I bought a Promo CD of Let Love Lead the Way on eBay, it came today and this one has a different sticker to the one I mentioned a few days ago. This one says:

 

"Let Love Lead the Way" is undoubtedly the Spice Girls at their best.* This beautiful ballad was originally scheduled as a Christmas single but ended up being coupled with the number one airplay hit and chart topping "Holler". Co written with the Jerkins Bros., "Let Love..." is taken from the third album from the girls entitled "Forever"

 

* Lol

 

Another reference to this song being tied in with Christmas. I don't think I'd ever read before that there was an intention to release Let Love Lead the Way later on by itself, but maybe I forgot about that.

 

Oh interesting. I dont think we ever knew it was actually scheduled for the Christmas period. I guess somewhere in summer 2000 they realised they weren't going to do much promo for the album and tagged it with Holler. This makes me think that perhaps that why the video is so shite, as it was a last min decision and they had a short time to sort out a video for it. But that might just be me wishful thinking lol

 

I think in the end it might be the right decision, all things considered. I can imagine it flopping big time, sadly as by late summer 2000 they were pretty much at the hight of backlash against them and any further releases would have flopped hard.

Someone said on another forum that Time Goes By should have been done on the piano rather than those awful cords and you know what? I see it actually :w00t:

 

If they ever did it live, it could work well on a piano, though maybe a shorter version :teresa:

Someone said on another forum that Time Goes By should have been done on the piano rather than those awful cords and you know what? I see it actually :w00t:

 

If they ever did it live, it could work well on a piano, though maybe a shorter version :teresa:

 

Agreed! Piano version would be better. Is there any fa capable of making this version?

Someone said on another forum that Time Goes By should have been done on the piano rather than those awful cords and you know what? I see it actually :w00t:

 

If they ever did it live, it could work well on a piano, though maybe a shorter version :teresa:

 

A piano honestly would help. Time Goes By is easily my least favorite album track by the group. Nothing else comes close. There's a lot I don't like about the song...but it doesn't help that it even gets off to a bad start. That keyboard opening sounds like a karaoke kids' talent show. It's a fairly unusual song for the Darkchild team...as it definitely didn't fit pop in 2000...and is rather...uncool?

 

I could imagine it having a production similar to Melanie C's Reason...with piano accompaniment and light instrumental backing. I wouldn't say that would totally fix the song, per se. To me the lyrics/delivery/everything just feels inauthentic (something I wouldn't say about any other group ballad). But I do think the piano accompaniment *would* help the song stand out as something unique in their discography...and more serving a purpose as a vocal showcase.

Time Goes By definitely needed more work. It has no build up throughout the song and I can’t detect a melody either.

Had Holler on shuffle 2 times last night and it still sounds like a fresh song in 2023 i must say.

So... a few fans have shared some quotes form the girls themselves and collaborators of the FOREVER album which shed new light on my understanding of the recording of the album...

 

According to these fans, the FIRST recording session for Forever actually happened in November 1998 with Biff & Matt after the world tour was finished. This is where the WOMAN demo was recorded and there were a total of 5 tracks that came from this session, none of which made the album, although WOMAN was still considered which is why it was then worked on again in 1999 and performed live, but the other 4 tracks never surfaced, not even the titles.

 

So this is from the 1998 session, and the recently leaked bits of Too Hot and Go Go Go come from the 1999 sessions with Matt & BIff as well, so one could assume that there are some extra tracks from the 1998 sessions that we never knew about!!

 

Alongside this, in the

published a couple of weeks ago, Mel C and Emma also talk about flying to the US to meet and do some ground work with American producers. This goes with the recent coments from Darkchil who says he was working with *some* of the Spices before he did some of the tracks with Destiny's Child. Some fans have been saying that he was clearly lying cos his song with Destiny's Child was released in June 1999 before he worked on Forever in Autumn 1999, but this makes sense if they had some initial work sessions in 1998 with him too.

 

So during the American leg, the girls were already at the very least in talks with American producers. We know they met Jam & Lewis during the tour too - Victoria talks about them coming to the tour and wanting to work with the group, which is very rare as they usually produce and write everything but were keen to collaborate and co-write with the girls.

 

It also seems to hint at the 1999 album they were preparing was going to be a mix of Pop & R'n'B, which would have been ideal :huh: But we know what happened, sadly... the solos came and ruined everything!

the recent comments from Darkchild who says he was working with *some* of the Spices before he did some of the tracks with Destiny's Child.

Which recent comments? :???:

Which recent comments? :???:

 

Not sure how recent they are but Darkchild was on video talking about working and going on an night out with some of the Spice Girls which is when he got the inspo for Destiny's Child song Say My Name which was one of the biggest hits of 1999/2000!

Maybe those 1998 demos only ever had vocals from Mel C and Emma? Same as Christmas Wrapping.

Interesting if work on Woman actually goes back as far as 1998.

 

I really feel like the moment they should have released the third album was November 1999. They were literally a year too late with it. They had Holler done in August 99! If they’d got it out as a single in 1999 it would have surely seemed extra fresh at that point, I think it would have sold so much more.

 

The solo ambitions were to the detriment of the group. In an ideal scenario I kind of wish that Forever and Northern Star could be swapped around, and that Melanie would have had the exact same success with it across late 2000 and throughout 2001, instead!

I find it hard to believe the girls went into the studio in November 1998 to record tracks for a 3rd album. Maybe to record My Strongest Suit with Biff as he is the one who produced it.

The time between the end of the SW tour and the release of Forever comes off as this weird "blackout" period for the group -- it was like radio silence compared to how omnipresent they were at their peak.

It was strange as it really did go from spice mania to eerily silent.

I find it hard to believe the girls went into the studio in November 1998 to record tracks for a 3rd album. Maybe to record My Strongest Suit with Biff as he is the one who produced it.

 

To be fair, since none of the tracks ended up being used and only WOMAN continued to be worked on it was probably just rough demos.

Maybe those 1998 demos only ever had vocals from Mel C and Emma? Same as Christmas Wrapping.

 

Not sure on this, as Victoria and Mel B also contributed vocals and writing credits to WOMAN which comes from the same sessions. I think Emma and Mel C did record Christmas Wrapping separately for the bside only whereas the sessions for WOMAN and the rest were for the album...

Interesting if work on Woman actually goes back as far as 1998.

 

I really feel like the moment they should have released the third album was November 1999. They were literally a year too late with it. They had Holler done in August 99! If they’d got it out as a single in 1999 it would have surely seemed extra fresh at that point, I think it would have sold so much more.

 

The solo ambitions were to the detriment of the group. In an ideal scenario I kind of wish that Forever and Northern Star could be swapped around, and that Melanie would have had the exact same success with it across late 2000 and throughout 2001, instead!

 

This would have been the better plan but my hunch is that Mel C put a stop to that release in 1999 cos she wanted to focus on her solo album...

 

What a bittersweet time the post 1998 tour was... damn..

To be fair,

 

B-) OK

if these tracks were finished that would have been a killer pop album with Pain proof and right back at ya pop version . But I wonder if holler would still sound the same

They started recording Spiceworld in the beginning of June and the album was released 5 months later in November. Which means Forever could have came out in January 2000 since recording sessions started in the beginning of August 1999. More then likely they could have made a mid December 1999 release date just in time to get those Christmas sales.