Bodies (Robbie Williams song)

"Bodies"
Single by Robbie Williams
from the album Reality Killed the Video Star
Released	12 October 2009
Format	CD single digital download
Recorded	2008–09 London, United Kingdom
Genre	Pop rock synthpop
Length	4:03 (album version) 4:14 (music video)
Label	EMI
Writer(s)	Robbie Williams Brandon Christy Craig Russo
Producer(s)	Trevor Horn
Robbie Williams singles chronology
"Close My Eyes" (2009) "Bodies" (2009) "You Know Me" (2009)
Music video "Bodies" on YouTube

"Bodies" is a song by English recording artist Robbie Williams. It was released on 12 October 2009 by EMI as the lead single from his eighth studio album Reality Killed the Video Star (2009). It received its premiere on The Chris Moyles Show on BBC Radio 1 after an interview with Williams on 4 September 2009 at 8am.^[1] It is Williams' first single release as a solo artist since "She's Madonna" in March 2007.^[2]

"Bodies" entered and peaked at number two on the UK Singles Chart, selling 89,000 copies in its first week and attaining his best first-week sales since "Rock DJ" in August 2000.^[3] Williams was beaten to number 1 by Alexandra Burke, whose single "Bad Boys" (featuring rapper Flo Rida) was released on the same day and sold 187,000 in the same week.^[4] The cover art was photographed by Julian Broad.

Track listing

International CD single

1. "Bodies" — 4:04
2. "Bodies" (Body Double Remix) — 6:14

Digital EP

1. "Bodies" — 4:04
2. "Bodies" (Body Double Remix) — 6:14
3. "Bodies" (Fred Falke Remix) — 6:53
4. "Bodies" (Cahill Refix Edit) — 3:50

Lyrics

The song's cryptic lyrics, with a wide variety of religious references included, have been subject to a lot of speculation. In an October 2010 interview with Q magazine, Williams referred to the lyrics as "fucking gibberish" that he considered pointless. He also stated that "Who knows what I was going on about? I was fucking stoned."^[5]

Music video

The music video for "Bodies" was filmed in the Mojave Desert, directed by Williams' frequent collaborator Vaughan Arnell and features Williams' then girlfriend, and eventual wife (m. 2010), Ayda Field. It had its official premiere on 9 September 2009.

Critical reception

Popjustice called the song "[It's] a confident, dignified comeback single with a big chorus" commenting that the song is "better than: 'Let Me Entertain You' , as good as: 'Rock DJ', not as good as: 'Feel'." and adding that: "'Bodies' is not a comeback single that takes many chances – it is, career wise, Robbie's most important single since 'Angels' and there's obviously a certain amount of brand rebuilding needed. But nor is it a comeback single that attempts to pretend the last three years haven't happened. [...] 'Bodies' sounds like Robbie and Trevor Horn bringing out the best in each other – in this case 'the best' equalling a big comeback single from Britain's best male popstar."^[6]

Digital Spy gave the single four stars (out of five) and said that: "With an Ian Brown-esque funky strut, some monkish chanting and plenty of electro squelches, he hasn't completely ditched the not-so-successful experimentation of his last LP, but this time around he counterbalances it with a whopping great chorus that will have even Gary Barlow green with envy. [...] Packed full of his usual raised eyebrow cheekiness and with a barmy-but-bloody-massive bridge, we're still not entirely sure what the Robster's actually singing about. However, by the time he's launched into the choir-backed crescendo, on which he hollers like a hyperactive preacher, we're too sold to care. Welcome back Robbie - and don't leave it so long next time."^[7]

At a Southend gig in September 2012, Robbie commented that "Bodies" and "Rudebox" were both "lame songs" and that he had "let himself down". However, after fans spoke up against his claims via YouTube comments, he added the song to the setlist for his 2013 Stadium tour "Take the Crown."

