Scream If You Wanna Go Faster

In 1999, after leaving the Spice Girls, Halliwell released her debut solo album Schizophonic. Three of its singles – "Mi Chico Latino", "Lift Me Up" and "Bag It Up" – reached number one on the UK Singles Chart. The album itself was also a success, being certified double platinum by the British Phonographic Industry (BPI) and gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA).{{cite web|url=http://www.bpi.co.uk/certifiedawards/search.aspx|title=BPI Certified Awards|publisher=British Phonographic Industry|access-date=10 February 2011|archive-date=11 May 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110511120001/http://www.bpi.co.uk/certifiedawards/search.aspx|url-status=dead}}{{cite web|url=https://www.riaa.com/gold-platinum/?tab_active=default-award&se=Geri+Halliwell#search_section|title=Gold & Platinum|publisher=Recording Industry Association of America|access-date=8 August 2009}} She started working on her second album in 2000, collaborating with production team Absolute, who produced her previous album, as well as new producers such as Gregg Alexander, Rick Nowels and Stephen Lipson. She and Alexander worked together in Los Angeles.{{cite web|url=http://www.dotmusic.com:80/artists/GeriHalliwell/news/January2001/news17313.asp|title=Halliwell And Alexander Team Up|date=12 January 2001|access-date=7 September 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20010622030657/http://www.dotmusic.com/artists/GeriHalliwell/news/January2001/news17313.asp|archive-date=22 June 2001|url-status=live}} Halliwell described the work with Nowels as a "daunting experience", and explained:

"I had never met anyone who was even more pushy about getting things done in the studio than I was but Rick was really driven and worked me very hard. The working day would start at ten and continue until he was satisfied, even if that was one or two in the morning. His songwriting method was simple. He sat me down on a stool in his studio and just told me to sing. He would use the words and melodies I came up with to help me build a song. I was still very uncertain of my talents but Rick's writing style stretched me to my limits. He was a hard taskmasker but I will always be grateful to him, as the work went on. we became great friends. It was very draining".{{harvnb|Halliwell|2003|p=147}}

Halliwell said Scream If You Wanna Go Faster was different from her previous album because she had gone "a much more creative way, I have explored every detail. In this album I have begun to realize that I am an authentic artist able to write songs and do it well.{{cite web|url=http://www.hola.com/musica/2001050938188/musica/geri/geri/|title=Geri Halliwell presenta en Madrid su nuevo disco 'Scream if you gonna go faster'|date=9 May 2001|access-date=7 September 2020|work=Hola|language=Spanish}} She also described the album as "bright and colourful, but there's deeper meaning underneath if you care and chose to look. Some of it is deep as [a] puddle, some of it is a bottomless pit, like a well".{{cite web|last=Stevenson|first=Jane|url=http://jam.canoe.ca/Music/Artists/H/Halliwell_Geri/2001/05/15/745787.html|title=Halliwell unfazed by good, and bad, publicity|date=15 May 2001|access-date=9 October 2018|publisher=Jam!|archive-url=https://archive.today/20130115103911/http://jam.canoe.ca/Music/Artists/H/Halliwell_Geri/2001/05/15/745787.html|archive-date=15 January 2013|url-status=usurped}} The singer stated that she believed the album was better than her previous one.{{harvnb|Halliwell|2003|p=225}}

