"All the Man I Need" | |
---|---|
Song by Linda Clifford | |
from the album I'll Keep on Loving You | |
Written | 1981 |
Recorded | c. 1981 |
Length | 4:11 |
Songwriter(s) |
"All the Man That I Need" | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Single by Whitney Houston | ||||
from the album I'm Your Baby Tonight | ||||
B-side | "Dancin' on the Smooth Edge" | |||
Released | December 4, 1990 | |||
Recorded | November–December 1989 | |||
Genre | R&B | |||
Length | 4:11 | |||
Label | Arista | |||
Songwriter(s) | ||||
Producer(s) | Narada Michael Walden | |||
Whitney Houston singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
Music video | ||||
"All the Man That I Need" on YouTube |
"All the Man That I Need" is a song written by Dean Pitchford and Michael Gore. The song was first recorded as "All the Man I Need" by Linda Clifford for her album I'll Keep on Loving You (1982). In 1990, American singer Whitney Houston had a number-one multiple chart hit with this song, recorded as "All the Man That I Need", from her third album, I'm Your Baby Tonight (1990).
Houston's version was released as the album's second single on December 4, 1990 by Arista Records. Her version featured production from Narada Michael Walden and the single became a major worldwide hit, received mainly positive reviews from music critics, and reached number one on the US Billboard Hot 100; it remains her fourth biggest-hit in that chart. [1]
"All the Man That I Need" was originally written in 1981, by Dean Pitchford and Michael Gore. They had Linda Clifford in mind when they wrote the song, having written the song "Red Light" from Fame for her in 1980. [2] Clifford recorded her version of the song, "All the Man I Need", for her 1982 album I'll Keep on Loving You. It was not released as a single. [2] Sister Sledge also recorded it as an album track around the same time, and later as an unsuccessful single.
Pitchford later stated that although different versions of the song were recorded, no one was scoring a major hit with it: "I figured that it was one of those songs that was going to get cut a number of times and not ever have its day," he said. [2] During a dinner with Arista Records' president Clive Davis, the song came up and Davis asked Pitchford to send him a demo. Davis had just finished working with Whitney Houston as the executive producer of her second album, Whitney (1987). [2]
Although he was impressed by the song, he felt they would be unable to do anything with it at that time as Houston had only just finished recording an album, so it would be some time before she would be returning to the studio. During this period, Pitchford's publishers received several requests from other artists wishing to record the song. Houston eventually recorded it for the album I'm Your Baby Tonight (1990). [2]
"All the Man That I Need" is an R&B song with gospel influences. According to the sheet music published at Musicnotes.com by Alfred Music Publishing, the song is written in the key of F minor with a key change to the key of F-sharp minor. [3] The beat is set in common time, and moves at a slow tempo of 76 beats per minute. [3] It has the sequence of B♭m–Fm–E♭–E♭/D♭–D♭–Cm7 as its chord progression. [3] Houston's vocals in the song span from the note of C♯4 to the note of A5, while the piano elements range from the note of B♭1 to the high note of F♯5 . [3] Stephen Holden of The New York Times , wrote that the song was an "expression of sexual hero worship." [4] The song also features a saxophone solo by American recording artist Kenny G. [5]
Released in December 1990, "All the Man That I Need" entered the US Billboard Hot 100 Singles chart at number 53, the issue dated December 22, 1990. [6] Ten weeks later, on the issue dated February 23, 1991, it ascended to the top of the chart, becoming Houston's ninth number-one on the chart. [7] It stayed atop the chart for two weeks. [8] It also topped the Hot 100 Singles Sales and Hot 100 Airplay charts, her first song to achieve this feat since "Where Do Broken Hearts Go" in 1988. It enjoyed a seven week run in the top ten of the chart, which was one week shorter than that of the album's lead single "I'm Your Baby Tonight." [1] The song made Houston the first female artist to launch multiple number one singles off three or more albums and made her the first and only artist to launch multiple number one singles off their first three albums. The single entered the Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs (formerly Hot R&B Singles) at number 58, the same week it debuted on the Hot 100. [9] It later peaked at number one on the chart, the issue date of March 2, 1991, making it