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
No comments:
Post a Comment