Guy Chambers on his Formative Years, Working with Robbie Williams & more - BIMM Masterclass

 

 

 

We were delighted to be joined by songwriting supremo Guy Chambers for a Masterclass at BIMM Brighton.

Guy has written for some of the biggest artists on the planet including Miles Kane, Kylie Minogue, Rufus Wainwright, Tina Turner and perhaps most famously Robbie Williams.

BIMM, The British and Irish Modern Music Institute, has colleges in seven cities where music matters most – London, Berlin, Dublin, Manchester, Bristol, Birmingham and Brighton – and is proud to be the largest and leading provider of contemporary music education in the UK, Ireland and Europe.

@1154796201864286208

The end is funny like this "Oh, so exciting (no)".

Guychambers In celebration of World Piano Day on March 29th, I’m inviting pianists worldwide to share their renditions of ‘Angels’. ✨

Here’s how to be featured:

Record your rendition of Angels on the piano 🎹
Upload and be sure to tag me 🏷️
I’ll select a few to feature in a special global montage 🌍

Let’s create a worldwide version of ‘Angels’ together!
#WorldPianoDay #Angels #PianoCover #BeFeatured #GlobalMusic

Link below

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originalfibres & Guychambrs

Only days after we opened the doors to our Golborne Road shop, British music legend Guy Chambers became one of our first customers. Since then, he’s become a regular, stopping by to top up both his and his son’s wardrobes with natural fibres.

With the sun on full blast, it felt like an opportune time to get him in to choose our Spring Sounds Playlist - a dozen songs curated from the OF vinyl and CD collection - to take us through the next few months.

It was fantastic to sit down and talk about our shared love for this corner of London - where Guy has his recording studio - and learn more about his storied career in music. From growing up with a Dad in the London Philharmonic Orchestra, to winning the award for composition at the Guildhall School of Music to writing music with Robbie Williams, Kylie Minogue and Tina Turner ( to name a few ) it was a conversation rich in musical anecdote and a privilege to hear. All before Guy headed off to Ronnie Scott’s. Of course.

We hope you enjoy it.

Playlist link in bio. guychambers | Facebook, TikTok | Linktree

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What I like about Guy Chambers is that he seems to be serene and happy and content with where he is in life.

Roxy Music -Virginia Plain!

Love that song. 😀

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Video thanks to They discuss Rib in this interview , it's an old interview ..

Video thanks to https://www.youtube.com/@soundonsound

Really pleased for Guy ☺️

Source Guy's Stories • Instagram

8 hours ago, Sydney11 said:

Source Guy's Stories • Instagram

This is exciting!

guyachambers

So looking forward to my first show @circleandstartheatre with @stevefurst01 Please come and we can sing Angels together

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Guy in a happy mood

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Legendary songwriter Guy Chambers to write school anthem with students for Children's Mental Health Week

The song will be titled, This is My Place

By Max Persad | 09 February 2026

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Acclaimed songwriter Guy Chambers will visit Deansbrook Junior School in North London during Children's Mental Health Week to create original school anthem with 60 students. 

Announced today (9 February) by The Lang Lang Foundation, the special songwriting session is part of Uplift, Calm, & Connect, the Foundation's partnership programme with Place2Be, the leading children's mental health charity that runs the annual UK awareness week.

This year's Children's Mental Health Week theme, This is My Place, which will also be name of the upcoming song, focuses on helping children and young people feel a sense of belonging and acceptance in their friendships, schools, families and communities.

Chambers says: "Every child deserves to feel they have a place where they belong, and music has this incredible ability to create that sense of connection. 

"Working with young people to write their own anthem gives them ownership of their story and a powerful way to express what home, friendship and community mean to them. I can't wait to hear their voices and help bring their ideas to life through song."

Chambers, who is a Lang Lang Foundation ambassador, is best known as Robbie Williams' primary co-writer and producer, responsible for some of the biggest hits in British pop history including the iconic Angels, widely regarded as one of the greatest songs ever written as well as contributing to various Number 1 albums from other artists. 

The Lang Lang Foundation also added: "Music has the extraordinary power to reach into the hearts of young people, to calm, uplift, and connect them. Working with Place2Be and seeing children express themselves so freely through music reminds us that creativity is essential for emotional growth, resilience, and mental health. Programs like 'Uplift, Calm & Connect' show why music education is so vital for children's wellbeing."

Children's Mental Health week begins today until Sunday 15 February with the completed anthem set to be performed by the students and shared with the wider school community following the collaboration.

