equalizer, and a SSL desk for the stereo bus compressor. To create an acoustic feel, Stannard placed the sound of a Ludwig drumkit on top of a drum machine. Audio engineer Mark "Spike" Stent did the final mixing of the song at The Mix Suite, Olympic Studios in London. Composition and lyrics Musically, "What Took You So Long?" is a pop rock song. It is written in the key of C major, with a time signature set in common time, and moves at a fast tempo of 120 beats per minute. The song uses the sequence Fmaj7–Am–G as the chord progression and is constructed in a verse-chorus form, with a bridge before the third chorus. It starts with an instrumental introduction that incorporates acoustic guitars, keyboards, a drumkit, and a drum machine. The arrangement include the use of handclaps to energise the sound. Some critics have noted the similarities of the song's production to the work of AOR artists such as Sheryl Crow and Texas. The melody has a Motown feel, and has been described by Bunton as "pop entwined with guitars". She cited Texas and Gabrielle as the main influences sonically. Tom Ewing from Freaky Trigger considered Bunton's vocals during the chorus to be her "strength card" that adds "enjoyable touches" to the song; an opinion shared by other writers. Lyrically, according to Bunton, "What Took You So Long?" is about men taking longer than women to realise they are in love. In an interview with Smash Hits, she was asked if the subject of the song was her partner Jade Jones, the lead singer of the British boy band Damage. She commented, "I've only had a few boyfriends and I think they were all in my mind when I wrote it". In the book 1000 UK Number One Hits, the authors Jon Kutner and Spencer Leigh concluded that the lyrics are "about a girl who is crowing over regaining her lover", pointing out the line "What took you forever to see I'm right?" Release and promotion In mid October 2000, while the Spice Girls were doing promotion for the release of their new single, "Holler", and Forever, Bunton talked about her then-upcoming solo album on the group's website, with a release date targeted for March 2001. In early February 2001, she revealed "What Took You So Long?" as her debut solo single set to be released in April.