Sunday 12 February 2012

Houston Called

Whitney Houston - My Love Is Your Love

Whatever you personally think of her music/singing, or whether you have any regard for her as a person and artist, Whitney Houston will have been a big part of many people's lives and thus her death will affect a significant number worldwide. It's not about worth or value when compared with other people and/or artists and their deaths: it's just a fact.

I bought Houston's 1998 album My Love Is Your Love having been genuinely engaged by its newer sound for her, especially the title track which was written and produced by Wyclef Jean and Jerry Duplessis. This track funks-up Houston's more familiar soul/pop balladry in the style that made The Score such an instant success for Wyclef's Fugees. I'm not a fan generally of Houston though I think she has an amazing voice. The vocal acrobatics don't always impress - and the When You Believe duet with Mariah Carey as well as a few others on this uneven album reflect this - but her range and clarity of tone are phenomenal.

Others in an appealing funky vein on this album are It's Not Right But It's Okay, Heartbreak Hotel and Oh Yes, part penned by Missy Elliot. These are the songs I have enjoyed today in remembering Whitney Houston.

1 comment:

  1. I have just learned of her death. Very sad. Like you, I was never really a fan, but she had a phenomenal voice and was far too young to die.

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