and the 51st Best Selling album in UK Music History. The album went on to sell over 6 million copies world-wide. After the success of his third album, Williams wanted to take another musical direction. He took two weeks off from his tour to record what would be his fourth studio album, the big band album he had always dreamed of making. Born from his life-long love for Frank Sinatra – combined with the success of the track "Have You Met Miss Jones?" that he recorded for the film Bridget Jones's Diary in early 2001 – the album was recorded at the Capitol Studios in Los Angeles, California. Williams took the chance to duet with his long-time friend Jonathan Wilkes, Little Voice star Jane Horrocks, Saturday Night Live star Jon Lovitz, Rupert Everett and the Academy Award winning actress Nicole Kidman. Williams was able to fulfill a lifetime's dream by appearing in a one man showcase at London's Royal Albert Hall. The first single released from the album was a duet with Kidman, on "Somethin' Stupid". Originally a hit for Frank and Nancy Sinatra, the song became Williams' fifth number-one hit in the United Kingdom, selling almost 100,000 copies in its first week of release, as well hitting the top spot in Argentina, New Zealand, Latvia and scoring top ten placings all over Europe becoming one of the biggest hits of 2001 selling over 200,000 copies in the UK alone after spending three weeks at the top of the charts being certified Silver in January 2002. When the album, Swing When You're Winning (in reference to his 2000 studio album Sing When You're Winning) was released in late 2001, it became an instant number-one hit in the United Kingdom (spending six consecutive weeks at number-one), Ireland, New Zealand, Austria, Germany, and Switzerland and it reached the top ten in the rest of the world going on to sell over 2 million copies by the end of 2001 and over 7 million altogether. A second single was released from the album, a double a-side "Mr. Bojangles/I Will Talk And Hollywood Will Listen", however it was released in Central and Eastern Europe only. "Mack The Knife" was released as a radio single in Mexico. The album spent 57 weeks inside the UK Charts selling over 2.1 million copies being certified 7x Platinum in the United Kingdom and becoming the 49th Best Selling Album in UK Music History. "Beyond the Sea" was put in the credits of the film Finding Nemo in 2003 and was also released on the album's Academy Award nominated soundtrack. A DVD called Robbie Williams Live at the Albert Hall was released in December of that year. So far, it has become one of the best selling music DVDs in Europe, being certified 6x Platinum in the United Kingdom and 2x Platinum in Germany. In 2002, Williams signed a record-breaking £80 million contract with EMI. The contract featured a number of provisos, including the label ceding greater creative control to the artist and a commitment to breaking Williams in the US market. In return, EMI affirmed they would benefit from a cut of Williams' non-recording activities, including touring, publishing, and merchandising, thus protecting the company from any commercial downturn in the singer's album sales. So far it has become the biggest music deal in British history. Williams began working on what would be his fifth studio album, after a year out recording, the album heralded a new era for Williams; he had taken a more active role in the making of this album giving an indication of his growing confidence in the studio, and "One Fine Day". "Nan's Song" and "Come Undone" were the first songs that Williams wrote without the Guy Chambers input. Most of the songs were recorded in Los Angeles. The album's first single, "Feel", written by Williams and Chambers, was recorded as a demo; when they started working on the album and trying to re-record the vocals, Williams felt unsatisfied with it, so he decided to include the demo version and then release it as the first single. When the single was released in late 2002, it became Williams' biggest international hit reaching the top ten in every single European country. It also topped the charts in Argentina, Italy, Hungary, Latvia, Portugal, Mexico and The Netherlands. The success of the song was so massive that it spent 54 weeks inside the Canadian charts reaching a peak of number ten. The video for the song received attention in the United States, because it featured the Hollywood actress Daryl Hannah as his love interest. The track eventually peaked inside the top forty in the Billboard adult contemporary charts, but it failed to make the Hot 100. When Williams' fifth studio album, Escapology, was released in late 2002, it hit number-one in the United Kingdom, Ireland, Germany, Sweden, Finland, Switzerland and Austria; elsewhere, it made the top ten, however in the United States failed to make as big of an impact, reaching only number forty-three on the Billboard Albums Chart. Album's second single, "Come Undone" became a top ten hit around the world; due to its controversial video, it was heavily censored by MTV Networks Europe for depicting a debauched (but fully-clothed) Williams having three-way sex with two women. The video was all about some young people having a party and it showed footage of fights, drug taking, and unwise alcohol use. It also showed unsettling images of insects and reptiles, however, the uncensored version of the video was released on DVD Single in Europe and was also included on the Enhanced CD Single.