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BuzzJack Music Forum _ Spice Girls _ Mel B - 'Hot'
Posted by: Jay ☆ 9th April 2020, 11:15 AM
'Hot'
9th October 2000
1. Feels So Good
2. Tell Me
3. Hell No
4. Lullaby
5. Hotter
6. Step Inside
7. ABC 123
8. I Believe
9. I Want You Back (feat. Missy Elliott)
10. Pack Your Shit
11. Feel Me Now
+ Word Up [Japanese Bonus Track]
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A discussion thread focusing on Mel B's first solo album 'Hot', released 9th October 2000!
The album was preceded by her debut single I Want You Back, which came out 2 years earlier and reached #1, with Tell Me serving as the launch single in September 2000 and peaking at #4. Hot could only attain a position of #28 in the UK chart. Follow up single Feels So Good granted Mel with her final Top 5 single, at #5, and Lullaby reached #13 in June 2001, signalling the end of the era. Total album sales are below 60,000 copies in the UK, but it is certified Silver for over 60,000 shipments.
What are your thoughts and opinions on this album? Which tracks do you like, love, hate? What's your favourite? Were the singles the correct choices? Rate the tracks in order of favourite to least favourite.
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https://steveyb.co.uk/wp-content/gallery/Melanie-B/MelanieB-Sing01IWantYouBack.jpghttps://steveyb.co.uk/wp-content/gallery/Melanie-B/MelanieB-Sing02WordUp.jpghttps://steveyb.co.uk/wp-content/gallery/Melanie-B/MelanieB-Sing03TellMe.jpghttps://steveyb.co.uk/wp-content/gallery/Melanie-B/MelanieB-Sing04FeelsSoGood.jpghttps://steveyb.co.uk/wp-content/gallery/Melanie-B/MelanieB-Sing05Lullaby.jpg
Posted by: vibe 9th April 2020, 04:05 PM
What do you all think of Word Up?
I totally dismissed it at the time but now appreciate it.
The song completely suits Mel’s voice. We all know this is considered a flop because it missed the top 10?
Why do you think this didn’t do well?
It was attached to a massive film, it had two very good music videos and came off the back of a number 1 solo hit !!
Posted by: Spiceboy 9th April 2020, 06:12 PM
I really like the song and think that the animated music video is fantastic (the other one is terrible lol). However I think it was too out there for the Spice Girls fandom of the time, a bit to abstract sounding and the video was too dark and not appropriate for her audience age... even if it was fantastic. It’s also not a very catchy song for radio to get the casual listener hooked onto the song it takes a bit of time to appreciate it. The song deserved a lot more than what it achieved.
Posted by: lewistgreen 9th April 2020, 06:22 PM
ALRIGHT LET’S JUST GO FOR IT
It’s a completely cheesy and unnecessary cover and I love it
Posted by: Mr.X 9th April 2020, 08:03 PM
I love it. It was an amazing, perfect single that maybe it was too out there for the media and the fandom at the time. The video is ICONIC and super creative, I love it. And Mel's voice really suits this song so well...
It is a shame it was a flop. I think the above and also the fact that the live performances were BAD (she spent them sat on a sofa and miming lol) kind of made it lose any chances of success tbh. Because it had everything it could ask for to achieve success: it's great, from a Spice Girl who had just had a #1 single AND also was part of a multi-million franchise (Austin Powers)...
But people just didnt get it AND the promo was terrible lol
Personally, I love it and I'm really thankful it was released, as I tihnk it is fantastic!
Posted by: Feel_The_Fever 9th April 2020, 09:02 PM
I liked it at the time, i dont think it has aged well but i still enjoy it, lullaby is still her best single though.
Posted by: hermespice 9th April 2020, 09:05 PM
How bizarre. It came on randomly twice on my iPhone today. I think it aged well... I quite like it. Maybe because back in the day I didn’t know it was a cover.
Posted by: Michael Andrew 10th April 2020, 08:33 AM
I love it. Always have. It suits her.
But then, I always liked the original too. I think the song is divisive and her young audience of the time weren't interested in an 80s throwback. The video was not what any fans wanted from her either. A bit too grown up and surreal.
I suspect the live performances were low energy because Mel had only recently given birth. So didn't get to showcase her impressive dance ability.
But on reflection, I don't think she should consider it a flop. Despite all that stuff, it still charted quite well. And now her fans are older, they can appreciate where she was going with it. She should be proud.
Posted by: gabry 10th April 2020, 09:18 AM
It cannot be considered a flop also because it was not an album single but only a film soundtrack and therefore a top 20 is not bad
Posted by: vibe 10th April 2020, 09:46 AM
She didn’t put it on her album because it didn’t do well.
Posted by: vibe 10th April 2020, 09:47 AM
It’s liked on here more than I thought !
Little Mix version is terrible !!
Posted by: Mr.X 10th April 2020, 09:49 AM
At the time it was considered a flop unfortunately. Mel B's previous single was also a song from a soundtrack and that was #1. Plus she was a Spice Girl and pretty much one of the most famous singers in the world who had never seen *anything* she put her name on to reach any lower than #2... So unfortunately it was - and is - considered a flop still today... a shame...
Posted by: schizo_spice 10th April 2020, 10:12 AM
It was most certainly a flop for 1999, just consider the other girls 1999 chart positions
Geri (#2 and two #1s)
Mel C (two #4s)
Emma (#2)
A #13 was unheard off for a Spice Girl.
Posted by: Babyboy 10th April 2020, 05:46 PM
I remember she said that she did not like the song because Jimmy Gulzar was involved in the creative process of the video.
Posted by: Michael Andrew 11th April 2020, 09:52 AM
#13 is still an achievement. No shame in it.
Posted by: Mr.X 11th April 2020, 09:58 AM
That makes a lot of sense actually. And didnt she also say in her first book that Jimmy was the person who suggested she recorded the song in the first place?
Posted by: Babyboy 11th April 2020, 10:35 AM
Yes. Should be correct what you said. Something like.. To help him to get involved in a project.
Also Timbaland that produced the song was not a well know producer at the time.
Posted by: Spice Girls Net 11th April 2020, 10:38 AM
I actually loved this song at the time and I still love it now. I think it’s one of her best along with ‘Feels So Good’. I loved the production and the song really suited Melanie’s voice. I don’t know why it doesn’t get much love compared to her other stuff.
Posted by: Jay ☆ 11th April 2020, 02:29 PM
I really like Word Up now, but I didn’t care for it back in 1999. Like others have mentioned, the overall package of this single and video seemed too adult for me, I felt alienated by it. As I got older, I grew to appreciate it more!
Back in 99 it was revealed as being a #14 entry, in a chart that was aired with errors. OCC eventually published the correct chart a few years ago, showing that it was genuinely a #13 instead. Nowadays a peak like that seems absolutely fine, but at the time it was the first Spice related release to miss the top 10, performing worse than How Does It Feel to Be on Top of the World (#9 in 1998). So I can understand that Virgin & Mel B would have been underwhelmed by this outcome at the time.
I definitely prefer the vibe of Mel’s cover to Little Mix’s rather frantic sounding version of it. It’s cool that she worked with Timbaland before he really became famous.
Posted by: Tawdry Hepburn 11th April 2020, 02:34 PM
It's utter crap
Posted by: Janet 🙅🏼& 11th April 2020, 04:02 PM
I honestly love it! I even think the video is pretty iconic! I used to listen to it on my ipod years later oops.
Posted by: vibe 11th April 2020, 09:39 PM
Timbaland was known in 99 , he might not have been at his peak but he was still regarded as a great producer.
Posted by: tommie 12th April 2020, 07:13 AM
Yup, he might not have had name recognition with the general public at the time, but as a R&B/Hip-Hop producer he was well-known for producing Ginuwine's hit Pony and working with Missy Elliot, Aaliyah etc. It wasn't like Mel B had dug him up from obscurity.
Posted by: Jay ☆ 12th April 2020, 02:09 PM
I don’t think anybody was trying to imply that Mel B plucked Timbaland out of obscurity, but despite some of his production credits and a couple of minor featured hits with US artists by 1999, he still wasn’t a very famous name in his own right. He was a fairly left field choice for Mel to work with, from a UK perspective. The fact he produced Word Up wasn’t really a talking point for its promo.
Posted by: sammy01 12th April 2020, 03:29 PM
Still love her cover of this and the video. Mel B had such a good singles run up to Lullaby.
Posted by: Mr.X 12th April 2020, 05:57 PM
Personally, her inital run of singles is better than any other Spices. I Want You Back, Word Up, Tell Me and Feels So Good were all BOPs that stood the test of time, whilst the other girls cant all say the same... Just a shame about how the last 3 of those songs were handled by the record companies and promo plans... But whatever...
This, together with how Mel B ALWAYS shines on tour with the Spice Girls, often stealing the show, just really shows how much of a great pop star she is. The (british) public really did her wrong lol
Posted by: sammy01 12th April 2020, 07:12 PM
Hotter instead of Lullaby would have been another great single, I think it would have saved her solo career too.
Posted by: Jay ☆ 12th April 2020, 09:15 PM
It's a shame that her solo career went awry. She certainly had the talent and the personality to make it, but a few too many mistakes were made along the way.
Posted by: sammy01 12th April 2020, 09:49 PM
I think the first mistake was Hot album cover, imagine your demographic being kids and that is your solo album cover.
Posted by: Michael Andrew 13th April 2020, 10:11 AM
Absolutely right there.
Posted by: Mr.X 13th April 2020, 10:55 AM
Yes, I agree. Many mistakes were made. Amongst them:
- Word Up promo was dreadful
- Releasing HOT in the middle of Forever promo, which in turn also impacted on her ability to work with the group at the time
- Releasing HOT right after Tell Me when it should have come out after another single like Feels So Good
- Releasing Lullaby as *the* single that was supposed to make or break the album's and Mel's future with Virgin
- Half of the album being crap (sorry Mel but what the f*** is ABC 123? Hell No? I Believe?....) thus killing any momentum gained with Tell Me
Shame she also worked with some people who were kind of against her chances. Virgin didn't believe in her, and some of the album's own producers gaver her shit material to work with and even blasted her singing abilities.
I think there was also the fact that the UK press was absolutely against her (and the Spice Girls) at the time. The UK press has always been incredibly racist towards Mel B and I think it really shows on her solo career... Didnt a TV Host at the time called her a dog? There was some press about that that I remember too... And she has admited that at the time having black people on primetime TV was seen as bad for ratings or something like that too...
No wonder she quit music as a solo artist tbh...
Posted by: sammy01 13th April 2020, 10:57 AM
I love I believe.
Posted by: Spiceboy 13th April 2020, 12:05 PM
Mel made way too many mistakes with her solo career.
1. Word up promo was terrible the performances were totally dire.
2. Tell me should not have been released even if it is one of the stronger songs on the album it was too personal but not in a tasteful way, if it was to be released it should have been after a more neutral Feels So Good being released first.
3. Album cover was so not appropriate for her audience I mean how many parents would have been like nope and how many girls would have thought no thanks... even if I do think it’s fierce
4. Releasing the album at the same time and Forever despite being told to hold off until after... I personally think a May release before Forever would have worked well enough time to promote a couple of singles then start the Forever campaign otherwise hold off until after.
5. Releasing lullaby before Hotter... I actually like lullaby think it’s a gorgeous song but Hotter was screaming out to be released!
6. Being too difficult to work with, she herself admits in her book that her way of dealing with the intense fame was to be a bit of a bitch, she refused to listen to advice from her record label etc no wonder they were quick to get rid of her.
I do think Virgin was harsh on the girls overall though I mean dropping Melanie C and Emma after they both achieved Gold albums is a bit unfair... especially Emma who also had a silver selling single in WTYSL during that era...
Posted by: sammy01 13th April 2020, 12:14 PM
Well Virgin had every right to be pissed at the girls, they gave up on Forever a week after release and no doubt cost the label huge amounts of money in doing so.
I'd be a bit like f*** you when they then turned round and wanted big budgets and lots of efforts putting into their solo careers post 2000.
Posted by: Mr.X 13th April 2020, 12:59 PM
I'd be a bit like f*** you when they then turned round and wanted big budgets and lots of efforts putting into their solo careers post 2000.
This is true. I bet Virgin were pissed off after they didnt release anything as a group in 1999 and filled 2000 with solo projects whilst their attention should have been with the group, which was priority for the lable (and everyone else lol)
Posted by: vibe 13th April 2020, 02:47 PM
I don’t think the label would be too pushed off they still made them millions !!
Posted by: Spiceboy 13th April 2020, 04:36 PM
I'd be a bit like f*** you when they then turned round and wanted big budgets and lots of efforts putting into their solo careers post 2000.
That’s a really good point I never thought of that! I bet that was a factor in dropping the girls solo and I can kinda see why, I mean it’s pretty ungrateful having an album funded and all the promo they put out there then not bothering with it because let’s face it they totally abandoned Forever, it could easily have been a double platinum album had they bothered to keep releasing material tour it. Also the total non-effort from the group in the USA was appalling tbh, they should have been in every show they could get with Holler that was screaming to be a huge US hit...
Posted by: Mr.X 13th April 2020, 10:45 PM
Holler deserved so much better
It totally BANGS on tour though
Posted by: Feel_The_Fever 14th April 2020, 03:04 PM
The girls should have pushed forever more and stayed with the campaign for much longer than they did.
Posted by: vibe 14th April 2020, 03:29 PM
But if they did we NS would not have been the success that it was .
Posted by: tommie 14th April 2020, 04:01 PM
It was released almost a year before Forever.
Posted by: schizo_spice 14th April 2020, 04:07 PM
I believe Mel B states in Catch a Fire that only she and Emma wanted to continue promotion. Victoria was more interested in recording her solo album and Mel C wasn't interested in continuing at all she had enjoyed a very successful year solo and was completely over being a Spice Girl.
