Piers

^ Yes...and tabloids were so cruel about stars' bodies at that time, I've wondered if she was just trying to avoid that criticism. Even in some interviews she did with these performances, she tended to get draped with extra leather fabrics and what not. I've wondered too if that's why she's practically dressed as a satellite in the second Word Up video...as some sort of distraction. It's to note, though, just how body positive she was through that first pregnancy. I've always really liked Word Up. It reinvents the original into something new and interesting...and something that fits Mel. It's my favorite Spice cover song (group or solo). It did have a few things working against it. The first video was too edgy for her fanbase at the time. Did the chair performances hurt her chart prospects? Um...maybe? I feel like any time the girls have shown any lack of dedication with a project, it hurts its chances.

I figure it would have performed better than We're Not Gonna Sleep Tonight...but also, I don't think anything else on the album commanded attention like What Took You So Long. Personally, I would have released both High On Love AND Better Be Careful as singles off the album. For me...Richard Stannard's three tracks on A Girl Like Me just had the best grasp of what Emma's sound should be in 2001. The album's kinda at an unusual place where half the album has this maturity...and the other half sounds younger than the Spice Girls releases from five years earlier (generally). My memory is that Emma called High On Love her favorite song off the album, so that's part of why I was expecting it to get released. Then A World Without You was a fan favorite...and reviewers had kinda been buzzing around Sunshine On A Rainy Day. All of it led to the feeling of We're Not Gonna Sleep Tonight being a random pick. I'd probably consider it the album's...8th strongest track? Not ideal for a single. Reverting to an earlier conversation...I will say. I get the logic of releasing We're Not Gonna Sleep Tonight. There's a touch of Spice Girls nostalgia...choreography the fans can do alongside Emma. Geri had major success with a Latin-tinged song...Mel C had major success with a heavily remixed single version of one of her tracks. Beyond all that, the singles of the Spice Girls and solo Spice albums to that point tended to showcase the various sides of the artist. My guess is if Take My Breath Away had been as big a hit as What Took You So Long, we would have seen a more expected song as a single...as opposed to the intended shake-up of We're Not Gonna Sleep Tonight.

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?'

I think everyone's bringing up valid points...but I will say. I liked it better than most. Yes, some things don't work. Spending so much time with the courtroom is a mistake. I'd kinda argue that movies about trials really only work if they're uncovering something we don't already know. Too much of this courtroom stuff is a rehash of what we saw in the first movie. With the musical numbers, I'll acknowledge several of them don't advance the plot. But. Personally, I didn't mind them. They're shot beautifully. For me, they added a boost of energy. I like musicals in general. Could they have done better with integrating the songs into the story? Yes. But the idea of Arthur escaping into his own head to cope with the world made enough sense to me. I rolled with it. I thought the performances were uniformly excellent. Granted, going in, I'd already heard this wasn't really a co-lead film with Joaquin and Gaga. It's Joaquin as the obvious lead...with Gaga's role just about how she influences him. Her performance doesn't go gleefully off-the-rails in a way people might have anticipated. But for what the script called for...I thought she was great. Oh. I know the ending is a major point of controversy among fans of the first movie. But. I dunno. Without spoiling anything here...I thought both movies had been hinting this is where we were headed? Final thought. I think my fear from the reaction was that the filmmakers had done some soulless cash-in cause the first movie made a billion dollars. Having seen the movie...I do not think that. Regardless of if everything works, I do sense a passion for the filmmaking in this.

I'm seeing the movie tomorrow. I always have a fascination with sequels that so firmly defy audience expectations. You can see that in, say, 1978's The Exorcist 2...and as recently as Halloween Ends. It's not that all the sequels like this are necessarily bad (well, Exorcist 2 is...). But. It's just interesting to me when filmmakers know they'll make the audience mad...and charge forward anyway. Who WANTS to make a fanbase mad? Is it bold? Is it just...unwise? I think it's interesting. And it's certainly sounding like the new Joker film falls into this camp. Here's where I'm at before I see it. Big Gaga fan. There's nothing about it being a musical that I'm opposed to. I didn't like the first movie. I'll acknowledge Joaquin Phoenix deserved all the awards love he got for his performance...while also saying I didn't get much out of the first movie beyond it being a slog to sit through. I know a lot of people feel it's a bold vision...but I'd urge everyone to watch the early 80s movie King of Comedy. Joker is pretty intentionally inspired by that film. They both even have Robert DeNiro in them. But...for me, at least...Joker did blur the line between tribute to the earlier film and blatant rip-off. So...all that said, I'm hoping I can be one of the ones to like the sequel a smidge better than most people? It's definitely the movie to pile onto and hate at the moment.