[48] BBC Radio 2 also banned the song for its explicit content. During such furores at this time, it was confirmed that Williams and Guy Chambers were to officially part ways. The single version of "Come Undone" is not the same version as the one on the album, but instead produced by Steve Power "from an original production by Guy Chambers/Steve Power", perhaps to deny Guy Chambers part of the revenue for the single. The third single taken from the album was "Something Beautiful", the song was written in Barbados, the song was first offered to Tom Jones, but it was then reworked and for its inclusion on Williams' album, when the single was released in the summer of 2003, it hit the top ten in the United Kingdom, New Zealand, Ireland and Denmark, it failed to make an impact in the world charts. The video featured a casting in which people from all over Europe contested to win the chance to perform as Robbie Williams at the end of the same video, the three winners had the chance to meet Williams, three different versions of the video were released to different parts of the world featuring a different winner. Williams started his world tour in the summer of 2003, and he was about to do three live concerts in Knebworth. The three shows attracted a total of 375,000 fans. Escapology ended 2002 as the best selling album of the year in the United Kingdom with 1.4 million copies sold, by the end of 2003 the album had sold almost 2 million copies being certified 6x Platinum by the BPI, becoming the 60th best selling album in UK music history. World-wide the album went on to sell 7 million copies. In October 2003, Williams released his first live album, Live at Knebworth, including tracks from his record-breaking shows recorded in August of that year, the album became the fastest selling live album in the United Kingdom with 120,000 copies sold in its first week, it gave a finale two finger salute to Oasis who sold half that amount and held that title with their own live album, peaking at number-two (Dido's Life For Rent was at number-one), however, the album reached the top position in Germany and Austria and became a top ten album throughout Europe, Australasia and Latin America. The live record ended up selling a little over 600,000 copies in the United Kingdom being certified 2x Platinum by the BPI and a total of 3 million in Europe alone altogether, the album sold 3.5 million worldwide. A year after the release of his live album, in October 2004, Williams' decided that it was time to make a retrospective of his career, and also, to reveal the new tracks he had been working on with the then, new collaborator, Stephen Duffy. "Radio", the compilation's first single, was released in October 2004, which debuted at number-one of the UK Singles Chart (becoming Williams' sixth number-one hit) selling 41,732 copies, the song was also a number-one hit in Denmark and Portugal, and it hit the top ten around the world. When the compilation was released two weeks later, Greatest Hits went on to sell 320,000 copies in its first week in the United Kingdom debuting at number-one becoming the fastest selling 'Greatest Hits' album in the country, the album hit the top spot in no less than 18 countries, Arabia, France, Italy, Portugal, Spain, the aforementioned United Kingdom, Argentina, Colombia, Germany, Australia, New Zealand, Switzerland, Lebanon among others. The album's second single, the ballad, "Misunderstood", being the soundtrack of the film, Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason hit the top ten around the world in December of that year, making the album the best selling album of the year in the United Kingdom, becoming the 61st Best Selling Album in UK Music History, with sales over the 2 million copies being certified 6x Platinum by the BPI. The album, also became the best selling album of the year in Europe being certified 5x Platinum for over 5 million copies sold, worldwide, the album ended up selling a little under 8 million copies becoming his best selling album ever. Eight years after the release of "Angels", in February 2005 British public voted it as the "Best Single of the past Twenty Five