Walk on the Wild Side

About

Robbie Williams has performed Walk on the Wild Side as a live cover on select tours, using Lou Reed’s 1972 track as a transitional, groove-led moment within his sets. The song did not feature as a regular staple but appeared intermittently across late 1990s and early 2000s shows, always in an unrecorded, event-specific form. It has never been included on any studio album or official single.

No authorised recording session exists for Walk on the Wild Side in Williams’s catalogue. Each appearance was arranged informally for the touring band, typically emerging as part of a medley, an extended intro or a mid-set diversion. Because the performances varied between tours and venues and were not issued commercially, precise details such as running time, instrumentation changes or vocal allocation remain undocumented.

Live renditions retained the core lyric and the distinctive bass-led pulse of Reed’s original. Williams generally used the song to create a slower, more atmospheric interlude, relying on its recognisable melodic line and conversational vocal style. Arrangements emphasised bass, light percussion and backing vocals, aligning the performance with the relaxed pacing of the original recording.

I like throwing curveballs into the set.Robbie Williams

Although Walk on the Wild Side never became a defined component of Williams’s touring repertoire, its occasional use reflects the breadth of material he drew on to shape the mood of his shows. Without official releases, these performances remain informal footnotes in his live history, noted chiefly for their contrast with his core pop catalogue.