Know how I know the Geri/Starbucks story isn't real? A Halloween-themed ad campaign would have required her to dress in fall colors. And...well. We know six-figures still wouldn't be enough to get her in anything other than white. Though. It's Halloween. I guess she could be a ghost... But. No. Really. I'm not buying it. It's all 'sources say'. I'm not seeing any outlets I'd consider reputable reporting it. I also just don't think any of this makes sense. Why would it only be Geri? Wouldn't it make more sense for at least a four-piece Spice Girls to front a pumpkin spice campaign? It's Starbucks. They could afford it. Also. Starbucks is a US-based brand...and all four of the other girls have done better at maintaining a profile here than Geri has. Geri's a part of 90s pop culture, but she...by herself...wouldn't mean much to a US audience in 2024. Starbucks partners in the past with Oprah and Taylor Swift, and now they're going with solo Geri? I guess you could argue she could be used in specific global markets. But. A year of negotiations and six figures for just Geri wouldn't be worth it to Starbucks. This story is shenanigans, I tell you!

In defense of Stop's release date...when the release schedule was coming together, could the girls have known how huge It's Like That was going to be? That's an honest question, actually. It's Like That turned out to be one of the biggest hits of 1998 in the UK. But...to people living there at the time...how far back did people see that coming? It's certainly a bit random to me. It's a remix of an early 80s song from a group that hadn't been especially active in a while. For contrast, here in the US, the It's Like That remix didn't break the top 100 at all. If the girls had released much earlier in the month, they would have been up against Celine Dion's My Heart Will Go On...the gargantuan soundtrack song from Titanic, practically the movie of the decade. It's also one of only two 1998 singles to outsell It's Like That in the UK. If they released earlier than Celine, they would have been up against Madonna's Frozen...an epic lead single from the album the world was heralding as her career best. Honestly, if I were the girls, I would have chosen to go up against It's Like That too...

I don't think Geri's Live and Let Die is bad, per se...and I say that as someone who would be inclined to be against it. I *love* the original version. Saw Paul McCartney perform it live a few years back. Great concert memory. But. Anyway. Back to Geri. I actually think her voice fits on it pretty well. After doing Summertime, I think Geri proved she could be suited to sing a Bond-ish song...so I guess the most logical step would be to sing an actual Bond song. Granted, the instrumentation is what genuinely carries Live and Let Die. But. What Geri did, I thought she did well. Now. All that said, I do think her version does the same thing as most solo Spice covers...it's a replica of the original. Considering Guns N' Roses had already done an amped up version of Live and Let Die, you'd kinda hope Geri would come up with some new twist rather than just reverting to the early 70s original. But. Look. Geri didn't put Live and Let Die on an album. It was a b-side. Eh. I'm not mad at it.

I remember when it was announced Geri was covering It's Raining Men. I was assuming she'd be singing it with that sort of impression of Shirley Bassey she flirted with on Look At Me and Summertime. But I actually think what we got was much better than my assumption. As Geri's singles go, I do prefer most of her originals. However, I get why the song was such a big hit. I'm not a fan of most of the solo Spice cover songs because the girls had a tendency to just copy everything. But. There have been a handful of times one of the girls reinterpreted a song in an interesting way. One of those would be Mel B's Word Up...another is Geri's It's Raining Men. I think it's an interesting project just because on paper, it all sounds so random. Geri definitely doesn't have the pipes of the Weather Girls. As for the video, It's Raining Men is kinda of the era of Fame and Flashdance, but there's not a connection beyond that. And yet. For me, the song and video do work. Last thought. I remember original Weather Girl Martha Wash saying she didn't like Geri's cover. Which is fair. Martha has a powerful voice. Though...what's been kinda forgotten to time is Martha herself released a duet of It's Raining Men with RuPaul in the late 90s. And it's also fair to say...Geri's is a few stratospheres better than that version.

^ On the subject of Emma not using the Darkchild tracks she's believed to have recorded and not taking up Jam and Lewis on their offer... I've kinda wondered if Virgin wanted the solo Spices to veer clear of their Forever team after the sales for the album (and Mel B's Hot) were so disappointing. Granted, yes, we as fans know the real blame for that is on the girls for not promoting Forever...and on Mel B for dooming her album with that release date. But. Regardless, the public perception became that the material was to blame. All this is total speculation on my part. But. It's notable that the girls tended to re-use the same collaborators...and those writers/producers worked with various members of their solo careers. After 2000...Jam/Lewis and Darkchild were never back in the fold. Anyway. I actually do wish both teams had material on A Girl Like Me. I like What Took You So Long as much as any other fan, but I actually would not want the entire album to sound like it. Emma has more sides to her than that. However, the album's in kinda a weird space where half of it is more mature...and half of it sounds quite a bit younger than anything on Spice from five years earlier. The Darkchild team could have given her some light r'n'b that would have been stronger than Been There, Done That or She Was A Friend Of Mine...and Jam/Lewis would have given her some fun pop better than the title track.

I guess there was one attempt at controversy with Desire, now that I think of it. Weren't there two cuts of the video? Wasn't the uncut version where she licked the dude's face or something? It all seems so...quaint...by 2024 standards...

I've always liked Desire...but I would say there's a pretty distinct lack of punch for an album launching single. Every other album launching single Geri was connected with (group and solo) kinda came flying out the gate and commanded attention...both the song and the video. Desire, I think, does sound like a single...just not the album launcher. What was there to grab attention? It does give Geri a somewhat modernized sound...but she was always genre-hopping anyway. I wouldn't call it a bold new direction. And the video taking inspiration from Catwoman is a bit of a head scratcher...as that was probably the previous year's most notorious flop. Now, all that said, it was clearly the media blackout that was most responsible for Desire's failure. But it is interesting to me that given the focus and drive Geri brought to her previous album launching singles...Passion's launch was so...comparitively subtle?

In regards to M's constant lateness for shows...I've chatted about it to two people I know in the touring biz (one who worked on several of M's post-2000 tours...another who hasn't done one of her tours but has general connections to M's world). Both independently told me the reason M is hours late for her concerts is that she insists that her mic checks include her entire show. They both said it...so...I kinda feel like there's something to it. I can't say that totally makes sense to me. The only time I've seen M live was the Rebel Heart tour. She was two and a half hours late that night. I was sitting in the crowd those entire two and a half hours...with seemingly nothing happening on stage during that stretch. Does it just take that long for the production to reset? Does M have a routine she goes through to get the energy back after doing a full show's worth of mic checks? Question. At what point did M's lateness for shows become a thing? Certainly it's not something she's done throughout her career. She's only performed in my city once (we were one of the cancelled dates for Celebration)...and her lateness for that Rebel Heart show remains kinda infamous.

^ Ha! How funny. Honestly, I guess I kinda expected Geri to know the song just because it does so well with the group's streaming numbers around this time every year. At least, I'd figure Geri would have more reason to know Christmas Wrapping over anything off Forever, bar the singles she's performed on tour herself. Geri definitely paid attention to all things sales and chart positions once upon a time...but I guess that doesn't necessarily extend to streaming. I'd just figure she'd have looked on Most Played lists before now and seen that title before.

^ Speaking of their 1999 Christmas tour. I wish at some point over the years, their team had released a version of that live Christmas medley to try to get in seasonal playlists and radio play. The full (nearly) eight minute version would have never become a playlist staple. But I'd like to think a four minute cut of the best bits could become a holiday favorite. Just trim out the repetitive sections...Mel B's solo where she forgets the words...and Mel C's solo where she's clearly just goofin' around. Both solos are funny in the context of the concert...but wouldn't play as well in playlists/radio. Admittedly, the audio for that show isn't the best they ever recorded...but...I dunno...would it have been impossible to clean it up a bit? Release it along with a cut of their concert performance...which really does showcase the sort of joy the group carried when they were at their best. Anyway. I realize at no point was their team ever going to do any of that. I'm just saying that for me...those two songs merged the spirit of the holiday and the Spice Girls better than Christmas Wrapping...and certainly better than Sleigh Ride.

