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History

S Club 7 first came to public attention through their television series. The programme was a sitcom based around the band members (who played themselves) living together and trying to become famous. The programme changed its name to reflect the location it was set in: Miami 7, LA 7, Hollywood 7, and finally Viva S Club, set in Spain. During each episode, the members would perform one of the songs from their current album. It was created and partially written by Kim Fuller, who also created and wrote Spiceworld. They also made a hit with their 2003 film, Seeing Double. The show also became a big hit in the United States, where it originally aired on Fox Family and later on ABC Family. The series were retitled S Club 7 in Miami, S Club 7 in L.A., S Club 7 in Hollywood and Viva S Club.

Towards the end of the first season, in June 1999, the group released their debut single, 'Bring it all back'. An uptempo song written by Elliott Kennedy (who had previously worked with the Spice Girls and Take That), it topped the UK charts. The single was followed by the Stargate-produced 'S Club Party' (UK number 2) in October 1999 and the double A-side single 'Two in a million'/'You're my number one' (UK number 2) in December. Whereas 'S Club Party' was an uptempo song in a style not far removed from the contemporary offerings of Britney Spears or the Backstreet Boys, 'Two in a million' was a ballad, co-written by Cathy Dennis, which showed off the group's musical diversity as well as the talents of singer Jo O'Meara. 'You're my number one', meanwhile, was a retro-styled uptempo track with a strong swing beat and, on the original album version, a prominent brass section. All these songs were featured on the group's first album, 'S Club', released in October 1999. The album also included various other songs from the TV series, as well as others (such as 'Friday Night') which had not been previously performed.

S Club 7's second TV series, 'LA 7', began airing in March 2000. The series introduced the song 'Reach', another retro-styled uptempo track in a similar vein to 'You're my number one' which was again co-written by Cathy Dennis. Released as a single in May, it reached number 2 in the UK chart and rapidly became one of the group's best known tracks, paving the way for the group's second album, '7'. This album was a marked step up from the overtly pop stylings of 'S Club', with a much stronger R&B/rap feel evident in a number of the tracks. The second single from the '7' album, 'Natural', was notable in that the featured lead vocalist was Rachel Stevens. Remixed from the album version, the single reached number 3 in September 2000. It was then proposed to release 'Bring the house down' as a further single from the album, and remixes were commissioned; however, S Club 7 were invited to provide the official song of the UK's BBC Children in Need Campaign 2001 and so a new song, the ballad 'Never had a dream come true' was chosen instead. After topping the UK charts in November 2000, the song was added to a re-release of the '7' album.

'Never had a dream come true' marked a more mature direction for the group which retained their pop sensibilities whilst broadening their appeal to a more adult audience. However, it was their next single which really proved to their breakthrough in this respect. "Don't stop movin'" was a classy dance/pop song which owed more than a little for its style to Michael Jackson's 'Billie Jean'. The group's public profile was boosted in the run-up to the single's release when the three male members of S Club 7 were arrested in London after being found with a small amount of cannabis on March 20, 2001[1]. The three individuals were cautioned by police at Charing Cross police station but released without charge. A month later, "Don't stop movin'" topped the UK charts. Knocked off the top the following week by Geri Halliwell's single It's Raining Men, it re-occupied the top spot a week later.

There was then a longer than usual gap before a further single was released. Initially it was proposed to release a Reach-esque song called 'You' as the next single in the autumn, to coincide with their third TV series ('Hollywood 7'). However, S Club 7 were then invited to once again be involved in the Children in Need campaign, and so a ballad was felt more appropriate. Hence the next single, in November 2001, was the Jo-led 'Have you ever', a song not unlike their earlier 'Never had a dream come true'. This again topped the UK charts and acted as an introduction to the group's third album, 'Sunshine'. This album was arguably their most accomplished yet. As well as 'Never had a dream come true', 'Don't stop movin' and 'Have you ever', it included a number of other very-strong tracks, notably the Rachel Stevens-led 'Show me your colours', and 'Stronger', an uptempo club track with lead vocals by Tina Barrett. Indeed, 'Stronger' was slated as a potential single release after 'You' (eventually released in February 2002, UK no 2). However, the proposed release of 'Stronger' was abandoned after Paul Cattermole decided to leave the group.

Breakup

In March 2002, Paul Cattermole announced he was leaving to join a nu metal band formed by his school-friends, though he remained with S Club 7 until June and continued to date fellow member Hannah Spearritt. The remaining six members stayed together under the name S Club, releasing a further album, 'Seeing double' in late 2002. This album, preceded by the single 'Alive' in November 2002 (UK no 5), built upon the strengths of the group's earlier work and adopted a more mature pop/dance approach with a very much stronger R&B feel on several of the tracks. However, despite a good critical reception, the album stalled at number 17 in the UK charts and no further singles were immediately forthcoming.

S Club released their movie Seeing Double in April 2003. The film's release was marked by rumours that the group were about to split, rumours which came true shortly afterwards when it was announced that, after a final single and greatest hits album, S Club would indeed break up (much to many fans' dismay and a widespread feeling of betrayal, given that the group had previously denied the rumours). The final single was a double A-side, coupling 'Love Ain't Gonna Wait for You' from the 'Seeing Double' album with a new ballad 'Say Goodbye'. Like their first single, 'Bring It All Back', 'Say Goodbye' saw lead vocals shared around the group. The single reached UK number 2 and was included on S Club's greatest hits album, 'BeSt', released in June 2003. This compilation brought together the group's single A-sides (many of which had been remixed slightly from their original album versions) with a previously-unreleased track, 'Everybody Get Pumped'.

In many ways, S Club were an anachronism by 2003, with the musical landscape having shifted away from such overtly-'manufactured' groups towards a more 'organic' presentation with groups being presented as writing their own songs and playing their own instruments. Nonetheless, their relatively-long career (for this genre) is noteworthy. Unlike many 'pop' groups, they did not rely on cover versions to generate hit singles: 'Natural' was the closest they came to releasing a cover version as a single, as this song was based on a French song which in turn had sampled Gabriel Faure's 'Pavane'. In addition, their output was of a consistently higher standard than many of their contemporaries, with 'Don't Stop Movin' in particular still being played in clubs and on radio several years later.