Charts

Weekly positions Chart (2009) Peak position Australia (ARIA)[8] 4 Austria (Ö3 Austria Top 40)[9] 1 Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders)[10] 5 Belgium (Ultratop 50 Wallonia)[11] 2 Czech Republic (Rádio Top 100)[12] 2 Denmark (Tracklisten)[13] 2 Europe (European Hot 100 Singles)[14] 1 Finland (Suomen virallinen Radiolista)[15] 2 France (SNEP)[16] 8 Germany (Official German Charts)[17] 1 Hungary (Rádiós Top 40)[18] 1 Ireland (IRMA)[19] 3 Italy (FIMI)[20] 1 Japan (Japan Hot 100)[21] 53 Luxembourg Digital Songs (Billboard)[22] 1 Netherlands (Single Top 100)[23] 1 New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ)[24] 30 Norway (VG Lista)[25] 19 Slovakia (Rádio Top 100)[26] 1 Spain (PROMUSICAE)[27] 16 Sweden (Sverigetopplistan)[28] 4 Switzerland (Schweizer Hitparade)[29] 1 UK Singles (Official Charts Company)[30] 2 US Billboard Hot Dance Club Songs[31] 6

Certifications and sales Region Certification Certified units/Sales Australia (ARIA)[32] Gold 35,000^^ Germany (BVMI)[33] Gold 150,000^^ Italy (FIMI)[34] Platinum 30,000^* Switzerland (IFPI Switzerland)[35] Platinum 30,000^^ United Kingdom (BPI)[36] Silver 250,000[37] ^*sales figures based on certification alone ^^shipments figures based on certification alone Year-end charts Year-end chart (2009) Position Austrian Singles Chart[38] 16 German Singles Chart[39] 15 Hungarian Airplay Chart[40] 40 Italian Singles Chart[41] 21 Swiss Singles Chart[42] 16 UK Singles Chart[43] 80 European Hot 100[44] 36 Year-end chart (2010) Position European Hot 100 Singles[45] 47 Hungarian Airplay Chart[46] 15

Chart procession and succession

Release history

Country	Release date	Format	Label
United Kingdom	4 September 2009	Airplay	Virgin Records EMI
Australia	9 October 2009	CD single	Chrysalis Records EMI
Germany[47]
Austria
Switzerland
United Kingdom	11 October 2009	Digital download	Virgin Records EMI
France[48]	12 October 2009	CD single
United Kingdom
Mexico[49]	13 October 2009	Digital download	EMI

