Come Undone (Robbie Williams song) explained

Come Undone
Cover:Robbie Williams - Come Undone - CD single cover.jpg
Type:single
Artist:Robbie Williams
Album:Escapology
B-Side:
  • "One Fine Day"
  • "Happy Easter (War Is Coming)"
Studio:Los Angeles, London
Length:
  • 4:34 (album version)
  • 3:34 (radio edit)
Label:Chrysalis
Producer:
Prev Title:Feel
Prev Year:2002
Next Title:Something Beautiful
Next Year:2003

"Come Undone" is a song by British singer Robbie Williams for his fifth studio album Escapology (2002). Written by Williams, Boots Ottestad, Ashley Hamilton, and Daniel Pierre, it was released as the second single from Escapology on 31 March 2003 by Chrysalis Records. "Come Undone" peaked at number four on the UK Singles Chart and reached the top 20 in seven other European countries.

Composition

"Come Undone" lyrically tells the story of a life of fame unravelling in excess, featuring some "wry" observations from Robbie Williams, including the telling lines of the song's bridge: "Do another interview/Sing a bunch of lies/Tell about celebrities that I despise/And sing love songs/We sing love songs/So sincere".[1]

Chart performance

The song reached number four in the United Kingdom, falling out of the top 10 in its second week. Worldwide, the single did not equal the success of Williams' previous single, "Feel", reaching the top 20 in Austria, Denmark, Germany, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, and the Netherlands.

Music video

The Jonas Åkerlund directed music video features a hungover Robbie waking up in the morning after a large house party the previous evening. He then proceeds to walk around the house, wearing pink socks, as flashbacks of the events of the night before are shown. As the song reaches its climax, Williams is seen participating in three-way sex with two women (who are in fact porn stars). These shots are interspersed with graphic and unsettling images of snakes, rats and bugs, mostly crawling on beautiful women. In the final shots, the two women have become men in drag, perhaps a subtle reference to the media's infatuation with Williams' sexuality. The song also contains numerous explicit words.

Controversy

The video was heavily censored by MTV Networks Europe for depicting a fully clothed Williams having three-way sex with both women and men in drag. The uncensored version of the video was released as a DVD single in Europe and was also included on the enhanced CD single.[2] BBC Radio 2 also banned the song for its explicit content.[3] During this time, it was confirmed that Williams and Guy Chambers were to officially part ways.[2]

Knebworth performances

A memorable performance of the song took place at one of Williams' concerts at Knebworth in August 2003. Singing to 125,000 people, he interjected with "Britain, I'm your son", and further interacted with the audience when he brought a girl up on stage.[4]

Track listings

UK CD single[5]

  1. "Come Undone" – 4:34
  2. "One Fine Day" – 3:36
  3. "Happy Easter (War Is Coming)" – 4:03
  4. Photo gallery
  5. Robbie video clips

UK cassette single[6]

  1. "Come Undone"
  2. "One Fine Day"
  3. "Happy Easter (War Is Coming)"

European CD single[7]

  1. "Come Undone" – 3:34
  2. "One Fine Day" – 3:36

UK DVD single[8]

  1. "Come Undone" (video) – 4:34
  2. "One Fine Day" (audio) – 3:36
  3. "Happy Easter (War Is Coming)" (audio) – 4:03
  4. Robbie photo gallery
  5. Robbie live video clip

Credits and personnel

Credits are taken from the Escapology album booklet.[9]

Recording

Personnel

Charts

Weekly charts

Chart (2003)Peak
position
scope=rowCroatia (HRT)[10] 10
Europe (Eurochart Hot 100)[11] 7
Romania (Romanian Top 100)[12] 3

Year-end charts

Chart (2003)Position
Netherlands (Dutch Top 40)[13] 44
Romania (Romanian Top 100)[14] 18
UK Singles (OCC)[15] 116

Release history

RegionDateFormat(s)Label(s)
Europe31 March 2003CDChrysalis
United Kingdom14 April 2003[16]
Australia21 April 2003CD[17]

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Dotmusic - Robbie Williams - news - Robbie comes undone . www.dotmusic.com . 12 January 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20030425174003/http://www.dotmusic.com/artists/RobbieWilliams/news/April2003/news28912.asp . 25 April 2003 . dead.
  2. Web site: Escapology . 31 August 2007 . https://web.archive.org/web/20081228045140/http://famous.y2u.co.uk/F_Robbie_Williams.htm . 28 December 2008 . dead .
  3. Web site: Robbie Williams. www.robbiewilliams.com.
  4. https://www.birminghammail.co.uk/whats-on/music-nightlife-news/seven-great-robbie-williams-live-7372033 "Are you ready for Robbie? Seven great Robbie Williams live videos"
  5. Come Undone. Robbie Williams. 2003. UK CD single liner notes. Chrysalis Records. CDCHS 5151, 7243552210 0 1.
  6. Come Undone. Robbie Williams. 2003. UK cassette single sleeve. Chrysalis Records. TCCHS 5151, 724355 22104 9.
  7. Come Undone. Robbie Williams. 2003. European CD single liner notes. Chrysalis Records. 07243 552210 2 5.
  8. Come Undone. Robbie Williams. 2003. European DVD single liner notes. Chrysalis Records. DVDCHS 5151, 7243 490476 9 3.
  9. Escapology. Escapology (album). Robbie Williams. 2002. UK CD album booklet. Chrysalis Records. 5439942.
  10. Web site: Top Lista Hrvatskog Radija. https://web.archive.org/web/20030605141516/http://www.hrt.hr:80/hr/top20/maineng.html. dead. June 5, 2003. Croatian Radiotelevision. April 14, 2023.
  11. Eurochart Hot 100 Singles. Music & Media. 21. 19. 9. 3 May 2003. 13 May 2020.
  12. Web site: Arhiva romanian top 100 – Editia 24, saptamina 23.06-29.06, 2003. Romanian Top 100. ro. dead. https://web.archive.org/web/20050218170604/http://www.rt100.ro/editie-top-100_x10075.html. 18 February 2005. 4 May 2020. See LW position.
  13. Web site: Top 100–Jaaroverzicht van 2003. Dutch Top 40. 31 March 2020.
  14. Web site: Topul anului 2003. Romanian Top 100. ro. dead. https://web.archive.org/web/20050122205325/http://www.rt100.ro/topul-anului-2003.html. 22 January 2005. 4 May 2020.
  15. Web site: The Official UK Singles Chart 2003. UKChartsPlus. 23 July 2018.
  16. New Release Countdown: Singles. Music Week. 17. 12 April 2003. 4 September 2021.
  17. Web site: The ARIA Report: New Releases Singles – Week Commencing 21st April 2003. ARIA. 25. 21 April 2003. dead. https://webarchive.nla.gov.au/awa/20030506140000/http://pandora.nla.gov.au/pan/23790/20030507-0000/Issue687.pdf. 6 May 2003. 4 September 2021.

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