milly

Thank you for sparing me the need to post the exact same thing. I don't know very much about the Tories and the Labour party in UK, but I do know that, in my very own family, we have voted political adversaries during the elections last year and nobody ended up hating anyone. I've seen lots of people condemning Gary for no other reason than allegedly being a Tory. Now I don't know how you all find this, but I think it's highly unfair, especially when all he ever did was support a music project. Had it been funded by the Labour, I bet he would have supported it equally. Artists in Romania support politicians openly during their campaigns, but nobody cares and nobody throws dirt at them (and I dare anyone in UK to say they're having it tougher than us, because of the politicians) Robbie has been involved in all kind of charities as well - one of them no later than last night -, he is an ambassador or whatever for UNICEF and is promoted in Australia like the ultimate icon of a healthy lifestyle and yet nobody has anything against him. The same with David Beckham, Ant and Dec and so on. So, why the chase against Gary alone, it's beyond me. It's not his fault some people have held him in high esteem and it's not his fault he can't behave like a jerk so that people stop trying to find his evil side. I don't think it's weird that fans appreciate him for everything he has done, I do find it weird when people are so blinded by hatred that they need to find a hidden agenda behind a normal man's every action.For everything he ever does, he's a horrible Tory or he steals money from the poor or what else - it's starting to sound like a broken record. There are people out there truly despicable, with a plethora of crimes, yet you all act as if Gary had killed someone. You all seem to ignore the fact that he's living surrounded by people. If he were to be a monster, I'm sure stories would have emerged by now. So, until someone brings me solid evidence of how horrible he is, I'll keep being a weirdo and like him. I'm not idolising him, because I have my God to believe in, but I am respecting him for everything he has done so far. And I do believe it's partly jealousy from most of his haters, whether it's conscious or not.

I noticed it too :( I don't understand why people react so badly to Gary, when there were people on tv last night who did the same as Gary and even worse things and got to walk it off. It's the only thing they can hold against Gary and they're blowing it out of proportions, like nothing I've ever seen. Gary can be with Mar, Howard and Robbie on the same stage and the only one to get all the hatred would be Gary. I don't like to play this card too often, but, in this case, I guess it's plain, nasty jealousy. Gary is practically what every man should be like and, because they can't be like him, they attack him and try to diminish him. And women who don't like him are plainly weird ... or with some weird male specimens at home :P Sorry for the rant, had to get it off my chest, cause I was a bit enraged after some comments I've seen.

I've made my peace with LITS not making top 100. At least the radio stations are playing it, which is ultimately the most important thing - getting your music out there. As for the album, I think it's doing well for now, hanging in top 30, even if the sales are low. But, considering Madonna has barely sold 30k during her first week and Rebel heart will plummet in the next weeks, I think we should be grateful that TT have managed to sell over 400k. The only acts outselling them by far are Sam Smith and Ed Sheeran and their hype will eventually die down. PS: Kath, in hindsight, it seems I didn't underestimate the public's reaction at all :)

My comment was not meant as a dig at Mark. Like I said, I do understand that he has his fanbase and that his fans have the right to be pleased, just like Gary's fans. I mentioned it in another post: I was speaking from a strictly commercial, objective point of view, which is why it may have come across a bit too harsh.

I don't think it's arrogant if it's true. Maybe not hundreds literally, but very few is very accurate. Mark admitted himself, during his solo tour, that he barely sold a few copies of TAODN. And he practically had to give away for free the tickets to his tour. You may not like it being put out there this bluntly, but it's the truth and it has to be taken into account when making decisions for TT.

I agree with dylandog about everything. Take That and Gary were never big on promoting anything beside the lead single. The only reason Gary had a bit of promotion for his 2nd and 3rd singles was because he had some documentaries and appearances where they were showing bits of the songs. But, after the scandal last year, Take That can't afford to be seen everywhere and draw people's wrath. On long term, as frustrating as it may be now, it could be a smart move: they're trying to lay down for a while in UK, at the cost of their singles flopping, while people are warming up to them again. The album is still doing alright, which is the most important thing. As for Gary being involved in other projects, it has never hindered his commitment to Take That or to his music. Even when he was on XF, he still found time for his fans and for music. I can't think of many people who would fly from LA to London, not sleep for 48 hours and do a gig for the fans a couple of hours after he landed. I don't think it's right to compare what's going on now with what was happening in the 90s. Gary was still pretty much a kid back then and he had his ambitions, like any young man. He has grown up - beautifully, I'd say - and he has learnt from his mistakes, which is the most important thing. He now values TT and his friendship with the other boys.

Exactly. If TT were to appear on Comic Relief, they'd be flooded with insults, while the backlash against people such as Robbie, Annie Lennox and so on is non-existent. I'm not saying I'd be happy if they got the same backlash Gary did, but I'm annoyed with the double standards from the press and the public. One is demonized, while the other one gets to walk it off as if nothing ever happened.