This study is actually a really nice surprise as I mostly thought the Spices/their team had really dropped the ball in maintaining their legacy in the states. It's pretty rare that I catch Spice songs anywhere...even Wannabe. I work with some people in their early 20s...and they chime in on 'old music' (...oof) every once in a while. The Spice Girls have come up before...which, in itself, is a good thing. Granted, this is a pretty isolated sampling of a few dozen people in one work place...but what I found from this specific group was that they were aware of a group named the Spice Girls...and that they had nicknames...and one of them is married to David Beckham. They were unaware that one of them famously left the group. Most of them know Wannabe (though they wouldn't have known it by that title)...and two of them made the argument that the group was also behind Girls Just Wanna Have Fun. They definitely knew a lot more about the Backstreet Boys, Britney, and NSYNC...which have become synonymous in the US with retro 90s music. But really, the machine never stopped working for those acts. At no point did Baby One More Time, Bye Bye Bye, and I Want It That Way ever fade from the US public consciousness. The songs are always being used in one way or another...ads, TikToks...whatever's keeping music relevant at the moment, those songs are there. It's a weird thing that the Spices were at their peak so shortly before these other acts picked up their torch...and yet the perception seems to be that the Spices came about a decade earlier than these other acts did. But. All that said. It could be a regional thing? The US is big. Maybe the Spices continue to get more attention in places and online spaces that I just don't see? Of course, I trust this study way more than my little workplace sampling.

I can't speak to this specific interview...but my experience with similar situations is this; A production company will get hired to be the permanent camera/audio/lighting people for the day. Then, interviewers from different news organizations/entertainment shows come in...and are given a few minutes each with the actor/singer/whoever. Those shows don't bring their own crews in these cases. It's technically quicker because there's no constant setting up and breaking down of gear...and plus, it guarantees that the actor/singer is happy with the lighting and audio quality. So, the interviewer is legitimately there talking to the actor/singer (in the cases I've witnessed)...and then the day's hired production company just hands the interviewer a hard drive of the footage at the end. The hard drives would often have two long clips. One long clip from the camera on the actor/singer...and another long clip from a second camera just focused on the interviewer. Then, you just edit em together how you want. Back in 2000, I'm guessing they were handing interviewers two tapes. As to the Spices doing split interviews...I think it was the EMAs that year that they said they'd started splitting up to do interviews cause they could get more interviews done in less time. Of course, that was a terrible strategy that showed a lack of unity. But. Then, that was the era Mel C was acting like she was completing community service requirements by having to do anything Spice Girls related. So...

On the subject of If Ya Do... I've heard that song title since the original third album rumors were around. But. I'm still not convinced it's a real song. To me, there are two strikes against it. 1. I'm convinced the fan sites of the time were full of made-up quotes. Did Emma really talk about a song called If Ya Do? Do we have links to legit articles where this was said...or are we having to rely on iffy fan sites at this point? 2. Let's say the Emma quote is real. She really did say she loves a song called If Ya Do. I kinda lean toward Emma's famously bad memory being at play. What if the song she meant to reference was If You Wanna Have Some Fun? Are we to believe that Jam and Lewis did three songs with the Spice Girls and two of them have titles that start with "If Ya/You". It still wouldn't be her worst memory flub... Because Forever had a last minute scramble to get Wasting My Time and the reworked Right Back At Ya recorded, I'm kinda of the belief that the album was already using everything the American producers had given them. The one thing I'm 100% convinced of is that if the song exists, Janet Jackson is not on it. If Janet had recorded with the girls in that era, it would have been a huge story...not something relegated to a reference on some obscure fan site. I love Janet Jackson...but her choice in collaborators in that era were usually edgier artists than herself...seemingly helping her along in her musical evolution. I don't think a Spice Girls collab would have made sense for Janet (though I would have loved it). In her solo career interviews (and there is still video of this), Emma says she'd like to someday work with Janet...which would imply there hasn't been a previous working relationship.

I don't remember the specific interview, but I'm pretty sure it was during the Reason promo. Mel was asked to reflect on Forever. She said the album had beautiful ballads, but she didn't like all of the material on the album...and she listed If You Wanna Have Some Fun as her example.

I certainly don't know everything from behind the scenes...but...I've long been under the belief that a lot of what the fan sites were reporting in 1999/2000 was made up. I was checking the fan sites daily in that time. I was a kid...and it was an earlier time for the internet, so perhaps I was pretty naive. But I did believe the fan sites had real scoops. They had me convinced in the spring of 1999 that a new Spice Girls album was going to drop any week...an album to be called The Great Divide. I was kinda floored to learn that summer that the 3rd album recording sessions hadn't even happened yet. Anyway. Those Melanie C quotes about a new album being completed in spring 1999 are a fairly odd thing. But. The fan sites were often run by teens. Were they all above making up the occasional quote? Could they have been taking news from unscrupulous tabloids? I can't find anything on the existence of an LA Frontier newspaper, for example. I do remember it just being a wild time for rumors.

