"Whole Lotta History" is a song by British all-female pop group Girls Aloud, taken from their third studio album ''

Chemistry Chemistry is the science, scientific study of the properties and behavior of matter. It is a natural science that covers the Chemical element, elements that make up matter to the chemical compound, compounds made of atoms, molecules and ions ...

'' (2005). The song was written by Miranda Cooper,

Brian Higgins Brian Michael Higgins (born October 6, 1959) is an American politician serving as the U.S. representative for , serving since 2005. The district, numbered as the 27th district from 2005 to 2013 but as the 26th since 2013, includes Buffalo and Ni ...

and his production team

Xenomania Xenomania is an English songwriting and production team founded by Brian Higgins and based in Kent, England. Formed by Higgins with his Creative Director Miranda Cooper and Business Director Sarah Stennett of First Access Entertainment, Xenoman ...

, and produced by Higgins and Xenomania. Described as "a lush ballad", "Whole Lotta History" was slightly remixed and released as a single in March 2006. It continued Girls Aloud's string of hits by becoming their twelfth consecutive single to chart within the top ten 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 ...

. The music video was filmed in Paris, France and features Girls Aloud reminiscing about a former love. "Whole Lotta History" was promoted through numerous live appearances and has since been performed on three of the group's concert tours. Receiving comparisons to 1990s girl groups

Spice Girls The Spice Girls are a British girl group formed in 1994, consisting of Melanie Brown, also known as Mel B ("Scary Spice"); Melanie Chisholm, or Melanie C ("Sporty Spice"); Emma Bunton ("Baby Spice"); Geri Halliwell ("Ginger Spice"); and Vict ...

and All Saints, "Whole Lotta History" received generally favourable reviews from music critics.

Background and composition

"Whole Lotta History" is written in the key of F# major. Despite sounding more traditional than most Girls Aloud songs, "Whole Lotta History" is made up of seven different parts rather than following a verse-chorus formula. The song begins with a two-part

introduction Introduction, The Introduction, Intro, or The Intro may refer to: General use * Introduction (music), an opening section of a piece of music * Introduction (writing), a beginning section to a book, article or essay which states its purpose and g ...

(part one sung by Kimberley Walsh, part two sung by Cheryl Cole), a

verse Verse may refer to: Poetry * Verse, an occasional synonym for poetry * Verse, a metrical structure, a stanza * Blank verse, a type of poetry having regular meter but no rhyme * Free verse, a type of poetry written without the use of strict me ...

(sung by Cole), and a pre-chorus (sung by Nadine Coyle) before reaching its

chorus Chorus may refer to: Music * Chorus (song) or refrain, line or lines that are repeated in music or in verse * Chorus effect, the perception of similar sounds from multiple sources as a single, richer sound * Chorus form, song in which all verse ...

. The song then continues with a different verse (sung by

Nicola Roberts Nicola Maria Roberts (born 5 October 1985) is a British pop singer. She rose to prominence in late 2002 upon winning a place in Girls Aloud, a girl group created through ITV's '' Popstars: The Rivals''. The group's success helped them win the c ...

) and a middle-eight (sung by Coyle). Following a repetition of the chorus, the song ends with a "wistful" conclusion sung by

Sarah Harding Sarah Nicole Harding (; 17 November 1981 – 5 September 2021) was an English singer, model and actress. Her professional career began in 2002 when she successfully auditioned for the ITV reality series '' Popstars: The Rivals'', during which ...

Release

"Whole Lotta History" was slightly remixed for the single release. The single version, known as the Original Ash Howes Mix, differs slightly from the album version found on ''Chemistry''; it has different percussion, a more pronounced guitar, and faint strings during the chorus. "Whole Lotta History" was Girls Aloud's first original ballad to be released as a single since 2003's "

Life Got Cold "Life Got Cold" is a song by British girl group Girls Aloud, taken from their debut album '' Sound of the Underground'' (2003). The song was written by Miranda Cooper, Brian Higgins and his production team Xenomania, and produced by Higgins and ...