Years" at the 2005 BRIT Awards. After touring Latin America in late 2004 for the promotion of his Greatest Hits album, Williams started working on what would become his sixth studio album. Recorded in Robbie Williams' bedroom high in the Hollywood Hills, the album was co-written Stephen Duffy over the course of 24 months. Inspired by the Human League's single "Louise", about a man who breaks off a relationship and realized he still has strong feelings for her. The album's first single, "Tripping", was released in October 3 2005, it became an international success, topping the charts in Germany, The Netherlands, Taiwan, Argentina & Mexico, and more importantly, the United World Chart. The album was launched in Berlin, Germany on the October 9. It was not shown on television, but broadcast to various locations around the world in cinemas and theatres, in a high-definition "cine-cast". It was shown on 22 October 2005 on Channel 4. During the album launch, Williams said he would like to be the new "King of Pop". When Intensive Care was released in late October 2005, it became smash hit around the world, hitting number-one in the United Kingdom, selling 373,000 copies in its first week as well as topping the charts in Argentina, Australia, Austria, Germany, Sweden, Switzerland, The Netherlands, New Zealand and many other countries, debuting at number-one in the United World Chart. The album became Williams' biggest international success in his career, selling over 2 million copies in only six weeks. Williams' seventh studio album was announced in early 2006. It was originally scheduled to be called 1974, the year Williams was born, and then Rudebox '74. It is a dance/electro album with collaborations with the Pet Shop Boys, William Orbit, Soul Mekanik, Joey Negro, Mark Ronson and more. The first single, "Rudebox", was premièred on radio by Scott Mills on his show on BBC Radio 1. The event caused some controversy, as the record label's embargo date was broken, although the artist himself later backed the presenter for doing so. Right after the single was unleashed, it caused controversy due to Williams' radical change in the single in direction from his other releases. British Newspaper The Sun named the song "The Worst Song Ever". However, Victoria Newton stated that there were sure-fire hits on the album. When the song was released in September that year, it reached number four in the UK Singles Chart; elsewhere the song did a lot better, hitting number one in Honduras, Argentina, Chile, Italy, Germany, Switzerland, Lebanon, and Turkey, charting at number two in the Eurochart. Williams released his much anticipated dance/electro album, Rudebox, on October 23, 2006. It received mixed reviews: The All Music Guide gave it a four star rating, the NME 8 out of 10, and Music Week and MOJO were equally positive, but it received much weaker reviews from some of the British press. Despite reaching the number one spot, sales were far below what was expected by his label, and overall sales in the UK were overtaken by his former band, Take That,'s Beautiful World. The album has sold a little under 500,000 copies in the United Kingdom, becoming his lowest-selling album in the country, being certified 2x Platinum by the BPI. Elsewhere, the album was received with a warmer reception by the public, hitting number one in fourteen countries including Argentina, Australia, Finland, Germany, Italy, Mexico, Spain, and Switzerland, and reaching number two in the United World Chart selling 378,000 copies in its first week. On November 8, 2006, IFPI certified the album 2x Platinum in Europe with sales of over 2 million making it the fastest platinum selling album of 2006. The album finished at number eighteen in the list of 2006's best selling albums worldwide, Neil Tennant from the the Pet Shop Boys commented the album had sold 4.5 million copies by early 2007. Promotion for the album was almost non-existent due to Williams' Close Encounters Tour around Latin America and Australia. Williams finished 2006 as the 16th most played artist in Latin America and the third most played international artist. During this time, Williams entered the The Guinness Book of World Records when he announced his World Tour for 2006, selling 1.6 million tickets in one single day. "Bongo Bong and Je Ne T'Aime Plus", a collaboration with British singer Lily Allen, was released as the third single in Latin America and other European countries, hitting radio in January 2007, and as a Digital Download in February. It managed to chart in Mexico and Latvia. To promote his album, Williams commissioned a series of short films. Goodbye to the Normals was directed by Jim Field Smith and features "Burslem Normals" by Robbie Williams. On 17 January 2008, it was reported that EMI planned to ship one million