To be honest, I find it a bit unfair that Robbie gets to be part of Comic Relief this year, while the boys are not. It would have been the best opportunity for them to perform Higher than Higher, it would have been appropriate.

I like LITS, but I love I'd Wait For Life and, in my opinion, it should have got into top 10 at least.

People say they hear LITS on Capital Fm constantly, but, since I'm not in UK, this is all hearsay for me. Even so, airplay without some proper promotion won't do much. The simple fact that there isn't a single version, other than the album one, has had a big impact on the sales. I still don't understand why the label decided to release the single now, since they were aware Gary wouldn't be able to promote it.

I'm hoping fans will keep buying the CD-s this week, but I may be a little too optimistic.

LITS is #100 in the first midweek updates :( This is a mess. It could have charted so decently. :cry:

I don't think so, Jay. Gary is in NY at the moment, rehearsing for the opening of FN on Sunday. If TT were to appear on Comic Relief, they'd be eaten alive by the press and the haters. I think it's gonna be a long time before we see them associated publicly with charities again.

Based on sales, the album was @25, so only 7 places drop, which isn't that bad. Streaming is definitely not TT fans' forte.

If the cd-s for LITS have been dispatched and some of them delivered, do they count for this week or for next week?

I won't hide the fact that I'm first and foremost a GB girl :) But I do love TT and I do like songs where Gary doesn't take the lead - What Is Love, Wooden Boat, Mancunian Way, Hold Up A Light and so on. I just have a hard time listening to Mark's voice and his solo tour did prove that he doesn't have that many fans, which ultimately means that most TT fans = GB fans. When TT released Shine, they were still relishing from the benefits of their reunion and Mark's reputation hadn't been severely tarnished - 2 important factors that they won't benefit now from. Besides, Shine was a really strong single. I'm just trying to think from a commercial point of view. If a track with Gary's lead vocals didn't do well, what chances does 1 of Mark's tracks stand? But, aside from all this, I honestly believe there are stronger songs on III than the ones sung by Mark. I Like It is so quirky and fun and captivating and it's better than all of Mark's songs on III. That's one example. And, as I said, people really like Higher than Higher and radios could easily embrace a track like that. I know that Mark's fans really want a single where he takes the lead, but singles should be chosen according to other criteria. They need a strong song and they need promotion. Just look at Let Me Go. It's still in top 300 after all this time, because it was a strong single. Anyway, I'll support TT even if they do decide to release Lovelife or Into the Wild.

I really don't like Lovelife. The only catchy line is "Do you really love life?" and that sounds like it's taken from Lady Gaga's Telephone. If they HAVE to go with a Mark led song, I'd rather it was Into the Wild, but I still don't see why they wouldn't go with a stronger song on the album instead of pleasing a few hundreds of Mark's fans.

I still think we're gonna get a 3rd single as well - Flaws, Howard's favorite. They've done a video for Get Ready - Gary's favorite, LITS - Mark's favorite and they'll do one for Flaws. I really think Flaws and Higher than Higher could do well, IF promoted. They were the most requested songs for the tour. I've even seen a good cover of Flaws on yt, which means the song could reach a wider audience and it resembles the BW sound. I'm completely confused about LITS. It's like they wanted to let in slip under the radar. No promotion, no official announcement of the release, no effort from either the label or the boys. On a side note, I'm completely mesmerized by the score of Finding Neverland. If Gary released tomorrow When Your Feet Don't Touch the Ground as a single, I'd be the 1st person to buy it. I'm probably more excited about FN than I am about III.

No sign of LITS in the midweeks. :cry: Album's at 25, but I expect it to end up higher on Sunday.

If they had chosen to release it last week, it could have charted quite decently: the effect of the Brits + the CD-s + the fans' downloads. It could have charted in top 70 for sure. Now we'll be lucky if it charts at all :( And there's absolutely no promotion. Most fans aren't even aware that it's been released. :cry: You know LITS isn't doing well when even Let Me Go is more downloaded from Amazon.

There's also another problem. The fact that the only version available is the album one stops fans from downloading the song again from iTunes. They have already downloaded it when they downloaded the whole album, so they can't do it again. And many of them won't bother downloading from Amazon or HMV :(

The download version of the single is released today: DawBell @DawBell Morning #Thatters! This week sees the release of @takethat's #LetInTheSun! This makes no sense. They should have waited till the CD-s were ready. Besides, the only iTunes and Amazon versions are the album ones.

So, These Days seems to have sold ~6000 copies last week and III ~ 7000 -7500 copies. I guess that's not too bad. Do we know approximately the overall figures both for These Days and III? It would have been nice to know where LITS charted, based on sales+streaming.

I think we'll have another album of original material before the Greatest Hits album. Mark said that they're back in the studio, writing, so it's either a whole new album or new songs to be included on the Greatest Hits album.

Do we know when LITS is officially released? The Universal store site says that the CD will be released on March, 9, but the official chart company says the single is released today. This is gonna be a mess.