Given the situation with Mel in 2000 I think it's a miracle they even got Forever out at all.
Posted by: vibe 14th April 2020, 04:13 PM
Course it was ! Duh lol
Posted by: vibe 14th April 2020, 04:13 PM
Course it was ! Duh lol
Posted by: Piers 18th April 2020, 04:16 AM
I think what he's referring to is...Mel C already had an entire year of success with Northern Star. She'd toured it. Got hits. The album had run its course by the time Forever rolled around. And prioritizing If That Were Me over Holler was perhaps...an unusual thing to do after so much money had been spent on Forever (though the former song was for a good cause...)
Posted by: Piers 18th April 2020, 04:28 AM
Anyway. About Word Up. I loved Mel's version on first listen. Still love it now. I really love those early releases from Mel. I Want You Back, Word Up, and Sophisticated Lady seemed to imply we were getting a really cool album with a dark vibe. Interestingly, I think only Step Inside lives up to that vibe with the album release. The unreleased I've Got My Eye On You also has it.
However. I can't defend the video. I'm not offended by it...but I do think it's trying really, really hard to be crass. As soon as the monster with the dildo nose stops and farts...I'm kinda over it. There are a few images in it that I like. The foot stepping down and turning into the high heel boot is cool. But make no mistake. Even back in 1999, I didn't think the animation looked any good. This is the same year that gave us Busta Rhymes and Janet Jackson's What's It Gonna Be (by the same director of Mel's I Want You Back, no less). The Word Up video was not on par with 1999. It looked like an unfinished student film. And not one that'd get an A either. That one shot of the dildo monster running in place in the air is the sort of sloppy mistake that shouldn't have made it to air.
Anyway. Lots of mistakes were made with Hot. About half of its made of clunkers from collaborators who weren't even trying. But I do think I Want You Back, Tell Me, and Feels So Good are as good as anything from the solo Spice vault.
Posted by: sammy01 18th April 2020, 07:46 AM
Mel B was heavily pregnant during word up so the video had no real choice but to be annimated.
Posted by: Mr.X 18th April 2020, 08:32 AM
However. I can't defend the video. I'm not offended by it...but I do think it's trying really, really hard to be crass. As soon as the monster with the dildo nose stops and farts...I'm kinda over it. There are a few images in it that I like. The foot stepping down and turning into the high heel boot is cool. But make no mistake. Even back in 1999, I didn't think the animation looked any good. This is the same year that gave us Busta Rhymes and Janet Jackson's What's It Gonna Be (by the same director of Mel's I Want You Back, no less). The Word Up video was not on par with 1999. It looked like an unfinished student film. And not one that'd get an A either. That one shot of the dildo monster running in place in the air is the sort of sloppy mistake that shouldn't have made it to air.
Anyway. Lots of mistakes were made with Hot. About half of its made of clunkers from collaborators who weren't even trying. But I do think I Want You Back, Tell Me, and Feels So Good are as good as anything from the solo Spice vault.
Erm... calling Word Up video 'like a student film' is not the tea you think it is lol It's not a bad animation at all. As a film student, I can tell you the concepts and delivery of it were top notch. You might not like the look of it or the way the storyboard and narrative develops throughout but it's quite amazing in its abstract aesthetic decisions.
I would say it is definitely also one of the most interesting videos any of the girls ever released
Probably not 'right' for a Spice Girls, whatever that means, and I agree that it is a bit crass, but you cant deny its quality ahah
Posted by: Jay ☆ 18th April 2020, 12:00 PM
Mel had Phoenix 4 months before the release of Word Up, so I think it was more to do with maternity leave?
I’m interested to know more about the second video (the one Mel is actually in). Apparently it was shot in June 1999. Was it intended to replace the first video for worldwide airplay, or was it shot specifically for the US market? I feel like it was too late to shoot that video, to the point that it could be considered as a waste of time, taking into account that the movie was released in early June. I don’t know when or where the second music video premiered, but the Austin Powers film would have been a few weeks old and on its way out of cinemas, surely?
It’s a pity the timing was off, because I feel like the second video being ready well in advance of the single release might have raised its chances of going Top 10 in the UK, because it was far more airplay friendly. Did the first version even get much airplay? I could imagine that it only aired at night time?
Posted by: Mr.X 18th April 2020, 01:08 PM
I’m interested to know more about the second video (the one Mel is actually in). Apparently it was shot in June 1999. Was it intended to replace the first video for worldwide airplay, or was it shot specifically for the US market? I feel like it was too late to shoot that video, to the point that it could be considered as a waste of time, taking into account that the movie was released in early June. I don’t know when or where the second music video premiered, but the Austin Powers film would have been a few weeks old and on its way out of cinemas, surely?
It’s a pity the timing was off, because I feel like the second video being ready well in advance of the single release might have raised its chances of going Top 10 in the UK, because it was far more airplay friendly. Did the first version even get much airplay? I could imagine that it only aired at night time?
The second video was terrible ah and I think Mel mentioned in her biog that it was only for the US market as the label demanded it.
I lived in Portugal at the time and I saw the video on MTV all the time during the day - it had quite heavy rotation ah.
Posted by: Piers 18th April 2020, 02:18 PM
I’m interested to know more about the second video (the one Mel is actually in). Apparently it was shot in June 1999. Was it intended to replace the first video for worldwide airplay, or was it shot specifically for the US market? I feel like it was too late to shoot that video, to the point that it could be considered as a waste of time, taking into account that the movie was released in early June. I don’t know when or where the second music video premiered, but the Austin Powers film would have been a few weeks old and on its way out of cinemas, surely?
It’s a pity the timing was off, because I feel like the second video being ready well in advance of the single release might have raised its chances of going Top 10 in the UK, because it was far more airplay friendly. Did the first version even get much airplay? I could imagine that it only aired at night time?
I'd love to know what was happening behind the scenes in regards to the solo Spices and their attempts to get play in the US. MTV News covered the solo Spices quite a lot...including some prominent features on I Want You Back and Word Up. I remember them airing a little interview with Mel and Mini Me on the set of the second video. However. I think MTV News is as far as anything ever got. I never saw the videos for I Want You Back or Word Up ever show up on MTV (though a few people have said I Want You Back made some appearances on BET).
Anyway. Madonna's Beautiful Stranger and Lenny Kravitz's American Woman were hits off that Austin Powers album...so...I guess they thought they'd try for another. With the Dr. Evil set at their disposal, I kinda wish they'd done something more interesting with the video. Though. I guess Mel's outfit does qualify as 'interesting'. It's like her team got together in a meeting and were like..."...we'll...uh...dress her up like a satellite...?"
And, yes. The performances are unfortunately dull. I guess Mel didn't think she was back in fighting shape at that point? Hard to say. She showed up to the Austin Powers premiere around that time in a shirt so thin she was practically topless. I thought she always looked great. It's a far cry from a few years later...when the girls would have a baby and be back doing interviews and hosting shows practically a week later.
Posted by: Piers 21st April 2020, 03:50 AM
One more thought about this era.
Yes, it was self-sabotage for Hot to release just weeks before Forever.
But. I've always found the explanation behind that to be odd. Virgin had concerns about the release strategy but Mel pushed ahead anyway?
But. Like. Couldn't Virgin just stop her? It was obviously a waste of their money and resources. How'd Mel have that much power? It's not like Mel could just burn the CDs and stock them in the stores herself.
Anyway. That said, I do think she was right about Tell Me as the lead single. It's dynamic. It tackles her drama head-on. Song fits her like a glove. Fab video. Feels So Good ended up being the bigger hit (and I love that one too), but to me Tell Me was an excellent album launcher.
Posted by: Jay ☆ 21st April 2020, 05:20 AM
^ It does seem strange that Mel supposedly that level of power over Virgin, to dictate exactly when she wanted her album out... perhaps we don't know the full story there?
Mel was recording solo material in 1999, and apparently 'Hot' was finished by April 2000. I guess she was feeling impatient and wanted to get started with the 'Hot' era as soon as possible, but I find it strange that she was seemingly happy to run the risk of her own group overshadowing her first solo effort, and equally not giving 'Forever' her full commitment. I wonder if the other girls were at all annoyed by 'Hot' coming out so close to the group releases, or if they didn't think it was a problem/they weren't bothered.
I was thinking of an alternative timeline. Perhaps 'Tell Me' could still have been released in September 2000, but not as an album launcher (i.e. 'Hot' wouldn't have been out in October). Tell Me's main purpose could have been to serve as a reintroduction to the public that she was a solo artist... a teaser that there was more to come, but not quite yet. Releasing Tell Me as a stand alone would have scratched the itch she evidently had to release solo music, but without the pressure of making the album a success at the same time, and in close proximity to her comeback with the Spice Girls.
Then release 'Feels So Good' in February 2001, followed by the album a week afterwards. An album with a different name - maybe also 'Feels So Good'? With artwork that wasn't particularly risque, lol. In this scenario the album would have been preceded by two recent hits, and released in the less competitive Q1 market... this could have made things work out better for Mel. Follow it up with 'Hotter' in June 2001 and that would have been a great run of singles!
P.S. I've changed the topic title so it encompasses the entire 'Hot' era, considering that the conversation has strayed from 'Word Up' a few times. 
Posted by: Jay ☆ 9th May 2020, 05:45 PM
This thread now includes the music videos and the artworks in the first post!
Continue the discussion about the 'Hot' era here 
Posted by: schizo_spice 9th May 2020, 07:36 PM
Not a fave of mine she should've listened to Virgin aswell as Feels So Good is the best song on the album by a significant distance, it should've lead this album not Tell Me.
Best thing I can say about the album is she sounds good vocally. The material however just doesnt cut it.
Posted by: Spiceboy 9th May 2020, 09:46 PM
I think this album isn't as bad as it is made out to be. It's better than Victoria's debut effort for sure and tbh I'd put it on par with A Girl Like Me. It has some real high moments and then some very average moments too.
The singles are all really strong, yes even Lullaby (although Hotter was a clear obvious next single choice). There was so much wrong about the album promotion though really, it should have been out a few months prior to it's release or saved for sometime during 2000. The gaps between singles seems really wrong. The order of release was wrong, Tell me as good as it is was too on the nose for a debut single from the album and FSG was stronger.
My strategy would have been something like this:
June - Feels so good released
June / July - Hot released
September - Tell me released
December - Hotter released (shit timing for the single being in December - but hopefully keeps the album afloat over Xmas)
March - Lullaby (to tie in with mothers day)
Not quite sure what totally went wrong with Lullaby. I get why it didn't totally appeal to the Spice fandom but I would expected it to be a sure fire top 10 at the very least for the time it was released.
My ranking of album
1. I want you back
2. Feels so good
3. Hotter
4. Tell me
5. Step inside
6. Lullaby
7. ABC 123
8. I believe
9. Pack your shit
10. Hell no
11. Feel me now
Ranking the album reminded me how much I actually do like it, I actually like all tracks on my ranking from 1-10 it's just 11 that I'm not keen on (I tend to end the album on pack your shit)
Posted by: Piers 23rd May 2020, 06:02 PM
I've wondered how much Pack Your Shit ended up hurting the album...by getting it slapped with a Parental Advisory sticker. To me...that may have hurt it even more than the bikini cover. Granted, unleashing it weeks before Forever was the #1 problem. But at the same time...Mel's fanbase was still fairly young. It was only a year earlier people were clutching their pearls over Mel C saying 'whore' and 'bitch' on Goin Down. Mel B's like...hold my beer.
Granted, Mel was a grown woman. But I think you kind of have to understand your fanbase. I'm not sure being especially edgy ever paid off in a major way for any of the girls.
It's not that I'm offended by the song. But I do find its language to be a bit jarring in the context of the album. Nothing before it on Hot is in the same stratosphere.
I remember Mel claiming she was considering it for a single release in America, though. Dear...
Posted by: Piers 23rd May 2020, 06:17 PM
Anyway. Ranking the album, I'd probably go...
1. I Want You Back - Tell Me - Feels So Good (yeah, I'm giving them a three-way tie...so what...)
4. Step Inside
5. Hotter
6. Lullaby
7. Pack Your Shit
8. I Believe
9. Hell No
10. Feel Me Now
11. ABC123
Few thoughts. I think Hotter was the most obvious single after Feels So Good...but while I think it would chart better than Lullaby, I don't think it'd be the album savior some believe it would have been. I don't think it's as good as Tell Me or Feels So Good, and it'd need a punchier single mix. Sisqo fell out with Mel over her changing his songs' productions. So. Would be curious to hear his vision for the song...
Never really cared for most of Janet Jackson's meandering seductive songs...and that's exactly what Feel Me Now is to me.
I Believe in itself is an okay song...but it drags for waaay too long and is strangely redundant. It should have a minute to 90 seconds shaved off.
Out of all the songs on the girls' debut albums, I think ABC123 is the most generic, most anonymous. Generic is a problem for about half of Hot. Mel's personality was so distinct and bold, she shouldn't have been saddled with several songs that could have been handed to literally any random r'n'b singer.
In a certain way, I do think Hot represents Mel honestly. There's an effortless brilliance to some tracks...but they're weighed down with subpar material that came from rushed sessions and an artist who didn't have the patience to perfect the work. "Oh, hurry up. Release it, then."
Posted by: Mr.X 23rd May 2020, 06:43 PM
1. I Want You Back - Tell Me - Feels So Good (yeah, I'm giving them a three-way tie...so what...)
4. Step Inside
5. Hotter
6. Lullaby
7. Pack Your Shit
8. I Believe
9. Hell No
10. Feel Me Now
11. ABC123
Few thoughts. I think Hotter was the most obvious single after Feels So Good...but while I think it would chart better than Lullaby, I don't think it'd be the album savior some believe it would have been. I don't think it's as good as Tell Me or Feels So Good, and it'd need a punchier single mix. Sisqo fell out with Mel over her changing his songs' productions. So. Would be curious to hear his vision for the song...
