BBC’s Children in Need charity has brought Girls Aloud back together in a musical capacity for the first time in over a decade. On Nov. 15, the British girl group will release the charity single “I’ll Stand by You (Sarah’s Version),” a tribute to original member Sarah Harding, who died in 2021.
“It really is a special celebration of Sarah, and also Girls Aloud’s involvement with Children In Need over the years,” singer Nadine Coyle shared, per BBC.
Coyle, along with Cheryl Cole, Nicola Roberts, and Kimberley Walsh, put a spotlight on Harding in the updated version of the song, which was initially released by the Pretenders in 1994. Pretenders singer Chrissie Hynde, who wrote the record, shared: “How wonderful to hear ‘I’ll Stand by You’ with the lovely vocals of Sarah Harding leading the way for BBC Children in Need.”
The Nov. 15 release date for “I’ll Stand By You (Sarah’s Version)” will coincide with the 20-year anniversary of “I’ll Stand by You,” which was initially released as a single on the Girls Aloud album What Will the Neighbours Say? in 2004. The record topped the U.K. singles chart for two weeks after debuting at Number One.
“I’ll Stand by You (Sarah’s Version)” marks the first posthumous musical appearance by Harding since her death from complications related to breast cancer. It’s also the first proper release from Girls Aloud in 12 years. Their last project, the compilation album Ten, arrived in 2012.
Girls Aloud formed on the television series Popstars: The Rivals in November 2002. The group performed their final concert as a five-piece in March 2013, effectively disbanding until earlier this year when their four remaining members embarked on a reunion tour through the U.K. and Ireland. When Girls Aloud performed “I’ll Stand by You” on the tour, video footage and images of Harding were projected onto the stage screen.
An updated music video for “I’ll Stand By You (Sarah’s Version)” will premiere during the BBC Children in Need concert special on BBC on the same day as the single release.
The new EP follows a number of new releases from Girls Aloud, beginning with the Long Hot Summer Digital EP release on March 15.
Earlier this year, the group and Polydor/Fascination Records released a special deluxe edition of the band’s second smash hit album What Will The Neighbours Say? That project was shared on March 8
The double platinum album features five Top 5 singles including “Jump,” “The Show,” “Love Machine,” “Wake Me Up,” and the No.1 single “I’ll Stand By You.” It was be released as 3 CD deluxe edition, which contains the original UK version of the album plus three never before heard Girls Aloud songs from 2004, alongside rarities, unreleased demos, and exclusive remixes.
The three previously unreleased songs, recorded 20 years ago and available for the first time, are the band’s cover of the Chris Isaak classic, “Wicked Game,” alongside two new songs from the Girls Aloud vault that didn’t make the final cut of the album, “Disco Bunny” and “Baby When You Go.”
The album also features classic B-sides such as “Androgynous Girls” and “History,” rare TV performance edits of the hits, a sparkling selection of the album’s remixes and Girls Aloud’s much-loved covers from this era of Blondie’s “Hanging On The Telephone” and Chaka Khan’s “I’m Every Woman.”
