Gary Barlow wrote "rubbish" songs after Take That split

Gary Barlow has said that doing everyday chores helped inspire him to write songs.

The Take That star explained that the group's split in 1995 had left him struggling to pen material he was happy with. However, after relocating to California with his family, he soon discovered what he was missing.

"It was great. I was doing stuff I hadn't done for ten years," The Sun quotes Barlow as saying. "I would walk into a supermarket and go, 'Wow, look at all the brands of toothpaste - this is unbelievable.'

"I had a year of getting my life back and I watched my son cough, sneeze and walk for the first time."

Recalling his struggle, Barlow explained: "I don't know if it was writer's block, because I would come up with stuff but it was just rubbish.

"I've always had a good ear, my intuition is good with new music, but I knew straight away that nothing I was coming up with was any good. Most of what you do - the big part of you - is gone, it's evaporated. Your question is, 'Is it going to come back?' I ended up with no confidence as a writer."

X Factor judge Barlow continued: "It's like taking confidence away from Premier League winners. They play properly but the luck doesn't come their way - and it's exactly the same as a creative person.

"You are not going to come up with anything without confidence. Doing something with all your confidence stripped is hard - it would have been better to take ten years off."

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Watch Take That's 'When We Were Young' video below: