EXCLUSIVE - Take That How Deep is your Love [ Rare live performance ]

From my personal archive, Check it out this amazing performance of Take That's How deep is your love !

Follow us on Twitter and Facebook ! 

ARTICLES - GARY BARLOW DOTMUSIC 23 JUNE 1996.

Take That's Songsmith Aims High On Solo Project

There's confident and there's confident. When Gary Barlow says he's "fairly confident" about his upcoming debut solo album, it's clear what level of success he has become used to. "I'm hoping to sell 10m copies," he says.

Now that dotmusic has exclusively heard four tracks from Open Road, which is due in September, we can reveal that confidence is justified. The songs display his growing maturity as a composer, but they remain catchy enough to ensure he doesn't lose his Take That fans. Speaking to Barlow - polite and communicative to the point of garrulousness - about his fresh start, it is clear that it was always intended he should pursue a solo career. "Nigel Martin-Smith originally built a band around me and the others were aware of that from the start. I'd always been a solo artist, although I was only playing clubs, and I loved the freedom. Then I joined a band and I decided that was what I wanted because it was such a laugh. The whole band thing flowered over 12 months and what was possibly going to last for a couple of singles or an album took on a life of its own."

Events took over but Take That's run came to end, hastened by the departure of Robbie Williams and the desire of the other members to take some time off. Martin-Smith pointed out that the way the boy band market stood, if the boys were out of the spotlight for any length of time, it could result in oblivion. At this point, everyone - and Barlow maintains it was a collective decision - decided to call it a day while they were still at the top.

ARTICLES - ROBBIE WILLIAMS Independent on Sunday, 1 December 1996

The artist formerly known as the pretty one 

Independent on Sunday, 1 December 1996

But the Take That diaspora has gone against expectations over the past seven months or so. Gary Barlow's bid for instant George Michael- hood began with terrifying efficiency. Gary took a succession of grown- up music journalists for rides in his sportscar and introduced them to his girlfriend, then had a No 1 single. But his album, set for release in October, was withdrawn from the schedules at the last minute on the grounds that it was not quite clinical enough for the American market.

The Robbie Williams approach seemed more fun. Robbie trumped Gary' s earnest niche-marketing endeavour with a stroke of brazen genius by simply covering George Michael's "Freedom", then put the icing on the cake of the resultant No 1 single by beingsighted at a Brian Eno book-launch. Unfortunately, he then ate the cake.

ARTICLES - ROBBIE WILLIAMS Attitude Magazine, August 1996 Back For Good

Robbie Williams - Back For Good

Attitude Magazine, August 1996

In a brutally honest interview Robbie Williams tell Ben Marshall about his love/hate relationship with Take That, Gary Barlow and how he wants to be "a fucking cool c**t".

I once saw a cow just a few seconds before a farmer fired a bolt into his head. It ambled serenely toward his slaughter, body fattened to beefy perfection, eyes docile and tragically trusting. A moment later it went to cow heaven in a halo of blood and brains. I guess that´s the way Take That looked the day they signed their record deal. Kind of. But if you are to believe Robbie Williams, Gary Barlow probably looked more like the executioner.

Traces of big dumb faith still flashe Robbie´s eyes as he relays his tragi-comic tale. Eight number ones, 15 million record sales and tidal waves of attention don´t wash the trust from a boy´s eyes, and cynicism and life-saving scepticism are things that did not come naturally to Robbie. He had to work at them. He had to learn to be hard the hard way.

We have now spent seven hours together. We have drunk ourselves into a state of glazed immobility and beyond into frenzied animation. Robbie presently trying to explain why he never felt quite comfortable as the most popular member of the most successful British pop act this decade. For Robbie though, a simple explanation will not suffice. Robbie has to illustrate his reasons. He has quite literally to perform them.

"Ya see," he says, "we were a fucking great pop band but then at the end of the day, that is all we were."

He swaggers camply across the room fluttering his eyelashes at an imaginary stadium and shoving his chin forward in a Page Seven Fellah kind of look.

"I mean," he continues, "how seriously can ya take a band when they end the show going like that?"

He drops suddenly to one knee and thrusts a clenched fist into the air. The gesture, so quintessentially Take That, is at once rousingly triumphant and curiously supplicant.

"I mean, I didn´t wanna fucking do that!" He repeats the gesture.

