Tripping (song)

"Tripping"
Single by Robbie Williams
from the album Intensive Care
Released October 3, 2005
Format CD single, DVD single, digital download
Recorded 2005
Genre Pop, funk
Length 4:36 (Album Version)
4:03 (Radio Edit)
Label Chrysalis
Producer Stephen Duffy
Robbie Williams
Robbie Williams singles chronology
"Misunderstood"
(2004)
"Tripping"
(2005)
"Make Me Pure"
(2005)

"Tripping" is a song by British pop singer Robbie Williams, it was the first single from his 2005 album Intensive Care. The single was backed with the track "Make Me Pure", also from the same album, it was sent to radio stations around the world. Williams himself calls the song "something like a mini gangster opera" and "kind of cabaret act reggae". The rolling rhythm of the song owes much to the early work of The Clash. During the chorus Williams reaches an extremely high disco-like head voice. Lyrically the song is a bit darker than previous songs. It tells the tale of gangsters and how they "don't kill their own and they all love their mothers", before an anguished chorus of "I've taken as much as I'm willing to take". The opening lyrics "First they ignore you, then laugh at you and hate you. Then they fight you, then you win" is a paraphrase from a quote commonly attributed to Mahatma Gandhi. The song was the 26th best selling of 2005 in the UK.

Contents

Music video

The video, which was directed by Johan Renck, features Williams running in place as if he can't seem to get anywhere. It appears that Williams is having a nightmare, in which he is living sometime in 1950s, and is stuck running endlessly without ever advancing, or driving in a stereotypical 1950s backdrop. It also includes a baby talking to him, and a pair of lesbian twins in his car's backseat. The car is a Saab 95.

Chart success

The song became a massive worldwide success for Williams, debuting inside the top ten in most countries around Europe, including number-two in the United Kingdom, spending six weeks inside the top ten and fifteen inside the top seventy-five.[1] The single reached number-one in Argentina, Germany (where it's his first #1-hits overall[2]), Portugal, Italy, and Taiwan. In Switzerland the single was certified Gold.[3] In Mexico, the song reached number-nine and became the eleventh most played track of the year.[4] In Australia, the single peaked at number-seven and went on to sell over 35,000 copies being certified Gold by the ARIA.[5]

Tracklisting

UK CD1

  1. "Tripping" [Album Version] - 4:36
  2. "Make Me Pure" [Edit] - 3:49

UK CD2

  1. "Tripping" [Album Version] - 4:36
  2. "Make Me Pure" [Edit] - 3:49
  3. "Meet The Stars" - 4:29

UK DVD Single

  1. "Tripping" [Video]
  2. "Make Me Pure" [Video]
  3. "Bag Full Of Silly" [Audio]
  4. "Gallery & Video Clip"

Certifications and sales

Country Certification (if any) Sales/shipments
Australia Gold[5] 35,000+
Switzerland Gold[3] 10,000+

Charts

Chart (2005) Peak
position
Australia (ARIA)[6] 7
Austria (Ö3 Austria Top 75)[7] 2
Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders)[8] 8
Belgium (Ultratop 40 Wallonia)[9] 11
Denmark (Tracklisten)[10] 3
European Hot 100 Singles[11] 1
France (SNEP)[12] 9
Hungary (Rádiós Top 40)[13] 1
Italy (FIMI)[14] 1
Netherlands (Mega Single Top 100)[15] 2
New Zealand (RIANZ)[16] 20
Norway (VG-lista)[17] 2
Spain (PROMUSICAE)[18] 2
Sweden (Sverigetopplistan)[19] 2
Switzerland (Schweizer Hitparade)[20] 2
UK Singles (The Official Charts Company)[21] 2

Year-end charts

End of year chart (2005) Position
UK Singles Chart 26

References

  1. ^ "Tripping" Chart Run
  2. ^ http://musicline.de/de/chartverfolgung_summary/artist/Williams%2CRobbie/?type=single
  3. ^ a b IFPI Switzerland Certification for "Tripping"
  4. ^ Mexico's Top 40 of 2006
  5. ^ a b ARIA Certification for "Tripping"
  6. ^ "Australian-charts.com – Robbie Williams – Tripping". ARIA Top 50 Singles. Hung Medien. Retrieved 2010-12-18.
  7. ^ "Robbie Williams – Tripping – Austriancharts.at" (in German). Ö3 Austria Top 40. Hung Medien. Retrieved 2010-12-18.
  8. ^ "Ultratop.be – Robbie Williams – Tripping" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50. Ultratop & Hung Medien / hitparade.ch. Retrieved 2010-12-18.
  9. ^ "Ultratop.be – Robbie Williams – Tripping" (in French). Ultratop 40. Ultratop & Hung Medien / hitparade.ch. Retrieved 2010-12-18.
  10. ^ "Danishcharts.com – Robbie Williams – Tripping". Tracklisten. Hung Medien. Retrieved 2010-12-18.
  11. ^ "Robbie Williams Album & Song Chart History" European Hot 100 for Robbie Williams. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved 2010-07-22.
  12. ^ "Lescharts.com – Robbie Williams – Tripping" (in French). Les classement single. Hung Medien. Retrieved 2010-12-18.
  13. ^ "Archívum – Slágerlisták – MAHASZ – Magyar Hanglemezkiadók Szövetsége" (in Hungarian). Rádiós Top 40 játszási lista. Magyar Hanglemezkiadók Szövetsége. Retrieved 2010-12-18.
  14. ^ "Italiancharts.com – Robbie Williams – Tripping". Top Digital Download. Hung Medien. Retrieved 2010-12-18.
  15. ^ "Dutchcharts.nl – Robbie Williams – Tripping" (in Dutch). Mega Single Top 100. Hung Medien / hitparade.ch. Retrieved 2010-12-18.
  16. ^ "Charts.org.nz – Robbie Williams – Tripping". Top 40 Singles. Hung Medien. Retrieved 2010-12-18.
  17. ^ "Norwegiancharts.com – Robbie Williams – Tripping". VG-lista. Hung Medien. Retrieved 2010-12-18.
  18. ^ "Spanishcharts.com – Robbie Williams – Tripping" Canciones Top 50. Hung Medien. Retrieved 2010-12-18.
  19. ^ "Swedishcharts.com – Robbie Williams – Tripping". Singles Top 60. Hung Medien. Retrieved 2010-12-18.
  20. ^ "Robbie Williams – Tripping – swisscharts.com". Swiss Singles Chart. Hung Medien. Retrieved 2010-12-18.
  21. ^ "Archive Chart" UK Singles Chart. The Official Charts Company. Retrieved 2010-12-18.
Preceded by
La Nostra Vita by Eros Ramazzotti
Italian Singles Chart number one single
October 8, 2005 - October 15, 2005
Succeeded by
"Big City Life" by Mattafix