Soundcheck: Why everyone wants Gary Barlow

by **Ginny** Sun Oct 04, 2009 8:41 pm

http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/music/article-23751961-soundcheck-why-everyone-wants-gary-barlow.do

Soundcheck: Why everyone wants Gary Barlow

His week the red-tops are getting scarlet with excitement at the news that Robbie Williams has been spied in a New York recording studio with his former Take That bandmates.

All five of the original gang have gathered in Manhattan for Mark Owen's stag do — but it's not the idea of the boys playing late-night drinking games that has everyone so het up. The real excitement lies around the tantalising possibility that Williams will again have songs written for him by the all-conquering Gary
Barlow.

Having brought their dazzling Circus tour to Wembley Stadium for four nights this summer, the current incarnation of Take That is hotter than ever, and there's no such thing as time off for their chief songwriter.

Barlow has written To Love Again, a barnstorming piano ballad, with Strictly Come Dancing judge Alesha Dixon for release as her latest single on 15 November. He's also composed This Time for a November comeback album by Shirley Bassey. “Gary is so good-looking and such a gentleman,” said the great dame recently.

Such is the breadth of his appeal that he's now writing for grime-pop teen favourites N-Dubz and the tabloids claim he's going to be working with the reformed Spandau Ballet. If he wrote a song for Gordon Brown, everything would probably be OK.

Then there's Barlow's record company. Future Records, a subsidiary of Take That's label Universal, has been put under Barlow's command as a reward for his band's renewed success. It is about to unveil its first signing. Camilla Kerslake, a 21-year-old from London via New Zealand, stalked Take That with a demo tape in hand until Barlow became convinced that her ghostly, operatic voice could conquer the lucrative classical crossover market. The first single, an Irish folk song entitled She Moved Through the Fair (released 2 November), has more than a bit of Enya about it. The subsequent album also features a cover of Take That's Rule the World, sung in Italian for extra classiness.

With Barlow behind her and a nation of mums in need of Christmas presents, she can't fail. “Gary's one of the biggest talents in the whole of the British music industry and an amazing mentor. How lucky am I?” she says.

It's a long way from the wilderness years after Take That's split. After his second solo album flopped in 1999, spending just one week at number 35 in the charts, Barlow never stopped working. He was in no position to be picky. While Robbie Williams was packing out stadiums, his songs found their way onto releases by Atomic Kitten, German girl group Monrose and X Factor disaster Michelle McManus. He also wrote most of two albums for Donny Osmond.

Did he go bad or were we just not paying attention? If the mark of truly great songwriters, like Dylan or Lennon and McCartney, is the song's ability to sound good in anyone's hands, does he flounder without his bandmates? Listening back to the music of those dark days — though it is difficult to describe as “dark” a period in which he wrote a song called Supersexy for boyband beefcakes Blue — it's clear that too often the songs became the property of inferior voices. A lack of composing confidence is sometimes detectable too. But dig deep and you realise he never lost it.

THE FORGOTTEN BALLADS

Gary Barlow's inspiration didn't dry up while he was in his wilderness years before Take That re-formed. Here are five gems he wrote for others that were overlooked at the time:

Butterfly
Performed by Delta Goodrem on Innocent Eyes (Epic, 2003)
Barlow co-wrote six songs on the teenage Australian soap star's debut album including this one, a fine tune that wouldn't disgrace his main band.

No Big Deal
Performed by Lara Fabian on
A Wonderful Life (Sony, 2004)
This Canada-based Celine Dion type is big in Francophone nations but didn't have much success with her second English-language album. One of Barlow's contributions was this almost rocky number with a typically memorable chorus.

Breeze on By
Performed by Donny Osmond on What I Meant to Say (Universal, 2004)
This smooth, summery single, centred on a lightly funky guitar lick and even featuring a flute solo, became a British top 10 hit for Osmond, his first since the early Seventies.

Easy Way Out
Performed by Charlotte Church on Tissues and Issues (Sony BMG, 2005)
Church's lone attempt at a pop album featured this impressive anthem, building from piano weepiness to a vast chorus loaded with strings.

For All That You Want
Performed by Gary Barlow on Twelve Months Eleven Days (BMG, 1999)
A Take That-style arm-swaying chorus that became Barlow's last solo single before he was dropped by his label. If only they'd known what was to come.

NEW ON THE NET

* Despite being weeks away from official releases as singles, Jay-Z's Empire State of Mind and Dizzee Rascal's Dirtee Cash are flying up the charts on sales as downloaded album tracks. Maybe more acts should sit back and let their fans pick their hits for them.

* With Spike Jonze directing and Arcade Fire on the trailer, Where the Wild Things Are is shaping up to be the hippest kids' film of all time. It's not released here until December, but the shockingly cool soundtrack is on sale in download stores this week. Put together by Karen O of Yeah Yeah Yeahs, it also features members of The Raconteurs and indie favourites Deerhunter.

* With something of their Sunderland neighbours The Futureheads in their yelpy, angular indie, promising Newcastle newcomers Little Comets could be spotted supporting Hockey in town this week, and have London gigs lined up with The Twang and Noisettes. Hand over your email address at www.littlecomets.com in exchange for the free download Friday Don't Need It.

source: GBML