The Woman I Am

Last updated
The Woman I Am
Chaka Khan - The Woman I Am.jpg
Studio album by
Chaka Khan
ReleasedApril 14, 1992
Length64:14
Label Warner Bros.
Producer
Chaka Khan chronology
Life Is a Dance: The Remix Project
(1989)		The Woman I Am
(1992)		 Epiphany: The Best of Chaka Khan, Vol. 1
(1996)
Singles from The Woman I Am
  1. "Love You All My Lifetime"
    Released: March 5, 1992
  2. "You Can Make the Story Right"
    Released: June 18, 1992 (US)
  3. "Give Me All / The Woman I Am"
    Released: 1992 (UK)
  4. "I Want"
    Released: October 15, 1992 (US)
  5. "Don't Look at Me That Way"
    Released: March 18, 1993

The Woman I Am is the eighth studio album by American R&B/funk singer Chaka Khan, released on Warner Bros. Records in 1992. It was Khan's first studio album since 1988's CK and due to artistic differences between Khan and Warner Bros. Records it was also to be her final full-length release for the label. The entire album is dedicated to her friend Miles Davis, who died the previous year.

Contents

The album became Khan's highest-charting album on the US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart since 1984's I Feel for You and won her a Grammy Award for Best R&B Vocal Performance, Female in 1993. Since Khan's 1995 album Dare You to Love Me was shelved by the Warner Bros. Records label and instead only partly made available on greatest hits compilations and movie soundtracks, it was to be six years before she released another full-length album, the Prince co-produced Come 2 My House on his label NPG Records.

Composition

The album mainly focuses on material from the contemporary R&B, soul and funk genres and was Khan's debut as executive producer in charge of production. The main producer on the album was the Grammy Award winning jazz multi-instrumentalist Marcus Miller but it also includes Khan's first collaborations with Arif Mardin since 1986's Destiny ; "This Time" and the closing track "Don't Look at Me That Way", both co-produced by Mardin's son Joe Mardin. "Love You All My Lifetime" saw Khan teaming up with Scritti Politti's David Gamson – who incidentally had also produced the opening track on Destiny with its confusingly similar title; "Love of a Lifetime". The single track "I Want" features a guest appearance by William Galison on harmonica and the suggestive ballad "You Can Make the Story Right" was recorded with bassist and producer Wayne Braithwaite, best known for his work with Will Downing and Kenny G.

Singles

The Woman I Am includes seven single releases; "Love You All My Lifetime" written by German composer duo Klarmann/Weber which became a number one on Billboard's Dance Singles chart as well as #2 on R&B (Pop #68, UK #49), "You Can Make the Story Right" written by Gabrielle Goodman & Wayne Bathwaite reached #8 on the US R&B Billboard charts, "I Want" (US R&B #62), "Give Me All", "Facts of Love" and the Diane Warren-penned ballad "Don't Look at Me That Way" (UK #73), "The Woman I Am" written by Dyan Cannon, Chaka Khan & Brenda Russell, failed to chart in the UK. Both lead single "Love You All My Lifetime" and "Give Me All" were issued in a wide variety of dance remixes by among others Frankie Knuckles.

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic Star full.svgStar full.svgStar half.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg [1]
Los Angeles Times Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [2]

In his review of The Woman I Am, AllMusic's Alex Henderson describes the album as "high-tech, yet warm instead of mechanical. And on songs ranging from the melancholy "Telephone" to the introspective title song and the appealing single "Love You All My Lifetime," it's clear that Khan was given strong material to work with." [1] Connie Johnson from Los Angeles Times rated the album three out of four stars: "Nobody has influenced more post-’70s female R&B; singers than Khan and Aretha Franklin. On an off day they’re still more intriguing than many of their contemporaries working in peak form. Some of the tracks here are vintage Khan: sly, sexy and assertive. "Give Me All" has a dark, incendiary groove to it, while "I Want" is a teasing little invitation with an urgent undercurrent. There’s nothing trend-setting here, but even when Khan just coasts she still manages to stay in the race." [2]

Commercial success

The Woman I Am became Khan's highest-charting album on the US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart since 1984's I Feel for You , peaking at number none. By 2005, the album had sold 197,000 copies in United States, according to Nielsen SoundScan. [3]

Track listing

The Woman I Am track listing
No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s)Length
1."Everything Changes"
 Marcus Miller 4:38
2."Give Me All"
  • Jerry Barnes
  • Katreese Barnes
  • J. Barnes
  • K. Barnes
4:24
3."Telephone"
Miller4:21
4."Keep Givin' Me Lovin'"
Ralf Zang4:32
5."Facts of Love"
Zang4:35
6."Love You All My Lifetime"
  • Irmgard Klarmann
  • Felix Weber
  • Gary Haase
  • George Whitty
  • Khan
4:08
7."I Want"
  • Donald D. Bowden
  • Janice Dempsey
  • James McKinney
Miller5:50
8."You Can Make the Story Right"
  • Wayne Braithwaite
  • Gabrielle Goodman
Braithwaite5:13
9."Be My Eyes"
  • Khan
  • Daryll Duncan
  • Haase
  • Whitty
  • Khan
5:00
10."This Time"
  • David Lasley
  • Robin Lerner
  • Marsha Malamet
5:16
11."The Woman I Am"
Miller5:09
12."Love With No Strings"
  • Haase
  • Whitty
5:00
13."Don't Look at Me That Way" Diane Warren
  • A. Mardin
  • J. Mardin
4:50
Total length:64:14

Personnel

Performers and musicians

Technical

Non-album tracks and remixes

Charts

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References

  1. 1 2 https://www.allmusic.com/album/mw0000275934
  2. 1 2 Johnson, Connie (May 3, 1993). "In Brief". Los Angeles Times . Retrieved January 21, 2023.
  3. ↑ "Billboard". Nielsen Business Media, Inc. January 21, 2006. Retrieved May 3, 2018– via Google Books.
  4. ↑ "Bubbling Down Under Week Commencing April 13, 1992". Bubbling Down Under. Retrieved May 4, 2023.
  5. ↑ "Swedishcharts.com – Chaka Khan – The Woman I Am". Hung Medien. Retrieved March 29, 2021.
  6. ↑ "Chaka Khan Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved March 29, 2021.
  7. ↑ "Chaka Khan Chart History (Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved March 29, 2021.
  8. ↑ "Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums – Year-End 1992". Billboard. Retrieved March 29, 2021.
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