Never really cared for most of Janet Jackson's meandering seductive songs...and that's exactly what Feel Me Now is to me.
I Believe in itself is an okay song...but it drags for waaay too long and is strangely redundant. It should have a minute to 90 seconds shaved off.
Out of all the songs on the girls' debut albums, I think ABC123 is the most generic, most anonymous. Generic is a problem for about half of Hot. Mel's personality was so distinct and bold, she shouldn't have been saddled with several songs that could have been handed to literally any random r'n'b singer.
In a certain way, I do think Hot represents Mel honestly. There's an effortless brilliance to some tracks...but they're weighed down with subpar material that came from rushed sessions and an artist who didn't have the patience to perfect the work. "Oh, hurry up. Release it, then."
I agree with most of what you wrote. Mel's impatience in releasing it and the lack of apparent care and/or confidence from her was noticiable. Most of the songs weren't written by her and her personality is certainly missing from the album, at least the Mel we know: brash, cool and with her own vibe. I think the comparison to Janet Jackson is fair. It's obvious she was inspired by her but the result wasnt amazing.
For me, it is the least interesting debut overall, although it has some amazing tracks on it. I will never get tired of the singles (bar Lullaby) and Pack Your Shit and Feel Me Now are really good. The rest is dispendable and like you said, generic, unfortunately.
I also don't think Hotter would have done much for the album, unless it would have had a better single mix. It's a great album track, but it never screamed single for me. Maybe if they had done a remix that took the song to new hights (same approach as I Turn To You but obviously not that style), it would have been interesting.
Who knows.. I look forward to the Hot listening party
Posted by: Spice Girls Net 23rd May 2020, 06:57 PM
I think the album was ok. It wasn’t up there with Geri and Melanie C’s debut albums but the singles run for Hot was great. I do think there were quite a few filler tracks, and as others have said, some of the songs lacked Mel’s personality as some of them could have belonged to anyone.
I didn’t think about the album release being so close to FOREVER at the time, but I don’t think it would have made any difference to either album, it just want good timing.
Feels So Good and Tell Me are some of the best solo singles.
Posted by: Piers 23rd May 2020, 10:21 PM
I think this might be the first time I've seen someone compliment Feel Me Now.
I might be too harsh on that one. Even though I just ranked it low, when I'm talking about songs that could have been handed to literally any r'n'b singer...I'm more referring to the three Teddy Riley tracks and Hell No.
I think the main little bit "and I could have had anyone...but you're the one..." is actually really pretty. Even though it reminds me a lot of slow jam Janet, I do think Jam n' Lewis made a genuine attempt to give Mel songs that played to her vocal abilities. It's not a Teddy Riley situation...where he insulted her singing ability after handing her songs that weren't right for her...and then just had background singers do a lot of heavy lifting (the session singers are a bit too present for me on the two Sisqo tracks too).
Plus...she probably needed to have a song referencing her legendary...libido. Lol.
If I'm remembering this correctly, only Feels So Good, Tell Me, Lullaby, and Feel Me Now actually have Mel's writing credits on them. I'm sure an album with her better collaborators...with all tracks co-written with her...would have made a much different, better album. Y'know. If she could be coaxed into sitting down and concentrating for that long...
Posted by: Spiceboy 24th May 2020, 12:31 AM
I might be too harsh on that one. Even though I just ranked it low, when I'm talking about songs that could have been handed to literally any r'n'b singer...I'm more referring to the three Teddy Riley tracks and Hell No.
I think the main little bit "and I could have had anyone...but you're the one..." is actually really pretty. Even though it reminds me a lot of slow jam Janet, I do think Jam n' Lewis made a genuine attempt to give Mel songs that played to her vocal abilities. It's not a Teddy Riley situation...where he insulted her singing ability after handing her songs that weren't right for her...and then just had background singers do a lot of heavy lifting (the session singers are a bit too present for me on the two Sisqo tracks too).
Plus...she probably needed to have a song referencing her legendary...libido. Lol.
If I'm remembering this correctly, only Feels So Good, Tell Me, Lullaby, and Feel Me Now actually have Mel's writing credits on them. I'm sure an album with her better collaborators...with all tracks co-written with her...would have made a much different, better album. Y'know. If she could be coaxed into sitting down and concentrating for that long...
I didn't realise those were the ones she co-wrote, those are the best ones too, even Lullaby it's a sweet song just wasn't really right as a single. Only Hotter is as strong as those tracks, she should have been more involved in the album. Makes me wonder how much input she actually had into the Spice Girls music if she couldn't be bothered to be fully involved in her own material?
Posted by: Piers 24th May 2020, 01:21 AM
I've wondered before if how much the girls wrote of their solo work...is a good indicator of how much they contributed to the group writing.
If I'm not mistaken, Geri co-wrote everything of her own except her few covers. Mel C and Emma have co-written the vast majority of their original material outside the covers (and Mel C, of course, would have written the most material overall). If I'm remembering correctly, Victoria co-wrote all but three or four songs off her debut. And it's been a long time since I saw the credits for her second album sessions...but I'm pretty sure she co-wrote quite a lot of her pop material...including My Love Is For Real, Generate the Flow, Should Have Known Better, I'd Give It All Away, and Be With You. Don't quote me on that. But I'm pretty sure that's what I saw. Meanwhile, I don't think she co-wrote any of the Damon Dash stuff.
Anyway. To be totally fair to Mel B, she clearly had a moody collaborator in Teddy Riley and...while I don't know all that went on there...I don't know if them writing together was on the table. And what was she supposed to do? Turn down Teddy Riley songs? The guy wrote and produced some of the biggest hits of the 90s...including Michael Jackson classics. Also. Uh. With the exception of Today, Mel had a writing credit on the rest of LA State of Mind. Maybe not the best example...
Posted by: sammy01 24th May 2020, 07:43 AM
I think Mel B has and always will be the Spice Girl who wants to always be a spice girl and her solo career was a side project where as the others it turned into their main focus.
I feel like Mel B would have released an album eventually but I feel she would have been more happy releasing spice stuff and just throwing out the odd single and collab than wanting to do a full on album campaign. I mean Mel C wouldn't have had her solo album released 6 weeks before a Spice album. She seemed peeved at the time that This Time's promo and era was cut short by the 2007 reunion and she was a flop by then.
Posted by: Piers 24th May 2020, 03:18 PM
I feel like Mel B would have released an album eventually but I feel she would have been more happy releasing spice stuff and just throwing out the odd single and collab than wanting to do a full on album campaign. I mean Mel C wouldn't have had her solo album released 6 weeks before a Spice album. She seemed peeved at the time that This Time's promo and era was cut short by the 2007 reunion and she was a flop by then.
I think this is probably true.
Mels B and C had such different ways they spoke about their solo music at the time Forever was released. In late 2000, I remember Mel C saying she was more proud of Northern Star than Forever...which is a completely understandable perspective. But. When you're talking about the work of a lot of people...that a record label spent a lot of money to produce...it probably isn't the best thing to blurt out unprovoked when the group album has JUST been released. On the flip side, Mel B readily admitted Forever was better than Hot in 2000.
I noticed Mel C brought up the This Time era being disrupted by the Return of the Spice Girls tour in one of her recent Q and As. I think she said something about her European record label being upset about it or something. I mean. The album wasn't doing so hot even before the tour announcement was made. I guess one could say her solo work got overshadowed by the tour. But you'd think the increased profile could have possibly helped her? I'm not sure the Carolyna and This Time singles were destined to set the charts on fire no matter when they were released...
Posted by: Spiceboy 24th May 2020, 03:35 PM
Mels B and C had such different ways they spoke about their solo music at the time Forever was released. In late 2000, I remember Mel C saying she was more proud of Northern Star than Forever...which is a completely understandable perspective. But. When you're talking about the work of a lot of people...that a record label spent a lot of money to produce...it probably isn't the best thing to blurt out unprovoked when the group album has JUST been released. On the flip side, Mel B readily admitted Forever was better than Hot in 2000.
I noticed Mel C brought up the This Time era being disrupted by the Return of the Spice Girls tour in one of her recent Q and As. I think she said something about her European record label being upset about it or something. I mean. The album wasn't doing so hot even before the tour announcement was made. I guess one could say her solo work got overshadowed by the tour. But you'd think the increased profile could have possibly helped her? I'm not sure the Carolyna and This Time singles were destined to set the charts on fire no matter when they were released...
Tbf Carolyna didn't do too bad in Europe it was a top 40 hit in Austria, Germany, Italy, Portugal and Switzerland, (going top 10 in Italy and Portugal and top 20 in Germany Switzerland), but more importantly it was a big radio hit. This Time though I don't know what the thinking behind that one was, it's ok as an album track but as a single, especially when they had Understand, Your mistake, Protected even Already gone the B-side was vastly superior and more commercial!??
I suppose a solo tour of This Time in Europe would have helped it continue to sell as she was still quite high profile in Europe at the time, so I can understand the record label being a little annoyed, especially as this was an album they pushed for.
Posted by: vibe 24th May 2020, 08:11 PM
This time was such a bizarre single choice ! It was even revamped !
Posted by: sammy01 24th May 2020, 08:44 PM
This Time the single was one of the biggest crimes of her career. It came after the reunion announcement so she was actually pretty sort after hot property, I remember her getting an interview on radio 1 and them playing it and Graham Norton having her on and playing a clip of the video and holding the single.
The video is terrible (I know it was in honour of someone but it is still terrible) and the song is dull. I think I'd have picked any song over it to be a single. It limping in the charts at 90 something with a cd and vinyl release was painful. I know IWC and Carolyna weren't smash hits but they did ok but This Time just bombed horribly with higher profile promo.
Posted by: Spiceboy 24th May 2020, 11:14 PM
The video is terrible (I know it was in honour of someone but it is still terrible) and the song is dull. I think I'd have picked any song over it to be a single. It limping in the charts at 90 something with a cd and vinyl release was painful. I know IWC and Carolyna weren't smash hits but they did ok but This Time just bombed horribly with higher profile promo.
I have to agree with every word tbh, TT has more publicity than either of the other two singles but it got what it deserved, definitely a weird choice for a single. For me Already Gone was just screaming to have been a single during that era and instead it was a B-side wtf
Posted by: Eduardo 25th May 2020, 12:08 AM
I like it!
"Hell No" has been my favourite for years now, I couldn't help but agree when someone once said this song was Mel B's "We Belong Together" 
By the way, there was another artist's album cover that used the same background as Hot. Do you guys remember which one was?
Posted by: Spiceboy 26th September 2020, 04:50 PM
Mod Edit: Moved posts from Throwback (which was focusing on Tell Me's anniversary) to here.
-----
Feels So Good definitely was the right choice to launch, Virgin felt the same Mel B however wanted Tell Me.
I 100% agree with this tbh. Tell me is a good song and I really like it (as I did at the time) however Feels so good would have made more of an impact and given the album a better head start than Tell me did. The evidence is there when you see Feels so good outsold Tell me even after the album release.
I would have gone:
1. Feels so good
HOT release
2. Hotter
3. Tell me (probably wouldn't have been seen as so 'bitter' if it were not a lead focus, but also got the publicity as being a personal song)
4. Lullaby (I don't think any other song on the album would work as a single tbh, this as a double a-side with a new track would be best option)
Posted by: Sideout 26th September 2020, 06:30 PM
I 100% agree with you Spiceboy. Feels So Good should have been the lead single. Hotter definitely should have been the second single released in the sunmer.
Most of Hot sounds like rejects given to her. Mel B deserved better material.
Posted by: Mr.X 26th September 2020, 06:54 PM
Mel B definitely deserved better solo material for her album.
For me, she had the best first 4 run of singles of the group. However the album as a whole just isnt very good unfortunately. It sounded rushed and like she was given the left over tracks from hot producers and you could tell..
She should have definitely led with Feels So Good but im not sure that Hotter would have done much. Probably with a single mix... Definitely not Lullaby as a single WTF 
releasing 2 weeks before Forever was WILD. What a waste...
I think you could tell that Virgin wanted to get rid of her. At the time, she mentioned that she wanted to find a more urban record label. Shame she never went that route, cos judging from I Want You Back, Word Up and some of the songs in the album, it would have really suited her.
Posted by: sammy01 26th September 2020, 06:55 PM
Mel B always saw her solo career as a side project to the Spice Girls which is why it was all so half hearted. Forever took forever to come out as Melanie C was riding her solo success, she would never have released an album 6 weeks before Forever.
In some ways it is great Mel B was so dedicated to the band but it's a shame we never really got to see how good she could be as a solo artist. I want you back is top 3 solo Spice, it still sounds great. Also IWYB, word up, tell me, feels so good is such a great singles run.
Posted by: Spiceboy 26th September 2020, 07:52 PM
In some ways it is great Mel B was so dedicated to the band but it's a shame we never really got to see how good she could be as a solo artist. I want you back is top 3 solo Spice, it still sounds great. Also IWYB, word up, tell me, feels so good is such a great singles run.
I agree with all of this.
Posted by: Mr.X 26th September 2020, 08:53 PM
In some ways it is great Mel B was so dedicated to the band but it's a shame we never really got to see how good she could be as a solo artist. I want you back is top 3 solo Spice, it still sounds great. Also IWYB, word up, tell me, feels so good is such a great singles run.
This is so true. And the way she OWNED those Stadiums last year! You just know she would have been an incredible artist given a proper change!
