Robbie Williams is teaming up with his Take That bandmate Gary Barlow to make his next solo record a "Lennon and MCCartney-type album".
The British pop star recently rejoined the group after a 15-year absence, but he is planning to resurrect his solo career once his Take That duties are over.
Williams has recruited his bandmate Barlow to help write and produce the new record, and he hopes the partnership will be akin to that shared by Beatles stars John Lennon and Sir Paul MCCartney.
He tells Britain's Esquire magazine, "Gaz (Gary) is great for me because he knows how I should sound. He wanted to make a Lennon and MCCartney-type album. That was his big idea - big, standard records.
"At the minute it's just me and him finishing the album and I love it... Gary is kind of unemotional about stuff. I'm emotional about stuff. He's solid. I'm fickle. He gets stuff done, I don't."
Williams admits it is "incredibly important" to him that this album is successful, but he is not going to be distraught if it fails to sell like his flop 2006 record Rudebox.
He adds, "It's not the be-all and end-all. I'm not going to throw myself off a cliff if it's another Rudebox. It's exciting. There's a possibility it will have a similar impact to things I've done in the past. And before I wander off into the retirement home of the pop world, I'd like to have another fistful of hits to play to people.
"I believe I've got one last stab at a global success. I want to right some wrongs. Make up for how I've looked and behaved. There's a place I'd like to go for a bit of redemption, for myself. Just to do a good job. I just want a few more hits and then I'll gladly go."