Free Me
Studio album by Emma Bunton
Released	9 February 2004 20 September 2004
Recorded	2003
Genre	Pop/Soul/Motown/World
Length	45:30
Label	19/Universal
Producer(s)	Mike Peden, Yak Bondy, Cathy Dennis, Simon Ellis, Tim Lever, Peter Lewinson, Steve Lewinson, Mike Percy
Professional reviews
Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Music Guide link Barry Walters, Rolling Stone link
Emma Bunton chronology
A Girl Like Me (2001)	Free Me (2004)	Life in Mono (2006)
Alternate cover
U.S. cover

Free Me is the second studio album by English pop singer Emma Bunton, released on 9 February 2004 in the United Kingdom and Canada, 20 September 2004 in BBrazil and 25 January 2005 in the United States. Image File history File links Emma_Bunton_-_Free_Me_-_UK_album. ... A studio album is a collection of previously unreleased, studio-recorded tracks by a recording artist. ... Emma Lee Bunton (born 21 January 1976) is an English pop singer, songwriter, and occasional actress, best known for being originally a member of the successful 90s girl group Spice Girls, where she was known as Baby Spice for being the youngest member, having an innocent demeanour, and often wearing... Image File history File links Flag_of_the_United_Kingdom. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Canada_(bordered). ... February 9 is the 40th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... 2004 (MMIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Brazil. ... September 20 is the 263rd day of the year (264th in leap years). ... 2004 (MMIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... For popular music (music produced commercially rather than art or folk music), see Popular music. ... For other uses, see Soul music (disambiguation). ... The Motown Sound is a style of soul music with distinctive characteristics, including the use of tambourine along with drums, bass instrumentation, a distinctive melodic and chord structure, and a call and response singing style originating in gospel music. ... World music is, most generally, all the music in the world. ... This does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... 19 Entertainment, based in the United Kingdom, is a leading creator and producer of entertainment properties, including American Idol in the United States, Pop Idol in the United Kingdom, as well as versions of the Idol series in more than seventy countries around the world and US Television show So... Universal Records is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group. ... In the music industry, a record producer (or music producer) has many roles, among them controlling the recording sessions, coaching and guiding the musicians, organizing and scheduling production budget and resources, and supervising the recording, mixing and mastering processes. ... Mike Peden was a producer of the 2003 success, Free Me, the second album by former Spice Girl, Emma Bunton. ... Yak Bondy was a producer of the 2003 success, Free Me, the second album by former Spice Girl, Emma Bunton. ... Cathy Dennis (born March 25, 1969 in Norwich, England) is a dance-oriented pop singer-songwriter, record producer and actress. ... Simon Ellis is a songwriter and music producer who began his music career as a member of the band Ellis, Beggs and Howard which led him to being the musical director of various bands in the United Kingdom and world tours such as East 17 and the Spice Girls. ... Image:Timlever. ... Mike Percy is a former member of British pop group Dead or Alive. ... The All Music Guide (AMG) is a metadata database about music owned by All Media Guide. ... Image File history File links 4_stars. ... This article is about the magazine. ... Image File history File links 3_stars. ... Emma Lee Bunton (born 21 January 1976) is an English pop singer, songwriter, and occasional actress, best known for being originally a member of the successful 90s girl group Spice Girls, where she was known as Baby Spice for being the youngest member, having an innocent demeanour, and often wearing... A Girl Like Me is also the name of an album by Rihanna. ... Life in Mono is the third album from English pop singer Emma Bunton. ... Emma Bunton on the cover of her 2003 album, Free Me. ... A studio album is a collection of previously unreleased, studio-recorded tracks by a recording artist. ... Motto (French) God and my right Anthem God Save the King (Queen) England() – on the European continent() – in the United Kingdom() Capital (and largest city) London (de facto) Official languages English (de facto) Government Constitutional monarchy  -  Queen Queen Elizabeth II  -  Prime Minister Tony Blair MP Unification  -  by Athelstan 967  Area... For popular music (music produced commercially rather than art or folk music), see Popular music. ... Emma Lee Bunton (born 21 January 1976) is an English pop singer, songwriter, and occasional actress, best known for being originally a member of the successful 90s girl group Spice Girls, where she was known as Baby Spice for being the youngest member, having an innocent demeanour, and often wearing... February 9 is the 40th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... 2004 (MMIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... September 20 is the 263rd day of the year (264th in leap years). ... 2004 (MMIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... January 25 is the 25th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