". Shortly before the release of the single, Girls Aloud spent a week in Australia to promote "

Biology Biology is the scientific study of life. It is a natural science with a broad scope but has several unifying themes that tie it together as a single, coherent field. For instance, all organisms are made up of cells that process hereditary i ...

" there. Released on 13 March 2006, the single was made available on two CD single formats and as a digital download. The first disc includes a previously unreleased track entitled "Crazy Fool", which was co-written by Girls Aloud and sung solely by

Cheryl Tweedy Cheryl Ann Tweedy (born 30 June 1983) is an English singer and television personality. Born and raised in Newcastle upon Tyne, she rose to fame in late 2002 upon winning a place in Girls Aloud, a girl group created through ITV's '' Popstars: ...

. The song and its "pulsating electro backbeat" were praised by

Peter Robinson Peter Robinson may refer to: Entertainment * Peter Robinson (sideshow artist) (1873–1947), American actor and sideshow performer, known for his appearance in film ''Freaks'' (1932) * J. Peter Robinson (born 1945), British musician and film score ...

of ''

Popjustice Popjustice is a music website founded in 2000 by UK freelance music journalist Peter Robinson, who has worked for ''NME'', ''The Guardian'', ''Attitude'' and many others. It is composed of the work of editor Robinson, features editor Michael Cra ...

''. The second disc included the Whole Lotta Lamezma Mix of "Whole Lotta History", as well as Girls Aloud's live cover of

Wheatus Wheatus are an American rock band from Northport, New York, formed in 1995. They are known principally for their 2000 single "Teenage Dirtbag", which appeared in the films '' Loser'' and ''Bully'', as well as the HBO miniseries ''Generation Kil ...

' "

Teenage Dirtbag "Teenage Dirtbag" is a song by American rock band Wheatus. It was released on June 20, 2000, as the lead single from their eponymous debut album (2000). The song was written by guitarist and vocalist Brendan B. Brown and was inspired by a child ...

". A studio version was later released on ''

Radio 1 Established 1967 ''Radio 1: Established 1967'' is a compilation album consisting of covers recorded for BBC Radio 1 by a number of artists to celebrate the 40th anniversary of the radio station. There are 40 covers recorded by 40 different artists. Each artist c ...

''. An acoustic version of "Whole Lotta History" was also available as a digital download.

Reception

"Whole Lotta History" received generally favourable reviews from most music critics.

Virgin Media Virgin Media is a British telecommunications company which provides telephone, Cable television, television and Internet access, internet services in the United Kingdom. Its headquarters are at Green Park in Reading, Berkshire, Reading, Engla ...

stated that while Girls Aloud "do so much better when they shift into uptempo gear", the song is "one of the Girls' better efforts t ballads– not quite as saccharine as I'll Stand By You and a good deal more engaging than the turgid

See The Day "See the Day" is a song by English singer Dee C. Lee, released as a single on 21 October 1985. On 2 December it peaked at number 3 on the UK Singles Chart where it stayed for two weeks. The single sold in excess of 250,000 copies, receiving a s ...

." The song received comparisons to ballads by 1990s girl groups

and All Saints. BBC Music called it "a lush ballad reminiscent of the Spice Girls". A reporter for ''

The Irish Times ''The Irish Times'' is an Irish daily broadsheet newspaper and online digital publication. It launched on 29 March 1859. The editor is Ruadhán Mac Cormaic. It is published every day except Sundays. ''The Irish Times'' is considered a newspaper ...

'' compared the song to "a sub-Spice Girls Christmas No 1", while an

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...

reviewer compared it to "

2 Become 1 "2 Become 1" is a song by the English girl group the Spice Girls. Written by the group members, together with Matt Rowe and Richard Stannard during the group's first professional songwriting session, it was produced by Rowe and Stannard for ...

" specifically. John Murphy of ''

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'' described the song as "the best lovelorn ballad since All Saints' Never Ever."

