Escapology (album)

Escapology
Studio album by Robbie Williams
Released 18 November 2002
Recorded 2002
Genre
Length 73:51
Label EMI
Producer
Robbie Williams chronology
Swing When You're Winning
(2001)
Escapology
(2002)
Live at Knebworth
(2003)
Singles from Escapology
  1. "Feel"
    Released: 2 December 2002
  2. "Come Undone"
    Released: 14 April 2003
  3. "Something Beautiful"
    Released: 28 July 2003
  4. "Sexed Up"
    Released: 3 November 2003
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[1]
Blender[2]
Entertainment Weekly(B-)[3]
The Guardian[4]
NME(4/10)[5]
PopMatters(negative)[6]
Rolling Stone[7]
Stylus(C+)[8]
Slant Magazine[9]
Yahoo! Music UK[10]

Escapology is the fifth studio album by English singer-songwriter Robbie Williams. It was released on 18 November 2002 through EMI Records.

The album debuted at number one in the United Kingdom with first-week sales of over 264,000, becoming Williams' fifth consecutive number one.

Background

In 2002, Williams signed a record-breaking £80 million contract with EMI.[11] The contract included a number of provisos, including the label ceding greater creative control to the artist and a commitment to breaking Williams in the American market. In return, EMI affirmed they would benefit from a cut of Williams' non-recording activities, including touring, publishing, and merchandising, thus protecting the company from any commercial downturn in the singer's album sales.[12] So far it has become the biggest music deal in British history.[13]

After a year out from recording, Williams began working on what would be his fifth studio album. The album heralded a new era for Williams, as he had taken a more active role in the making of the album, giving an indication of his growing confidence in the studio. "One Fine Day", "Nan's Song" and "Come Undone" were the first three songs that Robbie wrote without Guy Chambers' input. The majority of the album was recorded in Los Angeles. "Escapology" was arguably conceived as a concept album, due to its lyrical content being totally reflective of Williams' life as a popstar. The album focuses on his hopes and fears. Williams stated: "Half of the album it is written from the standpoint of 'Look, this is really me with my tears of a clown. Do they love me or hate me?' The rest of it is about somebody that I have to think I am to get up onstage. Because little me wouldn't get up there. It's too scary!"

As the contract stated, EMI attempted to break Williams in the American market; to this end the label asked him to tweak Escapology to suit the market. The American release shuffled the song order, removed "Song 3", "Hot Fudge", "Cursed" and one hidden track, added "Get a Little High" and "One Fine Day", and made "How Peculiar (Reprise)" a main album track instead of a hidden track. Williams promoted the album on shows such as Good Morning America, Last Call with Carson Daly and The Tonight Show. This version of the album won the award for Best Album by a Solo Male in the International Category at the Premios Oye! in Mexico.[14]

Reception

Initial critical response to Escapology was generally mixed. Metacritic, which assigns a normalised rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album has received an average score of 53, based on 11 reviews.[15]

Chart performance

Escapology debuted at number one in the United Kingdom on sales of 264,104, becoming Williams' fifth consecutive number-one album.[16] It also reached number one in Ireland, Germany, Sweden, Finland, Switzerland, Denmark and Austria. It also reached the top ten in other European countries. However, it failed to make an impact in the United States, only reaching number forty-three on the Billboard albums chart. Escapology became the best selling album of 2002 in the United Kingdom, selling 1.2 million copies,[13] and being certified 6× Platinum by the BPI in December 2003,[17] becoming the sixtieth best selling album of all time in the UK. The album sold over 6.5 million copies.

Singles

Track listing

No. TitleWriter(s) Length
1. "How Peculiar"  
3:13
2. "Feel"  
  • Williams
  • Chambers
4:22
3. "Something Beautiful"  
  • Williams
  • Chambers
4:48
4. "Monsoon"  
  • Williams
  • Chambers
3:46
5. "Sexed Up"  
  • Williams
  • Chambers
4:19
6. "Love Somebody"  
  • Williams
  • Chambers
4:10
7. "Revolution" (with Rose Stone)
  • Williams
  • Chambers
5:44
8. "Handsome Man"  
  • Williams
  • Chambers
  • Adrian Devoy
3:54
9. "Come Undone"  
  • Williams
  • Kristian Ottestad
  • Ashley Hamilton
  • Daniel Pierre
4:38
10. "Me and My Monkey"  
  • Williams
  • Chambers
7:12
11. "Song 3"  
  • Williams
  • Chambers
3:48
12. "Hot Fudge"  
  • Williams
  • Chambers
4:05
13. "Cursed"  
  • Williams
  • Chambers
  • Deevoy
4:01
14. "Nan's Song"  Williams 3:52
15. "How Peculiar (Reprise)" (hidden track)
  • Williams
  • Chambers
2:08
16. "I Tried Love" (hidden track)
  • Williams
  • Chambers
3:38

