Whitney Houston is the self-titled debut album of Whitney Houston. It was released on February 14, 1985 on Arista Records. At first, the album had a slow start, but by the summer of 1985, it became more popular.
The album managed to top the Billboard 200 in 1986 for 14 weeks and generated three number-one hit singles: "Saving All My Love for You," "How Will I Know," and "Greatest Love of All" which made it the first debut album and the first album by a female singer to achieve that feat.
The album was successful internationally and was certified 13x Platinum by the RIAA (or The Recording Industry Association of America) on July 29, 1999. It was also certified Diamond for shipments of 10 million units or more on March 16, 1999. The album has sold over 25 million copies worldwide, becoming one of the best selling albums of all time.
The album was listed as one of Rolling Stone magazine's "500 Greatest Albums of All Time" and on The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame's Definitive 200 list. Whitney's grand entrance into the music industry is considered one of the 25 musical milestones of the last 25 years according to USA Today magazine.
Composition[]
Whitney Houston Is a r&b and pop Album.
Album Background[]
After seeing Whitney performing in a nightclub in New York City, record producer\music industry executive, Clive Davis believed that she had the potential to crossover and become the next superstar. He signed Whitney to Arista in 1983 and they began working on Whitney's debut album.
Initially, Clive had a hard time finding songs for Whitney because during that time, rock bands and dance oriented music acts were popular and many songwriters felt that Whitney's gospel voice didn't fit for pop music. It took a year and a half for Arista Records then A&R chief, Jerry Griffith and recommended Whitney to Clive Davis, and Clive to amass suitable songs for the album.
Finally, songwriter\producer, Kashif offered to produce the song, "You Give Good Love." Jermaine Jackson (the brother of late singer, Michael Jackson) produced three songs on the album. Producer Narada Michael Walden came in to revise and then produce the song, "How Will I Know" and composer\producer Michael Masser covered the pop side of the album, producing four of his own music compositions which included "Saving All My Love For You" and "Greatest Love of All." After two years of recording, the album was finally ready to be released.
Tracklisting[]
- You Give Good Love (4:36)-[written by LaLa; produced by Kashif]
- Thinking About You (5:24)-[written by Kashif & LaLa; produced by Kashif]
- Someone For Me (4:58)-[written by Raymond Jones & Freddie Washington; produced by Jermaine Jackson]
- Saving All My Love for You (3:58)-[written by Gerry Goffin & Michael Masser; produced by Michael Masser]
- Nobody Loves Me Like You Do (featuring Jermaine Jackson) (3:47)-[written by James P. Dunne & Pamela Phillips; produced by Jermaine Jackson]
- How Will I Know (4:34)-[written by George Merrill, Shannon Rubicam, & Narada Michael Walden; produced by Narada Michael Walden]
- All At Once (4:27)-[written by Jeffrey Osborne & Michael Masser; produced by Michael Masser]
- Take Good Care of My Heart (featuring Jermaine Jackson) (4:14)-[written by Peter McCann & Steve Dorff; produced by Jermaine Jackson]
- Greatest Love of All (4:57)-[written by Linda Creed & Michael Masser; produced by Michael Masser]
- Hold Me (feat. Teddy Pendergrass) (6:02)-[written by Michael Masser & Linda Creed, produced by Michael Masser]
Personnel[]
- Whitney Houston: Main Vocals
- Jermaine Jackson & Teddy Pendergrass: Vocals
- Cissy Houston, Jermaine Jackson, Julia Tillman Waters, Maxine Willard Waters, Oren Waters, & Yogi Lee: Background Vocals
- John Barnes: Clarinet
- Robbie Buchanan, Randy Kerber, Yvonne Lewis, Richard Marx, & Mary Canty: Keyboard
- Nathan East: Bass Guitar
- Preston Glass: Synthesizer
- Ed Greene, John "J.R." Robinson, & J.T. Lewis: Drums
- Paul Jackson Jr., Dann Huff, Tim May, Ira Siegel, & David Williams: Guitar
- Randy "The Emperor" Jackson
- Bashiri Johnson & Joe Lala: Percussion
- Gene Page Jr.: Arranger rhythm & strings
- Greg Phillinganes, Steve Rucker, & Corrado Rustici: Synthesizer/Guitar
- Tom Scott & Ernie Watts: Saxophone
- Louie Shelton
- Deborah Thomas
- Premik Russell Tubbs
- Freddie Washington: Electric Bass
- Jermaine Jackson, Kashif, Michael Masser, & Narada Michael Walden: Producers
- Clive Davis: Exective Producer
- Michael Barbiero, Michael Mancini, Michael O'Reilly, & Russell Schmitt: Engineers
- Michael Barbiero, Michael O'Reilly, & Bill Schnee: Mixing
- Gene Page Jr., Kashif, & Narada Michael Walden: Arranger
- Donn Davenport: Art Direction
- Garry Gross: Photographer
- Fashion Stylist: Tiagi Lambert [gown by Giovanne De Maura and bathing suit by Norma Kamali]
- Quietfire: Makeup
- Brenda Gorsky: Coordinator
- Jeffrey Woodly: Hair Stylist
Album Chart Performance[]
| Chart (1985–86) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Australian Albums Chart | 1 |
| Austrian Albums Chart | 3 |
| Canadian Albums Chart | 1 |
| French Albums Chart | 13 |
| Finnish Albums Chart | 2 |
| German Albums Chart | 2 |
| Italian Albums Chart | 11 |
| Japanese Albums Chart (CD) | 2 |
| Japanese Albums Chart (LP) | 4 |
| Japanese Albums Chart (CT) | 6 |
| New Zealand Albums Chart | 3 |
| Norwegian Albums Chart | 1 |
| Swedish Albums Chart | 1 |
| Swiss Albums Chart | 2 |
| UK Albums Chart | 2 |
| U.S. Billboard 200 | 1 |
| U.S. Top Black Albums | 1 |
| Chart (2012) | Peak position |
| U.S. Billboard 200 | 9 |
| U.S. Top Pop Catalog Albums (Billboard) | 4 |