unsold copies of Rudebox to China to be recycled and used for resurfacing roads. Williams said in 2006 that he would release two albums in 2007, one being an original studio album and the other being a follow up to his massive selling Swing When You're Winning album, "Let's Swing It Again". In an interview with The Big Issue magazine in 2006, Williams' gave the interview a snippet of some new material, which was described as being "Guitar laden, but not overly rock". British singer-songwriter Laura Critchley has confirmed she has sung lead main vocals on three of the songs on his new album. She confirmed it won't be released until next year. On 4 October 2007, Williams made a return to the live stage after almost ten months, when he made a guest appearance at Mark Ronson's concert in Los Angeles. He performed The Charlatans classic "The Only One I Know", which features on Ronson's album Version. The NME praised the performance. On 9 January 2008, Robbie said he might put a B-Sides album out some time in 2008, with his next studio album following in 2009. He also said that he has no plans to tour any time soon. On 15 January 2008, amidst rumours that Robbie was on 'strike' at EMI, Williams manager, Tim Clark dismissed these reports, claiming that his remarks were "misinterpreted". Tim Clark denied the claims, insisting Williams had simply put plans for recording new material on hold while the firm is reorganising its internal structure. Clark said, "On strike? I didn't actually use those terms. What we actually said was it would be unrealistic to expect an artist - any artist - to deliver an album while we have no idea where EMI are going." On 16 January 2008, The new EMI owner Guy Hands told the Financial Times that “we don't have an issue with Robbie Williams. What has happened is that his manager has made a number of statements, but Robbie has not. “Robbie has spent a large number of years working full-time and he wants to take 2008 quietly. We do not have a need to push Robbie Williams into making an album.” Tim Clark, Williams's manager, declined to comment. On 16 January 2008 it was announced that Robbie had been working on some songs with former Ian Dury and the Blockheads star Chaz Jankel. In the same article it said that the reunion with Guy Chambers hadn't worked out and that the material that Robbie is working on with Chaz Jankel will form the basis of his next studio album. However, although it has been confirmed on the Blockheads official site that Chaz is writing with Robbie, the rumour that Guy Chambers is no longer working with him, is not official. In 2002, Williams appeared on the track, "My Culture" (which features lyrics from the hidden track "Hello Sir" from The Ego Has Landed), on the 1 Giant Leap album, alongside Maxi Jazz. Williams also features on a double CD titled "Concrete" which was released on the same day as "Rudebox". The CD features a concert recorded for the BBC featuring the Pet Shop Boys and Williams singing their classic hit "Jealousy". Their joint effort, "She's Madonna", was released as a single in March 2007. On August 13, 2007, a Dean Martin duets album was released, on which Williams sings "Please Don't Talk About Me When I'm Gone". Williams is currently spending most of his time in Los Angeles, California. He has commented many times on how he enjoys the freedom and privacy that he can't find in the UK. Despite this, many rumours have surfaced over the years suggesting he wants to return to the UK. Williams himself has never publicly spoken of these rumours. Williams appears to struggle with depression, insecurity, and self-loathing. When beginning his solo career, pressure from critics led him to alcohol and drug use. He has admitted to trying heroin and labelled it "the devil's drug". He entered a rehabilitation centre in Tucson, Arizona, US on February 13, 2007 for addiction to the anti-depressant Seroxat. He left the centre on March 7 according to his official website. In his fly-on-the-wall documentary Nobody Someday (2001) he repeatedly mocked his flamboyant behaviour on stage and felt that the persona and 'brand' of Robbie Williams Popstar was a fake that he increasingly felt uncomfortable with. In more recent documentaries he yearns to become a credible artist in the eyes of the serious music press. In 2006 he appeared in "The Secret Life of the Manic Depressive", a BBC documentary on bipolar disorder, hosted by Stephen Fry, where he spoke publicly about his own experiences with depression. However, he said that the manic behaviour shown on stage was simply an act, saying he'd been diagnosed as being "dead upset" and started taking anti-depressants 10 months after becoming sober. Williams is currently worth an estimated £130 million. In 2006 the Sunday Times Rich List claimed he was worth over £90 