Hits from Robbie, other Brits

Fans and nonfans have learned to expect only the big-sellers from Robbie Williams. The former Take That member people thought will never make it on his own is now UK’s top entertainer. Every album he has released these past 10 years became a hit and his song Angel was voted last year as the all-time favorite song in Britain during the pop era.

His latest, titled Intensive Care has the makings of another big one. Lyrically, it improves only a notch or two from his early ones. Robbie still seems to wallow in the pangs of rejection that he suffered while starting his solo career. So despite his phenomenal success his songs still reek of cute but ill-placed bravado to this day.

First they ignore you/ then laugh at you and hate you/ then they fight you, then you win, he sings in Tripping. And what about Ghosts, the song which opens with these lines, Here I stand victorious/ the only man who made you come. Wow, talk about being insecure, which he tries to cover up by being cocky, boastful, narcissistic, egoistic, conceited, etc. etc.

Musically though, Intensive Care is Williams’ best. The diversity of tones is pretty impressive and they segue smoothly from one to the other. Sure, you hear bits and pieces that remind you of other songs. A Place to Crash echoes Bon Jovi. Spread Your Wings is early David Bowie. But Williams makes them his own and renders them very "singable." That, in the long run, is what really counts.

Take note. Do not make the mistake of simply opening your copy of Intensive Care and putting the CD in the player. Take a look at the cover too and watch Williams, tattoos and all parade before you in eight different paintings, nine including the front cover. He saw the original pictures and probably wondered how he will look in them. So he did all the poses for his album. Which brings us back to the narcissistic issue again. Awww, forget it. Just listen to the guy. He really is very good.

Other cuts in Intensive Care are the drop-dead ballad and a likely hit single, Advertising Space, plus Please Don’t Die, Your Gay Friend, Sin Sin Sin, Random Acts of Kindness, The Trouble With Me, King of Bloke and Bird and Make Me Pure which goes like this Oh Lord, make me pure/ but not yet……

The Romantic Hero

If Williams is the Bad Boy of British pop, then I nominate James Blunt as the Romantic Hero. A soldier who was once a guard at Buckingham Palace (Did he wear one of those bearskin hats rain or shine?) and a peacekeeper in Bosnia, Blunt seems like an unlikely pop idol. But backed by his guitar, his soulful rendition of simple melodies have captured the hearts of sentimental souls all over the world. His first album, Back to Bedlam is No. 3 in the UK while the single You’re Beautiful is No. 5 in the Billboard Hot 100 list in the USA.

We are already familiar with his first hit, You’re Beautiful. So you might want to check out the rest of the songs in Back to Bedlam. If you want something heroic, there is No Bravery. If you want something sad, there are Goodbye My Lover and Tears and Rain. But no matter which cut you decide to listen to, High, Wise Men, Out of My Mind, So Long Jimmy, Billy or Cry, you will surely agree Blunt is the kind they describe as having star quality. This guy is a major music discovery. Too bad for the Brit army.

Top-selling singles and albums

Meanwhile, the Tops of the Pops, the most authoritative hit list in the UK has these releases in the top ten. The singles are: Nasty Girl by the late Notorious Big featuring Diddy and Nelly; Run It by Chris Brown featuring Juelz Santana; Boys Will Be Boys by Ordinary Boys; Check on It by Beyoncé featuring Slim Thug; You Spin Me Around by Dead or Alive; Say Say Say (Waiting 4 U) by Hi-Tack; That’s My Goal by Shayne Ward; When the Sun Goes Down by Arctic Monkeys; All Time Love by Will Young; and JCB Song by Nizlopi.

The top 10 selling albums are: Whatever People Say I Am by Arctic Monkeys; Keys to the World by Richard Ashcroft; Back to Bedlam by James Blunt; Keep On by Will Young; Stars of CCTV by Hard-Fi; Employment by Kaiser Chiefs; Veneer by Jose Gonzalez; From Daniel with Love by Daniel O’Donnell; The Back Room by Editors; and Breakaway by Kelly Clarkson.