and repeats the ad-lib as the song fades out. The album version, which is 40 seconds longer than the radio edit, features an instrumental section at the end of the track. Release "Too Much" was released in the United Kingdom on 15 December 1997, in two single versions. The first, released on cassette and in a standard CD single format, included an exclusive PlayStation postcard from the group's then-upcoming video game Spice World. The track listing contained the radio edit of the track, a Soulshock & Karlin remix, and the B-side "Outer Space Girls"—written by the group with Matt Rowe and Richard Stannard. The second version, released on a standard CD single, contained the radio edit, an orchestral version, and "Walk of Life", a different B-side, written by the group with Absolute. The images on the single's cover were taken from a photoshoot the group did for the October 1997 issue of Elle magazine. In the United States, Virgin Records serviced the song to rhythmic contemporary and contemporary hit radio on 13 January 1998. This was followed by a CD single release on 27 January. Reception Critical response "Too Much" received mixed reviews from critics. Larry Flick of Billboard magazine praised the song, describing it as a "swishy classic-pop ballad that tickles the ear with tasty doo-wop flavors", and added that the arrangement and the group's harmonies "work extremely well together". David Browne of Entertainment Weekly called it a "sultry slow jam". The Miami Herald dubbed the song a "silky pop ode" and called it "irresistible". British magazine Music Week gave it five out of five, picking it as Single of the Week. The reviewer declared it a "delightfully sweet ballad which will give them another huge Christmas smash, though it's unlikely to match the endurance of their last festive offering, 2 Become 1." Claudia Connell of News of the World said, "Many see this single as make-or-break time. Fortunately it's a million times better than Spice Up Your Life. It's a strong ballad in which Mel C shows that at least one of them can sing." Sylvia Patterson of NME characterised the song as a "lavish, harmonised spree of New Orleans loveliness with strings and Spanish guitar", adding that it is "the absolute tops!". Sputnikmusic's Amanda Murray also complimented the track, calling it a "genuinely great song". Murray also felt that the group's voices had improved so that they