Re-View: British Girl Groups of the 1990s

Fresh from watching last night’s TOTP2 ‘Girl Group’ special, I thought I’d introduce you to some of my own personal favourites, focussing solely on the fabulous 1990s. Because, quite frankly, some of the omissions from last night’s show were quite shocking. 

Best make it clear before we start that you won’t find any girl BANDs here. No. They’re a different species altogether, and one that is equally as formidable but I wouldn’t feel right lumping Sleeper, Lush and Echobelly in with Honeyz, Hepburn or Solid HarmoniE. 

I’ve also stuck to groups born from the UK scene. Yes, that may mean missing out on TLC, Destiny’s Child and En Vogue, but it means we can focus on our own homegrown talent pool. I have NOT included Vanilla. 

Eternal: Just A Step From Heaven (1994)

Eternal were the first girl group to shift a million copies of an album in the UK. ‘Always & Forever’ remains the fourth biggest selling album by a girl group, whilst their 1997 Greatest Hits collection is number six on the list. Eternal were the first group I saw live and they have a STUNNING discography. I will forever remain unflinchingly loyal to all who sailed in her. 

West End: Love Rules (1995)

Who? Well if you like Eternal, you might like West End. Unfortunately this remix is the only version of ‘Love Rules’ I can find on YouTube. It’s still good, but it is lacking the King Edward VIII abdication speech that is used as an intro on the single edit. 

Spice Girls: 2 Become 1 (1996)

The Spice Girls are AMAZING. Anyone who says ANYTHING other than that, is a fool who thinks it’s cool to say they’re not. The biggest selling girl group of all time, with 75 million record sales under their belt in a relatively short eight year recording time span. PS: Does anyone know where I can buy Mel B’s coat? 

Crush: Luv’d Up (1996)

Formerly a trio known as Byker Grooove!, Crush were the female equivalent of PJ & Duncan. One half of the duo is actually TV presenter Donna Air and, whilst all this sounds like a recipe for disaster, they actually released two AMAZING pop songs. Their first was the fabulous Jellyhead, the second was the even more fabulous ‘Luv’d Up’: 

Alisha’s Attic: Indestructible (1997)

Alisha’s Attic released three brilliant pop albums, before sisters Karen and Shelly Poole became pop writers of the highest order. Karen is responsible for the masterpieces that are Jamelia’s ‘Beware Of The Dog’, Dannii’s ‘Put The Needle On It’ and Amy Studt’s triple whammy of ‘Misfit, ‘Under The Thumb’ and Ladder In My Tights’. I know, right?

All Saints: Never Ever (1997) 

Their debut album is the third biggest selling LP by a girl group in UK chart history, stuck behind Spice and Spice World. It sold over 1.3m copies, spawned three chart topping singles yet never peaked any higher than #2 in its chart run. Their comeback album ‘Studio 1’ was also brilliant and deserved to do MUCh better than it actually did. 

Fab!: Turn Around (1997)

Boyzone singer Shane Lynch wasn’t the only member of his family looking to get a bit of chart action in the 1990s. First up was sister Tara, who was a member of girl group Fab!. They released a couple of singles but this ballad is UNDOUBTEDLY a highlight and remains on my iPod playlist even now. 

B*Witched: C’est La Vie (1998)

More Lynch sisters, this time in the shape of Edele and Keavy who were half of Irish girlband B*Witched. They became the first band in UK chart history to see their first four releases debut at #1. The band split in 2002 after being dropped by their record label, but the Lynch sisters came back in 2011 with a new single ‘Body Rock’, under the new stage name of Barbarellas. It was quite good. 

Solid HarmoniE: I Want You To Want Me (1998)  

They had three top 20 singles, and Mariama Goodman was a member before she quit to take up a place as one of the Honeyz. Max Martin produced three of their five single releases, including this #16 smash.  

N Tyce: Telefunkin’ (1998)

They were tied to their telephone line, but that didn’t stop N Tyce from releasing two bloody good singles. The four piece released two singles in 1997, ‘Hey DJ (Play That Song)’ and ‘We Come To Party’, which charted at #20 and #12 on the UK charts. But it was the following year that they unleashed the top twenty hits ‘Telefunkin” and ‘Boom Boom’ on the UK. Both are ridiculously catchy. 

Honeyz: End Of The Line (1998)

I don’t think much needs to be said. The Honeyz were a sultry UK girl group who saw their first five hits debut in the Top 10. Only when they started to sex it up a bit, did they start to see record sales decline. That said, ‘Won’t Take It Lying Down’ is a fantastic pop song, and it’s a crime that the shelving of sophomore album ‘Harmony’ meant that the public weren’t able to wrap their lugholes around the attitude-laden ‘Talk To The Hand’. 

Hepburn: I Quit (1999)

British pop rock group Hepburn had three Top 20 hits in 1999 and 2000, but ‘I Quit’ was the only one to make the UK Top 10, charting at #8. Their self titled album peaked at #28 but the band were dropped by their record label Columbia in 2000. Lead singer Jamie Benson then went on to release a studio album, ‘My Confession’, which isn’t very good. 

Precious: Say It Again (1999)

They represented Eurovision, and they had a girl in their midst who would go on to be the perfect Kerry Katona replacement in Atomic Kitten, and then to Pod-pinging in Snog Marry Avoid. Whilst the group were more active in 2000, ‘Say It Again’ peaked at #6 in 1999 and came 12th in the Song Contest. Not great by 90s standards, but certainly better than most of our entries since. A personal favourite is ‘New Beginning’, their final single release which only managed to peak at #50.