Extended biography
In March 1994, advertisements were placed in The Stage newspaper asking: "R U 18-23 with the ability to sing/dance? R U streetwise, ambitious, outgoing and determined?" Hundreds of girls responded to the ads. The applicants were whittled down to a final five which consisted of Melanie Chisholm (Melanie C), Geri Halliwell, Melanie Brown (Melanie B), Victoria Adams (Victoria Beckham) and Michelle Stephenson, who combined to form an all female group called "Touch."
In June, during the group's earliest recording session, Michelle Stephenson was forced to leave due to commitment issues. She was replaced by Emma Bunton after Bunton's singing tutor had recommended her to the other girls. From this point up to March 1995 the girls lived together in a small house in Maidenhead where they worked on demos and practiced dance routines. After a successful showcase performance for music critics and producers in October, the group decided to fire their original management, who they cited as controlling and too domineering. That same day, the girls tracked down Sheffield-based producer Eliot Kennedy and persuaded him to work with the group (by then renamed Spice) over the course of the next year.
In October 1994, armed with a catalogue of demos and dance routines, the group began touring management agencies. The group was introduced to record producers Absolute, who in turn brought them to the attention of Simon Fuller of 19 Management. The girls began a relationship with Fuller and finally signed with him in March 1995. During the summer of that year the group toured record labels in London and Los Angeles and finally signed a deal with Virgin Records in September 1995. From this point up to the summer of 1996, the Spice Girls (as they were then known) continued to write and record tracks for their debut album while extensively touring the west coast of America, where they had signed a publishing deal with Windswept Pacific.
On July 8, 1996, the Spice Girls released their debut single wannabe in the United Kingdom. In the weeks leading up to the release, the video for "Wannabe" (directed by Jhoan Camitz and shot in April at St Pancras Station in London), had dominated the music channels. In July 1996 the group conducted their first interview, at Virgin Records' London HQ with Paul Gorman, contributing editor of music industry paper Music Week. His piece recognised that the Spice Girls were about to institute a change in the charts away from Britpop and towards out-and-out pop. He wrote: "Just when boys with guitars threaten to rule pop life an all-girl, in-yer-face pop group has arrived with enough sass to burst that rockist bubble!!". The song entered the charts at number 3 before moving up to number 1 the following week and staying there for 7 weeks. The song proved to be a global hit - hitting number 1 in 31 countries and became not only the biggest selling single by an all female group, but also the biggest selling debut single of all time. "Wannabe" also proved to be a catalyst in helping the Spice Girls break the notoriously difficult U.S. market when it debuted on the Hot 100 Chart at number 11. At the time, this was the highest ever debut by a British (or non-American) act in the US, beating the record previously held by The Beatles for i want to hold your hand at number 12.
In November 1996, the Spice Girls released their debut album, spice in Europe. The success was unprecedented and drew comparisons to Beatlemania (it was dubbed "Spicemania") due to the sheer volume of interest in the group. In just 7 weeks, spice had sold 1.8 million copies in Britain alone, making the Spice Girls the fastest selling British act since The Beatles. In total, the album sold over 3 million copies in Britain and peaked at number 1 for 15 weeks. In Europe, the album became the biggest selling album of 1997 and was certified 8x Platinum by the IFPI for sales in excess of 8 million copies. In the United States, spice became the biggest selling album of 1997, peaking at number 1 and being certified 7x Platinum (for sales of over 7 million) by the RIAA.
Riding a wave of publicity and hype, the group followed the single "Wannabe" up quickly by releasing say you'll be there in October and 2 become 1 in December. The two tracks continued the group's remarkable sales by topping the charts in over 53 countries and cementing the group's reputation as the biggest pop act on the planet. The last release from spice was a double A-side of mama / who do you think you are which once again saw them at number 1.
