SingStar: Take That

I’ll admit: I never swooned over boy bands. Much of this is to do with my fortunate musical upbringing; since I was five or so, my Dad has owned a second-hand record store. Naturally, when one has an entire store of music to choose from, one gravitates away from the MTV pop sensations because they simply don’t make a mark in the plethora of alternatives. If I sound like a spoiled brat, it’s probably because I am.

Regardless, I can still appreciate a catchy tune, and apparently Take That had many. For those who aren’t familiar with Take That (all I knew was that Robbie Williams used to be a member) they were a British boy band conisisting of members Gary Barlow, Howard Donald, Jason Orange, Mark Owen and Robbie Williams. They had their biggest successes during the early to mid nineties, where hits such as ‘Relight My Fire’ and ‘Back for Good’ turned them into worldwide superstars and objects of obsessive affection for teenage girls everywhere. Then, Robbie Williams quit in 1995, and everything turned to crap.

Since reforming after a tell-all TV documentary, Take That are still a huge phenomenon in Britain, although considering they’re all now in their late 30s, this possibly has more to do with their musical chops than their sex appeal. The Singstar disc compiles a best-of their old and new stuff, with disconcerting videos where you can see who has aged well and who hasn’t.

As per usual, Sony ain't fixing what ain't broke, and the format remains the same as every other Singstar – if you’re reading this, you know the drill. The usual complaints still stand: why in Gary Barlow’s name do we have to keep swapping discs? Following the Rock Band model of enabling songs to be downloaded onto the PS3 hard-drive would be utter bliss, and we’d all avoid those drunken nights where game discs are chucked on the floor in order to get the next one in as soon as possible, or, to refer back to one fateful night, used as an ashtray.

For Take That fans, the track-list can’t be faulted. All the big ones are here, and there’s an even-handed mix of upbeat teeny-bop stuff and soulful ballads. Personal taste notwithstanding, my favourites are 'Do What U Like' and 'Relight My Fire', which are not only great pop songs, but have wonderfully unintentional homoerotic videos. I totally swooned.

Here’s the Take That tracklist:

A Million Love Songs
Babe
Back For Good
Beautiful World
Could It Be Magic
Do What U Like
Everything Changes
Greatest Day
Hold Up A Light
I'd Wait For Life
It Only Takes A Minute
Love Ain't Here Anymore
Never Forget
Once You've Tasted Love
Patience
Pray
Promises
Reach Out
Relight My Fire
Rule The World
Said It All
Shine
Sure
Up All Night
Why Can't I Wake Up With You