Come Fly with Me

About

Robbie Williams recorded his version of Come Fly with Me for the BBC/Comic Relief animation Robbie the Reindeer in Hooves of Fire, first broadcast on BBC One on 25 December 1999. The performance was used over the end credits and as a promotional music video tied to the special, rather than as part of a studio album release.

The song, written by Jimmy Van Heusen and Sammy Cahn for Frank Sinatra’s 1958 album of the same name, was cut at Metropolis Studios in London in October 1999 for the film’s soundtrack sessions. Williams also served as the programme’s narrator, with his vocal on Come Fly with Me treated as a standalone showcase linked to the Comic Relief project.

Musically, the recording follows the classic big band template, with brass, rhythm section and a swinging mid tempo feel that nods to the original Capitol arrangement. Williams leans into light phrasing and a relaxed croon, keeping the lyric’s jet age escapism intact while tailoring the delivery to a family Christmas audience.

“Robbie Williams provides the warbling for this fun 3D animated feature… And Robbie’s rendition of Come Fly With Me is not available to buy on any other format.”The Mirror, 30 December 1999

Although later associated with his swing work in the 2000s, this 1999 recording stands slightly apart in the catalogue as a non album track, issued as a DVD and broadcast extra. It has since been noted mainly in discographies and retrospectives on both Robbie the Reindeer and Williams’s early ventures into standards, rather than as a core hit in his own right.