All Saints (group) facts for kids

Quick facts for kids All Saints
All Saints performing in 2007. Clockwise from top left: Shaznay Lewis, Melanie Blatt, Natalie Appleton and Nicole Appleton.
Background information
Also known as	All Saints 1.9.7.5 (1993–1995)
Origin	London, England
Genres	Pop electronic R&B
Years active	1993–2001 2006–2008 2013–present
Labels	ZTT London Parlophone
Members	Natalie Appleton Nicole Appleton Melanie Blatt Shaznay Lewis
Past members	Simone Rainford

All Saints is an English girl group that started in London in 1993. They were first called All Saints 1.9.7.5 and were formed by music manager Ron Tom. The original members were Melanie Blatt, Shaznay Lewis, and Simone Rainford.

The group had some challenges at the start. They signed with ZTT Records but didn't find much success and were later dropped. After Simone Rainford left, Canadian sisters Nicole Appleton and Natalie Appleton joined the group in 1996. They then signed with London Records and shortened their name to All Saints.

All Saints became very popular in the 1990s. Their first album, All Saints (1997), reached number two in the UK. It became one of the best-selling girl group albums in the UK. This album had three UK number-one songs: "Never Ever", "Under the Bridge"/"Lady Marmalade", and "Bootie Call". "Never Ever" is one of the best-selling girl group songs ever in the UK. It also won two BRIT Awards: Best British Single and Best British Video.

Their second album, Saints & Sinners (2000), was their first to reach number one in the UK. It included the number-one songs "Pure Shores" and "Black Coffee". The group later decided to take a break due to disagreements.

All Saints reunited in 2006 and released their third album, Studio 1. However, this album didn't do as well as their previous ones. After another break, the group got back together in 2014 for live shows. This led to new albums, Red Flag (2016) and Testament (2018). All Saints have sold over 12 million records worldwide. They have also influenced other musicians and British fashion, especially their style of cargo pants. In 2020, they recorded a song called "Message in a Bottle" with Sting.

History of All Saints

Starting the Group (1993–1996)

Melanie Blatt and Shaznay Lewis began their music journey singing backup vocals at Sarm West Studios in London. In 1993, Melanie, Shaznay, and Simone Rainford signed with ZTT Records. Their manager, Ron Tom, decided they should form a group. They thought about names like Spice, Slinky, and Shifty, but chose All Saints 1.9.7.5. This name came from the recording studio and the year they were born.

The trio performed for the first time at the Notting Hill Carnival. However, they had trouble agreeing on their music style. Their first song, "Silver Shadow" (1994), didn't become a big hit. Simone Rainford also had disagreements with the other girls and left the group in 1995. After one more song, the remaining duo was dropped by ZTT Records.

Melanie and Shaznay then looked for a new member. In May 1996, Melanie's father met Nicole Appleton, who Melanie knew from school. Melanie was shy, so Shaznay asked Nicole to join. Nicole sang for them, and they knew she was perfect. Nicole's older sister, Natalie Appleton, first thought about managing the band. But it felt right for her to join too. Natalie was worried about leaving her daughter, Rachel, but her parents offered to help.

First Album Success (1996–1999)

After the new group formed in May 1996, the four singers met with Karl "K-Gee" Gordon, a music producer. They looked for a new record deal, but many labels wanted them to be like the Spice Girls. All Saints decided to sign with London Records in November 1996. They recorded their first album, All Saints, with several producers.

In mid-1997, their first song, "I Know Where It's At", became popular, reaching number four in the UK. Their second song, "Never Ever", came out in November 1997. It became a huge hit worldwide, reaching number one in the UK and Australia. This song sold 1.2 million copies in the UK and won two BRIT Awards in 1998.

The album All Saints was released in October 1997. It reached number two in the UK and sold 1.5 million copies. The next song was "Under the Bridge / Lady Marmalade", which became their second UK number-one hit in May 1998. "Bootie Call", their fourth song, also reached number one. Their last song from the album, "War of Nerves", reached number seven.

The album was also successful in other countries like Australia, Canada, and the United States. In the US, it sold one million copies and had two top 40 songs: "I Know Where It's At" and "Never Ever". In November 1998, All Saints won the MTV Europe Music Award for Best Breakthrough Artist.