The album's artwork depicts Halliwell on roller skates, holding onto the back of a Cadillac. Road safety campaigners claimed that the picture was setting a bad example to children and could put their lives at risk. Jane Eason of the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents said that it was "very irresponsible behaviour" from the singer. She elaborated, "We are very concerned about kids playing with roller skates, micro scooters or skateboards anywhere near roads, never mind hanging onto the back of cars", explaining that a significant amount of problems resulted when similar tricks were used in a film from the Back to the Future franchise. She finished by saying that considering that Halliwell was banned from driving months before the album's release, she found it "very wrong of her to encourage this kind of thing". Mary Williams of road safety organisation Brake shared similar feelings, stating that, "Geri Halliwell is an icon for young children and our worry is that kids will be tempted to copy her. I would have hoped that Geri and her advisers would have had a little foresight into the possible consequences of such a message". A spokesman for Halliwell found it amazing that the cover was taken so seriously, as it was meant to only be a "bright, fun image".{{cite web|url=https://www.nme.com/news/music/geri-halliwell-36-1394837|title=Geri Bad Example!|date=20 April 2001|access-date=7 September 2020|work=NME}} The back cover picture featured Halliwell bellowing out the song titles through a megaphone.{{harvnb|Sinclair|2010|p=311}} By each song lyric in the album sleeve, it is specified whether the song is "for the heart", "sexy", "to make you move" or "for the mind".{{cite web|url=http://www.clickmusic.co.uk:80/Clickmusic_Web_Guide/Bands_and_Artists/H/Halliwell,_Geri/Reviews/|title=Geri Halliwell - Scream If You Want To Go Faster|access-date=7 September 2020|website=Clickmusic|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20020413141011/http://www.clickmusic.co.uk/Clickmusic_Web_Guide/Bands_and_Artists/H/Halliwell,_Geri/Reviews/|archive-date=13 April 2002|url-status=live}}

To promote Scream If You Wanna Go Faster embarked on an extensive tour across the United Kingdom and Europe. She performed several tracks of the album on television shows such as Top of the Pops,{{cite web|url=http://www.bbc.co.uk:80/totp/artists/h/halliwell_geri/clips/calling.shtml|title=From the 00's – Geri Halliwell – Calling|access-date=7 September 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20030402030944/http://www.bbc.co.uk/totp/artists/h/halliwell_geri/clips/calling.shtml|archive-date=2 April 2003|url-status=dead}}{{cite web|url=http://www.bbc.co.uk:80/totp/artists/h/halliwell_geri/clips/its_raining_men.shtml|title=From the 00's – Geri Halliwell – It's Raining Men|access-date=7 September 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20030402024845/http://www.bbc.co.uk/totp/artists/h/halliwell_geri/clips/its_raining_men.shtml|archive-date=2 April 2003|url-status=dead}} and festivals like Festivalbar,{{cite web|language=Italian |url=https://ricerca.repubblica.it/repubblica/archivio/repubblica/2001/06/17/taormina-tutto-esaurito-al-festivalbar-due-sere.html|title=Taormina, tutto esaurito al Festivalbar due sere con Geri, Vasco e Pino Daniele|date=17 June 2001|access-date=7 September 2020|work=La Repubblica}} Party in the Park,{{cite web|last=Clarke|first=Betty|url=https://www.theguardian.com/culture/2001/jul/10/artsfeatures3|title=Three-minute pop songs triumph again|date=10 July 2001|access-date=7 September 2020|work=The Guardian}} and Popkomm.{{cite web|url=https://www.presseportal.de/pm/6708/273184|title="Stars 2001 - Die Popkomm Gala" mit Geri Halliwell, Echt, Missy Elliott, Jamiroquai, Dante Thomas feat. Pras, Right said Fred u.v.a.|date=13 August 2001|access-date=7 September 2020|via=Presseportal|language=German}} Halliwell performed in July 2001 at annual fashion event Donna Sotto le Stelle in Rome to promote the album. Halfway through the performance, she jumped into the Fontana della Barcaccia at the Spanish Steps. However, the singer angered locals and was fined by Italian police, who said the singer would be fined £320: "It is an offence to jump into the city fountains and the locals feel why should she be allowed to do so and get away with it?"{{cite web|url=http://www.dotmusic.com:80/artists/GeriHalliwell/news/July2001/news21240.asp|title=Geri's Rome romp|date=28 July 2001|website=Dotmusic|access-date=7 September 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20020329044811/http://www.dotmusic.com/artists/GeriHalliwell/news/July2001/news21240.asp|archive-date=29 March 2002|url-status=live}} Halliwell responded by saying "The Italians said I could do it".{{cite web|last=Reiter|first=Amy|url=https://www.salon.com/2001/07/20/npfri_57/|title=Was there risky business?|date=20 July 2001|access-date=7 September 2020|work=Salon.com}}