Posted by: Jay* 26th September 2020, 10:38 PM
I know the Throwback thread naturally leads to discussion based on the particular release being focused on, however I thought it would be a good idea to move some of the posts that were more about Hot overall, into the Hot thread! Probably a good idea to have this on the first page as we approach the album's 20th anniversary anyway!
Posted by: Sideout 27th September 2020, 12:34 AM
Mel B really could have thrived as a solo artist from 2003-2007 when rnb and hip-hop was dominating the charts. An album in the same vein as Nelly Furtado's Loose would have been great for Mel. Imagine her singing Maneater or Promiscuous.
Posted by: Mr.X 29th September 2020, 11:11 PM
Hey does anyone know what happened between Mel and Sisqo? Why was there bad blood between them?
Posted by: Spice Girls Net 10th October 2020, 04:58 PM
'HOT' streaming party this week to celebrate the album's 20th anniversary
Who's in and what day and time would suit everybody?
Happy to do this both here and for fans to do a tweet-along on Twitter
#HotStreamingParty 
Posted by: Spiceboy 10th October 2020, 05:07 PM
There was bad blood between them but I have no idea why?? Didn't he write a song on the album for her??
Posted by: schizo_spice 11th October 2020, 09:57 AM
Hot only getting to 28 in 2000 with such mediocre (for the time) first week sales was mad.
In 2000 they were pardon the pun "hot" solo and she'd just enjoyed a Top 5 single. Why was her album so ignored?
Posted by: Jay* 11th October 2020, 11:40 AM
Who's in and what day and time would suit everybody?
Happy to do this both here and for fans to do a tweet-along on Twitter
#HotStreamingParty
I'm in! Maybe we could do it on Thursday evening? That's 15th October, which is the date it entered the UK chart.
Posted by: sammy01 11th October 2020, 01:22 PM
In 2000 they were pardon the pun "hot" solo and she'd just enjoyed a Top 5 single. Why was her album so ignored?
That front cover put so many parents off buying it for their kids I'm sure.
Posted by: Spiceboy 11th October 2020, 03:00 PM
YASSSSS
Posted by: tommie 11th October 2020, 04:13 PM
I'll be streaming LA State of Mind x
Posted by: Feel_The_Fever 11th October 2020, 04:28 PM
I wonder will Mel ever venture into solo music again?
Posted by: Mr.X 11th October 2020, 05:24 PM
IM INTO IT!! WIll be quarantining after traveling so will be home and bored anyway
Posted by: sammy01 11th October 2020, 05:43 PM
If I'm around I'll give the poor cow a stream of Hot, love ya really Mel.
Posted by: vibe 11th October 2020, 06:17 PM
The front cover had nothing to do with it.
When forever was out the spice girls fans were not 6 anymore.
Posted by: sammy01 11th October 2020, 06:40 PM
When forever was out the spice girls fans were not 6 anymore.
No they were 10.
Posted by: dancinqueen 11th October 2020, 07:08 PM
How dare you? 😂 Respect for Productive Spice!
Posted by: Jay* 11th October 2020, 07:15 PM
I don't think we can definitively say whether or not the cover was a major factor in its underperformance, but I can only speak for myself when I say that as a shy and prudish 12 year old, the cover was a bit off putting!
Posted by: sammy01 11th October 2020, 07:22 PM
I think up until Emma's Free Me album in 2004 my Mum got me all my albums as they were pretty expensive back in the day. I remember my Mum vividly making a comment about the cover for Hot and I most definitely felt a bit uncomfortable.
Posted by: schizo_spice 11th October 2020, 07:32 PM
I definitely think there was more too it than it just being the cover. Her music seemed to be appealing more to the older teenage fanbase anyway. Cant imagine many pre teens listening to a song like Tell Me.
Only 50,000 bought her album at the same time 400 - 800,000 had bought Geri and Mels. It was a very dramatic reduction.
Posted by: vibe 11th October 2020, 07:34 PM
Uncomfortable looking at a woman in a bikini ? 🤣😳
Young girls certainly don’t stop buying little mix records when they sexed up their image.
The album bombed because of the timing of Forever.
How did the singles perform on radio ?
Posted by: Jay* 11th October 2020, 07:43 PM
#30 - Tell Me
#22 - Feels So Good
Lullaby not Top 50!
Radio was never particularly supportive of Mel. I Want You Back only managed #17 and rather shockingly just 3 weeks in the Top 50 - such low support for a #1 single.
Posted by: sammy01 11th October 2020, 07:45 PM
Young girls certainly don’t stop buying little mix records when they sexed up their image.
The album bombed because of the timing of Forever.
How did the singles perform on radio ?
It was 20 years ago, times were very different.
Posted by: vibe 11th October 2020, 08:03 PM
Yes time’s were different.
blaming a cover on it flopping is just ridiculous.
Nothing to do with the music , timing , radio play. 5/10 tracks are not great for example.
The fact that Mel B has a pop voice and her chosen direction didn’t suit her at all.
Posted by: schizo_spice 11th October 2020, 08:29 PM
I dont think Forever being out a month later was a massive factor either.
A fan of Mel B/Scary Spice would've still bought both and its not like they were both released the same day.
Radio probably probably played a part still a low Top 30 for her at that moment in time was terrible. I actually didn't even listen to radio that much back then I watched and kept up on new releases and albums by the music channels, magazines, CDUK etc
Posted by: sammy01 11th October 2020, 08:37 PM
She had a #1 and #4 hit on the album upon its release. Something put people off the album, this was 2000 no one will have heard the rest of the album to be put off by the music. As I've said the music was good enough to have 2 very high peaking singles, the RnB route was the one everyone expected her to go down too.
Yes it was close to Forever but it's not like solo music wasn't coming thick and fast in summer/late 2000.
That cover killed that album and I'll die on that hill. It wouldn't be till Melt in late 2003 that any other solo Spice release would miss the top 20 apart from Hot. That is 7 solo albums and 25 singles if I'm not mistaken to be released to make the top 20 apart from Hot.
Posted by: sammy01 11th October 2020, 08:41 PM
Not to mention she had a very high selling #5 hit after the albums release and another top 20 hit after that and they did barely anything to help the album.
She pretty much had the same singles run as Emma's first album that got a number 4 peak and 120k sales.
Posted by: vibe 12th October 2020, 08:55 AM
So fans made the effort to go to Woolworths , hmv , our price etc. They wanted to buy HOT but they saw the album cover of a woman in a bikini and decided no way I can’t but that !!
Ridic
Posted by: Jay* 12th October 2020, 10:25 AM
It was 20 years ago, in England! Things were relatively less progressive. For me as a pre-teen, anything that was even mildly sexy was something that embarrassed me, even if that seems silly now because it’s “just a woman in a bikini”. I can’t go back and change that reaction. The fact I felt that way when I was 12 & prepubescent, may have partly been because of social conditioning.
There’s no evidence either way about whether the artwork was an off putting factor that resulted in sluggish album sales. I mean, the two of us who are saying this actually did buy the album, even though as pre-teens it made us feel a bit uncomfortable. I doubt it was just us.
Tbh, I’d say that most kids of the 90s/00s were mainly exposed to music via magazines and TV (Kids shows, music channels), while radio was a less important factor. Something about the Hot era didn’t connect as well with the Spice Girls’ target audience as well as the other girls. 50k after three singles was disastrous back then. There’s probably many factors that contributed to that. The artwork might have been one reason for some people.
Posted by: sammy01 12th October 2020, 10:40 AM
Let's also not say it is just a woman in a bikini she is showering and it is all meant to look sexual.
Mel B was selling records to kids, go and look at Little Mix album covers if you want to see even in 2020 what album covers aimed at kids looks like. Little Mix aren't showering in bikinis on them that's for sure. Heck little mix won't still even swear on an album 9 years in your their career for worry of alienating their young fan base. Where as Mel B is being sexual on the front cover turn it over and one of the songs is called 'pack your shit'
Posted by: vibe 12th October 2020, 11:44 AM
The album is called Hot the album cover makes total sense.
She is a sexual as we all very know. She wasn’t appealing to young infants.
Posted by: tommie 12th October 2020, 01:24 PM
You'd think homosexual men just don't appreciate a good pair of tits x
Posted by: Jay* 12th October 2020, 01:41 PM
Posted by: Spice Girls Net 15th October 2020, 07:25 AM
Mel B’s ‘Hot’ streaming party takes place tonight at 8pm!
Posted by: Simon. 15th October 2020, 11:35 AM
I was about to ask this, I'm streaming it now so hopefully she'll see the 1/10 sales increase this week.
Posted by: Mr.X 15th October 2020, 12:05 PM
On it!!
Posted by: Spice Girls Net 15th October 2020, 01:08 PM
Right, let’s just got for it!
Posted by: Jay* 15th October 2020, 01:27 PM
(Original post removed, reposted here: http://www.buzzjack.com/forums/index.php?s=&showtopic=232450&view=findpost&p=6677181 )
Posted by: Jay* 15th October 2020, 06:52 PM
We're delaying this listening session to tomorrow evening, I hope those of you who are interested will be able to make it then instead!
Posted by: Spiceboy 15th October 2020, 07:00 PM
I was just about to press play!!!!!!!
Posted by: Mr.X 15th October 2020, 07:23 PM
Oh....Im listening to it anyway now. Tomorrow could be fine too x
Posted by: Spice Girls Net 15th October 2020, 07:36 PM
Sorry everyone, but we realised (quite late on) that Thursday's streaming doesn't contribute to sales so Friday will be better.
Posted by: Jay* 15th October 2020, 07:41 PM
Posted by: Mr.X 15th October 2020, 07:44 PM
All good.
Might be good to ask everyone on Spice Circle to join in and change their VPNs to the UK, so that would help too?
Posted by: Jay* 16th October 2020, 09:37 AM
Let's have a new page
Posted by: Jay* 16th October 2020, 09:37 AM
In celebration of its 20th anniversary, the 'Hot' album Listening Party will begin
TONIGHT (16th October) 8:00pm / 20:00 BST - hosted by Spice Girls Net!
As we simultaneously listen to Hot, comment along in this thread! Show your appreciation for your favourite songs. Which album tracks were missed single opportunities? Any favourite lyrics and favourite vocal moments? Share all of your thoughts!
If you're able to use your favourite streaming service to listen to Hot, that would be fabulous (it contributes to its sales)!
Posted by: isanka 16th October 2020, 09:43 AM
I will play it, but for real i'm gonna watch Koh Lanta french version of 'Survivor'
Posted by: Jay* 16th October 2020, 06:44 PM
15 minutes to go! Who's here? 
Posted by: Spice Girls Net 16th October 2020, 06:47 PM
I am
Posted by: Spice Girls Net 16th October 2020, 07:00 PM
Track 1: Feels So Good
Posted by: Jay* 16th October 2020, 07:01 PM
A strong start to the album! A really obvious single choice so I'm glad it was chosen. Glad it went to #5 but I feel like it deserved more than that. One of her best videos too!
Haven't heard this album version for quite a long time, I tend to stick with the single version.
Posted by: Spice Girls Net 16th October 2020, 07:03 PM
Definitely Mel's best single on the album and very underrated.
Maybe this should have been the lead single for 'Hot'?
Posted by: Jay* 16th October 2020, 07:05 PM
I think so tbh! A more uplifting start to the era. Yippee!
Is it just us two? 
Posted by: Spice Girls Net 16th October 2020, 07:05 PM
Track 2: Tell Me
Posted by: Spice Girls Net 16th October 2020, 07:06 PM
Is it just us two?
I hope other people are listening
Also other fan pages are just listening to the album on their own, as some messages me on Instagram
Posted by: Spice Girls Net 16th October 2020, 07:09 PM
Track 3: Hell No
Posted by: Jay* 16th October 2020, 07:10 PM
Tell Me is still that bop *_* So fiery and defiant!
I haven't heard this album for ages, it'll be interesting to see what I make of the album tracks these days...
Posted by: Spice Girls Net 16th October 2020, 07:11 PM
Tell Me was always my favourite in terms of the video and the memories of having the single
Posted by: Jay* 16th October 2020, 07:13 PM
Hell No is pleasant, I guess! Very of its time, that sort of mushy R&B that the likes of Brandy would record.
Posted by: Spice Girls Net 16th October 2020, 07:13 PM
Track 4: Lullaby
Posted by: Spice Girls Net 16th October 2020, 07:14 PM
I never really appreciated Hell No, but it has grown on me over the years. A good album track.
Posted by: Spice Girls Net 16th October 2020, 07:16 PM
Lullaby has grown on me over the years but I still didn't know if it was the right choice for the final single. I think because it doesn't represent what the album is.
Posted by: Jay* 16th October 2020, 07:17 PM
It's such a cute song, but I don't think it was a good choice for a single either. Lullaby is pretty much the antithesis of the title and artwork of this album lol. No wonder Lullaby didn't revive it in the charts.
Posted by: Spice Girls Net 16th October 2020, 07:18 PM
Track 5: Hotter
Posted by: Spice Girls Net 16th October 2020, 07:19 PM
Especially the flow of the album considering that Hotter follows
This is like the Love Thing or NGUOTGT sort of scenario. It was the single that never was.
Posted by: Jay* 16th October 2020, 07:20 PM
Definitely a missed single opportunity What a bop! This should have been a single in summer 2001. This was always my favourite Hot album track
Posted by: Spice Girls Net 16th October 2020, 07:21 PM
Track 6: Step Inside
Posted by: Spice Girls Net 16th October 2020, 07:22 PM
What a bop! This should have been a single in summer 2001. This was always my favourite Hot album track Yes it should have been Feels So Good late 2000, Tell Me early 2001 followed by the album in Spring and then Hot in the Summer 2001.
Posted by: Spice Girls Net 16th October 2020, 07:22 PM
Step Inside has grown on me and I think it's one of those quirkier tracks on the album. It's catchy.