Second Album and Break (2000–2001)

In February 2000, All Saints released "Pure Shores" for the movie The Beach. This song became their fourth number-one hit in the UK and was one of the best-selling songs of 2000. It also won an Ivor Novello Award. In 2000, the Appleton sisters and Melanie Blatt also acted in a movie called Honest. The movie was not very popular with critics.

In October 2000, All Saints released "Black Coffee", which became their fifth and last number-one song in the UK. This was followed by their second album, Saints & Sinners, which reached number one in the UK. The last song from this album was "All Hooked Up" in January 2001, which reached number seven.

The next month, All Saints announced they were taking a break to sort out their differences. Melanie Blatt later said it was hard to work together. Shaznay Lewis explained that a small disagreement grew into a bigger problem, leading to the break-up.

In November 2001, London Records released a greatest hits album called All Hits. It included their hit songs and Melanie Blatt's first solo song. The album reached number eighteen in the UK.

First Reunion (2006–2008)

On January 24, 2006, it was announced that All Saints had reunited and signed a deal with Parlophone Records. They started working on their third album, Studio 1. Its first song, "Rock Steady", came out in November 2006 and reached number three in the UK.

However, Studio 1 only reached number forty on the album charts, which was much lower than their previous albums. A second song, "Chick Fit", was planned for February 2007, but it was cancelled and didn't make it into the top 200. All Saints then parted ways with Parlophone. Melanie Blatt later said that the reunion wasn't for the right reasons and that she felt uncomfortable with the success.

In 2008, there were talks about All Saints recording new music, but nothing was released. In 2009, Melanie Blatt said that All Saints would not get back together again. Three months later, another collection of their best songs, Pure Shores: The Very Best of All Saints, was released.

Second Reunion and Red Flag (2013–2016)

On May 25, 2013, Simone Rainford, one of the original members of All Saints, sadly passed away from kidney cancer.

In November 2013, the group announced they would reunite again to support the Backstreet Boys on their UK and Ireland tour in 2014. They also performed at other music festivals. Melanie Blatt said they were just enjoying performing and didn't plan to record new music at first.

However, on January 27, 2016, it was confirmed that All Saints would release their fourth album, Red Flag, on April 8, 2016. The first song from the album, "One Strike", came out on February 26, 2016.

On February 22, 2016, All Saints announced their first headline show in over ten years at KOKO in London. On March 15, 2016, they announced their first headline tour in 15 years to support Red Flag. The Red Flag Tour visited ten British cities in October 2016. The group said the tour would include all their hit songs and some new ones from Red Flag.

Red Flag reached number 3 on the UK Albums Chart. The group confirmed that "This Is A War" and "One Woman Man" would be the next songs from the album. In October 2016, it was announced that All Saints would support Take That on their tour in May and June 2017.

Testament and Today (2017–present)

On March 19, 2017, the group confirmed they had started recording their fifth album. Karl "K-Gee" Gordon and William Orbit, who produced "Pure Shores" and "Black Coffee", were involved again.

On May 29, 2018, the group announced their fifth album would be called Testament, released on July 11, 2018. The first song from the album, "Love Lasts Forever", was first played on BBC Radio 2 on May 31.

On April 14, 2020, the group released a cover of "Message in a Bottle" with Sting. An official video for the song was released on April 20, 2020.

Solo Music Careers

After All Saints first broke up, the members worked on their own music.

Melanie Blatt was the first to release solo music. In September 2001, she worked with Artful Dodger on the song "TwentyFourSeven", which reached number six in the UK. She released other songs, but her solo album was never released. In 2013 and 2015, she was a judge on The X Factor in New Zealand.

Natalie and Nicole Appleton formed a duo called Appleton. They signed with Polydor Records. In September 2002, their first song, "Fantasy", reached number two in the UK. Their book, Together, came out the next month. Their second song, "Don't Worry", reached number five in March 2003, followed by their album, Everything's Eventual. The album reached number nine.

Shaznay Lewis released her first solo song, "Never Felt Like This Before", in July 2004, which reached number eight in the UK. Her album Open came out two weeks later. In November 2004, Shaznay was part of Band Aid 20 for the song "Do They Know It's Christmas?". In 2008, she worked with Wideboys on the song "Daddy O".

Discography

• All Saints (1997)
• Saints & Sinners (2000)
• Studio 1 (2006)
• Red Flag (2016)
• Testament (2018)

Tours

Awards and Nominations

See also

In Spanish: All Saints para niños

• List of best-selling girl groups