"It's Raining Men" was also featured as the lead single internationally to the soundtrack of the 2001 film Bridget Jones's Diary, was released as the album's lead single in April 2001. Despite low expectations from the record company,{{cite web|url=http://www.ananova.com:80/entertainment/story/sm_273125.html?menu=|title=Geri's record company has 'little faith' in her new single|date=26 April 2001|access-date=11 October 2018|publisher=Ananova|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20010721112837/http://www.ananova.com/entertainment/story/sm_273125.html?menu=|archive-date=21 July 2001|url-status=live}} and claims that radio stations would not add the track to their playlists,{{cite news|url=http://www.nme.com:80/NME/External/News/News_Story/0,1004,24563,00.html|title=Tabloid Hell - April 11|date=11 April 2001|access-date=11 October 2018|work=NME|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20010417063644/http://www.nme.com/NME/External/News/News_Story/0,1004,24563,00.html|archive-date=17 April 2001|url-status=live}} the song debuted at number one on the UK Singles Chart and stayed there for two weeks. It became Halliwell's fourth consecutive number-one single in the United Kingdom, selling 449,000 copies in the region alone,{{cite web|url=http://www.officialcharts.com/chart-news/the-ultimate-official-spice-girls-solo-chart-all-their-singles-ranked-by-sales-__19520/|title=The ultimate Official Spice Girls solo chart: all their singles ranked by sales|first=Rob|last=Copsey|date=29 June 2017|publisher=Official Charts Company|access-date=5 August 2017}} and becoming the 13th best seller of 2001 there.{{cite web |date=5 January 2002 |title=Top 200 Singles and Albums of 2001 |url=https://www.ukchartsplus.co.uk/ChartsPlusYE2001.pdf |access-date=13 October 2018 |publisher=Official Charts Company}} The song was a huge success in France and was certified Diamond by the Syndicat National de l'Édition Phonographique (SNEP).{{cite web|url=http://www.disqueenfrance.com/fr/page-259165.xml?year=2002&type=10 |title=Certifications Singles Diamond - année 2002 |publisher=Disque en France |access-date=3 April 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111212214119/http://www.disqueenfrance.com/fr/page-259165.xml?year=2002 |archive-date=12 December 2011 }} With the song, Geri Halliwell won the "International Song of the Year" award at the 2002 NRJ Music Awards in France.{{cite web|url=https://www.nrj.fr/music-awards/actualites/nrj-music-awards-2002-236040|title=NRJ Music Awards 2002|date=18 November 2002|access-date=7 September 2020|publisher=NRJ|language=French|archive-date=19 December 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191219184136/https://www.nrj.fr/music-awards/actualites/nrj-music-awards-2002-236040|url-status=dead}}

"Scream If You Wanna Go Faster" was released as the second single from the album on 30 July 2001. In the United Kingdom, it peaked at number eight, which became the lowest-charting single of Halliwell's career at the time, being considered a failure by British press.{{cite web|url=http://www.dotmusic.com:80/artists/GeriHalliwell/news/August2001/news21288.asp|title=Geri single to flop?|date=1 August 2001|website=Dotmusic|access-date=11 October 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20031216083022/http://www.dotmusic.com/artists/GeriHalliwell/news/August2001/news21288.asp|archive-date=16 December 2003|url-status=live}} The single also was not as successful as the previous single across Europe, peaking at numbers 66 and 67 in Switzerland and Germany, despite reaching the top ten in Italy.{{cite web|url=http://www.swisscharts.com/showitem.asp?interpret=Geri+Halliwell&titel=Scream+If+You+Wanna+Go+Faster&cat=s|title=Swisscharts.com – Geri Halliwell – Scream If You Wanna Go Faster|publisher=Swiss Singles Chart |access-date=5 September 2017}}

