I do like everything changes but prefer other singles from the album and I should listen to it more than I do and same for the album in general as it was the album where take that just became huge.

25 Higher Than Higher

 

 

I knew next to nothing about this song before recently. I wasn't particularly aware it existed, its single push entirely passed me by at the time and I wasn't into Take That enough to be seeking out their songs that I didn't come by on the radio. I've seen little discourse on it anywhere actually, so it feels like a real underdog in Take That's catalogue. It's not the most in-your-face song on the III album, let alone in their whole discography, but every time I hear it, I enjoy it more, and I've actually bumped it up a fair bit in this countdown since I started compiling it, because I realised I do actually like it more than I thought. The production of Higher Than Higher feels quite cinematic, with production that wouldn't sound out of place among some of Taylor Swift and Carly Rae Jepsen's albums - no surprise then to see it was produced by Mattman & Robin, who co-produced songs on 1989 and E•MO•TION by Taylor and Carly respectively (including Carly's much-revered Run Away With Me). Higher Than Higher could actually be a fan favourite for all I know, but it's one I've not really heard anything about - a secret weapon in their discography.

 

Higher Than Higher is my favourite single from 'III', I love the production, sentiment, and vibe of it.

 

I agree it should have had more recognition at the time and now.

24 Greatest Day

 

 

This feels like the first major post-reunion single to drop out! Released in 2008 as the lead single from The Circus, Greatest Day peaked at #1 in the UK, and also saw a remix released in 2023 by Robin Schulz, also featuring Calum Scott. Greatest Day is obviously a Take That classic and it's easy to hear why. It's got a really anthemic build and a positive message to boot. I saw how much of a crowd-pleaser it was when I saw Take That at Capital's Summertime Ball last year too, it created a brilliant atmosphere. I do find it a tad overrated among their classic hits, and it's the first single to drop from The Circus which is quite the opposite to how the chart fortunes of the single releases went...! Nevertheless, it's still a great track and it's a Take That classic for a reason (although I can take or leave the remix - if I counted that as a separate single, it would've been a fair bit lower).

 

Greatest Day... honestly I get it and I don't. It takes forever to get going, 1 minute 45 before the first chorus.

 

I prefer Said it All and The Garden from 'The Circus' singles.

 

The problem with Greatest Day is it was written to formula. They wanted to write a song to open their concerts. This makes any song less natural and free flowing, contrived. This makes it both good and average in equal measures.

Edited September 14, 2024Sep 14 by nirvanamusic

I do think Greatest Day lacks a really big chorus moment, maybe that's the missing ingredient for me that stops me loving it. I don't dislike it at all though!

23 You and Me

 

 

The first single to be taken from the deluxe re-issue of This Life felt like a classic Take That song. With Gary on lead vocals and an anthemic chorus, You and Me has all the right ingredients for the kind of Take That single that Radio 2 would eat up, so in that sense, it was the perfect single choice. Perhaps, if it had been released a few eras sooner, it could've been a hit? It's a really lovely song, even though it doesn't particularly add anything new to their back catalogue. This Life still has three songs to feature, which isn't something I'd have called before compiling this list!

 

I liked all the new songs released for the Deluxe version of This Life. You and Me is a great song and has a memorable chorus.

 

I think had the standard album included these songs it would have been stronger and You and Me would have been an acceptable choice of lead single for the campaign.

With their debut album they released the weak singles first which made no sense when they had stronger to release.

There wasn’t a debut album at the time they were released as singles.

Back then bands released a couple of singles to see if there was enough interest to make an album.

Those early singles got added to the first album, but you need something stronger to launch the album proper.

 

Coming out of the dance era they needed to release dance-pop first to build up the interest for A Million Love Songs.

 

 

Greatest Day... honestly I get it and I don't. It takes forever to get going, 1 minute 45 before the first chorus.

 

I prefer Said it All and The Garden from 'The Circus' singles.

 

The problem with Greatest Day is it was written to formula. They wanted to write a song to open their concerts. This makes any song less natural and free flowing, contrived. This makes it both good and average in equal measures.

 

It doesn’t really have a chorus - it has a repeated refrain instead.

Which it does open the song with. I really like this one.

I liked all the new songs released for the Deluxe version of This Life. You and Me is a great song and has a memorable chorus.

 

I think had the standard album included these songs it would have been stronger and You and Me would have been an acceptable choice of lead single for the campaign.

I would agree with this actually - I think This Life could've been the lead single for the album followed by You and Me as the second single, playing on the radio for album release week, would've been a better play. That said, I'm not sure how many more sales it would have encouraged in this day and age sadly! At least we could've swerved Windows as a slightly "meh" lead single.

 

Massive thanks to everyone for following along by the way! :D Hope you're all enjoying so far.

22 Could It Be Magic

 

 

If you include Why Can't I Wake Up With You as a single from Take That & Party (and despite the new mix going on to feature on Everything Changes, I'd say it feels more like a debut album single), the first Take That album statistically had the best chances in this countdown with a huge 8 singles. Unfortunately, 7 of them fell in the bottom half...! Could It Be Magic is officially my favourite track from the debut era, and though it was a cover of a song that had charted twice before in the UK (#40 for Donna Summer and #25 for Barry Manilow), it feels much more synonymous with Take That - a testament to their ability to put their name on any cover versions they released. Could It Be Magic was the first single to feature Robbie taking sole lead vocals, and it received a revamp for its single release - the Rapino radio mix - which I feel vastly improves the song, adding that extra dose of energy.

 

Higher than Higher i dont mind, i dont love it and dont revisit it much.

