"Friends Forever" is the debut single of British girl group Thunderbugs, released as the first single from their only studio album, ''Delicious''. The song was written by Thunderbugs and Escape Club members Trevor Steel and John Holliday. The lyrics contain a reference to the 1990 film ''

Thelma & Louise ''Thelma & Louise'' is a 1991 American road crime comedy-drama film directed by Ridley Scott and written by Callie Khouri. It stars Susan Sarandon as Louise and Geena Davis as Thelma, two friends who embark on a road trip that ends up in unfores ...

'', and the single's cover was photographed by Tim Bret Day. It was released in the United Kingdom on 6 September 1999 and debuted at number five on the

UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...

, becoming the band's highest-peaking single and only top-forty hit in the UK. The song is featured on the soundtrack to the 2000

teen drama In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. Drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular super-g ...

film '' Center Stage''.

Critical reception

Rob Johnson of Into the Popvoid called "Friends Forever" a "happy, breezy affair" and went on to describe the song as a "wonderful guitar rock/pop backing track that

Belinda Carlisle Belinda Jo Carlisle ( ; born August 17, 1958) is an American singer. She gained fame as the lead vocalist of the Go-Go's, the most successful all-female rock band of all time, and went on to have a prolific career as a solo artist. Raised in ...

would have been proud of". In a review of the soundtrack album to '' Center Stage'', William Ruhlmann said the track "sounds like it could be the anthem for the junior high school class of 2000". Several reviews have claimed that the song and its video possess the vibe of a

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advertisement.

Chart performance

Released on 6 September 1999 in the United Kingdom, "Friends Forever" debuted and peaked at number five on the

on the week of 12 September 1999, spending five weeks in the top 40 and 11 weeks on the chart altogether. Its UK sales alone registered on the Eurochart Hot 100 on the issue of 25 September 1999, when it appeared at number 25. The single was given a release in Europe on 6 September 1999, but it charted only in the

Flanders Flanders (, ; Dutch: ''Vlaanderen'' ) is the Flemish-speaking northern portion of Belgium and one of the communities, regions and language areas of Belgium. However, there are several overlapping definitions, including ones related to cultu ...

region of Belgium and the Netherlands. In the Netherlands, it reached number 27 on the Dutch Top 40 on 23 October 1999, while in Flanders, it peaked at number 14 on the Ultratip Bubbling Under chart on 20 November.

Aftermath

Follow-up single "It's About Time You Were Mine" reached only number 43 in the United Kingdom, and the group soon disbanded. Rob Johnson of Into the Popvoid attributed the band's brief success to the decline in popularity of girl groups during the late 1990s, the release of "It's About Time You Were Mine" during the busy

Christmas Christmas is an annual festival commemorating the birth of Jesus Christ, observed primarily on December 25 as a religious and cultural celebration among billions of people around the world. A feast central to the Christian liturgical year ...

holiday period, and the failure of the minidisc format, on which the parent album ''Delicious'' was released.

Track listings

European CD single # "Friends Forever" – 3:43 # "First Time" – 2:51 European maxi-CD # "Friends Forever" – 3:44 # "First Time" – 2:51 # "Friends Forever" (K-Klass Club Mix) – 7:19 # "Friends Forever" (Pump Friction & Precious Paul's Club Mix) – 7:24 # "Friends Forever" (video)

Charts

References

{{Authority control 1999 debut singles 1999 songs British pop rock songs Epic Records singles First Avenue Records singles Songs written by Trevor Steel