Considered by Halliwell herself as her favourite song on the album, "Calling" was chosen as its third and last single in November 2001. It matched the moderate success of previous single, peaking at number seven in the United Kingdom, and reached better positions in Germany and Switzerland than the title track.{{cite web|url=http://www.swisscharts.com/showitem.asp?interpret=Geri+Halliwell&titel=Calling&cat=s|title=Swisscharts.com – Geri Halliwell – Calling|publisher=Swiss Singles Chart|access-date=5 September 2017}} Due to the underwhelming performance of the single, no further singles from Scream If You Wanna Go Faster were released, and Halliwell moved to Los Angeles for several months and took a break from the music industry.{{harvnb|Halliwell|2003|p=222}}

{{Album ratings

| rev1 = AllMusic

| rev1score = {{Rating|2.5|5}}{{cite web|last=Promis|first=Jose F.|url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/scream-if-you-wanna-go-faster-mw0000531103|title=Geri Halliwell - Scream If You Wanna Go Faster|access-date=9 October 2018|publisher=AllMusic}}

| rev2 = The Birmingham Mail

| rev2score = {{Rating|2|5}}{{cite news|last=Jones|first=Alison|url=https://www.thefreelibrary.com/CD+reviews%3A+Rock+%26+Pop-a075076290|title=CD reviews: Rock & Pop|date=26 May 2001|work=The Birmingham Mail|access-date=9 October 2018}}

| rev4 = Dotmusic

| rev4score = 6/10{{cite web|last=Oliver|first=Lisa|url=http://www.dotmusic.com:80/artists/GeriHalliwell/reviews/May2001/reviews19805.asp|title=Scream If You Wanna Go Faster|access-date=6 October 2018|website=Dotmusic|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20030821111005/http://www.dotmusic.com/artists/GeriHalliwell/reviews/May2001/reviews19805.asp|archive-date=21 August 2003|url-status=live}}

| rev5 = entertainment.ie

| rev5score = {{Rating|1|5}}{{cite web|url=https://entertainment.ie/album-review/Geri-Halliwell-Scream-If-You-Wanna-Go-Faster/110280.htm|title=Geri Halliwell - Scream If You Wanna Go Faster|access-date=9 October 2018|website=entertainment.ie|date=14 May 2001 }}

| rev6 = The Guardian

| rev6score = {{Rating|2|5}}{{cite news|last=Sullivan|first=Caroline|url=https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2001/may/11/shopping.culture3|title=Life on planet fame|date=11 May 2001|access-date=6 October 2010|work=The Guardian}}

| rev7 = Hot Press

| rev7score = negative{{cite news|last=O'Hare|first=Colm|url=https://www.hotpress.com/Geri-Halliwell/music/reviews/albums/Scream-If-You-Want-To-Go-Faster/567358.html|title=Scream If You Want To Go Faster|work=Hot Press|date=7 May 2001|access-date=6 October 2018}}

| rev8 = laut.de

| rev8score = {{Rating|3|5}}{{cite web|last=Teichmann|first=Klaus|url=https://www.laut.de/Geri-Halliwell/Alben/Scream-If-You-Wanna-Go-Faster-1502|title=Scream If You Wanna Go Faster|access-date=6 October 2018|website=laut.de|language=German}}

| rev9 = NME

| rev9score = 1/10{{cite news|last=Ward|first=Christian|url=https://www.nme.com/reviews/reviews-nme-5045-333674|title=Halliwell, Geri : Scream If You Wanna Go Faster|access-date=19 May 2022|work=NME}}

}}

Scream If You Wanna Go Faster received generally negative reviews from music journalists. Ian Sturgess from the Daily Mirror commented that Halliwell "has gone all out to make a record that's sassy, irreverent and brimming with down 'n' dirty attitude, but which ends up way off the mark".{{cite news |last=Sturgess |first=Ian |date=12 May 2001 |title=4 play: What's new on CD, film, video and DVD |url=https://www.thefreelibrary.com/4+play%3A+What's+new+on+CD,+film,+video+and+DVD.-a074461582 |access-date=9 October 2018 |work=Daily Mirror}} Lisa Oliver of Dotmusic gave the album a mixed review, whilst saying Scream If You Wanna Go Faster "is never going to be a seminal album to change your life and return to again and again. But it is an album you can happily bop along to and sing along with at the top of your lungs during a drunken night out. You can't really ask more of a pop album than that". Jose F. Promis of AllMusic was more positive, noting that despite a few dull moments, the album was "diverse, uplifting, and fun through and through -- only the most hardened and cynical listener would be incapable of finding a song to tap their foot to".

