Emma Bunton Albums (3)
What The Critics Say
Life in Mono was the third album from former Spice Girl and now-grownup Baby Spice, Emma Bunton. Following the album Free Me, on which she even attempted to drop the Spice Girl connotations by simply calling herself Emma, she garnered three Top Ten singles and her second Top Ten album. But what a difference two years can make in the fickle pop industry. It was still looking good when she recorded the annual single for the charity Children in Need in 2006; she took the Petula Clark song "Downtown" to number three, but sung it with a blandness and safety where the original had spark and edginess. Two weeks later, the album was released by the only bandmember left with a recording contract, and disastrously so: it charted at number 65, not the sort of position that a Spice Girl was used to. It's not difficult to hear why it did so badly, for if ever there was a safe album, light and fluffy with almost no substance, this was it. The title track, a cover of the song by trip-hop band Mono, was a mid-tempo easy listening ballad reminiscent of something that might have appeared on a '60s LP by Burt Bacharach or Raymond LeFevre as was "I'm Not Crying Over Yesterdays" and many of the other tracks, including Bunton's naughty take of "Undressing You." The opening track, "All I Need to Know," was released as the first single, apart from the charity outing, and was a sweet ballad, again with little substance and no memorable hook. ~ Sharon Mawer, All Music Guide
What The Critics Say
Of all the Spice Girls, Emma Bunton tended to disappear into the background. Her four partners in the group all had powerful personas, and Bunton's bland sweetness simply could not compete next to Victoria Beckham's sultry ice queen Posh Spice or Geri Halliwell's brassy, sassy Ginger Spice. So, when the Spice Girls parted ways after 2000's abortive Forever it seemed inevitable that she would simply fade away. Then again, at one time it seemed inevitable that Gary Barlow would eclipse his former Take That bandmate Robbie Williams on the pop charts, and it didn't turn out that way, so first impressions shouldn't be trusted when it comes to British teen pop groups -- a theory that receives further support with the release of Emma Bunton's superb second album, Free Me. It, quite simply, isn't just the best Spice Girls solo album -- which, given such disasters as Geri's Scream if You Wanna Go Faster, isn't that hard -- it's the best Spice-related record, and the best mainstream British pop album since Robbie at his heyday. Taking a cue from the stylish update on swinging '60s London that Saint Etienne pioneered in the '90s, Free Me is a breezy, effervescent set of light pop. Hints of Bacharach and bossa nova are scattered throughout the album, strings sweep songs into their choruses, beats are strong but take a backseat to melody. This music is stylish without being flashy, thanks in large part to the charmingly tuneful, sturdy songs (all but one bearing a writing credit from Emma). While Bunton may still have a small, sweet voice, she's developed a stronger presence on record, giving this album not just a face, but a fetching persona that's hard to resist. Unlike the Spice Girls albums, or most other dance-oriented pop albums, this is not a singles-and-filler record -- it's a collection of strong, effervescent tunes that are immediately winning and get better with repeated listens. If Bunton weren't a former Spice Girl, Free Me would still be a terrific album, but given her past and how she was pretty much considered a has-been, the strength of this record is all the more remarkable. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Music Guide
What The Critics Say
Emma Bunton's post-Spice Girls solo debut is the most surprising of the lot, as it moves farther afield from the bubblegummy dance-pop of her former band than Melanie C.'s Northern Star or Geri Halliwell's Schizophonic. The single "What Took You So Long?" opens the album on a gliding cushion of acoustic guitars, dreamy keyboards, and laid-back mid-tempo beats, a mix that underpins nearly the entire album. Even the assertive title track (the hook of which is a cleverly bleeped f-word in the chorus, a deliberate move away from the saccharine Baby Spice image) has the relaxed groove and organic feel of a classic early disco single instead of the canned electronic beats of Hi-NRG dance music. Bunton didn't have the best voice in the Spice Girls (that would be Melanie C., with a special nod to Geri Halliwell for getting by on loudmouthed brassiness), but unlike Victoria Beckham and Mel B, she can genuinely sing, albeit sometimes with a thin reediness that's not quite enough for a song like the gospel-inflected "Sunshine on a Rainy Day." (And the cover of Edie Brickell's "What I Am" only reinforces what a lame song it is.) On the other hand, "Been There, Done That" and the slinky "We're Not Gonna Sleep Tonight" sound like the singles that should have been from the Spice Girls' disappointing last album, unapologetically catchy and well-constructed pop songs in a style that's been a part of pop music since the days of Lesley Gore or the Supremes. A Girl Like Me isn't an album for the ages, but it's better than "not bad." ~ Stewart Mason, All Music Guide