References

1. RW.com "Bodies" single cover, 4 September 2009
2. "Bodies" Songfacts, 9 September 2009
3. Petridis, Alexis (2009-10-21). "First night: Robbie Williams, Roundhouse, London | Music". The Guardian. Retrieved 2009-10-21.
4. "Alexandra Burke v. Robbie Williams". Digital Spy. Retrieved 2009-10-19.
5. Roberts, Laura (22 October 2010). "Robbie Williams: my comeback single was gibberish". The Daily Telegraph. London.
6. Popjustice "Bodies" review, 4 September 2009
7. "Music - Singles Reviews - Robbie Williams: 'Bodies'". Digital Spy. Retrieved 2009-10-12.
8. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 20 June 2009. Retrieved 2008-02-10.
9. "Austriancharts.at – Robbie Williams – Bodies" (in German). Ö3 Austria Top 40.
10. "Ultratop.be – Robbie Williams – Bodies" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50.
11. "Ultratop.be – Robbie Williams – Bodies" (in French). Ultratop 50.
12. "ČNS IFPI" (in Czech). Hitparáda – Radio Top 100 Oficiální. IFPI Czech Republic. Note: insert 200946 into search.
13. "Danishcharts.com – Robbie Williams – Bodies". Tracklisten.
14. "Robbie Williams – Chart history" European Hot 100 for Robbie Williams. Retrieved 2010-07-22.
15. "Listat - Radio Nova - Suomen suosituimmat vko 42/2009".
16. "Lescharts.com – Robbie Williams – Bodies" (in French). Les classement single.
17. "Offiziellecharts.de – Robbie Williams – Bodies". GfK Entertainment Charts.
18. "Archívum – Slágerlisták – MAHASZ" (in Hungarian). Rádiós Top 40 játszási lista. Magyar Hanglemezkiadók Szövetsége.
19. "Chart Track: Week 44, 2009". Irish Singles Chart.
20. "Robbie Williams - Bodies - Top Digital Download" (in Italian). Federation of the Italian Music Industry. Archived from the original on 25 October 2012. Retrieved 25 October 2012.
21. "Robbie Williams – Chart history" Japan Hot 100 for Robbie Williams.
22. "Luxembourg Digital Songs - November 14, 2009". Billboard.
23. "Dutchcharts.nl – Robbie Williams – Bodies" (in Dutch). Single Top 100.
24. "Charts.org.nz – Robbie Williams – Bodies". Top 40 Singles.
25. "Norway Digital Songs – Robbie Williams – Candy". Billboard.biz. Retrieved 11 November 2012.
26. "SNS IFPI" (in Slovak). Hitparáda – Radio Top 100 Oficiálna. IFPI Czech Republic. Note: insert 200943 into search.
27. "Spanishcharts.com – Robbie Williams – Bodies" Canciones Top 50.
28. "Swedishcharts.com – Robbie Williams – Bodies". Singles Top 100.
29. "Swisscharts.com – Robbie Williams – Bodies". Swiss Singles Chart.
30. "Archive Chart: 2009-10-24" UK Singles Chart.
31. www.billboard.com. "Hot Dance Club/Play Songs". Billboard.com. Retrieved 2010-01-08.
32. "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 2009 Singles". Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved 2 January 2012.
33. "Gold-/Platin-Datenbank (Robbie Williams; 'Bodies')" (in German). Bundesverband Musikindustrie. Retrieved 2 January 2012.
34. "Italian single certifications – Robbie Williams – Bodies" (in Italian). Federazione Industria Musicale Italiana. Retrieved 1 April 2012. Select Online in the field Sezione. Enter Robbie Williams in the field Filtra. The certification will load automatically
35. "The Official Swiss Charts and Music Community: Awards (Robbie Williams; 'Bodies')". IFPI Switzerland. Hung Medien. Retrieved 2 January 2012.
36. "British single certifications – Robbie Williams – Bodies". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 2 January 2012. Enter Bodies in the field Keywords. Select Title in the field Search by. Select single in the field By Format. Select Silver in the field By Award. Click Search
37. Myers, Justin (24 October 2014). "Number 1 today in 2009: Alexandra Burke blocks Robbie Williams' comeback". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 9 June 2015.
38. "oe3.ORF.at / SingleCharts 2009". Charts.orf.at. Retrieved 2012-01-09.
39. Archived 12 February 2010 at the Wayback Machine.
40. "Éves összesített listák - MAHASZ Rádiós TOP 100 (súlyozott)". Mahasz. Mahasz.
41. "FIMI - Federazione Industria Musicale Italiana - Ricerche e dati di mercato". Fimi.it. 19 January 2010. Retrieved 2010-12-18.
42. Steffen Hung. "Schweizer Jahreshitparade 2009". hitparade.ch. Retrieved 2012-01-09.
43. "Charts Plus Year end 2009" (PDF). Charts Plus. Retrieved 2010-07-19.
44. http://www.billboard.com/charts/year-end/2009/european-hot-100-singles?begin=31&order=position
45. "European Hot 100". Billboard.com. 2010-12-31. Retrieved 2012-01-09.
46. "MAHASZ Rádiós TOP 100 2010" (in Hungarian). Mahasz. Retrieved 10 March 2011.
47. "Bodies: Robbie Williams: Amazon.de: Musik". Amazon.de. Retrieved 2009-09-27.
48. "Bodies: Robbie Williams: Amazon.fr: Musique". Amazon.fr. Retrieved 2009-09-27.
49. "Bodies: Robbie Williams in iTunes Mexico". iTunes Mexico. Retrieved 2009-11-01.

External links

• RobbieWilliams.com — Robbie Williams official website
• Lyrics of this song at MetroLyrics