Track listing

1. "Free Me" (Emma Bunton, Helene Muddiman, Michael Peden) – 4:27
2. "Maybe" (Yak Bondy, Emma Bunton) – 3:43
3. "I'll Be There" (Emma Bunton, Helene Muddiman, Michael Peden) – 3:24
4. "Tomorrow" (Yak Bondy, Emma Bunton) – 3:56
5. "Breathing" (Henry Binns, Emma Bunton, Yoyo Olugbo) – 4:03
6. "Crickets Sing for Anamaria" (Ray Gilbert, Marcos Valle) – 2:46
7. "No Sign of Life" (Simon Ellis, Stephen Lee) – 3:38
8. "Who the Hell Are You" (Emma Bunton, Nigel Butler, Ray Hedges) – 3:19
9. "Lay Your Love on Me" (Emma Bunton, Cathy Dennis) – 3:25
10. "Amazing" (featuring Luis Fonsi) (Emma Bunton, Helene Muddiman, Nina Marander, Michael Peden) – 4:06
11. "You Are" (Emma Bunton, Tim Lever, Mike Percy) – 3:46
12. "Something So Beautiful" (Emma Bunton, Peter Lewinson, Steve Lewinson) – 3:44

• U.S. edition

1. "Free Me" (Dr. Octavo Seduction Remix) (Emma Bunton, Helene Muddiman, Michael Peden) – 3:38
2. "Free Me" (Full Intention Freed Up Remix) (Emma Bunton, Helene Muddiman, Michael Peden) – 4:01

Free Me was the first single by Emma Bunton from her second album Free Me, released in 2003, almost 10 months before the release of her second album. ... Mike Peden was a producer of the 2003 success, Free Me, the second album by former Spice Girl, Emma Bunton. ... Maybe is a pop song performed by English singer Emma Bunton. ... Yak Bondy was a producer of the 2003 success, Free Me, the second album by former Spice Girl, Emma Bunton. ... Ill Be There was the third single by Emma Bunton from her second solo album Free Me, released in 2004. ... Crickets Sing for Anamaria was originally a track from Brazilian singer Astrud Gilbertos 1965 album Takin Verve, and was produced by the Homali Brothers, a Brazilian Latin jazz pop production team. ... Ray Gilbert (5 September 1912 – 3 March 1976) was a lyricist. ... Marcos Valle (born September 14, 1943 in Rio de Janeiro) is a Brazilian singer, songwriter and record producer. ... Simon Ellis is a songwriter and music producer who began his music career as a member of the band Ellis, Beggs and Howard which led him to being the musical director of various bands in the United Kingdom and world tours such as East 17 and the Spice Girls. ... Cathy Dennis (born March 25, 1969 in Norwich, England) is a dance-oriented pop singer-songwriter, record producer and actress. ... Image:Luis-fonsi. ... Image:Timlever. ... Mike Percy is a former member of British pop group Dead or Alive. ...

Record and single releases

The album was the second to follow her 2001 release, A Girl Like Me, and spent over twelve weeks inside the UK Albums Chart, peaking at number seven, and selling over 150,000 copies, earning Gold award status. The album was widely acclaimed by critics as being the "best solo Spice album ever" due to its catchy and fun use of sounds from the Motown and 1960s era. The album was largely produced by Mike Peden and Yak Bondy, who have produced tracks for S Club 7 and Lucie Silvas to name a few. Other contributions on the album courtesy of Cathy Dennis, Henry Binns, and Puerto Rican singer Luis Fonsi. "One Thing I Know", an unreleased track co-written by Bunton for Free Me, was recorded by another 19 Management act, S Club 8, for their album Sundown. Bunton's original vocals can clearly be heard in the S Club 8 version. A Girl Like Me is also the name of an album by Rihanna. ... The UK Albums Chart is a chart of the sales positions of albums in the United Kingdom. ... The Motown Sound is a style of soul music with distinctive characteristics, including the use of tambourine along with drums, bass instrumentation, a distinctive melodic and chord structure, and a call and response singing style originating in gospel music. ... Mike Peden was a producer of the 2003 success, Free Me, the second album by former Spice Girl, Emma Bunton. ... Yak Bondy was a producer of the 2003 success, Free Me, the second album by former Spice Girl, Emma Bunton. ... S Club 7 (later re-named S Club after the departure of Paul Cattermole from the band) were an English pop group created by former Spice Girls manager Simon Fuller, who rose to fame via their own BBC television programme. ... Lucie Silvas (born September 4, 1980 in Surrey) is a British singer-songwriter. ... Cathy Dennis (born March 25, 1969 in Norwich, England) is a dance-oriented pop singer-songwriter, record producer and actress. ... Image:Luis-fonsi. ... S Club 8, previously known as S Club Juniors, were a spin-off of the highly popular UK pop music band S Club (7). ... Sundown was the second album by British pop group S Club 8 (though it was their first release under that name -they were previously S Club Juniors). ...

