Whole Again

"Whole Again" is the fifth single released from British pop girl group Atomic Kitten's debut album, Right Now (2000). It is the group's biggest selling single to date and was the final single to feature founding member Kerry Katona, who left the group midway through promoting the single. "Whole Again" was the first single released from the album in Europe and South Africa. It was a massive success, reaching number one in several countries and selling over a million copies in the UK alone.[2]

For the EP, see Front Porch Step.

"Whole Again"
Single by Atomic Kitten
from the album Right Now
Released29 January 2001[1]
RecordedMotor Museum (Liverpool, England, UK)
GenrePop
Length3:03
Label
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)Engine
Atomic Kitten singles chronology
"Follow Me"
(2000)		 "Whole Again"
(2001)		 "Eternal Flame"
(2001)
Audio sample
Whole Again
  • file
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"Whole Again" was co-written by Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark (OMD) members and Atomic Kitten founders Andy McCluskey and Stuart Kershaw, along with Jem Godfrey and Bill Padley. The four writers were nominated for the Ivor Novello Award for excellence in songwriting,[3] and Billboard ranked the track number 96 on their list of the "100 Greatest Girl Group Songs of All Time".[4] Multiple artists, including OMD, have covered the song.

Following the departure of Katona, she was replaced a few days later by Jenny Frost, just after the single topped the UK Singles Chart. As a result, the music video was reshot and Frost's vocals appeared on the reissue of Right Now.

Background

Following the failures of previous single "Follow Me" and the initial release of their debut album, Right Now,[5] Atomic Kitten persuaded Virgin Records to release the single as a last-ditch attempt to keep their record deal. They were given a shoe-string budget for the single's release with a basic video and previous photo shoots used for cover artwork. During promotion for the single, band member Kerry Katona announced her pregnancy and subsequent decision to leave the group. With the single's release imminent, the group opted to recruit Jenny Frost as a replacement and continued their promotional campaign. Surprisingly the single was a massive success, beating U2 to the number one spot on the UK Singles Chart and remaining there for four consecutive weeks.

In a rare Japanese pressing of their Right Now album, the song "Whole Again" features all lines spoken by Katona with only the chorus sung by Hamilton and McClarnon. This was the original recording before another production team was recruited slightly altering the chords and having Natasha Hamilton sing the first verse and Liz McClarnon sing the second verse. The version with Jenny Frost's spoken word portion has since replaced the original version for radio airplay, and it was subsequently issued as a bonus track on international versions of the group's second album, Feels So Good.

The first line of the song is identical to that of "Walk On By" by Bacharach and David.

Chart performance

The single debuted at number one in the United Kingdom with first week sales of 69,286 copies,[6] and since gone on to sell 1,000,000 copies in the UK alone.[7] It stayed atop the UK Singles Chart for four weeks, becoming the longest-charting number one since Westlife at Christmas 1999, and the only single which increased on weekly sales during each week at number 1. It is the fourth best-selling single by a girl group of all time, after "Wannabe" and "2 Become 1" by the Spice Girls, and "Never Ever" by All Saints, as well as being the best-selling girl group single of the decade. It also became the thirteenth overall best-selling single of the decade.[8] As of November 2016, it remains the biggest selling song of the 21st century in the UK by a girl band.[9]

In Australia, it peaked at number two in the charts, being certified double platinum for sales of over 140,000 copies. The single was also released in Germany and New Zealand, where it secured a number one position for six consecutive weeks on both countries. In Germany, the single was certified platinum,[10] one of three singles by a girl group to ever be certified Platinum; the others being "Daylight in Your Eyes" by No Angels and "Shame" by Monrose. The single was certified double platinum in New Zealand, one of the best selling singles by a girl group of all time there. The song achieved the most success in the UK, Germany, New Zealand, Austria, the Netherlands and Ireland and has sold 2 million copies worldwide.[11]

Music video

The music video for "Whole Again" was filmed on a very small budget due to the commercial failure of previous single "Follow Me". It features the women singing in front of a plain white background – similar to the video for the Sugababes' debut single "Overload". The original version of the video includes Kerry Katona, who had left the group just before the song's release. Much of the video was subsequently reshot to feature new member Jenny Frost.[12]

As a result of the single's huge success in many international markets, a second music video was filmed for the U.S. release in May 2001 with a much larger budget. This version features the three women walking through the streets in Downtown Los Angeles and walking out into the countryside, gradually picking up more people along the way. The video ends with the camera zooming out on the field for Atomic Kitten's old logo is invisible in a shape of a kitten.

Track listings

Credits and personnel

Charts

Certifications and sales
Region CertificationCertified units/sales
Australia (ARIA)[51] 2× Platinum 140,000^
Austria (IFPI Austria)[52] Gold 20,000*
Belgium (BEA)[53] Gold 25,000*
Germany (BVMI)[10] Platinum 500,000^
Netherlands (NVPI)[54] Platinum 60,000^
New Zealand (RMNZ)[55] 2× Platinum 20,000*
Sweden (GLF)[56] Gold 15,000^
Switzerland (IFPI Switzerland)[57] Gold 20,000^
United Kingdom (BPI)[58] 2× Platinum 1,010,000[9]

*sales figures based on certification alone
^shipments figures based on certification alone

Other versions

References
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  2. Lane, Daniel (27 June 2013). "Daft Punk's Get Lucky becomes one of the UK's biggest selling singles of all-time!". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 29 September 2014.
  3. "Gray and Healy battle for Ivors". BBC News. 23 April 2002. Retrieved 19 September 2010.
  4. "100 Greatest Girl Group Songs of All Time: Critics' Picks". Billboard. Retrieved 11 July 2017.
  5. "Atomic Kitten's perfect year". BBC News. BBC. 30 December 2002. Retrieved 8 July 2012.
  6. "Atomic Kitten | Artist". Official Charts. Archived from the original on 30 December 2009. Retrieved 1 April 2014.
  7. "Blimey! Daft Punk's 'Get Lucky' Passes The One Million Sales Mark In Just 69 Days - Celebrity Gossip, News & Photos, Movie Reviews, Competitions". Entertainmentwise. 28 June 2013. Archived from the original on 8 April 2014. Retrieved 1 April 2014.
  8. As announced on BBC Radio 1's Official Chart of the Decade on Thursday 31 December 2009.
  9. Myers, Justin (5 November 2016). "Girlbands vs Boybands – their biggest songs of the century revealed". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 5 November 2016.
  10. "Gold-/Platin-Datenbank (Atomic Kitten; 'Whole Again')" (in German). Bundesverband Musikindustrie. Retrieved 3 June 2020.
  11. Archived 4 March 2008 at the Wayback Machine
  12. "SHOWBIZ | McFadden and Katona tie knot". BBC News. 5 January 2002. Retrieved 1 April 2014.
  13. Whole Again (UK CD single liner notes). Atomic Kitten. Innocent Records, Virgin Records. 2001. SINCD 24, 7243 8 97361 20.CS1 maint: others (link)
  14. Whole Again (UK limited CD single liner notes). Atomic Kitten. Innocent Records, Virgin Records. 2001. SINDX24, 7243 8 97369 2 2.CS1 maint: others (link)
  15. Whole Again (European CD single liner notes). Atomic Kitten. Innocent Records, Virgin Records. 2001. SINCDE 24, 7243 8 97478 29.CS1 maint: others (link)
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  63. https://www.balls.ie/football/watch-celtic-fans-mikael-lustig-song-377944
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