Robbie Williams has said he wants to make a “new Rat Pack album”.
The pop star released his big band swing covers collection, ‘Swing When You’re Winning’, in 2001 and followed it up with 2013’s ‘Swings Both Ways’. Both albums went to Number One in the UK.
During a new interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Williams revealed that he was keen to revisit this style of music on a forthcoming record.
“I would like to write a new Rat Pack album,” he told the publication. “I think I might do it. And whether they join in or not, it’s up to their estates, but we’ll see.”
The comments came after the singer was asked which artist he would collaborate with if he could, “dead or alive”.
Williams continued: “Most of the time we take artists for granted because they’re just there and they’re in our lives. It wasn’t until the Olympics when Celine [Dion] came [on] when I was reminded, ‘Oh my Lord, this is a very special person’.
The Rat Pack was an informal group of vocalists in the 1950s and ’60s, including the likes of Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin and Sammy Davis Jr. Many consider them to be the founding fathers of Las Vegas, with the entertainers performing together at casino venues in the city.
In 2016, NME featured Williams’ ‘Swing When You’re Winning’ in a round-up of the UK’s all-time best-selling albums that “have no redeeming features whatsoever”. The star ‘duetted’ with a recording of Sinatra’s vocals on the LP’s track ‘It Was A Very Good Year’.
Elsewhere in the Hollywood Reporter interview, Williams spoke about putting together the soundtrack for his new biopic Better Man, which is directed a co-written by Michael Gracey (The Greatest Showman).
“I sent a bunch of songs to Michael Gracey, the director, and he would then send them back and tell me basically, kindly, they weren’t good enough,” he recalled, before comparing himself to Eminem in 8 Mile.
He added: “I didn’t have a bird’s-eye view of the film. I didn’t know what was needed. We saw the film, and basically what it needs is a hug, so we [gave it] a hug because by the time you get to the end of the movie, you’ve been through a lot and you need a hug.”
Williams released a reflective new single called ‘Forbidden Road’ from the Better Man soundtrack last November.
He said in April that he had “written loads of songs” and was feeling “full of purpose and loving life”.
He later revealed that a new album would be coming soon. However, the singer explained that he was “waiting to know when exactly the film [was] coming out before” announcing anything about the project.
Speaking to NME last month, Williams responded to reports that Black Sabbath’s Tony Iommi would be appearing on a track from his new “guitar rock” album.
“And Glenn Hughes! I wanted to make the album that I’d make if I’d left Take That now, knowing what I know,” he said. “This particular song encapsulates that perfectly.
“Unfortunately and fortunately for me, pop songs turned up along the way, too. I’m like: ‘Ah, fuck – a hit!’ This [track] is massive guitars, as you can imagine. It’s adrenaline-filled and balls-to-the-wall. That one in particular is my favourite song off my new album – that I’ve just announced is happening!”
NME then asked when the track and album would be out, to which Williams replied: “I dunno – let’s see how well the film does.” You can watch the full video interview above.
Williams is due to embark on a huge tour across the UK, Ireland and Europe this year. The announcement came shortly after he’d hinted to fans that he would be hitting the road again “soon”. Find any remaining tickets here.
In other news, Williams has shared his thoughts on ‘Forbidden Road’ being disqualified from the Oscars 2025 shortlist for Best Original Song.
MUNA have officially shared full details of their long awaited fourth studio album, Dancing On The Wall, which is scheduled to arrive on May 8.
The news comes with the release of the record’s title track and its accompanying official video, giving fans their first real look at what the trio’s new chapter sounds and feels like.
To mark the occasion, the group are planning a run of intimate underplay performances in Los Angeles, New York and London during release week. It will be a special opportunity to catch MUNA up close before they step back onto larger stages later this year.
Opening up about the project, the band described the title song as a standout moment within their body of work.
They shared: “Dancing On The Wall is possibly our favorite song we’ve made as a band. We think it’s all the best parts of MUNA – it’s coming from a really emotional and lonely place, but the song itself makes us feel powerful and euphoric. It’s written in the moment that the clock strikes midnight at the ball, and you have to give up the fantasy. In this case, it’s the fantasy of loving someone or something that can’t love you back.”
The 13 song album was produced by Naomi McPherson, allowing the band to take full creative ownership of the sound and direction. It is a project that pulls listeners straight to the dancefloor while still keeping its vulnerability front and center.
MUNA, made up of Katie Gavin and Josette Maskin alongside McPherson, have continued to build momentum over the years and were personally chosen by Harry Styles as the opening act for his first solo tour. Since then, they have also performed with Taylor Swift on the Eras Tour, in addition to sharing bills with Lorde, boygenius and Phoebe Bridgers.
Dancing On The Wall follows their 2022 self titled album, which marked their first release as independent artists after signing to Phoebe Bridgers’ Saddest Factory Records in 2021.
Fans can stream the title track across all major platforms now. For tickets to MUNA’s upcoming shows, visit laylo.com/whereismuna/m/munatour.
Dancing On The Wall tracklisting:
It Gets So Hot
Dancing On The Wall
Eastside Girls
Wannabeher
On Call
So What
Party’s Over
Big Stick
Mary Jane
Girl’s Girl
…Unless
Why Do I Get A Good Feeling
Buzzkiller