million. Since then Williams' company 'In Good Company' has raked in a further £17.2 million for the year ending March 2006. This figure does not include profits from Williams' record breaking Close Encounters Tour where he sold over 3.5 million tickets and grossed over £170 million, or his latest album Rudebox which shifted 3 million units in its first three months of release. According to HELLO Magazine's 2006 Rich list, he earned £30 million in 2006, making him the third highest earning act, behind Elton John and The Rolling Stones. In his five years as a member of Take That, Williams earned an estimated £5 million. Before signing his record breaking £80 million contract with EMI in 2002, Williams was worth an estimated £35 million. Williams is a lifelong supporter of Port Vale F.C., based in his home town of Stoke-on-Trent. In February 2006 he bought £240,000 worth of shares in the club, making him the majority shareholder. In November 2007, British newspaper The Mirror revealed that Williams had earned £32million for his Close Encounters World Tour between the months of March to December 2006. When you include further profits from his 4.5 million selling album Rudebox, along with back catalogue sales, estimates have his worth valued at around £130 million. Williams has been the subject of tabloid rumours about having various gay partners. He appears to question his own sexuality in some well-known songs, such as "Old Before I Die", where he sings, "Am I straight or gay?". In his documentary film, Nobody Someday, he said: "As it happens, I've never slept with a man. I've never done anything with a man. The thought has passed my mind, but it always stops at his bits. It's like "Mmm! Ooh! Vugh! You've got one just like mine. And mine's horrible!" You try everything once in life, I'm not discounting it, but it hasn't appealed enough for me to do it - yet." Williams won a libel case against MGN and Northern & Shell in December 2005 relating to articles which had reported he was a closet homosexual. In the libel action that resulted from this, Williams accepted substantial damages and the publishers accepted that the stories were untrue. His counsel, Tom Shields QC, told the court: "Mr Williams is not, and has never been, homosexual". Gay rights campaigner Peter Tatchell called for any damages paid out from the libel case to be donated to gay charities, claiming Williams' legal actions had created the impression that it is "bad to be gay". Williams retorted that he was not bothered about being labelled as a gay man, and he would have taken the same action had it been regarding a heterosexual relationship. The court case has led some to draw comparisons between Williams and Australian actor/pop star Jason Donovan, who also once made a successful libel claim against a publication concerning his sexuality. Donovan won the case, but the act of his litigation alienated many of his gay fans. In 2006, Williams claimed that he would have sex with a man "to save a rabbit's life.". Williams said, "I would be prepared to bed a member of the same sex to save my own skin or that of a furry animal." He quipped: "I wouldn't enjoy it but I could do it under pain of death, or if it meant saving a baby bunny from being burned alive." Whilst taken as a joke by most of Williams' fans, it didn't do much to dampen the gay rumours that have dogged him for many years. In 2008, Williams long-time friend Max Beesley rubbished claims that Williams was gay. Beesley was quoted as saying, "Some of the stuff written about him is enough to make me mad, the rumours about him being gay, for example. Not true. I've never met anybody less gay in my life!" Williams has had romantic relationships with several well-known female celebrities, including Rachel Hunter. Feel, written by Williams' friend and Daily Mail writer Chris Heath, details Williams' many sexual conquests during his European tour in 2003. In 1997, Robbie met Nicole Appleton, a member of the band All Saints. The pair became engaged, and Nicole became pregnant. Although Robbie was delighted at the prospect of becoming a father, Nicole had an abortion, claiming her record company had pressured her into it. The pair subsequently broke up. As of January 2008, he is currently dating the American television actress, Ayda Field (born 1979). This is one of his longest relationships to date, and they are reported to have been together for ten months. However, on 20th January, it was reported that their love life was "on the rocks" after it was revealed that Ayda wished to stay in Hollywood to develop her career, while Robbie longed to be on the road. On 29th January however, he and Ayda were spotted on holiday together at Mammoth Ski Resort in California, accompanied by Max Beesley. |
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