I have a soft spot for Oxygen. It's underrated in my book. Lyrically, it's the best ballad from the Forever sessions.

 

I do like Weekend Love and LLLTW, but lyrically those two songs are missing Geri's songwriting touch. LLLTW in particular sounds somewhat juvenile.

 

Fully agree with this!

And I'll add that I enjoy the little drops!

 

We'll never know if the girls and Virgin Records made the right decision to discard the pop songs until we hear them. Something tells me the girls don't want us to know that answer.

 

If You Wanna Have Some Fun is the perfect evolution from their 90s sound and imagine in an alternative world they had asked Jimmy Jam & Terry Lewis to do some more tracks. Would have been an incredible path :wub: But Forever is already gorgeous as it is though :teresa:

 

 

The beginning of it is but fml it goes on and on and on with Emma screaming "are you having fun" dear god not anymore sweetheart! :cry:

 

A shorted radio edit would have kicked ass though!

agreed

Are you having funnnnnnnnnn? Are you having funnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnn?

There was a radio edit created. It was just under 4 minutes long. The last chorus lasted … twice, max?

Time Goes by had potential but lacks a good melody and build up to the chorus.

 

It’s just lacking.

Are you having funnnnnnnnnn? Are you having funnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnn?

 

Stopppp it emmaaaaaa

 

There was a radio edit created. It was just under 4 minutes long. The last chorus lasted … twice, max?

 

I need to hear this version!

I need to hear this version!

 

 

A Pop Masterpiece :cheer: Really hope they bring this live to their next tour! It would be amazing :heart:

 

A Pop Masterpiece :cheer: Really hope they bring this live to their next tour! It would be amazing :heart:

 

This song screams Never. That would have been a more appropriate album title.

The official radio edit of IYWHSF is much better than the album version. Hopefully they include it on Forever 25.

That is better than the album version and actually the clear second single were there to be one, followed by Get down with me. I like Tell me why but I don't see it connecting well with the general public.

We'll never know if the girls and Virgin Records made the right decision to discard the pop songs until we hear them. Something tells me the girls don't want us to know that answer.

 

Agreed; and while I don't think that the four members who recorded Forever think much (or at all) about unreleased pop songs from album #3, it seems highly likely that the poppier songs that took a backseat would be enjoyed by the fanbase more than the majority of what made the final cut. Given that the Kennedy songs alone are as decent and catchy as they are, albeit a bit unpolished, I'm sure Biff created equally good (if not superior) tracks with the group. That 1998-1999 period is probably the era in which most of the unreleased songs live and there are probably enough of them to create a 'vault' album alongside the ones that we know are still under lock and key from Spice.

 

A literal body of nostalgic work is just sitting on a hard drive (or hard drives) somewhere collecting cookies.

 

i think it was probably for the best... they'd have been seen as naff and missing a trick if they made pop music without geri... remember GEM lol.

 

geri on holler doesnt work so i think it turned out fab.

Scary really brings the energy on this track! I would use it in the intro (only) for a tour for sure !!

I used to love this album, but it didn’t age well.

Still, I think Holler is one of their best songs.. and now that Victoria is out, I don’t see the three girls celebrating something where the other two are not involved.

 

I mean, they can still do a 25th anniversary edition of it, even if it's understandably lower key than Spice and Spiceworld (and in all honesty, they haven't exactly done much to promote those themselves!)

Agreed; and while I don't think that the four members who recorded Forever think much (or at all) about unreleased pop songs from album #3, it seems highly likely that the poppier songs that took a backseat would be enjoyed by the fanbase more than the majority of what made the final cut. Given that the Kennedy songs alone are as decent and catchy as they are, albeit a bit unpolished, I'm sure Biff created equally good (if not superior) tracks with the group. That 1998-1999 period is probably the era in which most of the unreleased songs live and there are probably enough of them to create a 'vault' album alongside the ones that we know are still under lock and key from Spice.

 

A literal body of nostalgic work is just sitting on a hard drive (or hard drives) somewhere collecting cookies.

The girls are kind of in a pickle. A large bulk of their unreleased material is from Forever. An album that is not celebrated by most fans and the general public. Not to mention the girls themselves don't seem to be fond of it.

 

If the Forever pop songs are decent, it seems like a waste to release these songs on an anniversary edition of Forever. Releasing the best of these pop songs on a rarities album or anthology box set would be more ideal. The unreleased tracks from Forever don't even sound like outtakes from that album.

I used to love this album, but it didn’t age well.

Still, I think Holler is one of their best songs.. and now that Victoria is out, I don’t see the three girls celebrating something where the other two are not involved.

 

I don't get this. Like, Siobhan is back with the Sugababes singing and touring music that she had little part in.

 

Like, they should honour and celebrate all parts of the group's legacy, not just the ones where Geri was and Victoria was.

 

Like, it baffles me that they never acknowelege the anniversary of their biggest award of their career, the Brits 2000 Outstanding Achivement Award. It was a crowning moment for them, yet they dont because Geri wasnt a part of it then and Victoria isnt a part of the band currently.

 

It's a bit madening to me. I wouldn't be surprised if the girls are not out promoting the Spice and Spiceworld 25 anniversaries because Victoria isnt a part of it anymore. Like, we know. Go out and celebrate it nonetheless, you deserve it!

 

The girls are kind of in a pickle. A large bulk of their unreleased material is from Forever. An album that is not celebrated by most fans and the general public. Not to mention the girls themselves don't seem to be fond of it.

 

If the Forever pop songs are decent, it seems like a waste to release these songs on an anniversary edition of Forever. Releasing the best of these pop songs on a rarities album or anthology box set would be more ideal. The unreleased tracks from Forever don't even sound like outtakes from that album.

 

I would love love love and anthology from them :wub: For me, this and a proper live album is what it is missing.

While I like Forever, I figure the Stannard/Rowe tracks would very likely be stronger than a lot of the Darkchild material...just because the girls would have been a higher priority for Stannard/Rowe. The Darkchild team's 1999/2000 work schedule was insane. The call must have been like..."Hey, Rodney, I know you just got done producing for Destiny's Child and Jennifer Lopez...and you're in the middle of working with Britney Spears, Whitney Houston, George Michael, the Backstreet Boys, and Toni Braxton...and Michael Jackson is wanting to record 300 new tracks with you or whatever...buuut...can you also executive produce a new album by a group that's showing signs they're about to split up?"

 

I don't know all the behind-the-scenes details of this...but the girls lost their US radio support with the Spiceworld singles. I kinda wondered if Virgin Records was pushing for the Darkchild team to play to what was (at one time) their biggest sales market. I always thought the girls were a bit over enamored with working with US producers. All that said...I do think Holler and If You Wanna Have Some Fun are as strong as the group's best material...and the rest of the album (bar the unconvincing Time Goes By) is a perfectly good pop album.

 

Last thought. If the thought was that the Elliot Kennedy Right Back At Ya sounded too young for the project...I wish it was Jam n' Lewis who'd been asked to rework the track, rather than Darkchild. I think Jam n' Lewis could have kept the song's spark...while also giving a bit of maturity. Likewise, I think they would have been ideal to do a new mix on Give You What You Want...and knowing how good they were with rock (Janet Jackson's Black Cat), they also would have done awesome with Pain Proof.