ARTICLES - ROBBIE WILLIAMS Hanging Out Transcript MTV, August 1996

Hanging Out Transcript 

MTV, August 1996

Anthony: Who is it?
Robbie: It's Rob!
Anthony: Hi, what are you up to?
Robbie: I'm on MTV!
Anthony: I know you're on MTV, what time are you finishing?
Robbie: I'll be home soon! Have you got any cheese and peas?
Anthony: What? Cheese and peas!
Robbie: Cheese and peas! What?
Anthony: That's just crazy talk!
Robbie: You are live on MTV, to the MTV viewers, of Europe, turn on the television!
Eden: (shouting) "OPEN THE TEL!!" (these were her words, and her grammar mistake)
Robbie: We have this cable thing, when you can't turn it on.
Anthony: Hey, I've done it, you're live!
Robbie: Hi mate
Eden: Robbie, after you have been chatting to him, I wanna ask him something
Robbie: OK
Eden: So, Anthony, what can you tell us about Robbie that nobody else knows?

ARTICLES - ROBBIE WILLIAMS TV Hits Magazine, July 1996

The Press Conference

TV Hits Magazine, July 1996

Much cheering and clapping followed before Robbie finally appeared doing what can only be described as a 'chicken walk' across the stage before sitting down, moaning about England being knocked out of Euro '96. This is the press conference exactly as it happened.......

Have you a message for your German fans? 
It'll be out soon. I'm really looking forward to coming out to everywhere, not just Germany - the whole world. I want to be seen and heard as an artist and also have a lot of fun along the way - I'm dying to get out of my local place.

Are you thinking about a career in TV at all?
I don't know really. I'm concentrating on music at the minute. I'm going to strike out the possibility of doing anything on popular TV for the while I've got to write an album, you know! There's a big hype surrounding all this ... I've got to write it all, you know what I mean!

There's speculation that Noel Gallagher's writing you a song is this to happen?
I suppose you've got to roll with it really, (everybody laughs), take your time, you've gotta say what you say, don't let anybody get in your way! I don't know, there might be, there might not be. Noel said he's quite willing to write me a song and I'd love for him to, but we'll see what happens...I might get Bonehead to write me a song instead! I might get Guigsy to do me an ambient house mix!

ARTICLES - ROBBIE WILLIAMS The X-(Take That) Files Smash Hits Magazine, July 1996

The X-(Take That) Files

Smash Hits Magazine, July 1996

It's Thursday June 27, the day after Robbie Williams' infamous Freedom press conference, and by rights he should be feeling on top of the world. Chris Evans raved as he played Rob's debut single, a rocking George Michael cover of the teen idol anthem Freedom '90, and even weirdy-beardy George gave his public seal of approval. More controversial was the piece in The Sun titled 'I hate you, Barlow' which quoted Rob from a recent magazine interview, saying, "Gary's selfish, greedy, arrogant and thick. He's a clueless w*****." Ouch! Following a 12-month absence from the charts, Robbie Williams is the name on everyone's lips again - it's everything he's dreamed of. But as I arrive home from work that night, there's a message on my answer machine...and he doesn't sound happy. "It's Rob. I was just calling to see what you thought of last night. Call me back." I do, and the mood is low...
"How are you? I ask. "Not very well. I've got my hindsight T-shirt on and I hate myself for what I've said. Have you seen the newspapers?". "Yeah". He sighs, wearily. "I'm so disgusted with myself for saying those things. I'm so upset. I want to phone Gary and tell him how sorry I am. What must he think of me? The stupid thing is, I didn't mean it. Those aren't my feelings. But when I gave that interview, months ago, my head was still swimming from the whole Take That thing and...I've got no-one to blame but myself...I just wish I hadn't...I'm gonna go for a walk, I think."

ARTICLES - ROBBIE WILLIAMS The Press Conference Royal Lancaster Hotel, 26th June 1996

The Press Conference

Royal Lancaster Hotel, 26th June 1996

This picture was given out at the press conference along with the two statements below.

At 1 minute past midnight on 26th June 1996, Robbie held a press conference at the Royal Lancaster Hotel, London, W2. This statement was handed to the press as they entered.

