S Club
S Club, formerly known as S Club 7, are a British pop group formed in 1998 by Simon Fuller after he was fired as manager of the Spice Girls.[1] Original members were Tina Barrett, Paul Cattermole, Jon Lee, Bradley McIntosh, Jo O'Meara, Hannah Spearritt and Rachel Stevens. Cattermole left the group in 2002; it disbanded in 2003. After the members performed solo and in smaller groups, the group reunited temporarily for a short tour in 2015. In 2023, the group reunited and announced a tour; however, Cattermole died of heart failure and Spearritt withdrew from the group before the tour.
This article is about the British pop group. For the spin-off groups, see S Club 8 and S Club Allstars. For their debut album, see S Club (album).
S Club
The band has sold more than 10 million albums worldwide.[2] They won BRIT Awards in 2000 for British breakthrough act and in 2002 for best British single. In 2001, they earned the The Record of the Year award.
The band has released four albums: S Club (1999), which reached number one in the UK, 7 (2000), Sunshine (2001), and Seeing Double (2002). The band has had commercial success with songs including "Bring It All Back", "You're My Number One", "Two in a Million", "S Club Party", "Reach", "Natural", "Never Had a Dream Come True", "Don't Stop Movin'", "You", "Have You Ever", "Alive", and "Love Ain't Gonna Wait for You". In July 2023, S Club released their first new single in more than 20 years, "These Are the Days", in memory of Cattermole.
History[edit]
1997–1998: Formation[edit]
S Club 7 were formed by Simon Fuller, after he was fired as manager of the Spice Girls in November 1997.[3] He described S Club 7 as a continuation of ideas he had had for the Spice Girls, but with a softer, more uplifting image and the same songwriting team was used for both acts.[4]
Fuller placed an advert in The Stage[5] and held auditions with more than 10,000 applicants.[6] Both Jo O'Meara and Paul Cattermole were spotted by producers from Fuller's company, 19 Management, and asked to audition.[7] Rachel Stevens was the only member who did not audition; instead, two producers approached her and asked her to record a demo tape.[7] According to journalist Steven Poole, after Fuller's disagreements with the Spice Girls, he picked "the blandest, most malleable characters ... nice kids who wouldn't answer back".[8]
Once the lineup was decided, the members flew to Italy to become acquainted with each other.[9] Stevens remarked that the group "felt comfortable with each other from the beginning".[9] Several members of the group said that the "S" in S Club 7 stands for Simon, after the group's creator, although the official explanation of the meaning has always been ambiguous.[10] At one point they were nearly called "Sugar Club" instead of the name that stuck.[11] Another theory is that the group is so-named because "S" is the first letter of the word "seven". McIntosh, in a December 2012 interview, said a lot of Fuller's success has been based on the number 19 (owning 19 Entertainment); therefore as "S" is the 19th letter of the alphabet, the "S" was put into S Club 7.[12]
1999–2000: Debut and success[edit]
S Club 7 rose to fame in a children's television series, Miami 7, first broadcast on CBBC between April and July 1999.[13][14] The members played fictional versions of themselves and went on adventures and performed a song in each episode.[13][14] In the US, the show was renamed S Club 7 in Miami and broadcast on Fox Family.[14] By 2000, it had been sold to 100 countries and viewed by 90 million people.[15] The use of the television show to publicise the group was likened to the Monkees.[16][17][18]
S Club 7 released their debut single, "Bring It All Back", on 9 June 1999, which The Guardian likened to the Jackson 5.[14] It reached number one on the UK Singles Chart and was certified platinum.[19][20][21] S Club 7's debut album, S Club, was released in October 1999. It reached number two in the UK Albums Chart[20] and was certified double platinum.[19] In 2001, the group released a fashion line targeted at teenagers.[22]
In September 1999, "S Club Party" entered the UK charts at number two and number one in New Zealand.[20][23] The double A-side with the ballad "Two in a Million" and the uptempo "You're My Number One", reached number two in the UK charts in December 1999.[20]
In February 2000, S Club 7 won for British Breakthrough Act award at the 2000 BRIT Awards.[24][25] Hasbro announced a licensing deal to create S Club 7 dolls.[26] In April 2000, S Club's second television series, L.A. 7 (renamed S Club 7 in L.A. in the US), began airing.[27][28] Later that year, S Club 7 starred in the television series S Club 7 Go Wild!, in which they travelled the world raising awareness of endangered species.[14][29] "Reach", another retro-styled uptempo track, was released as a single in May 2000 and reached number two on the UK charts.[20]
S Club 7's second album, 7, was released on 12 June 2000. It reached number one in the UK charts[15][20] and was certified triple platinum in the UK[19][30] and gold in the US.[31] The second single from the album, "Natural", reached number three in September 2000.[20]
That October, S Club 7 launched the annual Poppy Appeal campaign with Dame Thora Hird.[32][33] Alongside numerous other artists, they contributed vocals to a cover of the Rolling Stones song "It's Only Rock 'N' Roll" for Children's Promise, an alliance of seven children's charities. It entered the UK charts at number nineteen.[34] In November 2000, S Club 7 recorded the ballad "Never Had a Dream Come True", the year's official song for the Children in Need charity campaign, which became a number one in the UK and a top-ten hit in the US.[14][20]
Musical style[edit]
The style of music S Club 7 has is usually pop, or more specifically bubblegum pop. Their first two singles had vocals shared equally amongst the seven members of the group, and it was not until their third single, "Two in a Million", that O'Meara became known as their lead vocalist. Although the band were to progressively change their style over the four years they were together, even their first album had many tracks atypical of the pop genre: "You're My Number One" and "Everybody Wants Ya" were Motown-driven, whereas "Viva La Fiesta" and "It's a Feel Good Thing" were both bouncy, salsa-driven Latino songs. Over the years their style and direction changed progressively with each new album. Their second album 7 had songs with styles that somewhat opposed the traditional pop songs that rival pop bands of the nineties were releasing. With the release of "Natural" in 2000, S Club 7 showcased a new R&B-lite sound. The release of their third album, Sunshine, gave audiences their biggest change: the album contained tracks such as the disco-influenced "Don't Stop Movin'" and the R&B ballad "Show Me Your Colours". The album marked a more mature approach for the band. After the departure of Cattermole, S Club released their fourth and final album, Seeing Double, including the single "Alive", which was called a power-packed dance floor filler. The single has a style similar to that of their final single, "Love Ain't Gonna Wait for You". The album contained dance tracks that varied from their original bubblegum pop stylings, such as the sex for the CBBC generation on "Hey Kitty Kitty".
A reviewer for The Guardian, referring to "Gangsta Love", said "S Club's spiritual home is the suburban disco, not urban underground clubs, and their attempt to go garage on "Gangsta Love" ends up amusing rather than authentic".[110]