Posted by: Spice Girls Net 16th October 2020, 07:24 PM
P.S. For those who haven't joined. Shame on you 
Posted by: Spice Girls Net 16th October 2020, 07:25 PM
Track 7: ABC 123
Posted by: Jay* 16th October 2020, 07:27 PM
Step Inside definitely has a catchy chorus 
!
I remember finding ABC 123 forgettable... and I still feel that way during this listen of it!
Yeah I'm a bit 
that no one else ended up being around for this... maybe Friday wasn't the right day either. I guess we could always repeat this if members suggest a day/time they'd be up for it.
Posted by: Spice Girls Net 16th October 2020, 07:28 PM
ABC 123 is a good album track but I always felt the production with the other vocals was a bit too much (Mel seemed more in the background)
Posted by: Spice Girls Net 16th October 2020, 07:28 PM
!I remember finding ABC 123 forgettable... and I still feel that way during this listen of it!
Yeah I'm a bit
that no one else ended up being around for this... maybe Friday wasn't the right day either. I guess we could always repeat this if members suggest a day/time they'd be up for it.Yes I'm going to keep going
But yes we should arrange another one for Sunday or something?
Posted by: Spice Girls Net 16th October 2020, 07:29 PM
Track 8: I Believe
Posted by: Spice Girls Net 16th October 2020, 07:30 PM
I Believe is one of my favourite album tracks
Is Emma signing in the background at all on this one? It sounds like her sometimes?
Posted by: Jay* 16th October 2020, 07:31 PM
I actually quite like I Believe! It's kind of unusual and stands out.
Posted by: Spice Girls Net 16th October 2020, 07:33 PM
It's quirky. Melanie never did just the typical R&B I do think she experimented a little.
Posted by: Spice Girls Net 16th October 2020, 07:33 PM
Track 9: I Want You Back
Posted by: Spice Girls Net 16th October 2020, 07:34 PM
The No.1, the original Mel B release from 1998. Still up there as one of my favourite Mel B tracks, but also one of the best solo tracks too.
Posted by: Jay* 16th October 2020, 07:34 PM
I have to say, this album doesn't flow very well... I Want You Back initially sounds a bit jarring following on from I Believe What a great song this is though. I feel like this song captures Mel's personality far better than most of the other tracks on this album.
I can't quite believe this is 22 years old tbh! 
Posted by: Spice Girls Net 16th October 2020, 07:36 PM
Yes I agree with the flow, that can be important for enjoying an album.
Posted by: Spice Girls Net 16th October 2020, 07:36 PM
Track 10: Pack You Sh*t
Posted by: Spice Girls Net 16th October 2020, 07:37 PM
I don't think this was the best song tbh, the chorus isn't Melanie's voice and the door sound effects are a bit dated.
Posted by: Jay* 16th October 2020, 07:38 PM
I remember feeling a bit naughty listening to this song when I was 12... it is quite explicit
Even though the lyrics are quite feisty, sound-wise I feel like it's a bit generic / like another artist's cast off.
Posted by: Spice Girls Net 16th October 2020, 07:39 PM
Even though the lyrics are quite feisty, sound-wise I feel like it's a bit generic / like another artist's cast off.
It's too American, I think. I don't think this album got Melanie's personality across as much as the other girl's debut albums.
Posted by: Spice Girls Net 16th October 2020, 07:40 PM
Track 11: Feel Me Now
Posted by: Spice Girls Net 16th October 2020, 07:42 PM
Apart from Hotter, this is my favourite album track. I think this is more 'Mel B'. I always liked Melanie's whispery/talking vocals.
Melanie also did this on L.A. State of Mind, which I loved.
Posted by: Jay* 16th October 2020, 07:43 PM
It's a pity she didn't work with more British writers/producers and see if she could find a more authentic sound!
Feel Me Now... I've never been overly keen on this one. It's a bit like Janet Jackson cosplay, and I'm not convinced this sound particularly suits Mel. A bit of a downbeat moment to end the album on.
Posted by: Spice Girls Net 16th October 2020, 07:45 PM
Thank you Jay for joining me
20 years this week this album charted and Holler/Forever was around the corner. It does feel like a long time ago now
Posted by: Jay* 16th October 2020, 07:50 PM
Well, it was nice to revisit the album! I'm not even sure how long it's been since I last heard it in full; according to my Last.fm (which started in January 2012) the only album track I had scrobbled before tonight is Hotter
Ultimately I think 'Hot' isn't as bad as some make it out to be, but it's not amazing either. I feel like she was half way towards a great album, but a handful of the tracks didn't suit her well. Like I said above, I think she needed more of a British vibe.
Thanks for hosting this Spice Girls Net, I enjoyed it I'd be up for doing it again if anyone else is interested to.
Posted by: Spice Girls Net 16th October 2020, 08:04 PM
Ultimately I think 'Hot' isn't as bad as some make it out to be, but it's not amazing either. I feel like she was half way towards a great album, but a handful of the tracks didn't suit her well. Like I said above, I think she needed more of a British vibe.
Thanks for hosting this Spice Girls Net, I enjoyed it
I'd be up for doing it again if anyone else is interested to. Yes some of the names may have been 'Hot' but it didn't necessarily mean that they were right for the album.
Maybe some British collaborators would have better as you say.
Posted by: Mr.X 16th October 2020, 08:14 PM
Oh sorry I missed this, but ive been playing it all day, so it still counts
Gotta say that I have been loving revisiting this album, even if some of it is really quite middle of the road...
Tell Me, Feels So Good and I Want You Back are still absolute bops! Hotter is a good song, I can see it as a single with a nice mix, but I dont think it would have worked really well with the general public and their awful taste 
Lullaby is wonderful and cute, but should have been just a b-side. ABC 123 and I Believe are the worst songs here, and I cant quite understand why they were included here as they feel really subpar, like they were unfinished thoughts thrown in...
Hell No is a nice ballad, but very forgettable. I think she could do much better if her mind was into it!
Pack Your Shit and Feel Me Now are great songs. Not amazing, but great anyway. I wish she had done more of these types of tracks, cos she could have found a bit of a niche with these as no-one else was doing them at the time.
Overall? a solid 5/10. It could have been amazing, but the producers really let it down. And the fact that Mel doesnt even write on most of the songs is very telling as to why this album seems like it was made for someone else - because it sounds like most of the songs are left overs from the producers...
Mel deserved better. Much better. I put her career as a solo artist on the same level of someone like Alesha Dixon. Both coming out of successful girl bands and were given some preliminary great solo material, but ultimately then failed to mantain the level of quality and interest. And that, my dears, is how racism in the UK industry works. Most black pop stars (solo or group) face similar faiths in the UK, over and over again...
Here's to HOT and the album that it could have been!
Posted by: Spiceboy 16th October 2020, 08:39 PM
Sorry I missed this completely forgot after been so ready yesterday!!!
Posted by: Sideout 16th October 2020, 11:49 PM
What does everyone think about this leaked track from Hot? It was written by Mel B & Biff Standard.
There's another 2 unreleased songs on publishing sites. Both written by Mel B & Biff. They are called Rush and Miss Me.
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=Q6wByw0XTpc
Posted by: Mr.X 17th October 2020, 07:57 AM
There's another 2 unreleased songs on publishing sites. Both written by Mel B & Biff. They are called Rush and Miss Me.
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=Q6wByw0XTpc
Oh I never knew about Rush and Miss Me (prays for a leak, gosh knows we need some new old music from Mel B
)I got My Eye On You could have been a good song for the album, with better production. Wasnt it supposed to be released at some point? And do we know why it wasnt?
Posted by: sammy01 17th October 2020, 08:03 AM
I really like I Believe and I always see it getting hated on. My sister only has a passing interest in spice girls music through me and she loves it and wouldn't touch the rest of Mel Bs solo music with a barge pole.
Until I read others opinions on it I assumed it would have been one of those renowned album tracks.
Posted by: Mr.X 5th December 2020, 01:47 PM
Just bought the Feels So Good 12" vinyl and WOW at the Blacksmith remix that includes the rapper Know ?uestion
It is basically a whole new song and I LOVE IT! Never knew it was even a thing
What do you think about it? In a parallel world, this would have gone down really well as a single to launch a Hot special delux edition in 2001
Posted by: Piers 5th December 2020, 06:22 PM
It is basically a whole new song and I LOVE IT! Never knew it was even a thing
What do you think about it? In a parallel world, this would have gone down really well as a single to launch a Hot special delux edition in 2001
Oh wow. I haven't heard this before either. I like the remix...and it's a reminder this was a really good song that was pretty open to interpretations. I'm not opposed to a rap on this remix, though I don't love the lyrics of this one. It kinda follows Sophisticated Lady, Pack Your Shit, and ABC123 as songs by major producers...with a no-name featured on it.
As for I've Got My Eye On You...what we've heard is definitely a demo, but I do like it. It has that Scary Spice vibe of several of her early solo recordings. I wish she'd kept it as its so clearly a Mel B song...unlike more generic "this could be by anybody" stuff like Hell No and ABC123. It seems Hot went on a fairly similar trajectory to Forever. Both times, she worked with the group's original collaborators...only to dump the material in favor of American producers...though the Darkchild team still produced one song written from the British sessions (Lullaby for Hot...Right Back At Ya for Forever)
Posted by: Mr.X 5th December 2020, 07:42 PM
As for I've Got My Eye On You...what we've heard is definitely a demo, but I do like it. It has that Scary Spice vibe of several of her early solo recordings. I wish she'd kept it as its so clearly a Mel B song...unlike more generic "this could be by anybody" stuff like Hell No and ABC123. It seems Hot went on a fairly similar trajectory to Forever. Both times, she worked with the group's original collaborators...only to dump the material in favor of American producers...though the Darkchild team still produced one song written from the British sessions (Lullaby for Hot...Right Back At Ya for Forever)
I feel like this version of Feels So Good, with a better rapper would have been incredible and a potential single. And yes, I agree with you.
Do we know who wrote/produced Ive Got My Eye On You?
Posted by: Spice Girls Net 19th February 2021, 08:55 PM
Happy Birthday, Feels So Good
Released 20 years ago today!
UK Peak - #5
Total sales - 145,433 (as of May 2020)
Posted by: sammy01 19th February 2021, 09:17 PM
Feels so good deserves to be silver.
Posted by: Jay❄ 20th February 2021, 08:19 PM
Ooh wow, 20 years since Feels So Good! Mel B's final experience of achieving a Top 5 hit
I love the song and video, it's such a good package and I think it deserved more success than it got tbh. My only criticism about the radio edit is the sudden cut, it sounds sloppy... "that is how it's got to be-" *instrumental*... I think they should have kept the ad-lib from the album version.
Posted by: Babyboy 19th July 2021, 06:37 PM
On mne magazine Melanie declared:
She said: “[He] was tough to work with. He had a pretty bad attitude and seemed to have decided that I’d be a pop star Spice w*n**r before he’d even met me. This made for some pretty uncomfortable times, but luckily, the team around him were very professional and we ended up with great tracks from the sessions.”
Someone knows more about it?
Posted by: Sideout 19th July 2021, 06:52 PM
She said: “[He] was tough to work with. He had a pretty bad attitude and seemed to have decided that I’d be a pop star Spice w*n**r before he’d even met me. This made for some pretty uncomfortable times, but luckily, the team around him were very professional and we ended up with great tracks from the sessions.”
Someone knows more about it?
She's talking about the producer Teddy Riley.
Posted by: Babyboy 19th July 2021, 08:17 PM
Yep.
But what He did or said about her?
Posted by: Equinox8 19th July 2021, 09:00 PM
I love the song and video, it's such a good package and I think it deserved more success than it got tbh. My only criticism about the radio edit is the sudden cut, it sounds sloppy... "that is how it's got to be-" *instrumental*... I think they should have kept the ad-lib from the album version.
YES! That edit is shit. And it's the version that plays in my car through my mp3 player. Thanks for reminding me to change that!
Posted by: Piers 25th July 2021, 04:11 PM
But what He did or said about her?
As far as I know, Teddy Riley never spoke publicly about Mel. Mel was who said they didn't get along...and that he apparently had preconceived ideas of her. Jam n' Lewis did an interview saying they had to build Mel's confidence back up because another producer told her she couldn't sing. They didn't say the producer by name...but I think it had to be Teddy Riley.
Anyway. I definitely understand Mel/Virgin's logic in getting Teddy Riley on board the Hot project. He'd produced absolute classics for Michael Jackson like Remember the Time, and (at least here in the US) his No Diggity may arguably be THE r'n'b song of the 90s. There was a lot of reason to believe his material for Mel would be stronger than, say, ABC123.
What I don't totally follow is...if Riley so desperately didn't want to work with Mel...why'd he do it? The guy had some of the biggest hits of the 90s under his belt and was still working with music's biggest names. I have a hard time believing he worked with Mel cause he needed the money. He was still a very prominent producer in 2000.
Posted by: Mr.X 26th July 2021, 01:16 AM
Teddy was massive and a big name to work with her as a solo artist. To be honest, I always thought that Teddy should have worked on Forever instead but since they had such a bad experience (and the results werent amazing), maybe it was for the best.
Love Mel. She really deserved better as a solo artist. Like, so much of the album isn't actually her, and she barely writes on it either. But when she shines, she really goes for it!
Posted by: Piers 26th July 2021, 04:58 PM
I guess Riley did nearly work on some material that could have wound up on Forever...if that rumor's true that Boyfriend/Girlfriend was meant for the Spices (and I think it is true). I think I'm ultimately glad it didn't work out. People thought Holler was an abrupt change. Beats me what the world would think if the Spices unleashed Boyfriend/Girlfriend...with its references to coke and hoes. The song does have an energy I kinda like...but I don't think much of anyone would class it as better than "okay". It's probably telling that even Janet Jackson, who still very much had her midas touch at the time, couldn't propel it to being a big hit.