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Official Charts

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A truly inspirational way to mark such an important week

liverpool_philharmonic

If you were in Liverpool earlier this month, you might have witnessed something truly special ✨

@guyachambers reunited on stage with @robbiewilliams for a powerful performance of the hits they co-wrote — including the song that started it all, Angels.

Back in 1997, after leaving @takethat Robbie launched his solo career and started working with Guy. Between 1997 and 2002, the pair went on to create five consecutive UK number-one albums, cementing their place in British pop history.

Want to hear how Guy Chambers built such an extraordinary career — and what it really takes to succeed in today’s music industry?

Join us at the Liverpool Philharmonic Music Industry Careers Fest 2026 and learn from Guy and other leading professionals working across the industry.

🎟️ Follow the link in our bio to secure your tickets.

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An enchanting evening with Guy Chambers at Curious Minds Festival ✨

From performances of legendary songs, including Angels, written with Robbie Williams, to a very lucky audience member being invited on stage to write a song on the spot, it was a night full of music, stories and creativity. 🎹🎼

Guy shared memories from across his career, from writing with Robbie Williams to playing small gigs in Bath in his early days, and even reflections on his school years. One piece of advice from a teacher has stayed with him ever since: “Always listen to the angel on your shoulder.” 🪽

He also spoke about the roots of his musical journey – growing up with a musician father and a real piano at home and about his creative process today, often beginning with improvisation. As he put it: “That’s what music is – making something up from your imagination and everything you’ve listened to over the years.” 🎶

The evening ended with a joyful moment as Guy invited an audience member to co-write a song live on stage, exploring melody and rhythm together, before a beautiful rendition of Angels from a very talented guest. 🎵

A huge thank you to Guy Chambers and for joining Curious Minds Festival, and to St Swithins Church for hosting the wonderful evening. And to our very own @mattowensmusic for joining Guy to perform and making the evening extra special 🎶✨

📸 @nick_theofficialphotographer

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Edited March 14Mar 14 by Sydney11

Putting the Brit sound into Robbie Williams

Old Before I Die, April 14th 1997

Guy Chambers

Apr 15, 2026

Back in January 1997, I’d been writing with Robbie Williams for a couple of weeks and we had started to make demos of what would be ‘Life Thru A Lens’. These demos must have sounded okay because I was soon asked if I could produce ‘Old Before I Die’ which was a song that Robbie had written a year before with Eric Bazilian and Desmond Childs. I was sent the demo that they had done in Miami which was pretty good but in my opinion it wasn’t fully realised; it was too American and didn’t have the Britpop influence that was so important for Rob to have in his music.

I decided that producing Rob on my own was probably too much, so I reached out to one of my oldest friends Steve Power who I had first started working with when I was in my 20’s - we were old friends from Liverpool when I was a teenager. He could do the things I couldn’t do I.E Mic-ing up a drum kit, getting the vocal sound right and mixing. He was also much more patient than I ever was which would hold us in good stead for the 5 years we worked together producing 4 Robbie Williams records until 2002. He had the super power of being really into football which wasn’t something I was faintly interested in (football is probably one of Rob’s biggest passions).

The first part of the process was to find a recording studio. We needed a big live space to get the right kind of drum sound and we decided on West Side Studios in Holland Park which is now sadly defunct. I knew the studio would be good because it was founded and owned by Clive Langer and Alan Winstanley. They were famous for producing Madness so I knew that their studio would be musician friendly. Once we had secured the studio for 2 or 3 days, the next job was to book the musicians.

I always start with the drummer, in this particular case I chose Geoff Dugmore from Killing Joke. I’d met Geoff playing on a Jimmy Nail tour a few years previously and thought not only was he a lovely, funny man but also a superb rock drummer.

Next we had to find the right guitarist. I knew I would play some of the guitar, but I also needed someone who could deliver an excellent guitar solo and for that job I chose Fil Eisler who also played the bass on the record. Fil would end up being in the first Robbie Williams band lineup. He had been a friend of mine for some time playing with me in a comedy club called the Regency Rooms. Fil moved to America and is now one of Hollywoods most sought after film composers. I also roped in my friend Steve McEwan to play some melodic guitar and sing backing vocals. Steve went on to move to Nashville and became one of Country music’s biggest writers.

We started the record with Geoff on drums, Fil on bass and me on guitar without Rob at that point, recording without a metronome/click. We had the idea that the record should breathe naturally like a classic rock and roll, Rolling Stones meets Aerosmith type anthem. This was one of the very few occasions where we didn’t use a click.