In November 1997, the Spice Girls released their second studio album, spiceworld. Preceded by the single spice up your life, the album proved to be an instant global best seller. It set a new record for the fastest selling album over 2 weeks when it shipped 7 million copies. Gaining favourable reviews, the album went on to sell over 10 million copies in Europe, Canada, and the United States alone. Criticized in America for releasing the album just nine months after their debut there and suffering from over-exposure at home, the Spice Girls began to experience a media backlash. The group were criticized for the amount of sponsorship deals they signed – over 20 in total – and they began to witness diminishing international chart positions. Nevertheless, the Spice Girls remained the biggest selling pop group of both 1997 and 1998. Further singles released from the album included too much, stop and viva forever – with stop being the only track not to hit number 1 in Britain (it entered and peaked at number 2).
In June 1997, the group began filming their movie debut, "Spiceworld: The Movie", with Absolutely Fabulous and Fawlty Towers director Bob Spiers. Meant to accompany the album, the comical style and content of the movie was in the same vein as The Beatles' films in the 1960s such as "A Hard Day's Night". The light-hearted comedy, intended to capture the spirit of the Spice Girls, starred a plethora of stars including Roger Moore, Elton John, Jennifer Saunders, Richard E. Grant and Meat Loaf. Released in December 1997, "Spiceworld: The Movie" proved to be a big box office hit taking nearly $30 million in the US, £11 million in Britain, and over $70 million worldwide. The movie was not as popular with critics however; it was nominated for seven awards at the 1999 Golden Raspberry Awards where they "won" the award for "Worst Actress".
On November 7, 1997 the Spice Girls fired their manager and mentor Simon Fuller. According to their various autobiographies, it was mainly Geri and Melanie B who pushed for Fuller’s dismissal. They cited that he had become too controlling by restricting their personal and artistic freedom, and they accused him of using divide and rule tactics to get his own way. The group quickly found the burden of managing themselves time consuming, so they assigned various responsibilities to each member of the group. They later built their own team, headed by Nancy Phillips, to deal with their affairs.
In early 1998, the Spice Girls embarked upon a sell-out 102 date world tour covering Europe and North America. The "Spiceworld" tour kicked off in Dublin, Ireland on February 24, 1998 before moving onto mainland Europe and then returning to Britain for 14 gigs at Wembley Arena and Birmingham’s NEC Arena. It was here that recordings were made for a planned live album, which was confirmed by the group: "We've shown everyone we can do the business on stage, so now we want to do a live album for fans". Despite masters of the recording being made, the idea was eventually dropped. At the end of the European leg of the tour, Geri Halliwell missed the final 2 shows in Oslo, Norway reportedly due to gastroenteritis. However, rumours quickly circulated that Geri had become disenchanted with the group and was planning to leave – and after she also missed a performance of viva forever on the National Lottery show, rumours began to intensify.
On May 31, 1998, Geri Halliwell announced her departure from the Spice Girls. Through her solicitor, she issued the following statement: "Sadly I would like to confirm that I have left the Spice Girls. This is because of differences between us. I'm sure the group will continue to be successful and I wish them all the best... PS, I'll be back." Halliwell claimed that she was suffering from exhaustion and wanted to take time out. However, rumours persisted that she had fallen out with one of the other girls (reportedly Melanie B). Although this has never been confirmed, the biographies of Victoria Beckham, Geri Halliwell, and Melanie B all hint that this was the case. Geri’s departure from the group shocked fans and became one of the biggest entertainment news stories of the year, making news headlines the world over. The four remaining girls were adamant though that the group would carry on and that their approaching North American tour would continue as normal.
Geri Halliwell's departure threw most of the group's plans into disarray. It was cited as the reason the planned live album was cancelled. It also meant that most of the material the girls had recorded throughout the first half of 1998 at Dublin's Windmill Lane Studios with long time collaborators Richard Stannard and Matt Rowe was eventually scrapped. A rumoured animated venture by Disney also failed to materialize.
