New Albums

By Arts Staff, Crimson Staff Writer October 20, 2000

Robbie Williams

Sing When You're Winning (Capitol)

If you've lived in America all your life, there's a fair chance that you've never heard of British pop-rocker Robbie Williams. It seems strange that the man who has sold over 5 million albums around the world should be relatively unknown here. Even The Ego Has Landed, his critically acclaimed 1999 release, failed to appeal to the U.S. in a megastar way, although with the help of singles like "Angel" it did manage to sell enough here to achieve gold status. But all that could change with the release of his new record, Sing When You're Winning.

Williams has the reputation of being a bad boy in the British rock scene, earning his name with outrageous live shows and crazy antics. The video for his first single, "Rock DJ," shows Williams performing a strip show at a roller disco. But of course Williams takes the idea too far-he strips naked, then pulls off his own skin, muscles and intestines, throwing them all to the women who caress his body parts adoringly around his dancing skeleton.

It is pleasantly surprising, then, that Williams' ego doesn't play a larger role in this album. Apart from the occasional knowingly cocky lyric ("Don't hate me 'cos I'm handsome" and his favorite, "Get on your knees"), the songs are on the whole intelligent, perhaps the sign of a maturing artist.

Williams seems to have found a very productive method for assembling the basic rock song. He has the catchy chorus thing down pat while his verses, whilst not that interesting harmonically, are so full of attitude it forces you to listen. The opening track, "Let Love Be Your Energy," is a great example of this aspect of Williams' songwriting. But more impressive than the writing is Williams' diversity. "Supreme," loosely based on Gloria Gaynor's classic "I Will Survive," is a short diversion into a mainstream pop sound. The ballads "Better Man" and "If It's Hurting You" demonstrate an impressive songwriting ability and unexpected emotional intensity. And the first single, "Rock DJ," is a funky, slick track with an insistent beat that takes hold of you and doesn't let go.

To give an indication of Williams' level of stardom, readers of a women's magazine in Britain recently voted him the sexiest man alive, over such luminaries as Brad Pitt. Whether he will gain the same popularity over here remains a question, but Sing is definitely a winning piece. A- -Daniel M.S. Raper

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