Houston's fifth R&B number-one hit. [10] When it hit the pole position of the R&B chart, the single spent its second and third week at the top of the Hot 100 and Hot Adult Contemporary charts, respectively. [11] As a result, it became her first single topped simultaneously all of three different Billboard charts — the Hot 100, Hot R&B, and Hot Adult Contemporary — and overall the third triple-crown hit, after 1985's "Saving All My Love for You" and 1986's "How Will I Know," reached the top spot on those of three charts in separate weeks. [12] The song maintained the top position of the Adult Contemporary chart for four weeks, her second-longest stay on the chart. [13] It was ranked number 16 on the Billboard Hot 100 Year-End chart for 1991. [14] The single was certified Gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) for shipments of 500,000 copies or more on March 21, 1991. [15] In Canada, the song debuted at 90 on the RPM Top 100 Hit Tracks chart. [16] Seven weeks later, it peaked at number one on the chart and stayed there for a week. [17]
Internationally, the song experienced some success. It went to number-one in Canada. It entered the UK Singles Chart at number 27, the week ending date of December 22, 1990, and peaked at number 13 on January 19, 1991, in that country. [18] [19] According to The Official Charts Company, the single has sold 120,000 copies in the United Kingdom. [20] It also reached number 16 in Ireland, [21] 11 in Netherlands, [22] 21 in Austria, [23] and 28 in France. [24] The song also peaked at number 37 in Germany, [25] 36 in New Zealand, [26] and 28 in Switzerland. [27]
"All the Man That I Need" was nominated for "Best Pop Vocal Performance, Female," Houston's fifth nomination for the category, at the 34th Grammy Awards on February 26, 1992. [28] The song was also nominated for "Best R&B/Soul Single, Female" at the 6th Soul Train Music Awards on March 10, 1992. [29]
"All the Man That I Need" garnered mainly positive reviews from music critics. Larry Flick from Billboard complimented it as a "shimmering jazz-and gospel-inflected ballad", and stated that it "fully demonstrates Houston's vocal beauty". [30] Greg Kot of Chicago Tribune was also positive in his review, writing that through the song, Houston was providing "soundtrack to a million love affairs." [31] A reviewer from Melody Maker said, "She really sounds as if she means it and the chorus is more than suitably sumptuous and soaring and shouty so it really ought to be Number One all over the world by Chrimbo." [32] Pan-European magazine Music & Media declared the song as a "staggering gospel-tinged ballad with an overwhelming build-up in the chorus." [33] A reviewer from Music Week commented, "Another sterling performance from Whitney, on a slightly sub-standard song. Nevertheless, a high chart placing seems inevitable." [34] The New York Times ' Stephen Holden was also positive in his review, viewing the song as a "hunk of gargantuan pop bombast swathed in echo and glitzy astral twinkles." [4] People Magazine 's editor described it as "an effective, down-tempo change of pace". [35] James Hunter from Rolling Stone called it "an outsize ballad about poverty and damaged self-regard, so expertly that the song, with its effective whiff of Spanish guitar, stages undeniable pop drama." [36]
About.com ranked "All the Man That I Need" number four in their list of "Top 20 Best Whitney Houston Songs" in 2018, noting that it has "a prominent gospel choir in the final chorus." [37] In a 2020 retrospective review, Matthew Hocter from Albumism described it as "a power ballad bringing some serious drama". [38] AllMusic's Ashley S. Battel said that the song is one of "the two high points she does reach on this album [I'm Your Baby Tonight]", and added "the uplifting tale of another's[ sic ] love being enough to provide happiness in [the song]." [39]
The accompanying music video for "All the Man That I Need" was directed by Peter Israelson. [40] The video begins with Houston, donning a curly hairstyle, and wearing a black turtleneck, with her initials "WH" embroidered on it, standing against a wall in a house. She then moves forward in the room, and sits on a chair, singing her lines looking into the camera. The video then switches into another room in the house with all white furniture, including a bed, wardrobe, and grand piano, in which Houston sings. She then moves outside on the balcony, where it is raining. After that scene, she is now seen performing, accompanied by a children's choir, on a stage, in front of an audience at some sort of program. The video ends with Houston finishing the performance, with her outline shown online.