Greatest Day, big hit for them, i do prefer so many other songs from them but i like greatest day but dont love, it did what it was meant to do that as a lead single so i wont complain

You and Me, this is probably the best song from the This Life era and i think it would have been a far better lead single.

Could it Magic, nostalgic take that not in my top tier from back in those days but i still like it.

Could It Be Magic was my introduction to Take That through my older sisters who must have bought the single as it was on repeat in the car.

 

It is also my favourite from their debut --well the Rapino single mix is not the awful album version-- as it is fun, frantic, energetic, infectious and has a great dance beat as opposed to a softer pop beat. Their momentum was clearly building and this was the right song, production, music video and possibly lead singer?

 

How much of the song's popularity was down to Robbie's charisma and appeal.

 

It was also their first song to break top 10 in some European nations and to go Top 40 in general, including Australia. They were truly on their way now.

 

Overall it would be in my Top 10.

Edited September 15, 2024Sep 15 by nirvanamusic

21 Said It All

 

 

It's taken until just outside the top 20 but finally, a song with a Mark solo drops out! :o Said It All was the third single from The Circus here in the UK, and it peaked at #9, an improvement on previous single Up All Night's #14 peak, albeit perhaps aided significantly by three (!) physical formats - pretty unusual for 2009! Nevertheless, it's quite an understated track in their back catalogue I think, but one that's already proven itself to be a grower. Mark's verse in particular is a highlight, complementing the song's build perfectly. Whilst I probably would've swapped the singles for the era around a little and favoured other tracks over this, it's a lovely little track regardless and Gary and Mark work really well together on lead vocals.

 

 

A quick recap before we hit the top 20!

 

21 Said It All

22 Could It Be Magic

23 You and Me

24 Greatest Day

25 Higher Than Higher

26 Everything Changes

27 Giants

28 It Only Takes a Minute

29 Reach Out

30 Let in the Sun

31 A Million Love Songs

32 Promises

33 Sure

34 Cry (Sigma feat. Take That)

35 I Found Heaven

36 Windows

37 Once You’ve Tasted Love

38 New Day

39 Why Can’t I Wake Up With You

40 How Deep Is Your Love

41 When We Were Young

42 Do What U Like

43 I’d Wait for Life

44 Love Ain’t Here Anymore

45 Out of Our Heads

 

Is your favourite still to come? :o

The review for Said It All is spot on and Mark really does steal the show here, his contrast and style to Gary's works a treat. It is my favourite single from 'The Circus'. Also, the song was hampered in the weeks after its #9 peak --it had a swift rise in the two weeks prior, jumping multiple spots higher-- by the news of Michael Jackson's death, the first time the singles/albums charts became flooded with re-entries --he had 13 songs throughout the Top 10/40 and more across the Top 100 in the weeks after, this rule would change after the Ed Sheeran album release debacle to only three entries--.

 

Said It All remained in the lower Top 40 during this period but understandably was eclipsed in both press and airplay, without this unexpected event it would have potentially been a sizeable hit. I can't understand why this wasn't released internationally and was a UK only release. It is fantastic, love it when it really drives with urgency towards the end.

Edited September 15, 2024Sep 15 by nirvanamusic

A quick recap before we hit the top 20!

 

21 Said It All

22 Could It Be Magic

23 You and Me

24 Greatest Day

25 Higher Than Higher

26 Everything Changes

27 Giants

28 It Only Takes a Minute

29 Reach Out

30 Let in the Sun

31 A Million Love Songs

32 Promises

33 Sure

34 Cry (Sigma feat. Take That)

35 I Found Heaven

36 Windows

37 Once You’ve Tasted Love

38 New Day

39 Why Can’t I Wake Up With You

40 How Deep Is Your Love

41 When We Were Young

42 Do What U Like

43 I’d Wait for Life

44 Love Ain’t Here Anymore

45 Out of Our Heads

 

Is your favourite still to come? :o

 

I have 15 favourites left in.

20 Babe

 

 

My first time hearing Babe was only recently, and I remember being surprised that it was a big #1 hit. Obviously, like many early Take That songs, it sounds very of its time, which is not inherently a bad thing, but Babe also didn't sound like a big hit to my ears either. Perhaps it's a testament to their popularity at the time, but Babe is one of their biggest sellers to this day, so its appeal was clearly wide. It's a song that's grown on me with each play, though. Perhaps it's my slight bias to Mark (and I do think I'd be less interested in this if it were a Gary vocal, I must confess), but it's become lodged in my head on a few occasions and I do like the subtle touches of the production too! A definite grower, although still the lowest placed single led entirely by Mark in this countdown.

 

I love the storytelling of Babe and the fact it is so different, histrionic and dramatic with the orchestral swirls. It is everything you want in a dramatic boyband ballad. A partner who leaves only to come back and find out he has fathered a child is more Cat Stevens lyrical narratives than boyband fluff.

 

The song was massive across Europe becoming their big Top 10 breakthrough in many countries and Mark's vocals suit the tempo of the song well. Gary certainly had a knack for writing and arranging to other band members strengths.

 

The Day After Tomorrow was the equivalent on the next album 'Nobody Else' earmarked as the fourth single that never was, but clearly hoping for the same results. It is a beautifully arranged song just like Babe, though I would say holds less dramatics and is my preferred of the two Mark leads from the '90s. I love the sombre mood of it and vocal harmonies.

 

Going back to Babe the music video was fantastic with the band members playing different roles/cameos. It also won an MTV International Viewers Choice Award as announced at the main show in New York City hosted by comedian Roseanne Barr. Take That definitely had global attention by this point.

 

I'm just glad the song hit #1 in the UK with big sales even if Mr Blobby denied it the Christmas number 1 the following week.

Edited September 16, 2024Sep 16 by nirvanamusic