Atomic Kitten biography
Atomic Kitten are an English pop girl group formed in Liverpool in 1997. Consisting of members Liz McClarnon, Natasha Hamilton and Jenny Frost, the original line-up included Heidi Range (who later joined the Sugababes) and Kerry Katona (who left in 2001 when she became pregnant). The group had three UK number one singles; "Whole Again", the fourth best-selling single by a girl group of all time; "Eternal Flame", a song originally recorded by The Bangles, and "The Tide Is High (Get the Feeling)", a song originally recorded by The Paragons and later by Blondie. They also had two UK number one albums, Right Now, a re-issue of their debut album, and Feels So Good, both going double platinum in the United Kingdom.
The group announced they were splitting in April 2004 although they got back together a year later to re-release a new version of their single "Cradle" and also made one off appearances in 2006 and 2008. On 4 March 2012, Natasha Hamilton confirmed that the group would be reforming during the year.
History
1997-2001: Formation and Right Now
Atomic Kitten was first conceived in 1997 by Andy McCluskey of 1980s band Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark. The original line-up featured Liz McClarnon, Kerry Katona and Heidi Range (now in the Sugababes), but Range decided to quit due to artistic differences, and was replaced by Natasha Hamilton. This line-up was finalised in 1999.
The group's first single, "Right Now", debuted in December 1999 and reached the UK Top 10. After their initial success, Atomic Kitten performed an Asian tour and scored their first number one hit there with "Cradle". The album, also titled Right Now, was first released in Japan on 16 March 2000, and subsequently released in the United Kingdom on 23 October 2000 with a slightly modified track list. In 2000, the group also recorded a cover version of "The Locomotion" for the movie Thomas and the Magic Railroad.
Right Now was unsuccessful upon its first release, peaking only at #39 in the UK album chart.
The single, "Whole Again", became their first number-one hit in the United Kingdom, and stayed at the top for four consecutive weeks. The song and video for "Whole Again" originally featured Kerry Katona; however, she left the group several days prior to the number-one position due to of her pregnancy. Jenny Frost replaced Katona in the line-up and the single was re-recorded. This led to the decision to partially re-record and re-release the Right Now album, which then went to number-one in the UK in August 2001, and was certified double Platinum.
Their next single, "Eternal Flame", a cover version of the 1989 hit by The Bangles, became their second number-one single in the UK and New Zealand. It became their biggest single in France peaking at number two and eventually went Gold. In late 2001 the band announced they would be releasing a final single from the repackaged album, entitled "You Are". A video was recorded and promo singles were sent out to radio, but the single was ultimately shelved, never getting a full commercial release.
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