But in a best case scenario, I could see where a Spice Girls/Teddy Riley collab could have been great. Riley did some work on Michael Jackson's Invincible...an album that I tend to associate a bit with Forever because of the time frame, the heavy Darkchild influence, and the less-than-stellar reception to both. Riley has a song called Whatever Happens on Invincible, which is easily my favorite song on that album. It's beautiful, and it also shows how Riley could pull off a lot of genres. He was a far more varied producer than Darkchild was at that time. I think Riley pretty willfully gave Mel his scraps.
Posted by: Sideout 26th July 2021, 05:31 PM
Teddy Riley definitely gave Mel B bottom of the barrel songs. Maybe he initially wanted to work with Mel, but they just didn't get along in the studio. Piers is right about Riley's material on Michael Jackson 's Invincible album. Whatever Happens, Don't Walk Away, 2000 Watts all are quite different from one another. Darkchild's material can sometimes sound the same.
It's too bad Riley didn't give Mel a nice rnb ballad. That's one thing that is missing from Hot. Lullaby ain't it
Posted by: tommie 26th July 2021, 09:53 PM
But in a best case scenario, I could see where a Spice Girls/Teddy Riley collab could have been great. Riley did some work on Michael Jackson's Invincible...an album that I tend to associate a bit with Forever because of the time frame, the heavy Darkchild influence, and the less-than-stellar reception to both. Riley has a song called Whatever Happens on Invincible, which is easily my favorite song on that album. It's beautiful, and it also shows how Riley could pull off a lot of genres. He was a far more varied producer than Darkchild was at that time. I think Riley pretty willfully gave Mel his scraps.
Since they would only be featuring on Boyfriend/Girlfriend it might've made a good transition single where not as much was invested in its individual success.
Riley probably wanted to work with the Spice Girls and didn't care about working for one of them as a solo artist. I'm thinking it was a Sweet 7 situation where he just handed her whatever he had in the bottom of the drawer and didn't put any effort in writing songs specifically for her.
Posted by: Mr.X 27th July 2021, 12:02 AM
Riley probably wanted to work with the Spice Girls and didn't care about working for one of them as a solo artist. I'm thinking it was a Sweet 7 situation where he just handed her whatever he had in the bottom of the drawer and didn't put any effort in writing songs specifically for her.
Agree on Boyfriend/Girlfriend. In a way, it could have been a good transition onto a more r'n'b influenced era. And it was part of the South Park Soundtrack so it could have been huge! I always thought the Janet version was good but could imagine the girls really making it more fun and upbeat.
(I love that we now have confirmation that they were at least in discussions about it, when Melanie C's garrage was found on ebay and it had a cassette with the track
)I do wonder if they ever really recorded it
Posted by: Piers 27th July 2021, 06:25 AM
(I love that we now have confirmation that they were at least in discussions about it, when Melanie C's garrage was found on ebay and it had a cassette with the track
)I do wonder if they ever really recorded it
I've always assumed they didn't actually record it...just because Mel B talks about Teddy Riley having preconceived notions about her when she went in to record her Hot material. If they had a previous recording relationship, I don't think it'd be a matter of "preconceived notions", and they'd already know each other's dynamics in the studio. I do think they were scheduled to record it at one time, though. The Boyfriend/Girlfriend story was being reported by MTV and actual reputable sources that probably got it from a legitimate press release. I definitely don't know this for sure...but my guess is the pregnancies probably got in the way of recording the song/promoting it/shooting a video/etc.
I do wonder if the Spices would have changed the song from how we know it now. I don't think Mel B has inhibitions about song content, so she'd probably be down to sing whatever. But I flat-out can't imagine the other three singing a chorus with the phrase "ready to bone". Sure, the group sang about sex...but they tended to be a *little* more discreet than THAT (hey, Feed Your Love...)
Posted by: dancinqueen 27th July 2021, 12:04 PM
Mel B had great potential. She can (could) sing, she (still) can dance, she’s incredibly beautiful, and she’s got a bold personality. The Missy featuring is IMHO one of the Top3 solo songs in terms of quality and credibility. It’s nothing what a Spice fan was expecting from here, just like Goin’ Down by Melanie C. What a pity they destroyed her confidence. And she’s lazy AF.
Posted by: spiceboy 27th July 2021, 04:58 PM
I think Mel is anything but lazy! She works hard on various other projects and she got an album out before Emma despite having had a baby... Emma is Lazy Spice
Posted by: Equinox8 27th July 2021, 07:23 PM
(I love that we now have confirmation that they were at least in discussions about it, when Melanie C's garrage was found on ebay and it had a cassette with the track
)I do wonder if they ever really recorded it
I just took a moment to be mindful of the fact that WE LIVE IN A WORLD WHERE SOMEONE'S GARAGE CAN BE ON AN ONLINE AUCTION SITE.
Posted by: Equinox8 27th July 2021, 07:28 PM
To be honest, the radio edit for BF/GF has so many sound effects thrown in every time a profane lyric comes up, the SGs probably would have just made that edited version the ONLY version. They were on school lunchboxes at the time so there's no way that "bone" would have been a lyric they ever sang (not as a verb anyway)
Posted by: vibe 28th July 2021, 10:51 AM
Boyfriend Girlfriend isnt that good.
#11 UK
#47 USA
With Janet and Ja Rule - FLOP
Posted by: dancinqueen 28th July 2021, 11:09 AM
Mel B is not lazy when she’s already part of a project (see her commitment to the last tour vocally and as a dancer, what a performer). She’s lazy when she’s got many projects to choose. Where Mel C would probably forget to sleep to respect the deadlines, Mel B is not a great example of great organization skills. I love her, she’s become my fave again, but I have to be honest.
As for Emma, that’s why we love her. She’s the lazy baby of the group, even vocally, no improvement detected (not that she really needs it, she sings on key and has a pleasant voice).
Posted by: -Jay- 11th October 2021, 07:59 AM
21 years ago this week... Hot was released!
Posted by: Equinox8 11th October 2021, 03:31 PM
I remember seeing it on a display rack at the FutureShop store that used to be around in Canada, and I remember thinking: OMG -- it's *in* Canada. I was quite surprised to see it here as I thought I would have to import it! It sits happily in my CD shelf in my home office. If any other Canadians are interested, there are two copies left for sale on amazon.ca for $5.99.
Posted by: dancinqueen 11th October 2021, 03:46 PM
Love Mel B, hated the record. She had (and still got) so much potential. Word Up (version 1) and IWUB are great to me. Cool, not necessarily radio friendly, but at least of quality compared to the snoozefest this album is. I save Feels So Good (verses aside).
Posted by: Babyboy 10th December 2021, 08:31 PM
Track by track from Mel (worldpop.com)
Feel So Good
That's probably one of the most poppy songs on the album. I worked in Minneapolis for two weeks and got to spend Jimmy Jam's 40th birthday with him and sing with the cake alongside Janet Jackson!
Tell Me
This was produced by Rodney Jerkins who's done 70 per cent of the Spice Girls album. It's a very truthful, very honest account of what I've been through the last two years. On this album and particularly on this single I've expressed how I feel and how I think, and I think it's very disrespectful if I say, 'This song's about that person and that song's about that person.' I don't want to lower myself and be like that.
Hell No
This was written with Sisqo in LA. It was fantastic fun working with him, he's a ball of talent, energy and genius! We had a right laugh and Phoenix was there with me, singing and bopping along, which was brilliant. The song's from a girl's point of view, about sadness, being left and ditched!
Lullaby
I co-wrote this with Biff who co-wrote Wannabe with us. We were in Ireland for a week and I had a fantastic time, it was brilliant to have a chance to work with the people I'd worked with on the first Spice album. The song's about my daughter, saying that she's the best thing that's ever happened to me.
Hotter
I co-wrote this with Sisqo, it's a very upbeat, powerful song about a girl saying she doesn't care if you've got money or style or class, cos it's more about the person inside. So you could drive a Bentley and be the worst kind of guy to me, it's what they give off as a person that counts.
Step Inside
That was done with my boyfriend Max here in London. He sent me a track about a year ago and finally I got back to him and said I'd love to do it. He produced it, wrote it, played all the instruments on it and got a full orchestra in which I was very amazed by.
ABC 123
Written by Teddy Riley. We worked with him in Virginia for two weeks in the middle of nowhere, with him and his fantastic team. That was the first time I stepped out to do the solo project and I did three songs with him. That was 14 months ago.
I Believe
Written by me and Teddy Riley. He did all the beats and production himself, and it's a bit indie and funk/poppy! I love it!
I Want You Back
Written by Missy Elliot, this was the first time I'd even considered doing anything by myself. I was on tour with the Spice Girls when she called me up and said 'Melanie, I've got a song for you, will you come and record it with me?'. I checked it with the girls and within a month I was out there, I recorded it in a day, did the video, then came back. She's a genius.
Pack Your Shit
It's about a love affair - I get cheated on, cos he's fancying my friends that come round the flat. It's a heavy song and it's very hard to sing cos there's a lot of high notes and I don't do high notes very well, but somehow I did them!
Feel Me Now
That is supposed to be me being sexy! When I recorded it I lay down on the floor, lit candles and had a little bit of wine cos the verses are just flowing and gushing with whatever I'm thinking. It still makes me cringe a little when I listen back to it!
Posted by: sammy01 10th December 2021, 09:38 PM
Oh Mel you actually said a song you included on your album made you cringe. Sigh that is the sort of thing why her solo career went nowhere, it was all just a bit of a joke and fun to her.
Can you imagine Mel C saying listening back to an album she is about to release one of the tracks makes her cringe!
Posted by: dromeda 10th December 2021, 10:11 PM
I remember trying hard to like this album back in 2001. I gave up quickly. To be honest, in terms of music, it was my first first frustration from a spice girl. I was in a high expectations waiting for a pop/rock upbeat album. Listening again after all these years my thoughts remains the same. Hotter should have been a single. The first single. It is the best track. Actually, Hotter and For once in my life are the only songs I can listen from Mel B. I don’t get why she was so “irresponsible” with her solo music career. Shes a great and talented person.
Posted by: tommie 29th January 2022, 02:40 PM
Finally listening to this properly after finding it in a bargain bin - honestly, the album starts so strong with Feels So Good and Tell Me, but then comes Hell No and a random ballad section with it and Lullaby which just seems misplaced on the album. It sort of never recovers after that. I think this is an album that probably could use a re-jigging of the tracklisting.
Posted by: tommie 29th January 2022, 03:09 PM
Ok, Feel Me Now is just a bunch of rambling. In all honesty, there's a half-decent album in there somewhere and it certainly didn't deserve to flop the way it did. Oh well.
Posted by: Piers 30th January 2022, 08:44 PM
Yeah. I do stick up for Hot on occasion. I *love* I Want You Back, Tell Me, and Feels So Good. I think Hotter, Step Inside, and Lullaby are strong tracks. I'm indifferent to the other five songs. The album's not what I'd truly call a bust.
I was disappointed in it in 2000, though...just because of my expectations for it. Up until the album release, what we'd heard from solo Mel was I Want You Back, Word Up, Sophisticated Lady, Tell Me...and the chorus of Feels So Good. I loved all of it and assumed Mel was just knocking it out of the park every time she walked into the studio. Tag to that, Hot had the most impressive roster of collaborators of any Spice-related project. The Christmas in Spice World shows seemed to show her at a new performance peak. I assumed Mel was primed to become the best solo pop star of the group.
I do think the self-destructive release date was the key problem...but I'd be curious to have an inside peak at the album creation itself. Of course, she should have kept recording until she had stronger material...but with collaborators that prolific, I do wonder if there were pressures to just accept what she'd been given.
Posted by: spiceboy 30th January 2022, 10:29 PM
I was disappointed in it in 2000, though...just because of my expectations for it. Up until the album release, what we'd heard from solo Mel was I Want You Back, Word Up, Sophisticated Lady, Tell Me...and the chorus of Feels So Good. I loved all of it and assumed Mel was just knocking it out of the park every time she walked into the studio. Tag to that, Hot had the most impressive roster of collaborators of any Spice-related project. The Christmas in Spice World shows seemed to show her at a new performance peak. I assumed Mel was primed to become the best solo pop star of the group.
I do think the self-destructive release date was the key problem...but I'd be curious to have an inside peak at the album creation itself. Of course, she should have kept recording until she had stronger material...but with collaborators that prolific, I do wonder if there were pressures to just accept what she'd been given.
Basically everything you just said... although I kind of think by the end of 2000 to 2001 anything the girls released album wise was going to struggle. If Forever the group album couldn't sell that well of the back of the Spice Girls as a HUGE name and having a decent selling #1 single then what hope was there for any of them? I think Mel should have held off and released in 2001 and with a better release schedule (Feels so good, Hotter, Tell Me singles in that order without such huge gaps) but even then she probably wouldn't have achieved much more than 100,000 copies.
I think the evidence is seen with Geri and Emma who also released albums a few months on in 2001 and both had big #1 singles and then more top 10 hits to follow yet their albums only sold in the 120-150,000 mark.
Posted by: -Jay- 31st January 2022, 04:16 AM
It's definitely been discussed before, but sometimes I wonder if this album would have done any better for her if it had had a "family friendly" artwork. Obviously we can't say for sure, but I do lean towards yes, alongside a better timed release, and off the back of a better song... but that's certainly a lot of 'what if' scenarios!