The first single, "Free Me", was released in the spring of 2003. The song immediately picked up airplay, and the single sold well in the UK, peaking at number five on the UK Albums Chart. "Maybe" was released as the second single in the autumn of 2003, and also gained extensive airplay throughout the UK, and peaked one position lower than its predecessor, at number six. Airplay is a technical term used in the radio industry to state how frequently a song is being played on a radio station. ...

In the spring of 2004, the third single, "I'll Be There", and the album were released. The single, like its two predecessors, performed well on the charts, peaking at number seven, one position below "Maybe", and two positions below "Free Me". The album sold more copies in its first week then her debut solo record had, and would ultimately go on to outsell it by 25,000 copies.

Later in the year, the fourth single, "Crickets Sing for Anamaria", was released. Despite its harder beat and grittier sound, by now the impact of Free Me was beginning to ware off, and the song only came in at number fifteen on the UK Singles Chart, totalling 25,000 copies, and becoming Bunton's lowest-selling single.

In the U.S., both "Free Me" and "Maybe" were dance club regulars. The songs peaked in the top three of the U.S. Billboard dance chart at number one and number three respectively. Billboard magazines Hot Dance Club Play chart (also known as Club Play Singles, and formerly known as Hot Dance Music/Club Play and Hot Dance/Disco) is a weekly national survey of the songs that are most popular in U.S. dance clubs. ...

Motown sound

The album was released via 19 Recordings, which is a division of 19 Management, the company owned by Simon Fuller. Bunton says of the inspiration behind the album: "I've been listening to Motown since I was about five, and just loving it, being very passionate about the fact how it was all done live, and I thought, 'Hold on, I always talk about the fact I love '60s and Motown', so I thought I'd take elements of it, bits of it, and put it into my album, so that's exactly what I did." However, Bunton's songs on this album mainly started life as a simple scribble. She says, "I have a little book beside my bed, where I put all my ideas for songs and stuff. It's kind of weird, 'cuz usually when I'm having a dream, I'll wake up, and I'll write something down, then I'll look at it again and think, 'God, what was I dreaming about?'" Simon Fuller Simon Fuller (born May 17, 1960 in Hastings, England) is an English record and television producer who was known as the manager of the Spice Girls and S Club 7, as well as the creator of the Idol series, first seen as Pop Idol and over 50 other...

Bunton on the singles

• "Free Me": "I got to dress up like a Bond Girl in this video, which was great fun, and the director, Tim Royes, was great to work with. We shot this video in Rio just after the carnival had taken place, so it was just perfect."

• "Maybe": "The 'ba da das' in this song are actually inspired from music in German porn movies that the writer, Yak Bondy, played to me... not the movies, but the music. It just had that kind of catchy, kinky, vibe to it, so I thought, 'Yeah, I'll take it!' The video is based around the movie Sweet Charity, and I always have such a laugh performing this song, 'cuz the dancing is mad!"

• "Crickets Sing for Anamaria": "I came across this track on the Astrud Gilberto album when I was filming the "Free Me" video – and I took this at first, and was unsure of how I'd work it myself, but when I got my musicians in again, it all fell into place and I love the track. It's a perfect song for the summer."

An editor has expressed a concern that the subject of the article does not satisfy the notability guideline or one of the following guidelines for inclusion on Wikipedia: Biographies, Books, Companies, Fiction, Music, Neologisms, Numbers, Web content, or several proposals for new guidelines. ... Location of Rio de Janeiro Coordinates: Country Brazil Region Southeast State Rio de Janeiro Government  - Mayor Cesar Maia (PFL) Area  - City 1,260 km²  (486. ... Pornographic movies Pornography (Porn) (from Greek πόρνη (porne) prostitute and γραφή (grafe) writing), more informally referred to as porn or porno, is the explicit representation of the human body or sexual activity with the goal of sexual arousal. ... Sweet Charity, based on Federico Fellinis screenplay for Nights of Cabiria, is a musical directed and choreographed by Bob Fosse, with music by Cy Coleman, lyrics by Dorothy Fields, and book by Neil Simon. ... Astrud Gilberto Astrud Gilberto (born March 29, 1940) is a Brazilian singer best known for her samba and bossa nova music. ...

Charts