The clown prince of pop is back, and he’s aiming to reclaim his throne in grand style. Rejuvenated by the Take That reunion, Williams freely admits he set out with one goal for his ninth studio album: to write potential hits. He has succeeded, and in typical Williams fashion, boy does he know it!
“They said it was leaving me, the magic was leaving me, I don’t think so,” he boasts on album opener ‘Be A Boy’. The track, not for the only time on Take The Crown, sounds like Williams has been listening to M83, complete with jazzy sax solos, ‘wooh ay’ singalong bits and the kind of shimmering, mid-tempo synth-driven melody most pop acts would sell their svengalis for.
Robbie Williams has never been afraid to steal ideas from elsewhere, but rather than merely ape his influences, this musical magpie makes them shine a magic dust that’s all his own. ‘Into The Silence’ is U2’s ‘With Or Without You’ put through the Robbie wringer. ‘Hey Wow Yeah Yeah’ sees our boy trying his hand at indie punk pop, complete with fuzzy guitars, giddy drums, and a melody that comes across like Underworld’s ‘Born Slippy’ meets Franz Ferdinand’s ‘Darts Of Pleasure’. Best of the bunch, ‘Hunting For You’, is the proud bastard son of The Police’s ‘Every Breath You Take’ and Kings Of Leon’s ‘Fans’ – and quite possibly the finest song Williams has ever written. “Everything I like’s illegal, seductive, addictive, immoral, corrosive, destructive/ But I’ve got kind words in my heart, it’s a passion.”
The insistent shuffle of ‘All That I Want’ isn’t a million miles away from Kick-era INXS, with Williams as confident as the late Michael Hutchence in his pomp. Like Hutchence’s former band, Robbie is capable of creating stunningly good pop music that it’s impossible to dismiss. Lead single ‘Candy’, co-written with Gary Barlow, is a big and brassy show-tune, as Robbie gets all shimmery and summery on a slice of pristine pop that’s sure to be one of the most-played radio hits of 2012. ‘Different’ has Christmas number one written all over it: it is a string-soaked ballad with our boy proclaiming himself a changed man to the object of his affections.
The ironic ‘Shit On The Radio’ is his disparaging view of current chart-fodder, complete with euro-pop synth licks and the kind of infectious but mindless melody beloved of music programmers, where ad revenue trumps artistic integrity. Williams understands what makes a pop song work and he knows his way around a chorus, while our own Jacknife Lee adds some texture, fleshing out the brash bombast and bilious balladry: he’s fifty shades of grey to Williams’ primary colour palette.
It’ll be impossible for even Robbie haters to listen to Take The Crown without experiencing at least a little grudging respect. Pop music is a much maligned art form in these days where television phone-ins decide the karaoke stars of the moment, but Williams’ return to form ensures that the genre remains in safe hands for a while yet. Robbie Williams is revitalised, re-invigorated and in love with himself once again: for that, we should be thankful.