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Posted by: Jay ☆ 1st October 2019, 03:27 PM

Two of the solo B Sides have backing vocals from another Spice Girl. Emma's 'Hey You (Free Up Your Mind)' features backing vocals from Melanie C, while Mel B's 'Sophisticated Lady' has Emma on backing vocal duty!


Which song do you prefer?






Previous Polls:

http://www.buzzjack.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=226370 [Last singles from Emma's first two albums that missed Top 10]
http://www.buzzjack.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=226185 [Uptempo songs from Double A Side singles]
http://www.buzzjack.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=225922 [Ballads from Double A Side singles]
http://www.buzzjack.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=225719 [Too Much B Sides]
http://www.buzzjack.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=225610 [Children in Need Charity Singles]
http://www.buzzjack.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=225482 [Melanie C UK #1 Singles]

Posted by: Mr.X 1st October 2019, 03:33 PM

Sophisticated Lady is pretty ace actualy! It would have been a really nice addition to Hot in my opinion. Better than some of the songs in there, for sure. x

Posted by: dachiki 1st October 2019, 06:09 PM

Sophisticated Lady

Posted by: Blond 2.0 2nd October 2019, 02:55 PM

Sophisticated Lady

Posted by: Jay ☆ 2nd October 2019, 04:14 PM

I chose Sophisticated Lady too (even though I dislike how she sounds singing "GO DEXTER, GO DEXTER DEXTER"!)

It's definitely the most British sounding song she created throughout her first era. Maybe she made a mistake going in an Americanised direction on Hot?

Posted by: SouthernStar88 2nd October 2019, 08:43 PM

Oh gosh...I love them both! I've voted for Hey You (Free Up Your Mind)….

Posted by: Feel_The_Fever 3rd October 2019, 12:11 AM

Sophisticated lady.

Posted by: Michael Andrew 4th October 2019, 08:26 AM

I like the vocal melodies and instrumentation of 'Sophisticated Lady'. But the sparse lyrics are about sex rather than being a sophisticated lady. To me it seems very hastily thrown together.

'Hey You (Free Up Your Mind)' feels like it was a day's work away from being a single contender. Just needs a little more tempo. So I voted for that one.

Posted by: pippa 21st October 2019, 08:17 PM

Sophisticated Lady.

Posted by: Piers 2nd November 2019, 08:44 PM

I think this too. Free Up Your Mind is a strong song...that needed more oomph in the production. It's a little wimpy as it is. If Rhett Lawrence gave this track the same love he clearly gave Never Be the Same Again, it could have been a hit...and a highlight of Emma's solo career.

So. As it's a more substantial song...I vote Free Up Your Mind...but I actually really like Sophisticated Lady too. I love those early releases from Mel B's solo career. I Want You Back, Word Up and Sophisticated Lady all share a certain dark vibe (the recently leaked I Got My Eye on You has it too). It sounded like we were getting a really cool Scary Spice album. I realize Sophisticated Lady being so lovey about Jimmy meant it would never end up on Hot. But. I like it quite a bit better than more than half the album. Too much of Hot sounds anonymous. Sophisticated Lady sounds like Mel B through and through. I just wish there were something more to the song.

Side note. Besides Emma, why were the guest vocalists during Mel's Hot recordings so obscure? She had the biggest producers in the world working with her...and she was singing with people no one's heard of...

Posted by: Michael Andrew 3rd November 2019, 12:45 PM

Actually still quite enjoy 'Pack Your Shit'. For some reason I remembered that as a duet with Sisqo. I must've been wrong there.

I reckon, with a clean language version it could've been a single. 'Pack your Filth' maybe?

Posted by: Piers 3rd November 2019, 02:51 PM

If memory serves correctly, it was Hell No and Hotter that Sisqo was involved with...but the relationship soured and he had his name removed when Mel made changes to the production.

I don't especially like the three Teddy Riley songs. Mel said they didn't get along. Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis have said another producer on Hot told Mel she couldn't sing...and it really seems like it's Riley. He's a brilliant producer, but I think he saddled Mel with leftover tracks. ABC123 is way too boring for Mel B...and I Believe is about twice as long as it should be and certainly qualifies as the most redundant thing a Spice has done. Pack Your Shit's the best of them...but in the context of the rest of Hot...I always thought it was trying too hard to be edgy or something. Though...I do like how she sings "...come round here no MAHHHH..."

This may be a rare opinion...but to me, the forgotten gem of Hot is Step Inside. I think it's catchy and interesting beginning to end. I even think it's better than what most consider to be the big missed opportunity for a single (Hotter) and it certainly towers over Lullaby. Paired with a dark, weird video in the vein of I Want You Back, I think it could have been a cool project.