Houston performed the song on three of her regional and two world tours. She premiered the song in January 1990, during her Feels So Right Japan Tour, before the release of I'm Your Baby Tonight. The song was performed in 1991 in the Welcome Home Heroes with Whitney Houston concert, and is included on the concert film, taped in Norfolk, Virginia, on March 31, 1991. [41] This performance was also included in the 2014 CD/DVD release, Whitney Houston Live: Her Greatest Performances . [42]
The song was also performed on her third world tour, I'm Your Baby Tonight World Tour. Two different performances of the song on this tour were taped in Yokohama, Japan, on March 15, 1991 [43] and in A Coruña, Spain, on September 29, 1991. [44] The former was broadcast on Japanese TV channel. The latter was aired on Spanish TV channel, and in the United States, her first hourlong TV special, "Whitney Houston: This Is My Life," on ABC TV, dated May 6, 1992. [45]
Two years later on The Bodyguard World Tour (1993–94), she performed the song as a final part of "Love Medley," along with "I Love You," "All at Once," "Nobody Love Me Like You Do," "Didn't We Almost Have It All," and "Where Do Broken Hearts Go." Four different performances of the song were taped and broadcast on each country's TV channel during South American leg of the tour in 1994: Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, on January 16, during Hollywood Rock festival; Santiago, Chile on April 14; Buenos Aires, Argentina on April 16; and Caracas, Venezuela on April 21. [46] [47] [48] Houston also performed the song on two of her regional tours, The Pacific Rim Tour (1997) and The European Tour (1998).
Besides her tour performances of the song, she performed the song on various TV shows and the concerts. On December 11, 1990, Houston appeared on The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson (guest host: Jay Leno) and performed the song to accompaniment of her tour band. [49] She also performed the song at The Arsenio Hall Show , and Saturday Night Live on February 23, 1991, which was her first appearance on the show. [50]
"All the Man That I Need" was performed as a part of medley by Houston at the 2nd Billboard Music Awards on December 9, 1991. [51] The medley consisted of two Billie Holiday's classics―"Lover Man (Oh, Where Can You Be?)" and "My Man"―and the song. In 1996, she performed the song at Brunei: The Royal Wedding Celebration, a private gig for the wedding of Princess Rashidah, the eldest daughter of the Sultan of Brunei, Hassanal Bolkiah.
In 1982, the American musical group Sister Sledge recorded another version of the song as "All the Man I Need" as a duet with the singer David Simmons, on the Sister Sledge album 'The Sisters' (1982). [2] Their version failed to make a large impact on the Billboard Hot 100, but reached a moderate peak of number forty-five on the Billboard's Hot R&B Singles chart. [52] [53]
In 1994, Luther Vandross (who made the arrangements of the original Linda Clifford version) included his own version, "All the Woman I Need" on his album Songs . He performed the song at the 2001 BET Awards, in honor of Houston. [54]
"All the Man That I Need" [57]
| "Dancin' on the Smooth Edge" [57]
|
Weekly charts
| Year-end charts
All-time charts
Certifications
|
I'm Your Baby Tonight is the third studio album by American singer Whitney Houston. It was released on November 6, 1990, by Arista Records. The album is one of the best-selling female albums of all time and has been certified quadruple platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA).
"Exhale (Shoop Shoop)" is a song by American singer Whitney Houston, featured on the soundtrack for the film Waiting to Exhale. It was released as the lead single from the soundtrack on November 6, 1995, by Arista Records. The song was written and produced by Babyface. A mid-tempo R&B and soul ballad, composed in the key of D-flat major, the song's lyrics speak about growing up and learning to let go. The song garnered mostly positive reviews from critics, many of whom noted Houston's vocal maturity in the song.
"How Will I Know" is a song recorded by American singer Whitney Houston for her self-titled debut studio album. It was released on November 22, 1985, by Arista Records as the album's third single. Originally written and composed by George Merrill and Shannon Rubicam, it was originally intended for pop singer Janet Jackson, who passed on it. Houston then recorded the song with altered lyrics and production from Narada Michael Walden.