Christian Ward from NME gave the album one out of ten stars, and commented that Scream If You Wanna Go Faster was the sound of "Crisis Spice arriving back in a pop climate she should have dominated after 'Schizophonic'"; Ward also criticized the lyrics on the album. Website entertainment.ie also gave the album one out of five stars, whilst commenting that the album was "an unmitigated disaster: Geri dutifully has a go at rock, reggae, disco and rap, all equally superficial, unconvincing and instantly forgettable. Her vocals are weak, the songs are formulaic and the album as a whole is a boring, irritating mess". Another negative review came from Caroline Sullivan of newspaper The Guardian, who said that even in its "thoughtful" moments, it is "sunk by [its] production-line sound and Halliwell's limited range".

The Birmingham Mail{{'}}s Alison Jones described the album's tracks as "rang[ing] from the bland to the not so bad", and noted that "the overwhelming impression of this album is that all the lyrics have been written with the aid of the little book of cliches, giving them the resonance and emotional depth of the contents of a fortune cookie". Scream If You Wanna Go Faster was later included on Gigwise{{'}}s list of the worst albums of the 2000s decade.{{cite web |date=10 September 2009 |title=The 50 Worst Albums of the 2000s! |url=https://www.gigwise.com/photos/52402/ |access-date=7 September 2020 |website=Gigwise}}

In the United Kingdom, Scream If You Wanna Go Faster sold 9,000 copies on its first day of release,{{cite web |date=15 May 2001 |title=REM lead Geri in album race |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/1332522.stm |access-date=13 October 2018 |work=BBC News}} and although it was expected to reach the top three,{{cite news |last=Lane |first=Harriet |date=20 May 2001 |title=The making of New Geri |url=https://www.theguardian.com/theobserver/2001/may/20/features.review27 |access-date=13 October 2018 |work=The Observer}} the album debuted at number five on the UK Albums Chart on 21 May 2001, selling around 22,000 copies in its first week.{{citation needed|date=August 2021}} It remained 16 weeks inside the chart, and became the 127th best selling album of 2001 in the United Kingdom. The album was certified Gold by the British Phonographic Industry (BPI). Across Europe, Scream If You Wanna Go Faster attained moderate success. It Austria, it debuted at number 43 on 3 June 2001, reaching its peak of number 30 two weeks later. Similarly in Germany, the album reached number 29 on the album chart. It experienced more success in Greece and Italy, reaching numbers five and eight, respectively. According to Halliwell, the album's low sales made "disappointment hit [her] hard. I was so proud of the record that I wanted the progress I had made to be recognised. The way it was looking, though, it wasn't even going to be heard".{{harvnb|Halliwell|2003|p=206}}

Credits adapted from the liner notes of Scream If You Wanna Go Faster.{{cite AV media notes |title=Scream If You Wanna Go Faster |others=Geri Halliwell |year=2001 |type=CD liner notes |publisher=EMI Music |id=7243 5 33369 4 3}}

