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| | I had the pleasure of interviewing author Nicole Galland whilst she was in the UK.
I had the opportunity to ask her a few questions - including why she loves our Rob so much, and why she's writing a book full of our feelings about him.
'Robbie Williams, Let us be your Energy' will contain over 50 accounts from fans all over the world, from Australia to Norway, including one from the USA (proving that his hard work over there is paying off!)
 It took Nicole (pic - right) five months to collect and put together the fans' stories (as well as having to translate a few stories from German into English. She lives in Germany herself).
Determination
The book got started by Nicole writing an account of what she wanted on a few fan sites, including on our very own messageboard on BBC Staffordshire.
At first, she got a few nasty comments, saying that she wouldn't succeed and that people had tried to do this task before and failed... but this made Nicole even more determined to pull though.
Nicole and Robbie
She herself 'found' Robbie after a very tough time in her life.
Many things seemed to be going downhill until one day she turned on the radio and playing on it was 'Love Supreme'. The words seemed to relate to her, and at one point when he sang the words 'what are you really looking for?', she asked herself the same question.
Since then, she has been dedicated and made many friends in Robbie fans from all over the world (including myself), been to two concerts in his 2003 tour, and caught up on all of the brilliant songs that she had missed before.
Nicole says that although she is a dedicated fan all she really wants with Robbie is a cup of coffee and a conversation.
She wants to hear his point of view of his life and what has happened to him.
Rob's future...
Nicole thinks that the reason why Robbie may not be so big in America may be because that they don't understand him or his cheeky charm. They try to take him too seriously instead of as the entertainer that he was born to be.
She believes that one day Robbie will settle down with the woman of his dreams because she is out there. He will meet her when he is least expecting it.
She also believes that he will make an amazing father. So do we, Nicole, so do we
For Rob
She says that it may be very good for Robbie himself to read - not only see how much he means to some people but also to make him realise what a saviour he has been to many people, and how he has touched their lives.
Let's hope Nicole's second dream - to hear from Robbie that he has read the book - does also come true.
Well done Nicole!
Hannah Ward
For sale
The book is available to be ordered by mail from Noxxon Verlag and soon at Amazon.
The ISBN number is 3-86587-064-3.
Nicole is donating the net proceeds (30% of the selling price) to Rob's "Give it Sum" charity.
One of the accounts in "Let us be Your Energy" came from Joe Ravipinto, from the United States... This is his contribution...
... I'm proud to say I'm an American Robbie Williams fan! We have not had a male solo artist of his caliber in this country in over a decade. Finding a solo artist with back-to-back quality albums is a challenge of itself these days. Robbie's songwriting team is magnificent.
He is quickly moving into the same class as that of The Beatles and Billy Joel, which are known by most as being the last two-generations' songwriting pioneers. His usage of harmonies and orchestration of various instruments is superb. Each song's depth and detail is superior to any act currently in the industry.
It is clear that he is a student of the best musicians who ever lived. He has absorbed his influences and more importantly has been able to create his own unique masterpieces. Without a doubt, Robbie's vocal range is amazing. His voice is the Sinatra, Elvis Presley and Ray Charles of our time. Like those legendary singers, his voice and music will live forever.
The fact that he is a natural born entertainer is icing on the cake. It is hard to argue that he is not one of the best front men in music history. He is part of a small group of entertainers who has earned the right to say they truly own a concert stage when they step onto it. Yes, Freddy Mercury would have been proud to watch him strut across the stage.
It is my hope that someday Robbie will tour the US so that American audiences would understand what a brilliant performer he is. As a man, it is natural to relate to his songs. The emotions to his music and lyrics tug at my heart, inspire my soul to dance and make it easy to smile while "living the dream."
I'm a die-hard fan who would be honored to "grow old with him." Long live Robbie Williams!!!
Joe Ravipinto
Review of Let Us Be Your Energy
It's no secret that Robbie is a really handsome man - we see hordes of fans flocking around him and thousands at Knebworth-like concerts - but before now we've never had a real way of finding out the stories of their so-called 'robsessions'.
He's won handfuls of Brit awards and sold millions of albums but for some of Robbie's most dedicated fans his music goes much deeper.
Nicole Galland's book contains over 50 moving and heartfelt stories by Robbie's fans from all over the world.
The book takes its readers through an interesting journey of Rob's career, seeing it from the eyes of his fans. Some compare him to Elvis, some identify with his past drink/drug problems, some have been given hope by his music but each fan tells a unique story.
One girl even says his music has taught her the English language, but here's a little of what Marinka from Germany had to say:
"Rob fills up my life with plenty of joy. His music, his performance or just his photos cheer me up every time I'm sad or depressed. I fever on his concerts, get infected by his emotions. I'm glad when he's happy and sad when he feels terrible. "He's present every single day in my life because of his music, his honesty, vulnerability and sensibility."
Nicole has done a fantastic job of compiling the stories and has worked hard translating some of them into English. For something which seemed a little thrown together at first, the book is utterly hard to put down.
It is a great read and good means of giving the fans their own voice, or as Kirsty from South Africa wanted to say to him:
"Thank you for making yourself part of our lives, now let us make ourselves part of yours"
Let Us Be Your Energy certainly gets my thumbs up - not only did it remind me of all of the Robster's charms but had me reaching for his entire back catalogue.
I might even say it's one to make even the biggest Stoke supporter show a feeling for Vale's famous fan.
Hayley Harp
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