Robbie Williams - Life Thru A Lens
For this week's Classic Cuts, we're going back to 1997 for Robbie Williams' first solo album after his initial departure from Take That.
Moving on from Take That, Robbie kicks off his solo album with a big Brit-pop influence, a far cry from the safe pop of his previous band.
It exposes the fact that his vocals aren't actually as great as people have since made out, but it's his charisma that carries songs like the title track, and make them so memorable.
Lyrically, there's some attempts at diversity, from dealing with middle age (the fantastic 'Old Before I Die'), death ('Angels') and former (now occasionally current) bandmate Gary Barlow ('Ego Agogo').
Williams does move away from his sometimes irritating quasi-rock persona for some tender moments, including the beautiful 'One of God's Better People'.
This was the start of a writing partnership between Williams and Guy Chambers, and it showed diversity and knowledge of pop sensibilities.
Perhaps the most honest moment of this album (and maybe one of the most raw moments of his' career) is the short hidden track at the end of the record, after a few minutes silence once 'Bady Girl Window' ends.
'Hello Sir' is a letter to a teacher who told Robbie that he couldn't make it, and should join the army.
It's a spoken-word poem about chasing your dreams, and points out that the teacher is still at the school, married to another teacher and his job, while Williams is sat "in first class. B******s sir, kiss my a**".
As a debut record, Life Thru A Lens fantastic, and most of these songs have stood the test of time.
Certainly, it is a much better record than Williams' later work, including the questionable Rudebox.
Sophomore record Sing When You're Winning would build on this, but Life Thru A Lens is a good reminder of how good Williams can be on his day.
Female First - Alistair McGeorge
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