Imagine if she'd called the album 'Feels So Good', releasing it after 'Feels So Good' the song, and had used one of these pictures for the album cover (or if not these specific photos, other shots from these sessions that we haven't seen... maybe there were some shots that would have made stronger album covers~) -
Bigger pictures here: https://static.wixstatic.com/media/15012a_1e5fd4cd3f764f389391993a857deeb3~mv2.jpg/v1/fill/w_970,h_920,al_c,q_90/15012a_1e5fd4cd3f764f389391993a857deeb3~mv2.jpg
The album cover we got... don't get me wrong, it's a rather stunning/striking picture of her... just not the best choice for the cover? That's my firm belief anyway. Honestly we could come up with numerous reasons why this album failed commercially (#28 and 7,419 first week sales... horrendous for the time!) and it probably is a mix of every reason we can think of.
I wonder how Mel felt when she saw the midweeks and the eventual #28 position? That couldn't have been her expectation, and surely she must have cared. I can't recall if she touched on this in her first book?
It's frustrating, looking back. Out of all the Spice Girls, I really think she had the best all round potential to be "the full package" and succeed as a solo artist... it just didn't quite work out that way. There were glimpses of it. 'Feels So Good' the single was a great direction in sound and image.
Posted by: Mr.X 31st January 2022, 09:53 AM
I mantain that Mel B has the best run of initial singles leading up her debut album, of any Spice Girl. That bombastic run of I Want You Back - Word Up - Tell Me was f***ing ace and gave light to a really great pop star in the making...
Just a shame it was all released in the way it was. I agree with Jay - the cover did not help, in my opinion. And she should have released the album in Spring 2001 after Feels So Good. Those were her biggest downfalls, for me...
(it also sometimes pisses me off that both the Mels were busy with their solo stuff during the Forever era... if there was ever an indication it was the end, that should be it to be honest...)
Posted by: spiceboy 31st January 2022, 02:08 PM
Just a shame it was all released in the way it was. I agree with Jay - the cover did not help, in my opinion. And she should have released the album in Spring 2001 after Feels So Good. Those were her biggest downfalls, for me...
(it also sometimes pisses me off that both the Mels were busy with their solo stuff during the Forever era... if there was ever an indication it was the end, that should be it to be honest...)
I (and most of the public it seems) disagree. Melanie C and Geri had a better or more cleverly thought out run of singles throughout their first album campaigns. Melanie covered such a range of genres it obviously enabled her to reach a range of audiences that none of the other girls ever achieved with album sales, then Geri followed the Spice formula with hers slightly out there song love it or hate it, safer melodic song touching another genre, ballad, stomper final single with BRITS performance.
Mel B's run was a fantastic first single, a second cool single but too out there for her fanbase (at the time) then a ok single but totally wrong one to launch the album. Tell me was too "personal" when she was already attracting a lot of negative press from her marriage / divorce and while it has a decent beat plods on a little bit too much. Then after the initial "floppage" she couldn't claw it back, especially not when she decided to go with Lullaby over Hotter, plus the huge long gaps in her single releases did nothing to help keep the album sellling.
(yes I am aware you said run up to the album I got carried away
)I think Jay's ideas could certainly have made a difference and resulted in higher sales... whether it would have been much higher who knows???
Posted by: schizo_spice 31st January 2022, 02:54 PM
Word Up wasn’t a great single choice for me.
I really don’t like the way she sings it either quite an unpleasant vocal arrangement in my opinion.
Posted by: Chemistry 31st January 2022, 03:00 PM
I do like Word Up, quite a lot actually (a lot better than the Little Mix cover) and I can understand why they saw it as a good opportunity with it being included on the Austin Powers soundtrack (even though Beautiful Stranger was the "official movie single) but it was not a good single choice for the follow up to I Want You Back. Not being helped with her re-branding herself as Mel G and the video... It really is a shame as it was an uphill battle from there onwards. Tell Me is a fantastic song but unfortunately couldn't help the album. Mel was always going to have a harder time as some of the other girls, especially in the 90's and early 00's but it definitely wasn't because of her talent or potential.
Posted by: Mr.X 31st January 2022, 09:03 PM
I (and most of the public it seems) disagree. Melanie C and Geri had a better or more cleverly thought out run of singles throughout their first album campaigns. Melanie covered such a range of genres it obviously enabled her to reach a range of audiences that none of the other girls ever achieved with album sales, then Geri followed the Spice formula with hers slightly out there song love it or hate it, safer melodic song touching another genre, ballad, stomper final single with BRITS performance.
Mel B's run was a fantastic first single, a second cool single but too out there for her fanbase (at the time) then a ok single but totally wrong one to launch the album. Tell me was too "personal" when she was already attracting a lot of negative press from her marriage / divorce and while it has a decent beat plods on a little bit too much. Then after the initial "floppage" she couldn't claw it back, especially not when she decided to go with Lullaby over Hotter, plus the huge long gaps in her single releases did nothing to help keep the album sellling.
(yes I am aware you said run up to the album I got carried away
)I think Jay's ideas could certainly have made a difference and resulted in higher sales... whether it would have been much higher who knows???
Just because it was varied, doesnt mean it was good lol
Melanie and Geri were to my opinion really bad. The only great song Melanie released then was Northern Star in my opinion. Obviously they had success and good for them. Post-Forever though, their success also almost completely dwindled so I think it was a matter of them releasing first out of the whole group...I Want You Back is excellent. So is Word Up, Tell Me and Feels So Good. They were all quite left-field songs and good for her to experiment with her sound.
Just a shame the strategy to release it all was terrible. She deserved much, much better!
Posted by: Chemistry 1st February 2022, 05:54 AM
Melanie and Geri were to my opinion really bad. The only great song Melanie released then was Northern Star in my opinion. Obviously they had success and good for them. Post-Forever though, their success also almost completely dwindled so I think it was a matter of them releasing first out of the whole group...But that's just an opinion, isn't it? I think generally speaking, people would say Mel C and Geri had the strongest singles run and their chart success proves it. NBTSA and ITTY were both brilliant songs (in my opinion..) and proved to be very strong single choices as both were massive. Geri made some very smart choices to release songs that were the closest to the Spice experience and give the public what they were expecting / waiting for.
Posted by: Mr.X 1st February 2022, 09:49 AM
Oh sure, I wasnt stating that the public prefered Mel B's singles at all.
Posted by: Equinox8 3rd February 2022, 09:09 PM
Hard disagree on that one. Feel Me Now is probably the most honestly sensual tracks from a solo Spice Girl aside from Emma's Free Me (and maybe a couple others from that album).
Posted by: Equinox8 3rd February 2022, 09:14 PM
Melanie and Geri were to my opinion really bad. The only great song Melanie released then was Northern Star in my opinion. Obviously they had success and good for them. Post-Forever though, their success also almost completely dwindled so I think it was a matter of them releasing first out of the whole group...I Want You Back is excellent. So is Word Up, Tell Me and Feels So Good. They were all quite left-field songs and good for her to experiment with her sound.
Just a shame the strategy to release it all was terrible. She deserved much, much better!
Couldn't agree more with this! I received 'Hot' for my birthday the year it was released in Canada. It didn't hit me off the cuff with a WOW factor that I was expecting (especially with that album cover)! However, after repeated plays, it became one of my favourites. The tracklisting, I agree, should be rearranged in some places, and Word Up should have been included on the record. I really like the energy of that Word Up cover; I prefer it to the original, and Mel's energy in the video is just spot-on with the whole quirky vibe of the song. Mel B has such natural star power and charisma; it's just a shame the label tossed her solo album into the fire. I imagine things would have turned out much MUCH differently had she assembled the album right off the success of I Want You Back around the time the Spiceworld tour ended.
Posted by: Piers 6th February 2022, 03:00 AM
Hot had a Parental Advisory on it, didn't it? I mean, Mel was a grown woman and had every right to express herself however she wanted...but it probably didn't help her business-wise. Her fanbase was still very young...and a lot of Hot's promotion was happening on kids' shows. I'm not sure if having some fairly adult material was helping from a strictly commercial standpoint...not in 2000, anyway.
As for the thought of her delaying the release until 2001, I think anything would have been better than releasing within a month of Forever. But. It still would have been one of five Spice-related albums to be released in the course of a year. I've always wondered if it was more a case of interest in the girls dwindling by 2001...or all of their projects just starting to cancel out each other's success.
I feel this is where Virgin should have stepped in. I get that all of the girls were trying to strike while the iron was hot. But it's super messy that five Spice albums would come out from October 2000-October 2001...and absolutely nothing would come out for a year after February 2002. Asking the fanbase (a mostly young one that probably had limited funds...or were asking parents for money in a lot of cases) to buy five albums from the same camp in a year was kinda...nuts. My feeling is they should have coordinated things enough to where it was two albums tops in the span of a year.
Moral of the story. There was A LOT working against Hot.
Posted by: Mr.X 6th February 2022, 09:42 PM
As for the thought of her delaying the release until 2001, I think anything would have been better than releasing within a month of Forever. But. It still would have been one of five Spice-related albums to be released in the course of a year. I've always wondered if it was more a case of interest in the girls dwindling by 2001...or all of their projects just starting to cancel out each other's success.
I feel this is where Virgin should have stepped in. I get that all of the girls were trying to strike while the iron was hot. But it's super messy that five Spice albums would come out from October 2000-October 2001...and absolutely nothing would come out for a year after February 2002. Asking the fanbase (a mostly young one that probably had limited funds...or were asking parents for money in a lot of cases) to buy five albums from the same camp in a year was kinda...nuts. My feeling is they should have coordinated things enough to where it was two albums tops in the span of a year.
Moral of the story. There was A LOT working against Hot.
All of this to be honest. Even Emma and Geri's album in 2001 didnt exactly set the charts alight. The 'Spice flame' was already quite tame by the time 2000 came to an end. Market saturation and an array of bad press too didnt help.
Hot got the biggest snub, followed by Victoria's... Emma and Geri had the advantage of having one big-selling lead single, but everything else also stalled...
Posted by: -Jay- 19th February 2022, 09:32 PM
Feels So Good was released 21 years ago, 19th February 2001! 
Posted by: Nina West 6th February 2023, 07:43 PM
01. Feels So Good - 10/10
The album opens strong with this catchy number with a thumping bassline and smooth beats running throughout. The production is slick and perfectly utilises Mel’s deep husky vocals. This was a perfect single choice and perhaps her greatest solo track.
02. Tell Me - 6/10
The lead single and switches the tone drastically from the previous track with its bitter lyrics, shouty chorus and fractured R&B beats that gives a slight nod to the UK garage scene. The track feels very dated and a little unfinished. Other than that, the song is okay, just okay.
03. Hell No - 6/10
Slowing things down now with the first ballad on here which gives Mel plenty of room to show off some nice vocals. The mellow basslines, tinkling pianos and acoustic guitars adds a nice warmth to the slow number. But overall not very interesting.
04. Lullaby - 7/10
A very tender mother to daughter song with acoustic guitars, light percussions and a mellow mid-tempo beat that goes great with Mel’s vocals and gives this track a nice warm soothing sound. Although this was still a very strange single choice and perhaps would have been better staying on the album.
05. Hotter - 9/10
The tempo picks up again with this sexy R&B jam, laden with killer basslines, funky guitars and thumping beats. This was due to be a single but was scrapped due to poor album sales and the previous track flopping. Not sure if this would have saved the album, but it’s a decent track nonetheless.
06. Step Inside - 5/10
The hypnotic beats and chugging basslines are quite catchy, and the vocals are strong, but other than that this track doesn’t do anything for me, it feels very basic and lightweight.
07. ABC 123 - 8/10
Back to the more R&B sound now with its funky rhythms and seductive beats that flows quite well with the drums. But the vocals feel a little restrained on here and overpowered by the production and the rap by Screwface was quite fun.
08. I Believe - 6/10
This feels very experimental with the slight Eastern feel with the beats and the sample of someone singing gives this a rather odd feel. The vocals sound soft and rich, and the track has a nice mellow feel to it.
09. I Want You Back - 10/10
Mel’s very first single released 2 years before the album even came out and it’s a total bob. Helmed under the watchful eye of Missy Elliot, her presence is all over this with its addictive rhythms, staccato violin strings and sparse beats, the track is catchy yet brilliant and Mel’s confident vocals really brings this to life.
10. Pack Your Shit - 4/10
An angry mid-tempo R&B track full of cringey swear words. The production is decent, and the vocals are okay, but this track is filler and even guest vocalist Eric Williams can’t elevate this above mediocre.
11. Feel Me Now - 5/10
The album ends with this seductive R&B slow jam with Mel’s slinky vocals against the heavy beats. Not entirely interesting and not a strong end to the album.
Avg.6.909
Posted by: Equinox8 6th February 2023, 09:59 PM
01. Feels So Good - 10/10
The album opens strong with this catchy number with a thumping bassline and smooth beats running throughout. The production is slick and perfectly utilises Mel’s deep husky vocals. This was a perfect single choice and perhaps her greatest solo track.
02. Tell Me - 6/10
The lead single and switches the tone drastically from the previous track with its bitter lyrics, shouty chorus and fractured R&B beats that gives a slight nod to the UK garage scene. The track feels very dated and a little unfinished. Other than that, the song is okay, just okay.
03. Hell No - 6/10
Slowing things down now with the first ballad on here which gives Mel plenty of room to show off some nice vocals. The mellow basslines, tinkling pianos and acoustic guitars adds a nice warmth to the slow number. But overall not very interesting.
04. Lullaby - 7/10
A very tender mother to daughter song with acoustic guitars, light percussions and a mellow mid-tempo beat that goes great with Mel’s vocals and gives this track a nice warm soothing sound. Although this was still a very strange single choice and perhaps would have been better staying on the album.
05. Hotter - 9/10
The tempo picks up again with this sexy R&B jam, laden with killer basslines, funky guitars and thumping beats. This was due to be a single but was scrapped due to poor album sales and the previous track flopping. Not sure if this would have saved the album, but it’s a decent track nonetheless.
