1996 Spice Girls: Say You'll Be There

As I noted back on 'Wannabe', the moving parts of the Spice Girls machine would come far better oiled after that curate's egg of a debut, and true to my word 'Say You'll Be There' is an all round slicker proposition that whirs like the mechanism of a cheap watch and with all the efficiency of labour that Mickey Mouse aimed for with those marching brooms in 'Fantasia'. From the faux vinyl crackles of the intro, 'Say You'll Be There' is takes the latter day R&B sound as role model, but in execution it offers up less the credibility of urban grit and more the cheery air of a holiday rep peddling a catchphrase laden patter with a grinding, fixed grin repetition that's engaging on day one of your hols but becomes motive for murder by day five. 'Say You'll Be There' is well crafted pop (and come on, you'd expect no less), but it's paddling in the shallow end with the most interesting thing about it being the separated at birth resemblance to Suede's 'Beautiful Ones' stalled at number eight on the same month's chart (only 'Say You'll Be There' was sent to finishing school and became a model while Suede's song went to a rough, inner city comp and became a drug dealer). Bet the indie kids didn't see that one coming.