Chart performance

Although the physical single was not released, "Whole Lotta History" was eligible to enter the

on 13 March 2006, due to new chart rules allowing singles to enter the charts on the Sunday before its physical release based on download sales only (the download was released the week before). "Whole Lotta History" debuted at number eighty, before peaking at number six the following week. This made the song Girls Aloud's twelfth consecutive top ten single, although it only spent a mere five weeks in the top 75. "Whole Lotta History" also charted at number twenty-three on the UK Download Chart. The single was the 188th best seller of 2006, with sales over 37,000. In Ireland, the song debuted at number eighteen on the

Irish Singles Chart The Irish Singles Chart is the Republic of Ireland's music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by the Irish Recorded Music Association (IRMA) and compiled on their behalf by the Official Charts Company. Chart rankings are bas ...

and spent a total of six weeks in the top fifty.

Music video

The music video for "Whole Lotta History" was directed by

Margaret Malandruccolo Margaret Malandruccolo is a Canadian photographer and music video director primarily living in Los Angeles who specializes in portraiture, album photography, and fashion photography. She has directed over a hundred music videos and has won two Juno ...

. Filmed in Paris, France, the video was Girls Aloud's first to be shot outside of the United Kingdom. The video depicts each member of the band in a different setting reminiscing about a former love, as the lyrics suggest. Kimberley Walsh receives flowers inside of a café and apparently looks at her past boyfriend. Cheryl Cole is in an unruly hotel room, looking out of a window onto a street. Nadine Coyle looks through a photo album at a desk in a study, while

looks at herself in a mirror.

walks alone along a river as couples pass by. The group shot consists of all members sitting together in a lounge (in the room Nadine's section takes place) laughing and discussing past relationships. The music video was included on the DVD release of 2006's

Chemistry Tour Chemistry: The Tour was the second concert tour by British all-female pop group Girls Aloud. It supported their third studio album, ''Chemistry (Girls Aloud album), Chemistry''. Following the success of 2005's What Will the Neighbours Say...? T ...

, as well as 2007's '' Style'' DVD. Behind the scenes footage was shown in the second episode of the group's reality show '' Girls Aloud: Off the Record''.

Live performances

Girls Aloud performed "Whole Lotta History" live for the first time on '' CD:UK'' on 18 February 2006. They also appeared on morning talk shows '' Davina'', ''

GMTV GMTV (an acronym for Good Morning Television), now legally known as ITV Breakfast Broadcasting Limited, was the name of the national Channel 3 breakfast television contractor/licensee, broadcasting in the United Kingdom from 1 January 1993 ...

'', and ''

Loose Women ''Loose Women'' (previously known as ''Live Talk'' from 2000 to 2001) is a British talk show that broadcasts on ITV1 weekdays from 12:30 pm to 1:30 pm. The show focuses on a panel of four female presenters who interview celebrities, talk about ...

'', as well as the Saturday morning

children's show Children's television series (or children's television shows) are television programs designed for children, normally scheduled for broadcast during the morning and afternoon when children are awake. They can sometimes run during the early evenin ...

Ministry of Mayhem ''Holly & Stephen's Saturday Showdown'' (previously titled ''Ministry of Mayhem'' and ''MoM'') was a British children's entertainment programme, which was broadcast on ITV (later CITV) from 10 January 2004 to 1 July 2006. Overview ''Ministry o ...

''. Additionally, they performed on ''

Top of the Pops ''Top of the Pops'' (''TOTP'') is a British Record chart, music chart television programme, made by the BBC and originally broadcast weekly between 1January 1964 and 30 July 2006. The programme was the world's longest-running weekly music show ...

'' and its spin-off show ''

Top of the Pops Reloaded ''Top of the Pops Reloaded'' (''TOTP Reloaded''), is a weekly children's music show broadcast as part of the Saturday morning CBBC schedule on BBC Two. It was based on the show, ''Top of the Pops'', and was originally known as ''Top of the Pops ...

