I have always been fascinated by the concept of Celebrity Singers – by which I mean, “Singers whose celebrity eclipses their singing careers.”
The first decade of this millennium was the Golden Era for such individuals: Mickey Mouse Club alumni ruled the charts, and actresses were launching singing careers left and right – some with better results than others. (Anyone remember Paris Hilton’s wretched “Stars Go Blind” or Leighton Meester’s super-uncomfortable duet with Robin Thicke?)
One of the most famous celebs of this era was Victoria Beckham. Although she did almost nothing with her musical career during the 2000s, she has arguably been more famous as Mrs. David Beckham than she ever was as Posh Spice.
After a solo debut in 2001 that sold only 50,000 copies (thank you, Wikipedia), Beckham spent a couple of years working on a follow-up before ultimately abandoning the project after her label went bankrupt. Which is a shame, because this is the only solo track of hers that I like, and it’s never seen a commercial release. (It’s accessible only on the deepest recesses of YouTube and Soundcloud, thanks to some super-dedicated fans, most of who are really into making their own music videos for the track.) While the breathy, electronic vibe of “I Should Have Known Better” was very much the fashion of the day, Beckham manages to imbue the track with a poignant, rueful quality.
So, if you’re feeling down about the Brexit this week, sit down, put on this track, and and try to remember happier days, when the biggest quandary that Great Britain had to deal with was whether or not Posh should release a second album.