Steve and I were very much on trial during this first production and Chris Briggs (Robs A&R man) was very much in attendance observing our working process..generally checking that we knew what we were doing!
The budget was relatively tight so that explains why there are so few musicians on this first recording. When it came to Rob recording his vocals, he was on his best behaviour. He really believed that this song was a hit and loved the direction we took it in, which was Oasis meets the Rolling Stones. He was so focused that he even sang backing vocals which wasn’t something that really ever happened again!

It was mixed at Battery by Steve. I remember driving up there and getting very excited that I might finally have produced my first hit. Steve and I obviously did a good job because we then got asked to do the whole of Life Thru A Lens, so this record has always been close to my heart. The other thing I remember about this song, is a story Rob would tell anyone willing to listen concerning Desmond Childs and how they were writing in Miami at his house. Desmond would point to his swimming pool and say ‘Look at that pool.. you’ve paid for that’.

Desmond was famous for Living on a Prayer, You Give Love A Bad Name and Poison to name a few. He was not short on confidence but luckily for me, despite being a seasoned hit maker and maybe because of his eccentric boasting and lack of boundaries, Rob decided that he didn’t want to write with him again nor Eric; leaving space for my relationship with Rob to bloom.

P.S there was a never a key change or a middle 8 on the original demo. I decided to write the bridge for the guitar solo and then suggested that the last chorus should be up 3 semitones, which is quite a dramatic leap, but I felt it worked. Looking back now I actually should have got some publishing on that song, but for whatever reason I didn’t even ask.

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Source Putting the Brit sound into Robbie Williams

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Let Love Be Your Energy

Playback to pay it forwards

‘Let Love Be Your Energy’ was inspired by listening to ‘Lazy Days’ backwards - not the single release, but the original version that was the B-side of ‘Millennium’. I ended up sampling elements of what I would call the ‘Orchestral rendition of Lazy Days’ and used that as a starting point for a new song.

We commenced writing it at Edwin Collins studio in West Hampstead, West Heath Studios. It was a really cosy studio where we started ‘Let Love Be Your Energy’, ‘Rock DJ’ & ‘Knutsford City Limits’. I found that the reversed guitars, background vocals and strings created these chords that I wouldn’t normally have come across if we had just started writing on the guitar or piano. Once we had put a beefy, John Bonham-eqsue loop onto these reverse chords/instruments, it started creating a really interesting, exciting new sound that inspired Rob and I to write one of our more spiritually enlightened and universal lyrics. It had a real burst of positivity.

Out of a million seeds
Only the strongest one breathes
You made a miracle mother
I'll make a man out of me

..If you're willing to change the world
Let love be your energy..

Building this track was a bit of a challenge because of the backwards elements; making them groove with forward features was quite a unique proposition. Our biggest issue was the bass, mind you. We went through three bass players until we found the write musician to make this track groove and have the right melodic interest. I guess I was looking for a cross between Paul McCartney and Collin Maulding (XTC’s bass player). In the end Phil Spaulding played bass and did an amazing job.

This track is also unusual because it’s in E♭ major with the verse sitting on B♭, the dominant of the home key, before going to G♭ for the pre-chorus and then winding its way back to the home key in what I considered, at the time, quite an original way.

E♭ major is a darker sounding key than E and much less used in main stream pop, but it was the original key of ‘Lazy Days’ which gave ‘Let Love Be Your Energy’ the advantage of a unique sonic character.

The bridge of the song uses the pre chorus of ‘Lazy Days’ as its music and doesn’t have a melody as such. There’s a piccolo trumpet solo straight after the bridge which is as an instrument used on ‘Penny Lane’ and I think this makes it one of our more Beatle-esque songs. We spent a long time doing the backing vocals (BVs) with a team of 6 singers working really hard on getting the blend between them and Rob just right. We used a child called Alana Duncan to just say the words “Let love be your energy” - I don’t why we did that. It is also notable for the Moog solo I played at the start of the song; I think I was trying to represent the chaos of the world and the opening power chords are a positive reaction to that.

I have to admit, the fact that the song went to number 10 was a real disappointment at the time and I remember the video seemed to bear no relation to how I saw the song in my head.

I think we pretty much finished writing the song by the time we went into Master Rock Studios to start recording Sing When You’re Winning (properly). One of the things I can remember at Master Rock was picking up lyrics by the band Suede who were recording their album Head Music.

Source https://www.youtube.com/@usagifer

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Let Love By Your Energy ( Pt 2 & 3 )

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