{{Track listing

| total_length = 46:55

| extra_column = Producer

| title1 = Scream If You Wanna Go Faster

| writer1 = {{flat list|

• Geri Halliwell
• Rick Nowels}}

| extra1 = Nowels

| length1 = 3:38

| title2 = Shake Your Bootie Cutie

| writer2 = {{flat list|

• Halliwell
• Gregg Alexander
• Nowels}}

| extra2 = {{flat list|

• Alexander
• Nowels}}

| length2 = 4:02

| title3 = Calling

| writer3 = {{flat list|

• Halliwell
• Peter-John Vettese}}

| extra3 = Stephen Lipson

| length3 = 4:25

| title4 = Feels Like Sex

| writer4 = {{flat list|

• Halliwell
• Tracy Ackerman
• Andy Watkins
• Paul Wilson}}

| extra4 = Absolute

| length4 = 3:24

| title5 = Circles Round the Moon

| writer5 = {{flat list|

• Halliwell
• Ackerman
• Watkins
• Wilson}}

| extra5 = Absolute

| length5 = 3:59

| title6 = Love Is the Only Light

| writer6 = {{flat list|

• Halliwell
• Jörgen Elofsson
• Lipson}}

| extra6 = Lipson

| length6 = 3:26

| title7 = Strength of a Woman

| writer7 = {{flat list|

• Halliwell
• Nowels}}

| extra7 = Nowels

| length7 = 4:03

| title8 = Don't Call Me Baby

| writer8 = {{flat list|

• Halliwell
• Watkins
• Wilson}}

| extra8 = Absolute

| length8 = 3:42

| title9 = Lovey Dovey Stuff

| writer9 = {{flat list|

• Halliwell
• Ackerman
• Watkins
• Wilson}}

| extra9 = Absolute

| length9 = 3:39

| title10 = It's Raining Men

| writer10 = {{flat list|

• Paul Jabara
• Paul Shaffer}}

| extra10 = Lipson

| length10 = 4:18

| title11 = Heaven and Hell (Being Geri Halliwell)

| writer11 = {{flat list|

• Halliwell
• Elofsson
• Lipson}}

| extra11 = Lipson

| length11 = 3:31

| title12 = I Was Made That Way

| writer12 = {{flat list|

• Halliwell
• Vettese}}

| extra12 = {{flat list|

• Lipson
• Vettese}}

| length12 = 4:47

}}

{{Track listing

| headline = Japanese bonus track

| extra_column = Producer

| title13 = Brave New World

| writer13 = {{flat list|

• Halliwell
• Vettese}}

| extra13 = {{flat list|

• Vettese
• Ian Masterson{{ref|a|[a]}}}}

| length13 = 4:10

}}

• ^{{note|a|a}} signifies a remixer

{{col-begin}}

{{col-2}}

• Geri Halliwell – vocals
• Wayne Rodrigues – drum programming, Pro Tools editing
• Rick Nowels – acoustic and electric guitar, bass guitar, keyboards
• Chris Garcia – bass guitar, drums, guitar
• Rusty Anderson – electric guitar
• Milton McDonald – guitar
• Charles Judge – keyboards
• Andy Duncan – programming
• Jörgen Elofsson – guitar
• Greg Kurstin – keyboards, clavinet
• Simon Clarke – flute

{{col-2}}

• Tim Pierce – guitar
• Mike Higham – guitar, additional programming
• David A. Stewart – keyboards
• David Rainger – electric guitar
• Peter-John Vettese – keyboards, programming, backing vocals
• Stephen Lipson – acoustic guitar, programming
• Tracy Ackerman – backing vocals
• Claudia Fontaine – backing vocals
• Danielle Brisebois – backing vocals
• Beverley Skeete – backing vocals
• Sue Ann Carwell – backing vocals

{{col-end}}

{{col-begin}}

{{col-2}}

{{col-2}}

{{col-end}}

{{Certification Table Top}}

{{Certification Table Entry|region=France|title=Scream If You Wanna Go Faster|artist=Geri Halliwell|type=album|award=Gold|certyear=2002|relyear=2001|access-date=19 March 2015|refname="snep"}}

{{Certification Table Entry|region=United Kingdom|type=album|title=Scream If You Wanna Go Faster|artist=Geri Halliwell|award=Gold|relyear=2001|certyear=2001|refname="bpi"|id=5726-3522-2}}

{{Certification Table Bottom}}

{{Reflist}}

• {{Cite book|last=Halliwell|first=Geri|title=Just for the Record|year=2003|publisher=Ebury Press|isbn=978-0-091-88804-6|author-link=Geri Halliwell}}
• {{Cite book|last=Sinclair|first=David|title=Spice Girls Revisited: How The Spice Girls Reinvented Pop|year=2010|publisher=Omnibus Press|isbn=978-1-846-09068-4}}

{{Geri Halliwell}}

{{Authority control}}

Category:2001 albums

Category:Geri Halliwell albums

Category:Albums produced by Stephen Lipson

Category:Albums produced by Rick Nowels

Category:EMI Records albums