Going back to an earlier convo...I've always wondered what other track they could possibly be referring to that they were considering to launch the album. Holler is the obvious choice...as the best of the Darkchild material...and the song that'd make the strongest statement about their new musical direction. Right Back At Ya, I guess, would have made sense as a comeback song...but the pop version (if they were still using it at the time) wouldn't have grabbed attention like Holler...and the r'n'b version is flat-out not good enough to be the lead single. Now, midway through 2000, the Spice fan sites were claiming Let Love Lead The Way alone was the comeback single. Was that ever actually true? Granted, that's a song the girls always seemed to appreciate more deeply than the fanbase. But there again, it's no match for Holler... So. Here's how I see it. With the version of Forever we got, I can't imagine the girls/Virgin/whoever deciding on any lead but Holler. However. I do believe they could have considered a different lead when the Biffco/Elliot Kennedy tracks were still in play. Even though we've got some bits and pieces, we really don't know the true strength of the Biffco songs. And if the album was to feature more pop AND r'n'b sounds...could If You Wanna Have Some Fun have been in consideration for the lead...just because it's kinda at the midway point of the pop and r'n'b sides of the group? But then, Mel C doesn't like that song for whatever reason...sooo... Anyway. There's a whole lot of speculation from me...based on knowing absolutely nothing on what was happening behind the scenes....

I mean. It's not a big deal...but with Geri and Emma not taking part in the Holler dance battle, I probably would have preferred they just stand in superwoman poses for that section. I know it's just meant to be a quirky little moment...but with the Mels doing the most rigorous choreography of the whole show, I'd rather the other two not do anything distracting. I just imagine the audience thinking..."Wow, the Mels are on fire-wait...uh...are Geri and Emma sipping tea right now...?...no, really...are they...sipping tea?..." I've got no idea how the tea idea came about...but my guess is someone at rehearsals said..."and what will Geri and Emma do during the dance break?" "Oh, we'll just have a spot of tea!" *everyone laughs* And then it somehow made it into the show.

I definitely don't know enough about Telstar to say exactly how many people share the blame for its collapse. Their Wikipedia page mostly blames Victoria. I do think it seems plausible that Victoria would be largely responsible. She'd recorded two full albums worth of unreleased material...and was perhaps even heading toward a third collection of songs starting with My Love Is For Real. All of these (30 or so?) songs were done with big name collaborators. Furthermore, the Damon Dash tracks that did get a release sampled famous songs...namely This Groove and Resentment...(and, I think, That Dude samples something too). I don't know all the workings of a record company, but I'm assuming this was all getting expensive for them...without an actual album on the market. I'm not trying to be overly negative on her. I firmly believe VB's unreleased Open Your Eyes material is the best stuff she ever did. I think her unreleased Come Together material is the worst she did, but we'll focus on the positive. All I know is 2003 must have been wild for Telstar. Here's Victoria...back with reliable collaborator, Richard Stannard. They've developed a new sound for the album. There's great dance tracks...beautiful ballads. She's never sounded better. And then she trashes it all, wants to start over, and shows up with It's That Simple one day and wants to send THAT to radio.

So. About this. It's been nearly 20 years since all of this happened, so it's possible my memory is rusty...but I really don't remember the press noticing that Victoria had perhaps recorded a song admitting the David affair. It's possible the timing was just off for that. I believe that song quietly landed on the Real Beckhams DVD early in 2004...and it was later...in that spring that the Rebecca Loos story emerged. The affair allegedly happened in 2003, so it's possible Victoria had channeled her emotions into that song. Granted, Victoria did not write that track...but it did seem the lyrics were somewhat tailored to her. The Jazmine Sullivan version of the song is nearly identical lyrically...but it doesn't have the "mistress" and "rolling with you for five years" lyrics. I think the Beckhams always denied the Rebecca Loos story, so you'd think the press could have had a field day with that song. I do remember Victoria getting criticism for releasing the songs on a DVD...and some articles claiming that the release was a retreat from putting out a traditional release. But my guess is none of those writers actually listened to the songs. Perhaps for the best. While I think Resentment is excellent and actually single-worthy...That Dude and Valentine's Day should have never seen the light of day.

^ Last thought on this. Beyond V recording a TON of songs with known producers who would have fees, I've wondered to what extent Damon Dash's use of song samples could have spelled trouble for Telstar. A lot of those tracks he did for her use famous song samples...and two of those samples (the Beatles' Come Together and George Michael's Freedom) are from HUGE tracks.