Gary Barlow: Nice to be back in Germany. Howard always says how much better it is to live in Germany.Howard Donald: No, I didn’t say better, but I like life here. There’s a reason I have an apartment here. Barlow: The food is good. Donald: I love the food. Barlow: And everyone is so healthy in Germany!Donald: Well, not everyone. Barlow: But many. At least it seems that way.
You say the three of you are like family now. Which one of you is the stressful child? Mark Owen: Uh…Barlow: Uh…Donald: Hmm… That’s hard to answer, that could be me, but I don’t know. In any case, we are like a family. We know each other’s little secrets, some of which even our real family doesn’t know. I won’t betray them!
If the three of you are like family, is Robbie Williams like the toxic ex-boyfriend of one of you? Barlow: Absolutely not!
Because he comes and goes. Barlow: But only once at a time. And that was so long ago now… the last time he was in the band was in 2011. Since 2014 there have only been three of us. Or actually since 2013.Donald: Say 2014, then we can soon announce and celebrate our tenth anniversary. Barlow: We love celebrating anniversaries. Some of our crew have been there for 30 years.
In the song “One more word” on your new album you sing “Turn your world until it’s where you want to be”. Are you where you wanted to be today? Barlow: You should never settle down and stay somewhere comfortable, but always set yourself higher goals. The message of getting back up, moving on, is the most important one on the new album.Owen: I see the song as advice for everyone: If you feel like you have to do something, do it, if you have a dream, make it come true .
On the album you also sing about having hard days. Days when you hated yourself, when you felt broken. Donald: We’re normal people. We have families. We have children who are sometimes absolute pains in the ass. We have difficult times like everyone else. So there are days when we look in the mirror and think: I don’t like myself today.
What don’t you like about yourself? Barlow: I work too much. I find it difficult to stop working. Because I love music so much. But the music also drives you crazy. The thought that I could make music that changes someone’s life the way music changed mine is addictive. Owen: I also wish I could relax better. I try to establish routines in my life. But that doesn’t really work. Donald: I get impatient with my kids sometimes. At the end of days like this, I hate myself for it. I’m working on this because I want to be the best father a child can have.
In your new songs you always give your children tips. If you could give them just one piece of advice, what would it be? Donald: I would tell them: Be happy! We parents are also responsible for this. We have to help them find happiness, pave a path for them.Barlow: I’ve always told my children: Find something you love and you’ll never have to work. That’s what I did. I found music and would love to play music non-stop all day long.
Can you imagine ever retiring? Barlow: No. When I can’t walk anymore at some point, I’ll just sit at the piano and play music. It’s lucky we’re still so young. Some musicians are in their eighties. We’re only in our fifties. We still have a whole career ahead of us! We’ve been doing this for 30 years and have another 30 years ahead of us.
Still, there’s no denying that you’ve gotten older. Do you find it more difficult to perform on stage these days? Barlow: Never! I’m 52 and I feel very young, especially on stage. I have a lot of energy there. You know it was a good show when you leave the stage drenched in sweat.
Do you have a place where your best ideas come from? One of artists’ favorite answers: in the shower. Donald: If my best ideas came to me in the shower, I would shower all day. But it always happens when I least expect it. Once I had to try to write down all the ideas that suddenly came to me while driving.
What would you be today if you weren’t “Take That”? Barlow: Without music, I swear, I’m useless. Completely useless. And I mean, I’m not even that good at making music, so… During the band break that we had in between, we were all thinking the same thing: What are we going to do now? When we were reunited again, we realized that the three of us felt safe.
Many fans are still hoping that Robbie Williams will become a permanent member of “Take That” again. You once said that if you had talked more about your feelings and problems in the past, he might not have left the band. Owen: I think when we were young…wait, don’t we have a song called that?Donald: Yeah, “When we were young.” Owen: I knew it! In any case: When we were young, people didn’t talk about mental health as much as they do today. We didn’t even know what mental health was. We were teenagers. Even if I had wanted to, I wouldn’t have even known how to address feelings and problems. We didn’t know if it was normal, how we felt when we felt a little sad. We had no comparison.
What do you mean?Barlow: We were kids thrown into a fast-moving carousel trying to keep up. I believe, and I say this too, when we talk about Robbie: We shouldn’t be so hard on ourselves. We are here. We’re still friends. It didn’t turn out that badly. Of course I can also make music alone. But that’s nothing compared to the feeling of walking on stage, looking left and right and seeing these two guys right here next to me. It’s like going on vacation alone: it’s nice – but even better when someone comes with you.
