Williams has received a record 18 Brit Awards, winning Best British Male Artist four times, Outstanding Contribution to Music twice, an Icon Award for his lasting impact on British culture, eight German ECHO Awards, and three MTV European Music Awards. In 2004, he was inducted into the UK Music Hall of Fame after being voted the Greatest Artist of the 1990s. According to the British Phonographic Industry (BPI), he has been certified for 20.2 million albums and 8.66 million singles in the UK as a solo artist. Five of his albums have also topped the Australian albums chart, and has sold 75 million records worldwide, making him one of the best-selling music artists of all time. He also topped the 2000–2010 UK airplay chart. His three concerts at Knebworth in 2003 drew over 375,000 people, the UK's biggest music event to that point. In 2014, he was awarded the freedom of his hometown of Stoke-on-Trent and had a tourist trail created and streets named in his honour. Williams' thirteenth album, XXV was released on 9 September 2022.
After 15 years, Williams rejoined Take That in 2010 to co-write and perform lead vocals on their album Progress, which became the second-fastest-selling album in UK chart history and the fastest-selling record of the century at the time. The subsequent stadium tour, which featured seven songs from Williams' solo career, became the biggest-selling concert in UK history when it sold 1.34 million tickets in less than 24 hours. In 2011, Take That frontman Gary Barlow confirmed that Williams had left the band for a second time to focus on his solo career, although he stated that the departure was amicable and that Williams was welcome to rejoin Take That in the future. Williams has since performed with Take That on three separate television appearances, and collaborated with Barlow on a number of projects such as the West End musical The Band.
Swing Supreme
Robbie Williams Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
All the lonely hearts in London
Caught a plane and flew away
The best women are married
The handsome men are gay
You feel deprived
Yeah are you questioning your size?
Are there bags under your eyes?
Do you leave dents where you sits?
Are you getting on a bits?
Will you survive
You must survive
When there's no love in town
A new century is bringing you down
All the places you have been
Trying to find a love supreme
A love supreme
Oh what are you really looking for?
Another partner in your life to abuse and to adore?
Is it lovey dovey stuff
Do you need a bit of rough?
Get on your knees
Yeah turn down the love songs that you hear
'Cause you can't avoid the sentiment
That echoes in your ear
Saying love will stop the pain
Saying love will kill the fear
Do you believe
You must believe
When there's no love in town
A new century is bringing you down
All the places you have been
Trying to find a love supreme
A love supreme
When there's no love in town
A new century is bringing you down
All the places you have been
Trying to find a love supreme
Our love supreme, our love supreme
Our love supreme
The lyrics to Robbie Williams's song "Swing Supreme" talk about the struggles of finding love and the loneliness that comes with it. The song opens with the idea that everything is at a standstill and people are leaving the city in search of love. The song discusses how the best women are married, and the handsome men are gay, leading to a feeling of being deprived of love.
The second verse asks a series of introspective questions, questioning the listener's self-image, and if they will be able to survive the difficulties of finding love. The chorus repeats the sentiment that when there's no love in town, the new century will bring you down, and all places you have been is an attempt to find a love supreme, which is the ultimate goal of the song.
The bridge suggests that people are looking for love in all the wrong places, hoping for a partner to both abuse and adore simultaneously. The verse then goes on to suggest that love is not enough to ease the pain or stop the fear that comes with being alone. The final chorus repeats the lyrics and expresses the desire for an "our love supreme," a shared love that is greater than any single person.
Overall, "Swing Supreme" is a song that reflects on the struggle of finding love and being alone, while evoking the sense that there is still hope to find the one "love supreme."
Line by Line Meaning
Oh it seemed forever stopped today
The feeling that time stopped when a painful memory resurfaces
All the lonely hearts in London
The people who feel empty and unloved in the city of London
Caught a plane and flew away
The desire to escape from loneliness and despair by any means necessary
The best women are married
The realization that the most desirable women are already taken
The handsome men are gay
The unfortunate situation where attractive men are not attracted to women
You feel deprived
The feeling of being left out or missing something important
Yeah are you questioning your size?
The insecurity of one's physical appearance and its impact on self-esteem
Is there a tumour in your humour
The fear that one's sense of humor may not be funny or likable to others
Are there bags under your eyes?
The physical signs of exhaustion and stress from searching for love
Do you leave dents where you sits?
