# How many US dopers have heard of Robbie Williams? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [April 17, 2008, 12:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-us-dopers-have-heard-of-robbie-williams/445715 "2008-04-17T12:23:10Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![TWDuke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e495f1/32.png) [@TWDuke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TWDuke)\ **Post date:** [April 17, 2008, 4:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-us-dopers-have-heard-of-robbie-williams/445715/41 "2008-04-17T16:09:01Z")
Knew the name and the profession. I don’t think I’d heard any of his songs, even the ones that are claimed in this thread to have been hits over here, but that’s not that suprising. I clicked on a couple of the links here and I will say although I don’t think he’s my cup of tea the guy’s obviously got boatloads of talent, and it’s nice to see somebody who’s got rock-star chops and a sense of humor about it. ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [April 17, 2008, 4:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-us-dopers-have-heard-of-robbie-williams/445715/42 "2008-04-17T16:10:26Z")
He’s big in Thailand, so I’ve heard of him. He’s even played Bangkok a time or two. ---
**Author:** ![bbs2k](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e495f1/32.png) [@bbs2k](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bbs2k)\ **Post date:** [April 17, 2008, 4:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-us-dopers-have-heard-of-robbie-williams/445715/43 "2008-04-17T16:19:48Z")
I’ve played bang-cock a few of times too! [/really bad joke] ---
**Author:** ![yojimbo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yojimbo/32/232_2.png) [@yojimbo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yojimbo)\ **Post date:** [April 17, 2008, 4:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-us-dopers-have-heard-of-robbie-williams/445715/44 "2008-04-17T16:20:53Z")
[QUOTE=kelly5078] Someone please translate this. It sounds messy. [/QUOTE] You know, he has the craic with himself, acts the bollocks a bit 😃 No, OK, I’ll play nice. He doesn’t take himself seriously. Taking the piss out of himself = making fun of himself/image ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [April 17, 2008, 4:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-us-dopers-have-heard-of-robbie-williams/445715/45 "2008-04-17T16:23:12Z")
I was in Amsterdam a few years back with some friends. Most mornings (defined here as “any time before 3 PM”) were spent recuperating in our hotel room, watching euro-MTV. Robbie Williams had a new single/video out that was in heavy rotation. Utter crap. It was like a bad Saturday Night Live parody of a pop song. Also, there was a stunning amount of commercials for ringtones on the TV. As I recall, approximatly 95% of any half-hour block of programming was dedicated towards convincing me to pay money to make my cell phone even more annoying. ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [April 17, 2008, 4:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-us-dopers-have-heard-of-robbie-williams/445715/46 "2008-04-17T16:23:51Z")
[QUOTE=bbs2k] I’ve played bang-cock a few of times too! [/really bad joke] [/QUOTE] Bangkok – Making Hard Men Humble since 1782. 🆒 ---
**Author:** ![jjimm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba8739/32.png) [@jjimm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jjimm)\ **Post date:** [April 17, 2008, 4:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-us-dopers-have-heard-of-robbie-williams/445715/47 "2008-04-17T16:24:02Z")
(As an aside, I detested him until I went to a festival to see The Verve, and he was one of the ‘support’ acts, and he totally won me over, within about two minutes of him being on stage. The man is a consummate entertainer, absolutely charming, and very witty. I was surprised at how much I was blown away by the guy, because it’s not my kind of music, but I now have an abiding respect for him as a performer. The Knebworth concert, linked above, which I saw on TV, captured a lot of the atmosphere from when I saw him live.) ---
**Author:** ![yojimbo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yojimbo/32/232_2.png) [@yojimbo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yojimbo)\ **Post date:** [April 17, 2008, 4:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-us-dopers-have-heard-of-robbie-williams/445715/48 "2008-04-17T16:27:00Z")
Kylie and Robbie singing Kids. [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W2ACacWipoI&feature=related](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W2ACacWipoI&feature=related) Very hot together. Here he is singing _Something Stupid_ with Nicole Kidman. Another hot combo [![]( " - YouTube") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1BdiAQmEaf0) ---
**Author:** ![Fear\_the\_Turtle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fear_the_turtle/32/2926_2.png) [@Fear\_the\_Turtle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fear_the_Turtle)\ **Post date:** [April 17, 2008, 4:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-us-dopers-have-heard-of-robbie-williams/445715/49 "2008-04-17T16:35:09Z")
Back in the day when MTV2 played music videos (think late 90’s) he had a couple videos in heavy rotation, so that’s when I heard of him. I believe the skin peeling video (rock DJ) was a follow up to his first (Millenium?). One of the “crankingest” songs on my MP3 player is “Let Me Entertain You”. Ear damage ensues when it makes it to the top of the shuffle. Can’t remeber if I found that song thru MTV2/video, or stumbled on it. ---
**Author:** ![Shayna](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/shayna/32/17976_2.png) [@Shayna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shayna)\ **Post date:** [April 17, 2008, 4:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-us-dopers-have-heard-of-robbie-williams/445715/50 "2008-04-17T16:42:30Z")
Anybody who ever saw _Bridget Jones’s Diary_ has heard Robbie Williams. He composed and sang “Not of This Earth” [Soundtrack listing](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0243155/soundtrack). [Listen to a clip, here](http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&token=&sql=33:wzfixvwaldhe). ---
