Robbie Williams: Video Killed The Radio Star
The return of Robbie Williams after a 3 year hiatus has been an interesting one. The single received mixed reviews, mostly favourable and his performance on The X-Factor was followed by a bunch of silly and unfounded accusations of him being high on something other than pure adrenalin.
His upcoming album, “Reality Killed The Video Star” is hotly anticpated, and it is produced by the man whose 80’s song title it parodies, Trevor Horn.
Last night, as part of the BBC’s Electric Proms (another reason why the UK’s TV Licence Fee is completely and utterly justified) Robbie performed a more complete set, backed by a massive band arranged and organised by Trevor Horn (who also played his 5 string bass…. Trevor is an exceptional bass player… anyone who can play the bass line to Close (To The Edit) live is a legend in anyone’s book) and also featuring the exceptionally gifted Anne Dudley on piano and keys.
One of the many highlights to this performance was Robbie’s cover of the song that inspired his album’s title, “Video Killed The Radio Star”, complete with Trevor Horn specs! 😉
Enjoy….
Where’s Mark David Chapman when you need him…
Harsh.
I am constantly amazed at people having a pop at Robbie. It’s so typical and cliché to knock someone of his stature, who CLEARLY has an immense talent as a performer. Putting his drink/drug problems aside (which are another excuse for people to knock him) he’s just a human being like us, but a human being whose charisma, music and talent has had 125,000 in the palm of his hand in one gig.
So, he’s letting the façade slip a little. So he allows his emotions to get the better of him more than before. So he never cracked America (they wouldn’t “get” him in a million years). He has long since transcended the boy band monkey on his back. He has proven time and again that he possesses a fine and great talent for singing & entertaining.
People love to knock a winner. Why? Is it jealousy? Not that they’d ever admit it. Is it resentment that their other halves get all moist in the gusset at the mere mention of his name? Is it because so many would love to have his cockiness and attitude but don’t have the balls? Ironically, it would seem all that is a shield that masks a more fragile personality than we first thought.
Robbie has consistently delivered fine tunes, witty lyrics, great fun and excellent entertainment. We seem to live in a world where society seems incredibly happy to glamorise failure, inadequacy and ignorance and so incredibly keen to knock and lambaste those with talent and the courage to share it with others.
You don’t sell 55 million albums, 1.6 million concert tickets in a day and perform in front of 125,000 at one gig if you’re shit.