"I'm here tonight to celebrate my freedom. There's been a lot of talk and speculation in the media and on the street about what has really happened since I left/was sacked from Take That.
I'd like to clear the air tonight but don't want to dwell on the past. I think I've said everything I've got to say about that chapter in my life. You've heard my new single which will be released on July 29th and it's the future that concerns me now. I'm happier than I've ever been in my life so please don't make me slag people off....but if you insist.
I've got a new family now, who've been totally supportive of me over the last few months - thank you JF and everybody at EMI/Chrysalis.To be honest with you I don't feel that I can really deal with talking about BMG and I don't want to give them any more of my time. If you've got any questions about anything else I'll be happy to answer them and my manager, Tim Abbot is here - he can fill you in a little more dispassionately about how we got to this point."

ARTICLES - ROBBIE WILLIAMS TFI Friday, CH4 UK, April 1996

Robbie on TFI Friday 

TFI Friday, CH4 UK, April 1996

Rob:- Evening Chris, evening Nigel and the boys.
Chris Evans:- Hair pie Robbie

Rob:- No thanks, I've just had my Slimfast - I'm alright.

Chris Evans:- You've just had your Slimfast

Rob:-Yeah

Chris Evans:- You've got a thing about your weight at the moment haven't you?

Rob:- Yeah, well, yeah. I came into rehearsals before and I saw... there was a side shot and I thought I've got to keep my hand...can we go back to that camera...I'm gonna keep my hand there for all that.

ARTICLES - ROBBIE WILLIAMS Daily Telegraph, 27 February 1996 Pop star faces £200,000 bill in court humiliation

Pop star faces £200,000 bill in court humiliation 

Daily Telegraph, 27 February 1996

An out-of-court settlement, thrashed out between lawyers for Williams and BMG on Sunday night, will allow him to launch a solo career but will stop him from signing to another record label. The singer must also pay BMG's legal fees estimated at £200,000. Williams had claimed that the terms of his contract, which gave BMG control over the career of Take That members even after they left, constituted an unreasonable restraint of trade and so unenforceable.

During the 90-second hearing before Mr Justice Lightman, the judge described the settlement as "very sensible". John Preston, chairman of BMG Records (UK), said the company was "delighted" Williams had accepted the validity of its contract. "It is a shame that Robbie didn't come and talk to us before he started litigation," he said in the statement. "We still want the best for him and all the other members of Take That." Williams also dropped his claims against Arista Records in the United States and withdrew his objections to Take That's Greatest Hits album, due out next month. "Contracts are there for a purpose, for the good of both parties, and are not there to be abused" Williams, who had been unhappy remaining with a record company still representing his former colleagues, now faces an uncertain future trying to carve a solo career with a record company with which he has fallen out so publicly.

ARTICLES - ROBBIE WILLIAMS The Independent, 14 February 1996

Broken promises as Take That can take no more 

The Independent, 14 February 1996

The decision will affect the legal position of Robbie Williams, who left the best-selling band last year and faces the band's record company, RCA, in the High Court in two weeks' time in an attempt to break his contract and start a solo career. It isrumoured he plans to team up with Noel Gallagher of Oasis once free of RCA.

Take That's singer-songwriter Gary Barlow said the group was splitting after the release of their next single, a cover of the Bee Gees song "How Deep Is Your Love?", and a greatest hits album. "Thanks for everybody' s support in the last five years.You've been absolutely fantastic ... but unfortunately the rumours are true," the 25-year-old told a press conference in Manchester.

Williams, who was celebrating his 22nd birthday, said:"Frankly, I am more concerned about how Port Vale do in the cup tonight [but] Take That were six years of my life and I know how the guys are feeling."

ARTICLES - ROBBIE WILLIAMS Reuters, 13 February 1996 Take That to split up

British pop group Take That to split up 

Reuters, 13 February 1996

The band said their last concert would be in the Netherlands in April. Take That have scored seven number one hits and sold around four million singles and three million albums in Britain alone. They have a huge teenage following in many European countries. It has long been rumored that Barlow would go solo like George Michael, who has achieved huge success since the break-up of the group Wham!.

"We do care an awful lot about the fans and we hope the fans will understand. We feel we have done all we can as Take That," group member Mark Owen said. The band's management may set up phone lines for distressed fans. Since rumors Take That were splitting up came to a head Monday, hundreds of tearful fans have flooded the switchboard of their record company RCA pleading for the group to stay together. In Germany, fans have been especially distraught and the German government also encouraged the band to set up the phone lines. German fans were among those who reacted worst when band member Robbie Williams quit the group last year.