The Spice Girls first release as a foursome was viva forever the last single taken off spiceworld. The video for the single was made before Geri's departure and features the girls in animated form – a decision made because there was no time to produce a video due to the heavy world tour schedule. Originally planned as a double A-side with never give up on the good times the idea was dropped for several reasons, mainly due to time restraints (since there was no time to re-record and edit out Geri's vocals or make a video for the track). Whilst on tour in America the group continued to record new material and they released the new song goodbye at Christmas 1998. Written before her departure, the song was nevertheless seen as a tribute to Geri and when it topped the British chart it became their third consecutive Christmas number 1 – equalling the record previously set by The Beatles. The song also became one of the most successful songs of the 1990's in Canada, where it stayed at number 1 for 16 weeks.
In November 2000 The Spice Girls released their new album, forever. Sporting a new edgier R&B sound, the album received a lukewarm response and achieved only a fraction of the success of its two best selling predecessors. In the US it peaked at number 39 on the Billboard Top 200. In the UK, the album was released the same week as Westlife’s coast to coast album and the chart battle was widely reported by the media. In the end Westlife, who had embarked on a massive promotional tour, outsold The Spice Girls by a margin of 3 to 1 to take the top spot. The lead single from the album, the double A-side holler / let love lead the way, did have some success – it became the group's ninth number 1 single in the UK. However, the song failed to break onto the Billboard Hot 100, instead peaking at number 7 on the Bubbling Under chart. However, holler did peak at number 31 on the Hot Dance Music/Club Play in 2001.
Many credit the low success of the album down to the fact the group did very little promotion in the run up to its worldwide release.The only major performance of the lead single came at the MTV Europe Music Awards in November 2000, and a few TV performances aside, the group did little meaningful promotion. In an attempt to cover more ground, the girls split up and covered different countries separately; for example Victoria and Emma headed to America while Melanie B and C concentrated on Europe.
Further planned single releases off the album never materialised. Promo singles of tell me why, weekend love and if you wanna have some fun came into circulation but the forever project was abandoned in early 2001 as the girls each began to concentrate on solo careers. In the years since, the media speculated endlessly about possible reunions.
On June 28th 2007, the Spice Girls (including Geri Halliwell) reformed and gave a press conference to announce a tour plus a greatest hits CD, and a documentary that were both released by the end of the year.
A new single was released on the 19th November 2007 called Headlines (Friendship Never Ends) to moderate acclaim. Their 2007-08 reunion tour however was sold out across the world but despite this success the group wrote a message on their website in March 2008 to confirm that this reunion tour really was the end of the Spice Girls.
The group reformed in 2012 for a one-off performance at the closing ceremony of the 2012 Olympic Games in London.
On 5th November 2018, the girls, minus Victoria Beckham, reunited for a UK stadium tour in 2019.
Christmas Wrapping
Spice Girls Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
'Cause it's my favorite holiday
But all this years been a busy blur
Don't think I have the energy
To add to my already mad rush
Just because it is the season
The perfect gift for me would be
Completions and connections left from last year
Met some guys but never the time
Most of 98 was along those lines.
So deck the halls and trim those trees
Raise up the cups of christmas cheer
I just need to catch my breath
Christmas with my mates this year
Calendar picture
Frozen landscape
Chill this room for twentyfour days
Evergreens, sparkling snow, get this winter over with
Flash back to spring time,
Sunny again
Would have been good to go for lunch
Couldn't agree when we were both free
We tried, we said we'd keep in touch,
We didn't of course till the summer time,
Out to the beach to his boat could have joined him
No this time, it was me, sunburn in the third degree
Now the calendars just one page
And of course I am excited
Tonights the night but I've set my mind
Not to do too much about it.
