While I love I want you back, Feels So Good is the best Melanie B song for me, that should have led the album easily, it sounds like the start of an epic era. I think that, and a release date a couple of months earlier in the summer would have seen Mel secure a top 10 album at least. She did release in quite a competitive period in the last quarter.

I love seeing all the positive comments about I Want You Back!

Do you guys think the album would have done better if it was executive produced by Missy? Then maybe it would have had a more cohesive sound?

 

It's an interesting 'what if'.

 

My general feeling is...the album's issue isn't cohesion. It's just that there were ten new tracks given to us in 2000, and roughly half of them weren't good enough for Mel/the project. I actually think the variety of collaborators is sometimes a strength. Jam and Lewis captured her vibrant positive side with Feels So Good. The Darkchild team allowed her to vent her love life frustrations with Tell Me. Mel's a complex enough person that it made sense to have several collaborators play to the different sides of her.

 

But then you have several tracks in the mix that are personality-free...and wrong enough for Mel's range that session singers do much of the heavy lifting. The Teddy Riley songs mainly. So. While I think the variety of collaborators was a good idea...it needed to be all collaborators who were unified in trying to make the project good.

 

Of course, I wish Missy had at least contributed some new material. With I Want You Back, Missy clearly understood Mel's range and persona. That song fits her like a glove. I did wonder why they didn't work together again.

 

But to Spiceboy's point, yes...releasing just before Forever was going to tank Hot no matter what. To me, Missy's involvement isn't a question of 'would the album be more successful?'...it's a question of 'would it be a better album?'

Yeah I agree, that in general the album is filled with songs that are just lacking somehow, and that they were obviously 'given' to Mel B without much of her input, and it does feel like the producers gave her their least interesting music at the time.

 

Feels So Good is obviously the stand out and should have been the lead, but then again there isn't much more in the album that lends itself to be a single.

 

Jam & Lewis did manage to capture the best of Mel and the best of the Spices at the time.. It is a shame that in both albums they only contributed one or two songs rather than more focused approach. Maybe if both albums had done well enough, they would have continued to work together?

 

Missy and/or Timbaland producing the album would have been the prefered option, in my opinion and it is wild she never got to work with them after I Want You Back / Word Up / Sophisticated Lady. Those songs are some of her best, so it is weird they didnt follow up on that collaboration.

 

I think the sound of Hot was "too American" and Mel was of course not a kind of diva like Brandy or Monica for example.

Maybe an European sound, a mix of pop and R&B was better.

Word up doing abysmally for the time (first non top 5 Spice single - #13) probs paid dust to any more involvement with Timberland.

I saw this on Spice Circle. Don't know if it's true but probably it is.

for the record store day? interesting 🤔

6 minutes ago, spiceboy88 said:

for the record store day? interesting 🤔

Yep.

Screaming! In horror!!

Praying it's not true and just a joke, but how random if so - and we of course have past precedent with how Reason was handled. Oh Lordy!

We were talking about VB’s vinyl cover…it looks like Universal gonna continue to be a cheapskate when it comes to our girls

So, she confirmed the vinyl (and the cover) on her insta page.

1 hour ago, Babyboy said:

I saw this on Spice Circle. Don't know if it's true but probably it is.

Picture disc ew

So Virgin will not pay for photos anymore 😅 the only one was Northern Star but noone never know who was the actual photographer

I assume there are no bonus too

1 hour ago, spiceboy88 said:

So Virgin will not pay for photos anymore 😅 the only one was Northern Star but noone never know who was the actual photographer

I assume there are no bonus too

Same tracklist.

For Mel C photographer, you'll find his name in her book

I'm gonna buy it and I don't care! This will be the only print there ever will be and Im vastly more excited about this than Reason.

(And I quite like how tacky the cover design is! It's the kind of tacky that just works lol)

I know all you fags wanted to have her tatas on a big vinyl cover but Virgin said NO!!!

Edited February 4Feb 4 by Mr.X

There'll be 2500 copies available. That feels like a rather ambitious amount! Also it's defined as a "RSD First" release.

1 minute ago, -Jay- said:

There'll be 2500 copies available. That feels like a rather ambitious amount! Also interesting it's defined as a "RSD First" release, implying a generally available pressing down the line (but I would be stunned if that happens, lol).

Oh wow That's Northern Star first print levels! Go on Mel B, promote it!!

I would love it if she actually went out to sign it in Leeds stores lol

Your quote preserving my shady doubts about a second pressing, before I edited it out of my post

38 minutes ago, -Jay- said:

Your quote preserving my shady doubts about a second pressing, before I edited it out of my post

Let's make it happens!!!!!!J!IHW"B"JB!!!

Is there a way to get these online or in store only? I NEED