ARTICLES - GARY BARLOW Q Magazine, October 1996

Interviewed By John Aizlewood

Sun's out. Tan's coming along nicely, ta. Debut showcase went off OK. Solo album in can. Take That a dim memory. Wish you were here. Luv. Gary Barlow. The club singer turned teeny idol turned New George Michael sends a postcard from the edge of acceptance, "I can't do anything else and that still worries me," he tells John Aizlewood.

Always a tricky one, the Christmas present for a 10-year-old son. Too young to be given wads of cash as an incentive to discover women or backpack to Tasmania and, frustratingly too old for a large sack of goodies from a big, possibly ficticious man with a suspiciously white beard. In 1981, Mr and Mrs Barlow of a Frodsham, Cheshire council estate and their son Gary, there was little festive dilema.

"I had a choice of a BMX bike or a keyboard," remembers Barlow, so wealthy ("I've got more money than I could ever dream of fucking spending") he doesn't need to work again and so young at 25 that he's never heard of Soft Cell. "I was watching Top Of The Pops and there was Marc Almond singing Tainted Love. With him there was this guy on a tiny keyboard. "I thought it sounded amazing. So thank God, I chose the keyboard."

ARTICLES - GARY BARLOW Big Magazine, 10th July 1996

He's finally gone solo. But was it planned all along? And how does he really feel about Robbie?

BIG: So Gary Barlow, tell us...... Was it always the plan that you would go solo?

G.B.: Initially, Take That was probably all created around me. It was six to twelve months before we realised we were going to be a real band. We grew so much as a team. We really cared for each other and looked after each other. We were a very human sort of band. If anyone was ever upset, we'd sort that out.

BIG: Always?

G.B.: Yeah, that's why it was such a blow to us when Robbie left. It really was. Other than all the crap that happened in the papers. It was nothing to how we felt. We'd been betrayed by a friend. We'd been through all that time together and then to read all that, "Robbie never knew us" crap. But we'd seen it coming a good six months before. He'd changed so much as a person, he'd lost that boy next door thing and he wanted to be a celebrity.

BIG: How did you feel about Rob going?

ARTICLES - GARY BARLOW Smash Hits Magazine, 3rd July 1996

Giving his first interview since Take That split, Gary Barlow talks exclusively to Kate Thornton about marriage, Robbie, Take That and his future as a solo artist on the eve of his debut release.

This time last year, getting an interview with Take That was on a par with getting an audience with the Pope. Back For Good had just topped the charts and they had made the record books as the fastest selling band of all time, with three platinum albums and a list of No 1 singles to their credit. American success beckoned - with the promise of global recognition - and months of phone calls and faxes were invested in obtaining just an hour with the biggest band in Britain.

Then, on April 4th, Take That disbanded in Amsterdam and Gary immediately retreated to a London recording studio, where he has been locked away since, working on his solo material. In keeping with his character he has stayed out of the public eye - until our interview last month.

You see, one year on, things have changed with Gary Barlow. If those changes could be put into one simple sentence. I would say (and he would agree) that he has reverted back to the person he was before he embarked on a most remarkable journey with Take That.

Now that chapter of his life is closed. He is happy with his memories of those golden days, but now Gary Barlow has new plans, new goals and a suprisingly relaxed new outlook on life. That said, he is a man on a mission, with so much to prove, confident in the knowledge that he has the ability to become the biggest British recording artist of the 90s.

ARTICLES - GARY BARLOW GMTV on ITV, UK, 15th -16th July 1996

In these exclusive interviews Gary talked to Anthea Turner whilst he was in a cafe in the South of France recently. They were aired on two different days and we have put them on here as they were shown.

15th July 1996

A.T.: You more than anyone must appreciate sitting in a place like this. I know there is a film crew here but we're very much on our own, is it unusual?

G.B.: It is so nice because I mean, if we'd have been here two years ago it would have been an unbareable experience and there's no doubt about it, life has calmed down a lot for me now, and it's very nice, I'm enjoying it very much

A.T.: What was the real story behind the split?

G.B.: Well, the blame was to be put on everyone's door, really. We sat in a hotel room in London. I think we'd all just about had enough, we'd been doing it for six years and we'd had a very uncomfortable six months and we just said, 'we've had enough'. I said, 'I've had enough, I'm a bit bored to be honest now, I feel we're doing the same thing over and over again', you know, there's an album to be done, a tour this year, etc etc and everyone said, 'I'm so glad you said that because we're feeling exactly the same.'