Charts

Weekly charts

Chart (2002–03) Peak
position
Argentine Albums (CAPIF) 2
Australian Albums (ARIA)[24] 3
Austrian Albums (Ö3 Austria)[25] 1
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[26] 1
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia)[27] 3
Canada (Nielsen SoundScan) 15
Danish Albums (Hitlisten)[28] 1
Dutch Albums (MegaCharts)[29] 1
Europe (European Hot 100) 1
Finnish Albums (Suomen virallinen lista)[30] 1
French Albums (SNEP)[31] 3
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[32] 1
Greek Albums (IFPI)[33] 1
Hungarian Albums (MAHASZ)[34] 9
Irish Albums (IRMA)[35] 1
Italian Albums (FIMI)[36] 2
Japanese Albums (Oricon)[37] 40
Mexican Albums (Top 100 Mexico)[38] 3
New Zealand Albums (RMNZ)[39] 3
Norwegian Albums (VG-lista)[40] 1
Polish Albums (ZPAV)[41] 3
Portuguese Albums (AFP)[42] 3
Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan)[43] 1
Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)[44] 1
UK Albums (OCC)[45] 1
US Billboard 200[46] 43

Year-end charts

Chart (2002) Peak
position
UK Albums Chart (OCC)[47] 1

Decade-end charts

Chart (2000–2009) Peak
position
German Albums (Media Control Charts) 5
UK Albums Chart (OCC) 23

Certifications

Region Certification Certified units/Sales
Argentina (CAPIF)[48] Platinum 40,000*
Australia (ARIA)[49] 5× Platinum 350,000^
Austria (IFPI Austria)[50] 4× Platinum  
Canada (Music Canada)[51] Gold 50,000^
Denmark (IFPI Denmark)[52] 4× Platinum 200,000^
Finland (Musiikkituottajat)[53] Platinum 46,225[53]
France (SNEP)[54] Platinum 300,000*
Germany (BVMI)[55] 4× Platinum 1,200,000^
Greece (IFPI Greece)[56] Gold 15,000^
Hungary (MAHASZ)[57] Gold 10,000^
Netherlands (NVPI)[58] 2× Platinum 160,000^
New Zealand (RMNZ)[59] 2× Platinum 30,000^
Poland (ZPAV)[60] Platinum 70,000*
Sweden (GLF)[61] Platinum 60,000^
Switzerland (IFPI Switzerland)[62] 5× Platinum 200,000^
United Kingdom (BPI)[17] 6× Platinum 2,047,299[63]
Summaries
Europe (IFPI)[64] 5× Platinum 5,000,000*

*sales figures based on certification alone
^shipments figures based on certification alone

