4th September:

Regardless of what you think of Robbie Williams or his music, it is noticeable that the press in the UK has been dwelling on one particular facet of his 'comeback' as the William's PR machine gears up for the launch of his latest album: his age. Robbie, as many a red-top journo seems only to happy to highlight, is now the ripe-old age of 35. Can he still cut it, they muse?

Having lived in a few different countries over the years, I have always been bemused by the British (and American) obsession with youth. Good musicians do not suddenly lose the ability to write and perform on their 30th birthday in the same way that good writers do not wake up that same day and find themselves staring blankly at the screen, unable to compose an articulate sentence. Unless they overdid the drugs a little the night before. In every genre of culture, from art to acting, poetry to pottery, age is neither a barrier to success nor a component part of it. And yet popular music decrees that only the young and the pretty shall flourish, as the 30-plus-somethings are taken to one side and gently lowered into large, comfy armchairs with tartan travelling rugs placed over their knees. Nurse will be along in a moment to mash up your lunch for you, Mr. Williams. Do try not to expire before then...

Youth has many advantages, and I'm sure many of us miss the excitement, the naivety, the energy and the enthusiasm of our teenage years, but youth isn't really a quality in itself. It's not something to admire or aspire to. After all, there's always someone younger and prettier right behind you, no matter how young and pretty you may be. It's simply a stage that leads on to another stage and our art and music should evolve with us as we move. As musicians age, they arguably become more secure within themselves and less concerned with the spurious stuff (fashion, public perception, image, critics and so on) that may have preoccupied them in years gone by. Michael Jackson excepted. And this probably makes for better music and a better artist.

As with everything in life, there are caveats and exceptions, but I am now in my mid-thirties and am making music that is more thoughtful, determined, articulate and (dare I say it) better than at any time in my life. I wouldn't want to be 16 again if you paid me.