Merry Christmas Merry Christmas
But I think I'll miss this one this year
Merry Christmas Merry Christmas
But I think I'll miss this one this year
Merry Christmas Merry Christmas
But I think I'll miss this one this year
Merry Christmas Merry Christmas
But I think I'll miss this one this year
Hardly dashing through the snow
'Cause I bundled up too tight
Last minutes have-to-dos
A few cards, a few calls
Because it's are S V P
No thanks, no party lads
It's christmas eve, gonna relax
Turn down all of my invites
Last fall I had a night to myself
Some guy called halloween party
Waited all night for him to show
This time his car wouldn't go
Forget it, it's cold, it's getting late
Trudge on home to celebrate
In a quite way I unwind,
Doing christmas right this time
Merry Christmas Merry Christmas
But I think I'll miss this one this year
Merry Christmas Merry Christmas
But I think I'll miss this one this year
Tesco has provided me with the world's smallest turkey
All ready in the oven, nice and hot
Oh damn, guess what I forgot
So it's on with the boots back out in the snow
To the army all night garage but when to my wondering eyes should appear
In the line that guy I've been chasing all year
Spending this one alone he said
Give me a break this years been crazy
I said me too, but why are you...
You mean you forgot the papers too
Then suddenly we laughed and laughed
Caught on to what was happening
Christmas magic's brought this down to a very happy en-ending.
Merry Christmas Merry Christmas
But I think I'll miss this one this year
Merry Christmas Merry Christmas
But I think I'll miss this one this year
Merry Christmas Merry Christmas
But I think I'll miss this one this year
Merry Christmas Merry Christmas
But I think I'll miss this one this year
The Spice Girls’ song “Christmas Wrapping” tells the story of a busy and somewhat melancholic holiday season. Despite it being the singer’s favorite holiday, the year has been a blur of activity that has left her drained, and she doesn’t have the energy to add to the already mad rush just because it is Christmas. She reflects on her year, which was full of world tours, airplanes, babies, and meeting guys but never having enough time for them.
The singer tries to get into the holiday spirit, but she can’t seem to shake off the feeling of exhaustion. The imagery in the song compares the warmth and coziness of the holidays to the cold, barren landscape of winter. There is a sense of a missed connection between the singer and someone she met earlier in the year, but they couldn't agree on a time to meet up. As December rolls around, the singer is still feeling out of sorts and decides to take it easy for the holidays, choosing to catch up with friends instead of going to any big parties.
The final verse takes a comic turn as the singer realizes she has forgotten the most crucial ingredient for her Christmas dinner and heads out in the snow to grab it. She runs into the guy she had been trying to connect with all year, and the two bond over their mutual forgetfulness. They end up spending Christmas together, and the song finishes on a happy note.
Line by Line Meaning
Bah Hum, No that's too strong!
I'm not really in the holiday spirit yet, despite it being my favourite holiday.
But all this years been a busy blur
This year has gone by so fast and I feel like I haven't had a chance to slow down.
Don't think I have the energy
I'm so tired and busy that I don't think I can handle anything else right now.
To add to my already mad rush
I'm already rushing around so much that I don't want to add anything else to my to-do list.
Just because it is the season
I don't want to feel pressured to do anything just because it's the holiday season.
The perfect gift for me would be
Instead of more stuff, I would just like to reconnect with people and finish things from last year.
Completions and connections left from last year
I want to finish things that were left unfinished from last year and reconnect with people I haven't seen in a while.
World tour, aeroplanes and babies.
I've been really busy with touring, traveling, and starting a family this year.
Met some guys but never the time
I've met some guys this year, but never had enough time to pursue anything more.
Most of 98 was along those lines.
This year has been a lot like last year, where I was too busy to focus on relationships.
So deck the halls and trim those trees
Despite my exhaustion and lack of holiday spirit, I'm going to decorate and celebrate with my friends this year.
Raise up the cups of christmas cheer
Let's all raise a glass and celebrate the holiday season together.
I just need to catch my breath
I need some time to relax and recharge before the holiday madness begins.
Christmas with my mates this year
I'm going to spend Christmas with my friends this year.
Calendar picture
The calendar is flipping to December, and it's a reminder that the holiday season is here.
Frozen landscape
It's cold and snowy outside, making it feel like a classic winter wonderland.
Chill this room for twentyfour days
I'll be stuck indoors for the next 24 days, due to the cold and snow.
