Wednesday, 11 December 2013

Robbie Williams- Swings Both Ways Album Review


 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Album- Swings Both Ways
Artist- Robbie Williams

Robbie Williams has always been one of those singers whose career has really been characterised by his showmanship and the fact that he might not be the greatest singer, but he definitely just wants to really entertain you. That kind of sensibilities lends itself well to the genre of swing music, and so it is no surprise that the second biggest selling album of his career in the UK was his swing record Swig When Your Winning, which has sold over 2 million copies to date. Williams revisits the genre once again for his tenth album Swings both Ways, which reunites him with record producer Guy Chambers and which also features some new material alongside his revisiting of old classics.  But does Williams do justice to the genre, and is as excited as that last swing record, or has he just really completely failed?

Track 1- Shine My Shoes

Opening track and promotional single shine my shoes is a snappy, big and bold opening number that sees the joyful Williams in full on entertain you mode. An original composition, the song is a kiss of to the people who dislike Williams, with the singer basically stating that he doesn’t care if you don’t like him and he is just going to enjoy himself and the success he deserves. The simple, snappy tone of the lyrics is nicely emphasised by the feisty vocal delivery of Williams who definitely sounds like a man who is just enjoying life. Guy Chambers works wonders with the songs bold and brassy production, giving us a great up tempo sound built on blasting horns and this groovy drum rhythm that will make this a stellar opening for the singer’s live shows in support of the record.

3.5/5

Track 2- Go Gentle

Since becoming a father Williams has definitely exuded this sense of a change in who he is, and this is reflected within the song Go Gentle, which is basically an open letter to his daughter Teddy as it is a nice swing based pop tune. The song is lyrically all about Williams telling his daughter to be careful out in the world, especially with regards to dating, and he just wants her to take things gently and grow up to be a love woman. It might be a bit premature considering his daughter is just a baby, but the song nicely touches that father daughter sensibility quietly nicely, and the song will probably resonant with a few of the singer’s male fans. The song finds Williams giving us a softer vocal performance that is a little bit annoying in the chorus but which exudes this sense of warmth and trust, and with the snappy but equally as soft swing sound accompanying him, this is a simple and different song from the singer that might not show great growth as a music artist but shows great growth as a human being.

3.5/5

Track 3- I Wan’na Be Like You (featuring Olly Murs)

With the weird pop bromance that they have going on, it is only right that Williams teams up with singer and former X Factor contestant Olly Murs for a fun loving, cheeky cover of a song from the Walt Disney classic The Jungle Book. The songs lyrical message is pretty much summed up in the title, and ignoring the monkey related imagery, the song actually could be seen as Murs showing his love for Williams whilst Williams also passes his music crown onto the next generation that Murs is. The song finds the two singers’ melding together well vocally and with the quirky horns, catchy saxophone and twinkling piano melodies, it is a classic cover that lets the listener in on a lovely musical partnership.

3.5/5

Track 4- Swing Supreme

Swing Supreme finds the singer revisiting one of his earlier musical hits Supreme and placing it within this cool Swing environment. The song is all about the search for a love that is supreme, and the song finds the singer giving us a light, simple vocal performance that captures the emotion of the search quite nicely. The snappy swing production with the big band horn blasts and stomping build-up of the track puts a great jazz spin on the original track, and in many ways he almost manages to make the original tune better.

3.5/5

Track 5- Swings Both Ways (featuring Rufus Wainwright)

Title track Swings Both Ways is a light and smooth duet with American singer-songwriter Rufus Wainright. The song is cool and fun track in that it pokes fun at the fact that many people characterise Williams as being gay, coming to the conclusion that everyone is actually just a bit gay and a bit straight, just too different degrees. The song simmers with this sensual energy in the vocals that nicely borders on friendship and something else, whilst Wainright and Williams play off each other really well. Chambers is once again brilliant with the production as he goes from these twinkling piano melodies and a soft understated sound to a big crescendo filled with horn blasts and this snappy tone that captures the songs fun and cheeky essence very nicely.

3.5/5

Track 6- Dream a Little Dream (featuring Lily Allen)

Williams brings British singer-songwriter Lily Allen on board for a cover of the classic song Dream a Little Dream. The song is about the two artists feeling lonely without the other person and asking their partner to dream of them just a little until their back together. The soft vocal combination of the two artists does justice to the song, with Allen’s natural tone brilliantly lending itself to the sweetness of the track in a very naturally way. The lush string arrangement and understated piano melody creates a soothing feel to the track that captures the magic of the song and doesn’t try to annoyingly change things too much, allowing the singer’s lovely partnership to really come through in a lovely way.

3.5/5

Track 7- Soda Pop (featuring Michael Buble)

Michael Buble is a contemporary artist whose own solo work is strongly characterised by this smooth charismatic swing style, and so it makes complete sense for Williams to bring the singer on board for his own swing album. After the lightness of the previous track we go into a rumbling swing affair with original song Soda Pop which is all about making something out of life and just selling yourself well so that you get to where you want to be. The lyrics are simple and aren’t necessarily that catchy, but the vocal partnership of Williams and Buble is awesome, with the two voices blending together very nicely and showing equal amounts of pizazz and charisma. Buble is also great in that he doesn’t overpower the song and really compliments Williams’ vocals. The bubbling swing sound with the toe tapping production and awesome saxophone solo just creates this snappy, almost euphoric feeling sound that makes this a lovely, lively show tune.

3.5/5

Track 8- Snowblind

Snowblind is a soft musical affair that has this shimmering musical tone that simmers in a way that is magical, and in many respects this song could have potentially been a Christmas track. The song is another original song that is all about Williams telling this person that they have changed their viewpoint and made their life that much better, a pure lovesong that could be written to either his wife or his new daughter. The lyrics pure intent makes the song really accessible for the listener and allows them to relate the song to a person within their own lives, whilst vocally Williams keeps things very understated and also nicely utilises some elements of his higher range. With a twinkling melody and rumbling drums that allows the sound to really build in this lovely, magical purity, Snowblind provides this lovely chilled space in the record that kind of allows both Williams and the listener a moment of reflection.

3.5/5

Track 9- Puttin’ on the Ritz

Williams covers and Irving Berlin classic with Puttin’ on the Ritz, a song that plays well on the showmanship of the genre and which focuses on the idea of being in this state of high fashion. The song is fun up tempo number that finds the singer in a vocally comfortable mode as he kind of talk sings and just allows the natural entertainer within himself to really shine. The more prominent force within the song is the vibrant big band sound which blends this cool string arrangement with thumping drum rhythms and great horn blasts that melds together to create a high fashion sound that perfectly compliments the lyrics.

3.5/5

Track 10- Little Green Apples (featuring Kelly Clarkson)

Robbie Williams teaming up with American singer-songwriter Kelly Clarkson for a cover of swing song was not something that I ever thought would happen, but somehow Williams actually managed to make it occur. Little Green Apples finds the two artists covering a Bobby Russell penned tune that is narrative led and paints this idyllic picture of love and warmth. The song is simple and pure with Williams and Clarkson sounding like a lovely vocal pair that is reminiscent of Williams duet with actress of Nicole Kidman, which was quite the highlight of his first swing album. The vocals are smooth and sweet and are backed by this joyful sound that features a nice acoustic guitar riff interspersed with some good use of violins and wind instruments to just create this really sweet, lovely and light texture to the song.

3.5/5

Track 11- Minnie the Moocher

A track that was a staple of the singers live shows that supported is a last studio album, Minnie the Moocher is a cover of a Cab Colloway song that features some drug references and playfully paints this picture of this questionable lady. The song’s lyrics aren’t really that catchy but what is more important about the song is that Williams utilises his call and response shtick that often characterises his live shows, and vocally he just sounds like a guy who is really having fun, which is infectious to listen to. The songs clunky piano rhythms and swaying jazz rhythms nicely changes pace within the song in different places and just creates this quirky number that will once again work really well when the singer goes on tour to support this record.

3.5/5

Track 12- If I Only Had a Brain

The final cover song on the album finds Williams taking on a classic track from the 1939 musical film The Wizard of Oz. The song is more powerful lyrically in the context of the film and makes more sense, but what is cool here is that Williams really changes the song up, turning it from an melancholic but upbeat song to a more stripped down, emotionally vulnerable song. Williams is vocally stronger here and seems to be more comfortable with his voice, whilst the lush laid back sound with the gorgeous piano instrumentation and lush string arrangement just creating this chilled but potent sound that nicely changes up a classic tune and makes you maybe rethink the whole feeling of the original song.

3.5/5

Track 13- No One Likes a Fat Pop Star

Final track No One Likes a Fat Pop Star is the final original song of the record and allows the singer to the finish the record being his cheeky self and also being very self- aware. The lyrics are funny and simple as the singer tells us of his love for food and how this doesn’t bode well for his pop career where image is quite important. The singers high vocal performance that gives a weariness to the track is just really amusing, and with the use of choir he just adds to the songs funny and appealing quality that shows he is so cool cause he can just left at himself whilst making a good song in a way that many other artists wouldn’t be able to. The songs production builds in intensity from the bell chimes and simply shiny tone to a big church like sound that makes the song just this kind of beats of a track that ends the album with Robbie just being Robbie.

3.5/5

Final Review

It was always going to be hard for Williams to top his first swing album, and whilst Swings Both Ways doesn’t quite do that, the album is still a solid record full of great tunes that see him utilise the genre to great effect and really show off his skills as an entertainer. Guy Chambers does a great job in producing the record, making each of the songs sounds really in tune with the lyrical tone of that track. The guest artists are great and Williams has this comfortable, I know who I am quality to his vocals, whilst the lyrics are as catchy in these versions as they were in the orginal versions of the songs, whilst the new compositions are also fun and lyrically structured well. The sound could have a bit more variety and 1 more really big, bold up tempo number would have been nice, but this is still an accomplished set that will safely see Willaims have continued success in his career.

7.5/10

Best Track- Little Green Apples (featuring Kelly Clarkson)

Worst Track- Puttin’ on the Ritz

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