ARTICLES - GARY BARLOW Live & Kicking Magazine, June 1996

LnK: Why did Take That finish with a cover rather than the originally planned The Party's Over sung by Mark?

G.B.: The decision to release How Deep Is Your Love was made in connection with our Greatest Hits album before Christmas 1995. There aren't any new songs on the album, and we always liked the Bee Gees song and planned to cover it ages ago. The Party's Over is about three years old and was always meant as our swan song. We had long discussions about that! When we made the decision to split up, it was too late to bring out another single. So it just never happened.

LnK: Why were you the only one who got pushed off the cliff in the How Deep video?

G.B.: I really hated that video, I hated making it and I hated the end result. I was frozen for two whole days and I'm not at my best when I'm freezing cold! I wanted to re-shoot it but we ran out of time. The fork was quite painful and when the chair tipped backwards it really felt as if I was going! Somebody had to do it, they chose me, I'm game. I'll do anything - all my own stunts. Just call me Gary Schwarzenegger!

LnK: Why couldn't you have done a solo project within your band like other artists have done?

ARTICLES - GARY BARLOW - Arena Magazine, May 1996

Arena Magazine, May 1996

Interviewed by Giles Smith

GARY BARLOW, who is eating a Kit-Kat, says, "I was always a bit of an afterthought in Take That. I was always the last one the stylist bought clothes for because I wasn't interested in clothes and I never looked that good when I was in them. I was always the fat, white one everyone pushed to one side so they could get a shot of Mark and Robbie. The only thing I could shout and wave my arms about was the music. I could say, 'Here - listen to this. This is my music.' "

Now on his own, Gary Barlow confronts the predicament faced by any pop star whose career has opened to the sound of screaming girls. Count the artists in the last quarter of a century who have graduated with any dignity from the scream school. There's George Michael, who stepped, re-made, from the wreckage of Wham! And that's about it. There was, as I recall, precious little public call for new, mature work from Les McKeown of The Bay City Rollers. And Bros, anyone? What hope then, for Gaz from the That?

Except that, all along, it's been made clear to us that if anyone in that fresh-faced, all-dancing combo had a future, it was Gary. He was in Take That, but he wasn't essentially of Take That. He was the podgy one with the unwieldy haircuts, but this was OK, because he was the brains. (Unfair on Barlow, all this, who would strike you as a handsome boy in any other context than a photograph of Take That.) And now the end has come, so we're going to see how it pans out.

About the others - Jason, cute Mark, Howard and the chaotic and errant Robbie - we just don't know. Gary thinks they'll be OK, including Robbie. (Gary is very disappointed in Robbie, for reasons we will come to.) But Gary was the lead singer and, more importantly, Gary wrote the songs - "Back For Good", "Babe", "Pray", "A Million Love Songs", a stream of gleamingly hooked, radio-friendly ballads and bouncers, the songs of someone, it was readily apparent, gifted beyond his tender years. He's already won two Ivor Novello songwriting awards; this year, to mark the demise of Take That, the Ivor Novello people have decided to give him a kind of Lifetime Achievement award. Gary Barlow is the grand old age of 25.

So how could we not feel confident for Gary? Gary was the talent. Gary is the talent. Now all he has to do is prove it.

ARTICLES - TV Hits Magazine, April 1996

TV Hits Magazine, April 1996

Gary's about to release his debut single, Forever Love, but he doesn't want it to be as big as his TT hits, believe it or not!

T.V.: So you're going to be first out of the Take That starting blocks with a solo career - are you the most ambitious?

G.B.: I do have a lot of ambition, and probably more so for my own career that the band. It's funny, there'll probably be a bit of competition between us all, but it'll be friendly rivalry.

T.V.: Now that Take That's over, will we notice a difference in your music?

G.B.: I think the music'll probably sound the most like Take That out of all of us, because I sang most of the songs and wrote most of them. But we'll have to wait and see..

T.V.: Is your stuff going to be better?

G.B.: It's definately a move on from what I was writing eighteen months ago. I was lucky because we were just about to start recording a new Take That album, so I had 17 songs ready for that. Since the break up I've written 20 more, so I was faced with the problem of getting 37 songs down to 12!

T.V.: What's your next goal?