The realization that one's weight and presence may be negatively affecting their surroundings and relationships
Are you getting on a bits?
The feeling of getting older and losing hope of finding love
Will you survive
The fear that loneliness and lack of love may lead to emotional and mental breakdown
You must survive
The determination to push through hardships and difficult emotions
When there's no love in town
The feeling of hopelessness and desperation when there is no romance or companionship available
A new century is bringing you down
The overwhelming feeling of the world changing too fast and leaving people behind
All the places you have been
The journey of searching for love, yet not finding it, despite going to many different locations
Trying to find a love supreme
The constant search for a perfect and all-encompassing love
Oh what are you really looking for?
The self-reflection and questioning of what one truly desires in love and relationships
Another partner in your life to abuse and to adore?
The unhealthy pattern of seeking partners who may mistreat or manipulate them, yet are also the object of their affection
Is it lovey dovey stuff
The cliche and superficial representation of love, which may not be realistic or fulfilling
Do you need a bit of rough?
The desire for a partner who may not fit the traditional mold of attractiveness, yet still has desirable qualities
Get on your knees
The submission and vulnerability required to pursue love and express feelings
Yeah turn down the love songs that you hear
The recognition that the romanticization of love in media may not be helpful or realistic
'Cause you can't avoid the sentiment
The pervasive nature of love and its influence on emotions, despite attempts to ignore or resist it
That echoes in your ear
The constant reminder and presence of the idea of love and relationships
Saying love will stop the pain
The belief that finding love will be a cure for emotional pain and loneliness
Saying love will kill the fear
The idea that love will provide a sense of security and safety, and eliminate feelings of fear and uncertainty
Do you believe
The question posed of whether or not one truly believes in the power and importance of love
You must believe
The encouragement and reminder of the importance of holding onto hope and belief in finding love
Our love supreme, our love supreme
The idea that a perfect love, while rare and difficult to obtain, is possible between two people
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group, BMG Rights Management
Written by: Dino Fekaris, Frederick J Perren, Francois Paul Leon De Roubaix, Robert Peter Williams, Guy Anthony Chambers
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
CHRISA TZINIDAKI
Oh it seemed forever stopped today
All the lonely hearts in London
Caught a plane and flew away
The best women are married
The handsome men are gay
You feel deprived
Yeah are you questioning your size?
Is there a tumour in your humour
Are there bags under your eyes?
Do you leave dents where you sits?
Are you getting on a bits?
Will you survive
You must survive
When there's no love in town
A new century is bringing you down
All the places you have been
Trying to find a love supreme
A love supreme
Oh what are you really looking for?
Another partner in your life to abuse and to adore?
Is it lovey dovey stuff
Do you need a bit of rough?
Get on your knees
Yeah turn down the love songs that you hear
'Cause you can't avoid the sentiment
That echoes in your ear
Saying love will stop the pain
Saying love will kill the fear
Do you believe
You must believe
When there's no love in town
A new century is bringing you down
All the places you have been
Trying to find a love supreme
A love supreme
When there's no love in town
A new century is bringing you down
All the places you have been
Trying to find a love supreme
Our love supreme, our love supreme
Our love supreme
TMK2013
This still holds up today in 2020, it's what our generation needs is more Swing and Jazz. It's 100 years since The Roaring 20s started, let's turn modern day music into something that will make Chuck Berry and Frank Sinatra proud.
TheCanadianSkillerHD
TheMasterKiller2013 couldn’t agree more
tubeman123100
One of the best songs Frank Sinatra never sung!
Angus Meigh
Or Andy Williams who sang many famous jazz songs!
Lyriae
It's not a Frank Sinatra song, Robbie Williams just re-recorded it in a swing tone. But Frank Sinatra could have sung it.
OzzyMD
Classy as always. You're the man Robbie.
Rachel Fairfield
Robbie SOOOOO suits this genre of music, it's his style! Like Michael Buble, we need more people who can sing to this sort of style music :-) it would be epic if there did its a absolute friggin awesome genre of music!!!
Nina J
How do I see this for the first time now?! It's like maturing up, as I loved the original song a decade ago. It reminds me of lost would-have-been love, we sang it together once, and now this is a more serious, older-sounding version, refined, what time does to you in some way...
Mani Thangadurai
Still prefer the original, but this isn't half-bad! Top singer, as always!
baderjd
The best version ever