"I Wanna Dance with Somebody (Who Loves Me)" is a song recorded by American singer Whitney Houston for her second studio album, Whitney (1987). It was released as the lead single from the album on April 28, 1987, by Arista Records. It was produced by Narada Michael Walden, and written by George Merrill and Shannon Rubicam, of the band Boy Meets Girl, who had previously collaborated with Houston on "How Will I Know". At the 30th Annual Grammy Awards, "I Wanna Dance with Somebody (Who Loves Me)" won for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance, marking Houston's second win in the category.
"Saving All My Love for You" is a song written by Michael Masser and Gerry Goffin, originally recorded by Marilyn McCoo and Billy Davis Jr. for their album Marilyn & Billy (1978). American singer Whitney Houston recorded it for her self-titled debut studio album (1985). It was released on August 13, 1985, by Arista Records, as the second single from the album in the United States, and third worldwide.
"Didn't We Almost Have It All" is a song recorded by American singer Whitney Houston for her second studio album, Whitney (1987). The song was written by Michael Masser and Will Jennings and produced by Masser. Initially, Houston's cover version of the Isley Brothers' "For the Love of You" was intended to be released as the second single from the album. However, the record label decided to release "Didn't We Almost Have It All", believing all Houston's material should be original. The song was released in July 1987 by Arista Records.
"Where Do Broken Hearts Go" is a song recorded by American singer Whitney Houston for her second studio album, Whitney (1987). It was released as the fourth single from the album in February 1988. The song was written by Frank Wildhorn and Chuck Jackson and produced by Narada Michael Walden. A pop ballad set in the key of D major, the record is about someone seeking for a former lover to return after a breakup. Upon its release, the song received mixed reviews from critics.
"One Moment in Time" is a sentimental ballad by American singer Whitney Houston and written by Albert Hammond and John Bettis, produced by Narada Michael Walden for the 1988 Summer Olympics held in South Korea. It was released by Arista Records on August 27, 1988, as the first single from the compilation album, 1988 Summer Olympics Album: One Moment in Time, the soundtrack for the games. The song was Houston's third number one in the UK Singles Chart, and reached number five on the US Billboard Hot 100. The song was later included on the second disc of her first greatest hits Whitney: The Greatest Hits and also on The Ultimate Collection and on the second disc of I Will Always Love You: The Best of Whitney Houston.
"I'm Your Baby Tonight" is a song by American singer Whitney Houston from her third studio album, I'm Your Baby Tonight (1990). Written and produced by L.A. Reid and Babyface, in Australia and most European countries it was released as the album's lead single by Arista Records on September 28, 1990; in the United States, the release date was October 2. Following the release of her second studio album Whitney (1987), Houston became the first woman ever to debut atop the Billboard 200; despite this, critics deemed it safe and formulaic. Additionally, she was booed at the 1989 Soul Train Music Awards and accused of being "not black enough"; Houston decided she needed to change her sound if she wanted to recapture black audiences.
"Miracle" is a song by American singer Whitney Houston, it was released as the third single from her multi-platinum hit album I'm Your Baby Tonight on April 16, 1991 by Arista Records. It was written and produced by L.A. Reid and Babyface. The single reached number nine on the US Billboard Hot 100, two on the Hot R&B Singles Chart, and four on the Adult Contemporary Chart.
"My Name Is Not Susan" is a song by American singer and actress Whitney Houston, released as the fourth single from her third album, I'm Your Baby Tonight (1990). The song was released on June 24, 1991, by Arista Records. It was produced by L.A. Reid and Babyface, and written by Eric Foster White. The song is an uptempo new jack swing number in which Houston harshly tells off a lover who has mistakenly called her by his ex-girlfriend's name "Susan". She lets him know that if he cannot get over Susan, then their relationship is over. The music video for the song was directed by Lionel C. Martin and inspired by the 1958 film Vertigo. A remix featuring British rapper Monie Love was also released, becoming one of the first times a pop/R&B artist had included a rapper in a remix, following Janet Jackson's "Alright", which remix featured Heavy D the year previous.
"I Belong to You" is a 1991 song recorded by American singer Whitney Houston for her third studio album, I'm Your Baby Tonight (1990). It was written by Derek Bramble and Franne Golde, produced by Narada Michael Walden, and was released on October 18, 1991, as the album's fifth single by Arista Records. "I Belong to You" was a Top 10 hit on the US Billboard R&B chart, and also charted in the UK and the Netherlands. The song garnered Houston a nomination for Best Female R&B Vocal Performance at the 35th Grammy Awards (1993).
"I Have Nothing" is a song by American singer and actress Whitney Houston, released on February 20, 1993 as the third single from The Bodyguard: Original Soundtrack Album (1992) by Arista Records. The song was written by David Foster and Linda Thompson, and produced by Foster.
"Run to You" is a song performed by American singer and actress Whitney Houston, released on June 21, 1993, by Arista Records as the fourth single from The Bodyguard: Original Soundtrack Album (1992). It was written by Jud Friedman and Allan Rich, and produced by David Foster. Originally intended to be a break-up song, it was approved by the production and stars. However, a month later, the director of The Bodyguard called, saying he liked the song so much, but he'd rather have it to be a love song so the entire song was rewritten, except for the title.
"Queen of the Night" is a song co-written by American singer and actress Whitney Houston along with L.A. Reid, Babyface and Daryl Simmons. Produced by Reid and Babyface and performed by Houston, it was released on October 13, 1993 by Arista Records as the fifth and final single from the soundtrack album The Bodyguard (1992), and is played during the closing credits of the film of the same name.
"You Give Good Love" is the debut solo single by American singer Whitney Houston for her 1985 eponymous debut studio album. It was written by La Forrest 'La La' Cope and produced by Kashif. When La La sent Kashif a copy of the song, originally offered to Roberta Flack, he thought it would be a better fit for Houston and told Arista Records he would be interested in recording with her.
"I'm Every Woman" is a song by American singer Chaka Khan, released in September 1978 by Warner Bros. as her debut solo single from her first album, Chaka (1978). It was Khan's first hit outside her recordings with the funk band Rufus. "I'm Every Woman" was produced by Arif Mardin and written by the successful songwriting team Nickolas Ashford and Valerie Simpson. The single established Chaka's career outside the group Rufus, whom she would leave after their eighth studio album, Masterjam, was released in late 1979.
"I Believe in You and Me" is a song written by Sandy Linzer and David Wolfert in 1982. The song was first recorded and released by the R&B group The Four Tops, who released it as a single from their album One More Mountain (1982). While it failed to reach the US Top 40, it became a moderate hit for the group on the US Billboard R&B chart, peaking at number 40 in early 1983.
"The Greatest Love of All" is a song written by Michael Masser, who composed the music, and Linda Creed, who wrote the lyrics. It was originally recorded in 1977 by George Benson, who made the song a substantial hit, peaking at number two on the US Hot Soul Singles chart that year, the first R&B chart top-ten hit for Arista Records. The song was written and recorded to be the main theme of the 1977 film The Greatest, a biopic of the boxer Muhammad Ali, and is performed during the opening credits.
American singer Whitney Houston, known as "The Voice", released 57 singles as a leading artist and 4 as a featured artist. Houston is one of the best-selling music artists of all time, with over 220 million records sold worldwide. In the United States, Houston amassed 11 Billboard Hot 100 number-one singles, all of whom have been certified either gold, platinum, multi-platinum or diamond by the Recording Industry Association of America and was one of a selected group of artists to have a top ten single in the Billboard Hot 100 in four different decades. She is currently ranked in seventh place of the artists with the most number one singles in the history of the Billboard Hot 100. Prior to the introduction of digital singles, Houston sold 16.5 million physical singles in the country, the most ever by a female recording artist. In October 2012, the Official Charts Company claimed Houston was the fourth biggest-selling female singles artist of all time with a sales total of 8.5 million singles in that country.
{{cite AV media notes}}
: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link){{cite AV media notes}}
: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link){{cite AV media notes}}
: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)