FEATURE:
Childhood Treasures: Albums That Impacted Me
All Saints – All Saints
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THIS will be one of the last…
IN THIS PHOTO: All Saints in 1997/PHOTO CREDIT: Tim Roney/Getty Images
albums in this feature, as I have covered most of the ones that were influential during my childhood. This may be s arrange choice, but All Saints’ All Saints of 1997 was key! Released in November, the first single was released in the August. The mighty I Know Where It's At was a radio staple and one of the best songs of the year. Although the U.S./U.K. girl group are still going today (their most-recent album, Testament, was released in 2018), their peak was at the start. It is testament to their stamina, popularity and closeness that they are still around. Not that many girl groups from the 1990s are operating so far down the line! I think that their debut album is their best. The hits on the album stand the test of time today – Never Ever and Bootie Call are my favourite. That said, 2000’s Saints & Sinners contained Pure Shores and Black Coffee! The reason All Saints was important when I was a child – I was fourteen when it came out – is because it scored some happy school days. I was well aware of girl groups before them. The Bangles, Spice Girls and TLC were all very much in my life, as were many others. All Saints offered a slightly tougher and more interesting alternative to Spice Girls and U.K. groups. It was a time when Britpop was dying, and the scene was shifting. I have said before how, maybe, All Saints arrived on the scene a year or two too late.
They debuted at a time when tasted had changed and the best albums of the year were worlds apart. In spite of that, the group produced a terrific debut album. It is one that remains underrated. You can hear the connection between Melanie Blatt, Shaznay Lewis, Nicole Appleton, Natalie Appleton. As Lewis was a great songwriter and co-wrote most of the tracks on the album, you get this sense of conviction and independence. Not like this is an album directed by-committee and lacks any of the group’s input. I think the original songs are the best. Two covers, Lady Marmalade and Under the Bridge, are not the strongest cuts. I feel the 1990s was a classic period for Pop and R&B. All Saints arrived and provided some incredible songs that lodged in the head. I was hooked when I first heard them, and I remember buying All Saints when it came out. Some reviews were a bit mixed, though there were some positive ones. In their review, this is what AllMusic said:
“As the first group of consequence to be saddled with the "new Spice Girls" tag, it would be reasonable to expect that All Saints would be cut-rate dance-pop without the weirdly magical charisma that made the Spices international phenomenons. It is true that All Saints lack the personality of the Spices, but they make up for that with musical skills. All four members have better voices than the Spices, and they all have a hand in writing at least one of the songs on their eponymous debut, with Shaznay Lewis taking the most writing credits.
More importantly, they and their producers have a better sense of contemporary dance trends -- there are real hip-hop and club rhythms throughout the record, and samples of Audio Two, the Rampage, and (especially) Steely Dan are fresh and inventive. But what really makes the record are the songs. The singles are the standouts, with the party-ready, Steely Dan-fueled "I Know Where It's At" and the extraordinary gospel-tinged "Never Ever" leading the way, but the covers are well chosen (their take on "Under the Bridge" eclipses the Red Hot Chili Peppers', boasting a better arrangement and more convincing vocals) and the lesser songs are pleasantly melodic. Sure, there's some filler, but that should be expected on any dance-pop album. What counts is that the performances are fresh, the production is funky, and there is a handful of classic pop singles on the album, and you can't ask for much better than that from a dance-pop record, especially one from a group that almost beat the Spice Girls at their own game”.
I do feel that All Saints’ debut album was a bit overlooked. Infectious, fun and with ample variety, it was a really important album when I was a teenager. It is still an album that I can put on and get so much from. Cementing friendships and the soundtrack to some challenging (yet positive) days, I will always hold All Saints fondly.
It is a pity All Saints is not talked about more. I do hear the odd track from the album on the radio now and then. One of the more under-valued girl groups of the 1990s, I can hear songs from their 1997 debut and it takes me back. The infectiousness and spirit that runs through the album is incredible. One does not hear too many albums like All Saints these days. In the United Kingdom, the album debuted at number twelve for the week beginning 6th December 1997, before reaching a peak of number two on 17th January 1998. It spent a total of sixty-six weeks on the chart. Whereas some were not convinced by the musical directions of All Saints or sold by the quality of the songs, I would argue that the album is a lot stronger than that. For me, it is a reminder of a time where music of all kinds was entering my life. 1997 was especially eclectic and impactful. If you have not heard the album or remember All Saints briefly from the 1990s, I would recommend you spend some time with their eponymous debut album. It will definitely lift you. The range of sounds and styles they blend and conquer is impressive indeed. Though some passed All Saints by, the 1997 album was definitely…
NOT lost on me.