THE 1000 BEST SONGS IN THE WORLD EVER.

406-Robbie Williams-Angels.

1997-Number 4 single.

Best Bit-At 2.50. Noel Gallagher once famously called Robbie Williams ‘The fat dancer from Take That,’ but I wound imagine that even Noel Gallagher would have been proud to write this song.

It’s the song which probably saved Robbie Williams solo career.

The origins of who actually wrote ‘Angels’ is a little murky, and controversial to say the least. The Irish singer/songwriter Ray Heffernan insists he wrote the first version of ‘Angels’ in Paris in 1996, after his partner had a miscarriage. Heffernan has said that in Irish parlance a stillborn child is ‘born an angel,’ and that is what the song is about. Heffernan has also said that he met Williams in a pub by chance in Dublin. He showed him an incomplete version of the song, and later that week the two recorded a demo. Williams confirms he did record a demo, but said he rewrote the song significantly with Guy Chambers. When Heffernan learned that a version of ‘Angels’ was to appear on Robbie Williams debut Album ‘Life Thru A Lens’ he accepted an offer from William’s management to buy the songs rights for £7,500. To date it is estimated that ‘Angels’ has sold around 1.8 million copies, earning around £9 million in the UK alone. Heffernan’s name does not appear on the records song writing credits, which only names Williams, and Chambers. Hefernan has said that he was only 23 years old at the time, and naive, ‘For a long time I was angry about this, but as you get older you see things differently. The Angels connection has opened doors to publishing companies and earned me a few quid.’ In 2009 Williams told his biographer Chris Heath that ‘Angels’ is about his fascination with the paranormal, he said,’I believed that stuff when I wrote Angels, that’s why I wrote Angels. Angels isn’t about anybody, it’s about the thoughts that loved ones that have passed on, come back and take care of you.’

Robert Peter Williams was born on February 13th, 1974, in Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, England. His big break occurred after successfully applying to be a member of a new boy band to be called ‘Take That,’ being put together by Nigel Martin-Smith. In 1995 he mutually agreed to leave the band, but due to legalities in his contract he couldn’t start a solo career until June 1996. Williams first met Guy Chambers in January 1997, and has worked with him on nine of his studio Albums. In total Robbie Williams has released 12 studio Albums between 1997-2019. He has released 59 singles to date of which 33 have reached the UK top 40, of which seven have made Number 1. He has also had a further two top 40 hits as a featured artist, and appeared on five charity singles, of which four made Number 1. As a member of Take That he has appeared on six of their studio Albums in two stints between 1992-1995, and then between 2010-2018.

‘I sit and wait, does an angel contemplate my fate. And do they know the places where we go when we’re grey and old. ‘Cause I have been told that salvation let’s their wings unfold.’