Robbie Williams - The Christmas Present

The Guardian 40

(Columbia)
Robbie does his full Rat Pack tribute act on a bunch of seasonal standards, and throws in some bonkers Christmas bonus songs of his own

Like your extended family after one too many mince pies, the Christmas album market is bloated and inert. Last year, everyone from Jessie J to William Shatner proffered their takes on the same old seasonal standards. Yet there are few musicians better suited to this cosily camp form than Robbie Williams: the 45-year-old’s career has been almost entirely fuelled by the kind of arch schmaltz that is the genre’s lifeblood.