If i was to rank my top female singers of all time, Whitney would still come out slightly ahead of Madonna and only a bit behind the top two of Kylie and Debbie Gibson. Some people will be agog at this, some aghast - it's just for me, Whitney had more warmth than Madonna (who, while infinitely more creative than Whit is a bit of a cold fish emotionally), even if - as one of my friends stated - that is her blowing the fumes over you from her crack pipe :/ Regardless, I adore the Whitters and although I was initially a bit skeptical over the first track to surface (Didn't Know My Own Strength), I'm totally charmed by the album as a whole.
Considering how much i apparently adore her, I haven't really written about her very much :( Shame on me. Though to be fair, she hasn't really done very much lately, and her bravo tv show was just as awful as Britney&Kevin: Chaotic. Still, I did do a 3 disc greatest hits collection back on thezapping which I still listen to fairly regularly as well as a flashback to her greatest album ever (I'm Your Baby Tonight). Both these posts show that there is a tried and tested methodology to a brillo Whitney album - a mixture of inspiring, uplifting ballads, a decent sprinkling of uptempo dance numbers, a nice midtempo tune and then something utterly astonishing that makes your jaw drop to the flaw. I Look To You does not deviate from this formula, manages to generally transcend current trends and still sound jolly super.
The lead off track and first single "proper" (Million Dollar Bill) is what is commonly called a grower rather than a shower. It's an enthusiastic, perky, feel good number (I shall be playing after lovely Preston's Dressed To Kill when getting ready to go out on a Saturday night) that manages to feel quite modern, without making Whitney sound like she is trying to compete with the current crop of teenage singers. Overall, love it as I do, it's a perfunctory first single rather than an absolutely brilliant one. What would have been a brilliant first single (as XO quite quite rightly points out here) is the entirely glorious Nothing But Love. A run through of Whitney's life without sounding corny, beautifully produced, sung in the lower register and with an almost ethereal beat, the song pulsates and flows from start to finish. As perfect as it is on the album, I get the impression that a couple of remixes will really elevate this track and make it absolutely massive in the clubs. Positively must be a single or the whole album marketing plan will probably suffer horribly. Indeed, it should probably be the second single but seeing as that is due around Christmas, it will probably be one of the album ballads...
A while back, in a rare moment of Pussycat Doll likingness, I suggested that Whitney would have been wise to come back with a twofer punch similar to J'Ai Ho and Hush Hush. That actually now isn't as crazy as it sounds - the aforementioned Nothing But Love could have been a massive comeback track, while the cover of A Song For You is another stand out on the album. Starting off with some lovely piano tinklings and a fairly traditional reading of the Donny Hathaway classic, this soon ups the ante and becomes a rather brilliant stomping dance track. I already have it on repeat and absolutely demand that this be the third single because honestly the uptempo trifecta of Million, Nothing and Song would set this up as an album to be reckoned with as well as dominating the singles charts for months to come. The dance doesn't end there either, as For The Lovers continues with the "beatz", although not quite as stand out as the previous tracks and a little more generic than I'm used to from Ms. Houston.
Slowing it down a little for the mid-tempo numbers, and one almost feels like it's a run through of Whitney's career to date. Call You Tonight and Like I Never Left are perfectly pleasant numbers though both feel like they could have fitted into the My Love Is Your Love and Just Whitney part of the Houston canon quite easily. That's not a criticism at all - when you love the canon as much as I do, it's nice to hear something that is almost traditional in delivery. And while talking about these songs, it's a good time to point out that the one downfall of the album is that it is sometimes a little overproduced with the backing vocalists taking centre stage alongside Whitney to beef the tracks up. It's not needed, despite the media concerns about her vocal delivery. Her lower register is still distinctively Whitney, she can still hit the higher notes and the gravel in her voice just adds more character to the tunes.
Finally the ballads - these used to be the songs I would gravitate to most on a Whitney album, but the uptempos here are so addictive that her signature slowies take a back seat. The title track is quite lovely really and would make an ideal Christmas single in the UK (perhaps backed with something from her little known Christmas album). I've heard it described as cheesy and unimpressive, but perhaps that is the reason I like it so much. And while the opening strings of Didn't Know My Own Strength (magnif in it's club remix) remind me a little too much of the lovely Whit carol Who Would Imagine A King, it's really grown on me. Even though it's quite ubiquitous now, it would make a fine final single from the album - perhaps rerecorded as a duet with Westlife or even JLS. Just imagine :) (You are all quite horrified at this suggestion now aren't you :/ ??)
Overall, quite a fine addition to the Whitney discography. As the lady herself says, don't call this a comeback - it's just the next step in her career and I'm quite happy to be along for the ride :)
Potential singles: Million Dollar Bill; I Look To You; Nothing But Love; A Song For You; Didn't Know My Own Strength (club remix with duet vocalist)
If i was to rank my top female singers of all time, Whitney would still come out slightly ahead of Madonna and only a bit behind the top two of Kylie and Debbie Gibson. Some people will be agog at this, some aghast - it's just for me, Whitney had more warmth than Madonna (who, while infinitely more creative than Whit is a bit of a cold fish emotionally), even if - as one of my friends stated - that is her blowing the fumes over you from her crack pipe :/ Regardless, I adore the Whitters and although I was initially a bit skeptical over the first track to surface (Didn't Know My Own Strength), I'm totally charmed by the album as a whole.