**Author:** ![phall0106](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/phall0106/32/5934_2.png) [@phall0106](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/phall0106)\ **Post date:** [April 17, 2008, 4:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-us-dopers-have-heard-of-robbie-williams/445715/51 "2008-04-17T16:55:23Z")
Heard of him, have a few of his CDs. Like him. ---
**Author:** ![Kuboydal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ecb155/32.png) [@Kuboydal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kuboydal)\ **Post date:** [April 17, 2008, 5:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-us-dopers-have-heard-of-robbie-williams/445715/52 "2008-04-17T17:25:32Z")
I’ve heard of him, but I recall wondering what was so bad about life across the pond that everyone could get so excited about his work. ---
**Author:** ![TWDuke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e495f1/32.png) [@TWDuke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TWDuke)\ **Post date:** [April 17, 2008, 5:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-us-dopers-have-heard-of-robbie-williams/445715/53 "2008-04-17T17:28:57Z")
Because life is so good in the rest of the world we never get excited about pop stars? ---
**Author:** ![control-z](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/eada6e/32.png) [@control-z](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/control-z)\ **Post date:** [April 17, 2008, 5:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-us-dopers-have-heard-of-robbie-williams/445715/54 "2008-04-17T17:38:57Z")
Have heard of him, the few snippets of his music I’ve heard underwhelmed me. ---
**Author:** ![Algernon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a183cd/32.png) [@Algernon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Algernon)\ **Post date:** [April 17, 2008, 6:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-us-dopers-have-heard-of-robbie-williams/445715/55 "2008-04-17T18:31:38Z")
I had never heard of him until I spent two weeks in New Zealand in 2001. He was all over the airwaves. And I saw his video of Let Me Entertain You on television. After returning to the states I’ve bought all his CDs, then and since then. I really like most of what he does. YMMV. ---
**Author:** ![Starving\_Artist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/aeb1de/32.png) [@Starving\_Artist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Starving_Artist)\ **Post date:** [April 17, 2008, 7:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-us-dopers-have-heard-of-robbie-williams/445715/56 "2008-04-17T19:00:25Z")
[QUOTE=blinkingblinking] I think he is the most successful music artist ever to have not cracked the USA market. He has had 6 number 1 singles in the UK and 8 number 1 albums. [/QUOTE] Kylie Minogue? I know Williams mostly from an MTV Cribs segment. He climbed on his bed and started humping the air while going “Wah, wah, wah”…not to impressive. He seems to be talented enough to have had a successful career, but I wasn’t all that taken with him. It’s curious that he and Minogue have collaborated from time to time, also with considerable success in Britain. ---
**Author:** ![Sigmagirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c89c15/32.png) [@Sigmagirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sigmagirl)\ **Post date:** [April 17, 2008, 7:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-us-dopers-have-heard-of-robbie-williams/445715/57 "2008-04-17T19:20:51Z")
Heard of him; know him only from his appearance in _Beyond the Sea_, the Bobby Darin flick with Kevin Spacey. ---
**Author:** ![peekercpa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/8baadc/32.png) [@peekercpa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/peekercpa)\ **Post date:** [April 17, 2008, 7:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-us-dopers-have-heard-of-robbie-williams/445715/58 "2008-04-17T19:25:33Z")
Sure I’ve heard of him. He played Mork on Mork & Mindy. ---
**Author:** ![Geek\_Mecha](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/ecae2f/32.png) [@Geek\_Mecha](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Geek_Mecha)\ **Post date:** [April 17, 2008, 7:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-us-dopers-have-heard-of-robbie-williams/445715/59 "2008-04-17T19:49:26Z")
Been listening to him for about 10 years now. I don’t keep up with every album, but I know his name and about a dozen of his songs. I don’t remember where I first heard him, but it wasn’t “Millennium.” I like “Supreme”, “One Fine Day”, and his cover of “Beyond the Sea” from _Finding Nemo_. I have the same amount of respect for him that I do for all successful artists who write their own songs. ---
**Author:** ![Maastricht](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a88e57/32.png) [@Maastricht](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Maastricht)\ **Post date:** [April 17, 2008, 7:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-us-dopers-have-heard-of-robbie-williams/445715/60 "2008-04-17T19:56:53Z")
European here. Big RW fan. It is really weird that RW is such a one-side-of-the-pond artist. Wikipedia supposes it is because his particular brand of self-deprecating humor doesn’t go over well in the States. The only equivalent I can think of is Garth Brooks, whom I had never ever heard of untill he was mentioned here and I learnt he is the USA’s biggest selling artist. **Nutty Bunny,** AFAIK he never had anything with Madonna. **Zebra,** why would it be a problem that he is called Robbie? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-us-dopers-have-heard-of-robbie-williams/445715.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-us-dopers-have-heard-of-robbie-williams/445715.md?page=4)