''. During the group's promotional trip to Australia, Girls Aloud performed the song on ''

whatUwant ''whatUwant'' was an Australian music video request television show that aired daily on Channel ''whatUwant'' first aired in April 2002 and broadcast over 1500 episodes. On 13 October 2008, Foxtel revealed that the show would close on 7 Nove ...

''. Since its release, Girls Aloud have included the song on four of their concert tours. It was initially featured on 2006's

. The following year, during

The Greatest Hits Tour Greatest Hits Tour may refer to: * Greatest Hits Tour (Björk), a 2003 concert tour by Björk * Greatest Hits Tour (Boston), a 1997 concert tour by Boston * Greatest Hits Tour (Donna Summer), a 2005 concert tour by Donna Summer * Greatest Hits Tou ...

, they performed the song from "a pink cushion-covered swing." It was part of a ballad section on 2008's

Tangled Up Tour The Tangled Up Tour was the fourth concert tour by English-Irish girl group Girls Aloud. It supported their fourth studio album '' Tangled Up''. Tour dates were announced in November 2007. Girls Aloud performed twenty-four shows at arenas acros ...

, sung by Girls Aloud as they walk down a catwalk which reached the middle of the venue. It was omitted from 2009's

Out of Control Tour The Out of Control Tour was the fifth concert tour by British-Irish girl group Girls Aloud. It supported their fifth studio album '' Out of Control''. Initially, just ten dates in bigger arenas were announced in November 2008. Due to demand, mo ...

but it was included in the setlist of 2013's Ten: The Hits Tour.

Track listings and formats

UK CD1 (9877402) # "Whole Lotta History" (Original Ash Howes Mix) – 3:47 # "Crazy Fool" (Girls Aloud, Cooper, Higgins, Jon Shave) – 3:34 UK CD2 (9877403) # "Whole Lotta History" (Original Ash Howes Mix) – 3:47 # "Whole Lotta History" (Whole Lotta Lamezma Mix) – 5:09 # "

" (Live at

Carling Academy Academy Music Group (AMG) is a leading owner-operator of music venue A music venue is any location used for a concert or musical performance. Music venues range in size and location, from a small coffeehouse for folk music shows, an outdoor ...

) (

) – 4:14 # "Whole Lotta History" (video) – 3:47 # "Whole Lotta History" (karaoke video) – 3:47 # "Whole Lotta History" (game) UK 7digital exclusive download # "Whole Lotta History" (Acoustic Version) – 3:52 ''The Singles Boxset'' (CD12) # "Whole Lotta History" (Original Ash Howes Mix) – 3:47 # "Crazy Fool" – 3:34 # "Whole Lotta History" (Whole Lotta Lamezma Mix) – 5:09 # "Teenage Dirtbag" (Live at Carling Academy) – 4:14 # "Whole Lotta History" (Acoustic Version) – 3:52 # "Whole Lotta History" (video) – 3:47 # "Whole Lotta History" (karaoke video) – 3:47 # "Whole Lotta History" (game)

Credits and personnel

* Bass: Shawn Lee * Guitar: Nick Coler, Shawn Lee, Tim Powell * Keyboards:

, Tim Powell * Mastering: Dick Beetham for 360 Mastering * Mixing: Tim Powell, Jeremy Wheatley * Production: Brian Higgins,

* Programming: Brian Higgins, Tim "Rolf" Larcombe, Tim Powell * Songwriting: Miranda Cooper, Brian Higgins, Lisa Cowling, Tim "Rolf" Larcombe, Giselle Sommerville * Vocals: Girls Aloud * Published by Warner/Chappell Music and Xenomania Music

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end chart

References

{{Authority control 2000s ballads 2005 songs 2006 singles Girls Aloud songs Music videos directed by Margaret Malandruccolo Paris in fiction Pop ballads Song recordings produced by Xenomania Songs written by Brian Higgins (producer) Songs written by Giselle Sommerville Songs written by Lisa Cowling Songs written by Miranda Cooper Torch songs