06. Step Inside - 5/10
The hypnotic beats and chugging basslines are quite catchy, and the vocals are strong, but other than that this track doesn’t do anything for me, it feels very basic and lightweight.
07. ABC 123 - 8/10
Back to the more R&B sound now with its funky rhythms and seductive beats that flows quite well with the drums. But the vocals feel a little restrained on here and overpowered by the production and the rap by Screwface was quite fun.
08. I Believe - 6/10
This feels very experimental with the slight Eastern feel with the beats and the sample of someone singing gives this a rather odd feel. The vocals sound soft and rich, and the track has a nice mellow feel to it.
09. I Want You Back - 10/10
Mel’s very first single released 2 years before the album even came out and it’s a total bob. Helmed under the watchful eye of Missy Elliot, her presence is all over this with its addictive rhythms, staccato violin strings and sparse beats, the track is catchy yet brilliant and Mel’s confident vocals really brings this to life.
10. Pack Your Shit - 4/10
An angry mid-tempo R&B track full of cringey swear words. The production is decent, and the vocals are okay, but this track is filler and even guest vocalist Eric Williams can’t elevate this above mediocre.
11. Feel Me Now - 5/10
The album ends with this seductive R&B slow jam with Mel’s slinky vocals against the heavy beats. Not entirely interesting and not a strong end to the album.
Avg.6.909
Appreciate you taking the time to write this up!
I never knew the name of the male vocalist on PYS until reading this -- I remember 'back in the day' some people thought it was Sisqo LOL.
The only pieces of your review that I feel differently about are:
Tell Me: I'd rank as 8/10 (the Silk's House Workout Remix is my preferred version to the album version)
Feel Me Now: I'd rank as a full 10/10 (I'd play this before Feed Your Love). I said ... what I said.
Posted by: Mr.X 7th February 2023, 12:20 AM
Appreciate you writing this, thank you!
respectfully, I gotta disagree on a couple. I think ABC 123 was so bad, and songs like Pack Your Shit and Feel Me Now feel more exciting in my opinion.
I agree though that Tell Me feels dated, sadly. And yes, I agree about it sounding kind of unfinished, which is funny cos I never quite understood what was 'wrong' with the song, and that description nails it!
Posted by: Jessie Where 7th February 2023, 08:57 AM
I distinctly remember watching an interview a few months later when she was on some TV show, and she explicitly stated she had been dropped by her record label "because my album flopped" in a very matter-of-fact way - to which I thought fair play to her for not sugarcoating it!
Posted by: spiceboy 7th February 2023, 10:43 AM
I guess after seeing both Geri and Melanie C achieve top 10s in the first week she must have surely been expecting a top 10 herself. It's not like she can even blame the high sales of 3rd quarter since she shifted 10k less than Melanie C and 24k less than Geri did in first week.
I wish she could have at least gone to #10 so all the girls could claim a top 10 album, same for Victoria not achieving a #1 single.
Posted by: Piers 14th February 2023, 06:49 AM
I wish she could have at least gone to #10 so all the girls could claim a top 10 album, same for Victoria not achieving a #1 single.
Yeah. I wish Mel B could have managed a top 10 album too. While it's my least favorite of the solo Spices' debut albums, I still view it as three brilliant songs...another three decent album tracks...and five 'meh' songs. It's not THAT bleak a situation. And (for me at least), it deserved the top 10 just on the strength of the album's best songs. But...y'know...it was that disastrous release timing. Plus, Mel herself said in some of the promo that Forever was a better album than her own. Which. I mean. She's right. Points for honesty. But it's probably not the best thing to say when you're trying to promote a solo album.
Few other thoughts. Though it's my least favorite solo Spice debut album, Hot actually is my favorite opening two songs. I think Feels So Good and Tell Me are killer (I've long accepted that I apparently like Tell Me better than the entire rest of the fanbase). However. While Hot has my favorite two opening songs...it definitely does not have my favorite three openings songs. To me, the album's momentum drops off a cliff with Hell No...a song that could have been recorded (or more likely rejected) by literally any r'n'b act in 2000.
Posted by: spiceboy 14th February 2023, 12:14 PM
I think the opening with Feels so good is excellent one of the best openings to a solo Spice album.
1. Feels so good 9/10
An great song, the opening beats are just hypnotic. Only reason it's not a 10 is it goes on a bit too long at the end. Should definitely have opened the album campaign with this, I think the album would have charted higher off the back of it as the media really went in on the "bitter Mel" thing over Tell me.
2. Tell me 8/10
Another great upbeat track, should not have been released over FSG as first single though, not quite 9 or 10 because there is something that just feels a bit incomplete about the track.
3. Hell no 5/10
A big dip here after the first two tracks. It's ok but if she really wanted it I would have used it elsewhere on the album not as track 3. Hotter should be here a Feels so good, Tell me, Hotter opening three would have SLAYED.
4. Lullaby 7/10
A beautiful track vilified because Hotter should definitely have been released over it. Mel sounds gorgeous on it, definitely deserves it's place on the album and I think it was a decent single choice (after Hotter obs), there certainly is not anything else for a 4th single (5th if you include I want you back)
5. Hotter 10/10
Best track on the album can't believe it wasn't released they completely slept on this track, one of the biggest solo Spice mistakes for me.
6. Step Inside 6/10
Decent enough as an album track but the obvious lack of quality to Hotter is glaring.
7. ABC 123 6/10
Same as above
8. I believe 6/10
Same as above
9. I want you back 10/10
Epic no more needs to be said. It's a shame this is not more remembered it has been slept on as a bit of a forgotten 90's #1.
10. Pack your shit 7/10
I've always liked the confidence and swagger of this track. Only reason not higher is because (like tell me) it feels somewhat incomplete.
11. Feel me now 3/10
Never liked it I always turn off after Pack your shit tbh.
I think the problem with the album is that there are some real highlights that show what Mel was capable of, but that makes the average tracks look worse than they are as they pale against them. Mel definitely deserved more success based on her singles run though she had a decent run (aside from the idiotic decision of not releasing Hotter after FSG)
1. Feels so good
2. Tell me
3. Hotter
4. Lullaby
Would have been my singles order.
Posted by: Mr.X 14th February 2023, 09:00 PM
Decent enough as an album track but the obvious lack of quality to Hotter is glaring.
7. ABC 123 6/10
Same as above
8. I believe 6/10
Same as above
Savage
2. Tell me
3. Hotter
4. Lullaby
Would have been my singles order.
That's absolutely right!
The only problem is your HATE SPEECH about Feel Me Now. It is at LEAST a solid 6
Posted by: Amanda Hugginkis 14th February 2023, 09:06 PM
I love Tell Me!! But yeah, it sounds a TAD unfinished.
Posted by: -Jay- 15th February 2023, 12:05 PM
I wonder why I Want You Back was kind of buried in the track list order, only track 9 of 11? I know it was 2 years old at that point, but still. I suppose one thing that can be said for where it is positioned is that it at least gives the back of the album some better quality
I more or less agree with Spiceboy's assessment of the album! I do have a bit more of a soft spot for I Believe, but only in like a 7 out of 10 way.
I feel like at least one more session with a different writer/producer was needed for Hot... ideally someone immersed in the UK music scene who specialised in R&B. Perhaps they might have brought out more of the Mel B we knew and loved, creating something fresher and more in keeping with the music scene here than what Hot offered. Sometimes I wonder if a culture clash is a reason why Mel B didn't get or wasn't able to get better work out of the American producers... like they fundamentally didn't get what exactly makes Mel B unique and couldn't tap into that musically. I guess Mel B herself didn't have a great idea or understanding of who she wanted to be as an artist either, and I never really sensed passion from her about her own debut album. I'm at least glad that it has some strong tracks, namely Feels So Good, Tell Me and Hotter.
I think if Virgin had convinced Mel B to put the breaks on the album and had been able to make her more of a priority in early 2001, that it could have resulted in a stronger album than what we got. It seems she was very impatient and eager to get the album out, but it just didn't make any sense to release it in such close proximity to the Spice Girls album. She shot herself in the foot!
I'm rambling but... I wonder if Virgin should have considered repackaging the Hot album for release straight after Feels So Good? Clearly the album was overlooked in October 2000, but they could have remarketed it. It could have been quite low effort, perhaps different artwork + simply include the radio edits of Tell Me and Feels So Good... and tried again to encourage album sales by making it seem like a new release. Feels So Good sold better than Tell Me, and the Q1 album market wasn't as competitive or high selling as Q4. Maybe it would have worked and put her solo career in a better position.
Posted by: Jessie Where 15th February 2023, 12:12 PM
Crazy how 'Feels So Good' being a decent-sized top 5 hit could only make the album re-enter in the 90s for two weeks.
'Feels So Good' to me feels like a classic of that time, 'Tell Me' just... isn't.
Posted by: spiceboy 15th February 2023, 01:24 PM
I more or less agree with Spiceboy's assessment of the album! I do have a bit more of a soft spot for I Believe, but only in like a 7 out of 10 way.
I feel like at least one more session with a different writer/producer was needed for Hot... ideally someone immersed in the UK music scene who specialised in R&B. Perhaps they might have brought out more of the Mel B we knew and loved, creating something fresher and more in keeping with the music scene here than what Hot offered. Sometimes I wonder if a culture clash is a reason why Mel B didn't get or wasn't able to get better work out of the American producers... like they fundamentally didn't get what exactly makes Mel B unique and couldn't tap into that musically. I guess Mel B herself didn't have a great idea or understanding of who she wanted to be as an artist either, and I never really sensed passion from her about her own debut album. I'm at least glad that it has some strong tracks, namely Feels So Good, Tell Me and Hotter.
I think if Virgin had convinced Mel B to put the breaks on the album and had been able to make her more of a priority in early 2001, that it could have resulted in a stronger album than what we got. It seems she was very impatient and eager to get the album out, but it just didn't make any sense to release it in such close proximity to the Spice Girls album. She shot herself in the foot!
I'm rambling but... I wonder if Virgin should have considered repackaging the Hot album for release straight after Feels So Good? Clearly the album was overlooked in October 2000, but they could have remarketed it. It could have been quite low effort, perhaps different artwork + simply include the radio edits of Tell Me and Feels So Good... and tried again to encourage album sales by making it seem like a new release. Feels So Good sold better than Tell Me, and the Q1 album market wasn't as competitive or high selling as Q4. Maybe it would have worked and put her solo career in a better position.
I feel like the album itself while not the strongest should have done well enough off the back of it's singles which were all strong, I find it a bit bizarre it did not sell better. I think her flopping pretty much out of the gate did not help matters at all and she was always on an uphill battle to recover from it, although FSG did well for her as a single.
If the album was already ready before the summer she really should have got it out then, I'm not sure when it was all done but even around the BRITs time would have been good as she would be high on BRITS performance but also no commitments to the group (not that they commited much lol). She really should have listened to Virgin too and launched with Feels So Good which I believe would have given the album a better head start and sometimes that encourages more success as people jump onto something that is doing well.
I'll say it again Mel B does not deserve to be the only girl without a top 10 album, the fact Victoria did it (only just) off the back of NSAIG and Mel didn't is a bit sickening!
Posted by: Equinox8 15th February 2023, 02:05 PM
Agreed! Especially because she definitely has the talent to achieve that. The bar was set quite high after her duet with Missy Elliott, and I really think she could have achieved similar success with Hot overall. Combination of poor timing, questionable choices for songs to record, and then Virgin tossing her into a dumpster at first opportunity.
I still wonder, had the girls released a follow-up to Spiceworld in 1998/1999 that included 4-piece, duets, and solo numbers -- how that would have set the stage for solo releases afterwards.
Posted by: Mr.X 15th February 2023, 08:49 PM
I honestly believe that Mel just wasnt too confident on the album herself, and burried it behind the Spice Girls one, and it ended up f***ing up both lol or at least being a major contributing factor for the group to not be able to promote properly either.
Mel deserved much better as a pop star than the two meandering albums she put out. She had incredible singles that just didn't gell. Even I Want You Back was successful but not a smash hit either. It got to #1 but its sales are a bit low in the long run... It was clearly a hit though, but probably mostly do to the curiosity of it being the first solo Spice single at the time.
Sadly the public just wsnt there for her either. I will never recover from the huge flop that was LA State of Mind, and neither has her career since then as a pop act...
Posted by: spiceboy 15th February 2023, 10:17 PM
LA state of mind was a whole new level of floppage like I’ve never seen before or since!
Posted by: dromeda 16th February 2023, 12:54 AM
It's a bad album! It was a bad album even by the standards of the time. I remember when I bought the album at a video store and I got home anxious and frustrated when I listened song by song and couldn't like any of them. 🤣🤣
Posted by: Mr.X 16th February 2023, 08:23 AM
Sadly I agree. But it is not that much worse than most of the production and level of quality of releases like My Happy Place, This Time, Stages, Passion, etc.
The floppage of LA State of Mind was made even worse because it was released on an indie label that had no previous or future experience of releasing. I guess it was set up just for this release and she couldnt be arsed with promo anyway...
The video is the most low quality production, even worse than Baby Please Don't Stop or Half of Me videos, or many of the Mel C videos... Its objectively the worst Spice-related video overall, in my opinion...
Posted by: spiceboy 16th February 2023, 01:14 PM
I actually love LASOM as an album it’s such a breezy easy listening summery one.
Posted by: Equinox8 16th February 2023, 02:13 PM
I like it for the same reasons, and I don't think Mel B created that record with the intent of it charting so I think all of this talk about cheap videos, and floppage chart positions is nonsense within the context of LASOM: it was pretty clear she just wanted to make this record. And it flows much better than 'Hot'.
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