XXV by Robbie Williams
XXV is a compilation album by English singer Robbie Williams, released through Columbia Records on 9 September 2022. The album marks the 25th anniversary of Williams's solo career, and contains re-recorded and orchestrated versions of songs from his career, which were reworked by Jules Buckley, Guy Chambers and Steve Sidwell with the Metropole Orkest. The XXV version of "Angels" was released as the lead single, followed by the double single "Eternity/The Road to Mandalay" and the new song "Lost" as the third single. The deluxe edition of the album adds 11 tracks, including three more original songs—"Disco Symphony", "More Than This" and "The World and Her Mother". The album debuted at number 1 on the UK Official Charts. In reaching the summit, Williams broke Official Chart records with his fourteenth solo number one album. Background On 7 June 2022, Williams announced that his thirteenth studio album, XXV, would be released on 9 September 2022. It features new versions of his hit songs, plus new material. On the same day as this announcement, Williams released "Angels (XXV)", a reworked version of "Angels". Singles The first single taken from XXV was a reimagined version of his hit single "Angels" and was released on 7 June 2022. On 10 June 2022, "Angels (XXV)" reached number 92 on the UK Official Singles Sales Chart, rising to 74 a week later. The second official single was "Lost (XXV)". It was released on 5 August 2022.
Arriving 25 years to the month since the release of his debut solo album <i>Life Thru a Lens</i>, Robbie Williams’ <i>XXV</i> surveys his first quarter-century as a solo artist by reupholstering a clutch of his hits with Dutch jazz and pop orchestra Metropole Orkest. Plenty of those songs—“Feel”, “Come Undone”, “Angels”—were built with aerodynamic choruses that beg to be lifted a little further and higher by some orchestral thermals, so it’s no surprise that this proves to be a successful and satisfying venture. It’s not just a case of bolting (more) strings and brass onto the tracks, though. With the assistance of long-time collaborators Guy Chambers and Steve Sidwell, plus conductor Jules Buckley, arrangements are deconstructed, tempos tweaked and lyrics rethought to bring new tones and perspectives to some pop gems. Originally a frustrated parting swipe at his former Take That bandmates, “No Regrets” gets added drama with bracing stabs of noise from the orchestra. It’s all in the service of reconciliation, though, as Williams changes the final line from “I guess the love we once had is officially dead” to “I guess the love we once had is officially undead.” The Metropole Orkest keep themselves to a gentle shimmer while “She’s the One” is reworked into a meditative country ballad, and Williams betrays the wisdom of age and experience on “Come Undone”, where the line “I’m not scared of dying, I just don’t want to” rings with more defiance and less despair than it once did. As for clues about where Williams will head over the next 25 years, the suggestion to be drawn from the four new tracks here is that he’ll retain his sense of musical adventure, arched-eyebrow wit and the lessons of a life lived. The orchestral pop of “Lost” and “The World and Her Mother” takes a rueful look back on wilder days, while “More Than This” is heart-swelling pop-rock that offers an arm around the shoulder in dark times. “Disco Symphony” is everything the title suggests—a strings-assisted trip to the dance floor that begins, “Another floor filler from your tortured singer/You’ve been singing other songs but I’ll forgive ya.” Twenty-five years on, there’s clearly more to come.