Evergreens, sparkling snow, get this winter over with
As much as I love the winter scenery, I'm ready for it to be over and for warmer weather to come.
Flash back to spring time,
I'm thinking back to the warmer, brighter days of spring.
Sunny again
I miss the sunshine and warmth of springtime.
Would have been good to go for lunch
I wanted to have lunch with someone last spring, but we couldn't coordinate schedules.
Couldn't agree when we were both free
We couldn't figure out a time that worked for both of our busy schedules.
We tried, we said we'd keep in touch,
We promised to stay in touch, but we didn't connect again until the summer.
We didn't of course till the summer time,
As busy as we both were, we didn't manage to reconnect until the warmer months.
Out to the beach to his boat could have joined him
We spent time together at the beach, and I could have gone out on his boat with him.
No this time, it was me, sunburn in the third degree
But this time, I burned badly and had to stay out of the sun.
Now the calendars just one page
As the year comes to an end, there's only one page left on the calendar.
And of course I am excited
I'm looking forward to celebrating the end of the year and the start of a new one.
Tonights the night but I've set my mind
I'm determined not to get too caught up in the holiday madness tonight.
Not to do too much about it.
I'm going to keep things low-key and not stress out about making everything perfect.
Hardly dashing through the snow
I'm not going to rush around in the snow, I'm going to take it slow and relax.
'Cause I bundled up too tight
I bundled up so much that my mobility is limited, and I can't rush around even if I wanted to.
Last minutes have-to-dos
I have a few last-minute things to take care of before the holiday.
A few cards, a few calls
I need to send out some holiday cards and make some phone calls to friends and family.
Because it's are S V P
I have obligations to attend some kind of work-related SVP event.
No thanks, no party lads
I'm not in the mood for a party, and would rather relax tonight.
It's christmas eve, gonna relax
It's Christmas Eve, and I'm going to take it easy.
Turn down all of my invites
I'm not going to attend any parties or events tonight, I'm just going to stay in.
Last fall I had a night to myself
Last fall, I had an evening to myself and enjoyed it a lot.
Some guy called halloween party
I got an invitation to a Halloween party from a guy I was interested in.
Waited all night for him to show
I waited eagerly for the guy to come to the party, but he never showed up.
This time his car wouldn't go
This year, the guy couldn't make it to a party because his car wouldn't start.
Forget it, it's cold, it's getting late
It's too cold and late to keep waiting for him, so I left the party without him.
Trudge on home to celebrate
I went home to celebrate the holiday by myself.
In a quite way I unwind,
I unwind and relax by myself, quietly enjoying the peace of the season.
Doing christmas right this time
This year, I'm determined to do things my way and enjoy the holiday without stressing out.
Tesco has provided me with the world's smallest turkey
My holiday dinner is a small turkey, courtesy of Tesco.
All ready in the oven, nice and hot
My dinner is already cooked and hot, ready for me to enjoy.
Oh damn, guess what I forgot
I realized that I forgot something important for my holiday meal.
So it's on with the boots back out in the snow
I have to go back out into the snow to get what I forgot.
To the army all night garage but when to my wondering eyes should appear
While at the garage, someone I've been interested in all year appears before my eyes.
In the line that guy I've been chasing all year
The guy I've been interested in is there, waiting in line with me.
Spending this one alone he said
The guy is spending the holiday season alone.
Give me a break this years been crazy
The guy agrees with me that this year has been hectic and busy.
I said me too, but why are you...
I agree with him, but I'm curious why he's alone on the holiday.
You mean you forgot the papers too
It turns out that he also forgot something important for his holiday dinner.
Then suddenly we laughed and laughed
We both find the situation funny, and laugh together.
Caught on to what was happening
We both realize that we have a connection, and it's happening now.
Christmas magic's brought this down to a very happy en-ending.
The magic of the season has brought us together, and we're both happy about it.
Lyrics © Spirit Music Group
Written by: Chris Butler
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind