dylandog

The album is holding up quite well all considered. Guess sales are low but at least it's heading in the right direction. Pleased for them as the album is a strong one.

Sorry Kath but your response and evidence is weak at best. A throw away comment and that equates to GB supporting and campaigning for the Tory party - really? And even if he was a Tory supporter why does that give people the right to post vile and hateful comments? Shameful that he should use some of his wealth the way he chooses. I'm sure the chronic back pain he experienced throughout the climb wasn't a factor in him wanting to get home asap? Please feel free to dictate to all the other pop stars who 'flaunt their wealth' and pour scorn on them personally!!! Why, why hate on someone who you don't personally know, who is hard working, apparently well liked within the industry, who's tries to help out (tax issue aside) who's shown no bitterness towards those who ridiculed him and dealt with some hard personal problems with dignity? Can you back up your evidence that he is a 'big head' or 'egotistical by the way? If you have so much negative energy to express than I can assure you there are far more deserving candidates than Gary Barlow As for the smiling faces at the end of comments what's that all about? And by the way areyou the Sheila Bilge who posts on Digital Spy - if so that explains a lot. If not, I suggest that you contact her as you have much in common.

I don't judge people simply on their mainstream political affiliations. I would never vote for the Tories; that said I know caring, kind people who are on the right of the political spectrum and I know people who are to the left of the political spectrum who are greedy, self serving with few redeeming features. Furthermore people have no say in either the social class they were born into or their place of birth! To my knowledge Gary has never politically campaigned for the Tory party. He backed a school's music initiative and would no doubt have done the same if asked by the Labour Party, but if anyone has information to the contrary then I'm am happy to be put straight. Gary has never appointed himself as ''sacred.' If any labels have been bestowed on him of that kind its largely from the media who then took great relish in knocking him down again. Of course many fans see their 'idols' as somehow perfect but that doesn't apply to just Gary fans for goodness sake. I feel some comments on this forum have been rather personal and unwarranted.

I can only get a couple of radio stations on my car radio so it not a good indicator, but the only TT song I've heard the stations play in the past few weeks is These Days. Not once have I heard LITS. Someone said that Capital play it regularly. Not an avid listener of that station but not heard it on there either. LITS has had no impact on the buying public and there's no getting away from the fact that its chart position is truly dire. Undoubtedly the wrong single choice but even so.. The mistake with lll was not arranging a TV special as they have done in the past. The diehard fans bought the album in the first week, the problem was a lack of momentum after that. The backlash from their financial affairs has hit TT very hard. No other pubic figures have experienced such a sustained attack on them personally, and on media sites last night Gary was frequently mentioned in relation to Comic Relief, and not in a good way.

You may be right , Kath. However,I do think the boys have a genuine appreciation for each other that they didn't have the first time around and I don't think its an act on Gary's part. He isn't stupid and must be acutely aware that the resurgence in his popularity is the result of TT's comeback. It's hard to imagine he would have achieved that level of interest if he'd come back as a solo artist. I have no doubt Gary will continue to branch out further into musicals but I think TT will remain his main concern, at least for the next five years. At some point they will have to consider their future as I cannot see them continuing into their 50's regardless of what they say. Branching out into musical theatre is a canny move on Gary's part and is something he can do after TT ends. Mark will continue his song writing and tour on a small scale,but realistically Rob's the only one I see touring on a large scale for the foreseeable future.

I can understand your disenchantment with the promo Jay, but I don't think its accurate to draw comparisons with 1998. This time around the band went on a break for three plus years- probably because of Jay's reluctance to commit. I wouldn't expect Gary, Mark or Howard to sit back twiddling their thumbs while waiting for Jay's decision. Presumably Gary was offered projects and accepted them - should he have turned them down? He's committed to TT as far as I can tell. Other artists are allowed to try out other markets; why should it be any different for Gary, or the others for that matter? I rarely see any criticism of Rob or Mark when they go off to do solo projects. Howard also has his DJ stints and completed two seasons on a German dance show, so I find it strange when Gary's singled out for having the temerity to follow his interests.

Gary has said repeatedly that his first priority is TT and he wants the band to continue. I agree he is very ambitious and enjoys challenges. I guess this stems partly from his time in the wilderness but also from the inception of the band. Gary virtually worked non stop on the songwriting and production side in the early days in a way the others didn't. He has an incredibly strong work ethic; remember he's worked since the age of around 12 or 13, so I don't see his multiple projects being too much of a problem, other than a lack of time for promotion. The projects he's involved in recently have probably stemmed from the long period they took off and his need to be ' doing something.' I think there may be another album at the end of this year and a possible tour next year. I can't see them taking another hiatus simply due to their ages - if they took another 3 or 4 years off Howard would be pushing 50!!! As for LITS - as I've said I doubt he's too worried about its lack of success, but I think that goes for the other to. Outside of the first single they've never appeared overly worried about singles and their promotional campaigns have always bordered on shambolic - so no change there. I never buy the single version unless there's a B side - some of their most enjoyable songs have been the B sides but they don't seem to be in vogue any more which is a bit of a shame.

HUAL is one of those songs which sounds better live than as a recording which is why I don't think it would have achieved a high chart position. I heard a snippet of it at the War Child concert and I thought it was fantastic. Hoping it makes the cut for this tour, which I think it will. Can't imagine any one singing the song other than Mark - its the perfect type of song for him. Re Comic Relief - can you imagine the outcry if TT turned up on the show - oh my!! Given that Rob has been implicated in a possible tax avoidance scheme recently it will be interesting to see the fall out for him and others such as Beckham if the scheme is classified as an avoidance one . I understand the governments position on it is being challenged at the moment.

Was Hold Up A Light actually released as an official single? I thought it was simply used as a promotional tool for the DVD, but I could well be mistaken as the Circus era seems so long ago! At the moment Gary appears pre occupied with the premiere of Finding Neverland and I'd be surprised if he's given LITS a second thought. I don't understand why they release a single if they're not prepared to promote it. I haven't heard the single on the radio once, and I'm often in the car travelling around for work, whereas I still hear These Days on a regular basis.

Oh, that's a real shame. It isn't a bad single by any stretch of the imagination and deserves better. However I still maintain it was the wrong choice for the second single and it obviously hasn't appealed to the wider buying public.

If, as predicted LITS doesn't chart in the Top 100, will it be TT's lowest charting single since their comeback?

I'm with Milly on this one. Mark is a great performer and very good song writer but as a big TT fan I can see the limitations in his voice. It's a very distinctive sound but I struggle to listen to it unless it's the right song, otherwise it's a car crash in my view. I really appreciate Mark, he's an integral part of TT without a shadow of a doubt but I truly believe that 90% of the general public would rate Gary's voice above Mark's. That said I don't have a problem with Mark or Howard on lead vocals so long as the single is a strong one. The overall sound is the most important thing -who leads is academic in that respect. I genuinely can't see the point in a third single at this stage. It looks like LITS has bombed and I can't see a third single doing any better. Higher Than Higher should have been the second single. I really question the decision making when it comes to song choices after the initial lead single. Similar mistakes were made with Progress - something like Don't Say Goodbye or Flowerbed should have been considered above the likes of Kidz and Love Love.

I'm probably one of the few but although I really like Flaws as a song I'm not keen on Gary's vocals!! His higher range should be used sparingly in my opinion. If his vocals were in a lower range then the sound would be richer. Another problem with Flaws as a third song would be complaints about Gary leading again - so perhaps a Mark led single would placate some people although I still think that Higher Than Higher would be their best single option. Agree with you Milly. I absolutely adore the Neverland score but not convinced that America will feel the same because of its pop element. I would love to hear a TT take on some of the songs from the musical but that's never going to happen sadly.

I do wonder if they are interested in singles outside of the first release? For me singles are important because in many cases they are the catalyst for album sales. LITS isn't the strongest song off the album by any stretch but it's worth a Top 10 position. It's a bit of a dilemma for TT - a strong album overall but the songs don't stack up as radio friendly stand alone pieces. Higher Than Higher would have been a better choice because it holds up well as a stand alone record in my view. They really need to go back to basics and recapture the sound of 2006. Maybe it won't pay off , maybe the music public has moved on from that sound? However I doubt it. If Ed and Sam can sell in large numbers then there's still a market for ballad led songs. TT's single campaigns also need to be more cohesive and focused to have any impact on the charts. On a side note - totally in love with the Neverland songs. What You Mean To Me is absolutely enchanting and one of the best songs Gary's written since RTW.

Jay your right, one of the main mistakes they made was to wait four years between album releases but I get the impression that it was down to the Jason situation. I believe the tax issue has had a significant impact on TT's popularity, I really do. They were thrown under the bus by the press. There have been recent tax stories in the press involving David Beckham and Robbie - but the back lash has been minimal, Ed and Sam have undoubtedly had enormous radio play and in a way have filled the void left by Adele in terms of blanket exposure on the air waves. Ed's album is great and worthy of the accolades its received but i'm somewhat puzzled by Sam's success. The album is really patchy and this may be a unpopular opinion but I find his voice very whinny and rather difficult to listen to for too long. I hope that TT don't try and go for another different sound. I like the fact that they try various sounds but as others have said the need a really big ballad and a return to their trade mark sound: good vocals, strong harmonies and no voice distortion! Interesting to read the story regarding War Child- I was surprised when I read the venue wasn't full because weeks previously it was sold out so it makes sense now.

I'm not sure its as simple as promotion or lack of. Artists like Sam Smith, Ed Sheeran et al don't promote that heavily on TV. However, they do get extensive radio play on all stations including Radio 1. TT get good radio airplay through Radio 2, Heart etc but obviously miss out on Radio 1. One review of their War Child gig pointed out that it wasn't a sell out and someone else made a remark along the lines of ... who would have thought Jason would be the deciding factor in them not selling out arenas. There are undoubtedly some who do not like TT as a three - as a massive fan I also find it strange watching just the three of them as visually it looks so different. Losing one member when there's five doesn't change the dynamic too much, dropping down to three from four most certainly does. I think the issue of TT's falling popularity is a really interesting one. I've mentioned my thoughts on the matter before and I believe a range of factors play a part. However, above all else it comes down to the musical output, and whilst I and many others like lll it really isn't strong enough in terms of capturing the floating buyer. I think they've deviated away from their earlier comeback sound and consequently they've struggled to retain the public's support. Their next album, if there is one, needs to focus on recapturing their previous sound and they do need to promote along the lines of Audience with to re capture some fans who have drifted away.

Regardless of whether they perform on Ant and Dec I can't see the single charting higher than the high 20's. I like the song but its an album song and not strong enough to stand alone. As much as I like lll, its weakness is the lack of stand out songs. Its a strong album and it works well in its entirety but it lacks those two or three songs which stand above the rest. I would have released Higher Than Higher, Into the Wild or something like Flaws - I really can't see a third single with the tour so close. I've also noticed the poor production values of the videos released for lll - its obvious that the budget is tight. Productions values were higher for GRFI but maybe the film company contributed to the cost as it was promotion for the film. I have to say I prefer some of the songs from Finding Neverland- the title song and What You Mean To Me are really, really lovely ballads. I miss the old TT or Beautiful World. Given the lack of lll songs showcased at War Child I'm always wondering if the tour will heavily weigh in favour of songs pre lll?

Agree with you about the Brits performance. I thought the staging was great with the sun and lights and I hope we have something like that on tour. However I do think Gary's vocals were a bit off and not as strong as their War Child performance of the song earlier in the week. However I think the main problem with the Brits was the staging. The three were too separate from one another. Gary out in front and Howard and Mark on the side lines and set back. Because of this it didn't look or feel like a band performance - I think that was the main issue.

Sorry I don't know how to link but some clips are coming through of Gary singing at a London event to introduce Finding Neverland. In the one clip ( Neverland) Gary sounds absolutely wonderful, he really does and the song sounds quite beautiful. I've heard some clips of Matthew Morrison and I'm not sure about him in the title role to be honest. I think they missed a trick in letting Jeremy Jordan go as he was magical in the role and far stronger than Matthew in the clips I've seen off him. On a side note the Neverland song has a similar quality to RTW in my opinion and I would love to hear a TT take on it.

Yes I listened to it. The radio presenter is obviously a fan off TT/Gary and it was lovely to hear someone outside of the UK praise their music. It does seem that Gary is going to go down the musical theatre route. If Finding Neverland receives good reviews on Broadway and Around the World in Eighty Days takes off I can actually see Gary spending half the year in the States working on projects.

Nice review of the War Child concert in the Guardian newspaper but a warning; don't read the accompanying comments They are brutal!

Pleased it's holding its position in the chart but guess sales are really low. As others have said hopefully performances over the next few weeks will benefit album sales and that Let in the Sun makes some kind of impact on the charts.

The purpose of forums is for people to air opinions and I'll defend freedom speech to the very end. However, for the life of me I cannot understand why anyone would wish to access a forum to post continually negative and disparaging comments about people they clearly dislike . I wouldn't dream of gloating over any artists popularity or lack of ; surely it's better to support the artists you like and ignore the one's you don't? Anyway if tickets sell badly that's Europe's loss as TT are one of the best live pop acts around at the moment and in my opinion the Circus tour was one of the best , if not the best pop show I've seen in the past 20 years.

I've listened to many of the songs from the musical. They don't strictly follow the musical genre and there's a strong pop ballad element to them. Mixed reviews for the score from the critics when the musical had its pre Broadway run but the audience response was far more positive. I personally love many of the songs and fingers crossed the musical is a Broadway success. It's a shame they replaced Jeremy Jordan in the lead role. He was outstanding in the bits I've seen - hopefully Mathew Morrison will do a good job. If this goes well Gary will be offered more opportunities to write musical scores and I can envisage more projects of this kind. He seems to have a great personal and song writing relationship with Eliot Kennedy and they've produced some really good work.

Disappointing sales for lll - was hoping for top 15. Sales will struggle from now on in unless there is some kind of major promotional boost which seems unlikely. They desperately need something like An Audience With - it seems to have worked for Olly Murs. Let In The Sun isn't out until March so the album could be out of the Top 40 by then and effectively album sales will have dropped to a trickle. I think the album deserves high sales than it has but sadly this campaign hasn't been successful ( in TT terms) and hasn't really captured the imagination of the buying public outside of the loyal TT fan base. As they've mentioned writing again I'll be interested to see what sound they go with if they release an album this year.