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Robbie Williams · S2 E2
Sixteen and Famous
The hysteria of boyband success — and what it does to a teenager
Stockton, 30 June 1992. Ambulance crews are called to The Mall four times in one afternoon to carry away teenage girls who have collapsed from heat and hysteria. The band onstage has had three flop singles.
It Only Takes a Minute (1992). The cover of a Tavares disco hit that became Take That's first Top 10 single. Three flops, one last chance, then number seven.
It Only Takes a Minute (1992)
Originally a Tavares hit from 1975. Take That's version is pure early-90s pop production: programmed beats, stacked harmonies, a key change that hits like a sugar rush. After three singles of trying too hard, they found a melody everybody already knew.
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Eight Months
In August 1992, their debut album enters the chart at number two. By December, they have swept the Smash Hits Awards. Four months from first Top 10 single to being crowned the biggest pop act in Britain.
The Acceleration
Could It Be Magic -- Take That
Their first Top 3 hit and BRIT Award winner. Robbie sings lead on this one. A Manilow cover turned disco anthem that proved they could compete with anyone on the charts.
Which Take That single won the BRIT Award for British Single in 1993?
The screaming drowns everything out. But inside the noise, two members of Take That are starting to hate each other. One writes the songs. The other owns the stage.
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