References

  1. Escapology at AllMusic
  2. Blender review
  3. Entertainment Weekly review. Ew.com (31 March 2003).
  4. The Guardian review. Guardian (15 November 2002).
  5. NME review. NME. (21 November 2002).
  6. PopMatters review. PopMatters.
  7. "Rolling Stone review". Archived from the original on 5 February 2008. Retrieved 2008-02-05.. Rolling Stone.
  8. Stylus Magazine review Archived 17 May 2008 at the Wayback Machine.. Stylusmagazine.com.
  9. Slant Magazine review. Slantmagazine.com.
  10. Yahoo! Music review. Uk.launch.yahoo.com (20 April 2011).
  11. "£80 Million Contract with EMI Music". Britandgrit.wordpress.com. 15 February 2007. Retrieved 11 October 2009.
  12. Robbie Williams and his record-breaking music contract with EMI. Rtl.musicbrigade.com.
  13. 1 2 "Escapology | RobbieWilliams.com". robbiewilliams.com. 2011. Retrieved 15 May 2011.
  14. "Oye! 2003". Archived from the original on 22 January 2008. Retrieved 2008-01-22.
  15. "Robbie Williams:Escapology (2003): Reviews". Metacritic. CNET Networks, Inc. Retrieved 2 April 2009.
  16. Jones, Alan (30 November 2002). "The official UK album charts top 75)". Music Week. HighBeam Research. Retrieved 7 March 2016.
  17. 1 2 "British album certifications – Robbie Williams – Escapology". British Phonographic Industry. Enter Escapology in the field Keywords. Select Title in the field Search by. Select album in the field By Format. Click Search
  18. "Discography>Singles>Feel". RobbieWilliams.com. Retrieved 11 October 2009.
  19. "Robert Peter Williams". famous.y2u.co.uk.
  20. "YouTube 'Come Undone'". YouTube.
  21. 1 2 "Escapology". Famous.y2u.co.uk. Retrieved 11 October 2009.
  22. "Discography>Singles>Come Undone". Robbiewilliams.com. Retrieved 11 October 2009.
  23. "Discography>Singles>Something Beautiful". Robbiewilliams.com. Retrieved 11 October 2009.
  24. "Australiancharts.com – Robbie Williams – Escapology". Hung Medien.
  25. "Austriancharts.at – Robbie Williams – Escapology" (in German). Hung Medien.
  26. "Ultratop.be – Robbie Williams – Escapology" (in Dutch). Hung Medien.
  27. "Ultratop.be – Robbie Williams – Escapology" (in French). Hung Medien.
  28. "Danishcharts.com – Robbie Williams – Escapology". Hung Medien.
  29. "Dutchcharts.nl – Robbie Williams – Escapology" (in Dutch). Hung Medien.
  30. "Robbie Williams: Escapology" (in Finnish). Musiikkituottajat IFPI Finland.
  31. "Lescharts.com – Robbie Williams – Escapology". Hung Medien.
  32. "Officialcharts.de – Top 100 Longplay". GfK Entertainment Charts.
  33. "Greekcharts.com – Robbie Williams – Escapology". Hung Medien.
  34. "Top 40 album DVD és válogatáslemez-lista – . . hét" (in Hungarian). MAHASZ.
  35. "GFK Chart-Track Albums: Week , ". Chart-Track. IRMA.
  36. "Italiancharts.com – Robbie Williams – Escapology". Hung Medien.
  37. "ロビー・ウィリアムスのアルバム売上ランキング" (in Japanese). Oricon. Retrieved 1 July 2014.
  38. "Mexicancharts.com – Robbie Williams – Escapology". Hung Medien.
  39. "Charts.org.nz – Robbie Williams – Escapology". Hung Medien.
  40. "Norwegiancharts.com – Robbie Williams – Escapology". Hung Medien.
  41. "Oficjalna lista sprzedaży :: OLIS - Official Retail Sales Chart". OLiS. Polish Society of the Phonographic Industry.
  42. "Portuguesecharts.com – Robbie Williams – Escapology". Hung Medien.
  43. "Swedishcharts.com – Robbie Williams – Escapology". Hung Medien.
  44. "Swisscharts.com – Robbie Williams – Escapology". Hung Medien.
  45. "Robbie Williams | Artist | Official Charts". UK Albums Chart
  46. "Robbie Williams – Chart history" Billboard 200 for Robbie Williams.
  47. "End of Year Album Chart Top 100 - 2002". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 25 October 2015.
  48. "Argentinian album certifications – Robbie Williams – Escapology". Argentine Chamber of Phonograms and Videograms Producers.
  49. "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 2006 Albums". Australian Recording Industry Association.
  50. "Austrian album certifications – Robbie Williams – Escapology" (in German). IFPI Austria. Enter Robbie Williams in the field Interpret. Enter Escapology in the field Titel. Select album in the field Format. Click Suchen
  51. "Canadian album certifications – Robbie Williams – Escapology". Music Canada.
  52. "Danish album certifications – Robbie Williams – Escapology". IFPI Denmark. Click on næste to go to page 11 if certification from official website
  53. 1 2 "Robbie Williams" (in Finnish). Musiikkituottajat – IFPI Finland.
  54. "French album certifications – Robbie Williams – Escapology" (in French). Syndicat National de l'Édition Phonographique.
  55. "Gold-/Platin-Datenbank (Robbie Williams; 'Escapology')" (in German). Bundesverband Musikindustrie.
  56. "Greek album certifications – Robbie Williams – Escapology" (in Greek). IFPI Greece.
  57. "Adatbázis – Arany- és platinalemezek – 2003" (in Hungarian). MAHASZ.
  58. "Dutch album certifications – Robbie Williams – Escapology" (in Dutch). Nederlandse Vereniging van Producenten en Importeurs van beeld- en geluidsdragers.
  59. "New Zealand album certifications – Robbie Williams – Escapology". Recorded Music NZ.
  60. "Polish album certifications – Robbie Williams – Escapology" (in Polish). Polish Society of the Phonographic Industry.
  61. "Guld- och Platinacertifikat − År 2002" (PDF) (in Swedish). IFPI Sweden.
  62. "The Official Swiss Charts and Music Community: Awards (Robbie Williams; 'Escapology')". IFPI Switzerland. Hung Medien.
  63. Jones, Alan (12 March 2008). "The 20 biggest selling albums of the 21st Century". Music Week. Intent Media. Archived from the original on 12 February 2012. Retrieved 8 June 2013.
  64. "IFPI Platinum Europe Awards – 2003". International Federation of the Phonographic Industry.
This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the 11/17/2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.