Whitney Houston

[feralamb]

Often referred to as "The Voice" and almost peerless as a Vocalist and singer save Carey, Ms Houston is one legend who cannot be ignored.As time will tell,real raw talent like Houston will be remembered forever in music.
THE pioneer of BIG vocals which were given a further push by Ms Carey.
The Two of them are the only ones who could rival Franklin's voice.

An artist of THIS size needed a new thread

[TheRealest]

I love her! Sure she has had some ups and downs but she will always be know for the beautiful voice she had.

Does anyone know if she's working on a new album?

[NothingFails]

She was great, but it's a sad her lifestyle took such a toll on her voice. She had no peers as a vocalist in her day.

[Wayne]

She was once the voice, now she isn't. Overshadowed in the nineties by Dion and Carey, who had better material, she never did get back what she had in the eighties, not even close,

Nowadays, her voice is shot. Still, her eighties , early nineties is what she will be remembered for, and for good reason, she had an amazing voice

[NothingFails]

She was once the voice, now she isn't. Overshadowed in the nineties by Dion and Carey, who had better material, she never did get back what she had in the eighties, not even close,

Nowadays, her voice is shot. Still, her eighties , early nineties is what she will be remembered for, and for good reason, she had an amazing voice

I don't think Whitney ever quite "fell" until the early 2000's. She was just as big in the 90's with The Bodyguard as she was in the 80's, and then in the late 90's was pretty huge with the dance remixes. I think 2000-2001 was when she really started to fade out (she had three US top 5's in 1999 yet hasn't had a US top 40 since 2000's "I Learned From The Best") and then that Diane Sawyer interview in 2002 practically did her in.

[Loverboy]

She's amazing. Now both Celine and Mariah are much better singers than her, but in her glorious days, Whitney had no rivals. Her voice was one of the most beautiful instruments I've ever seen in a human being. Her redemption of "Star Spangled Banner" is actually my favorite and not even my beloved Mariah with her high-pitched notes could do as strong as Houston did.

Her future could be so much brighter if she had a more consistent musical career. Whitney could have sold a lot more records than she did.

[jio]

She was once the voice, now she isn't. Overshadowed in the nineties by Dion and Carey, who had better material, she never did get back what she had in the eighties, not even close,

Nowadays, her voice is shot. Still, her eighties , early nineties is what she will be remembered for, and for good reason, she had an amazing voice

I don't think Whitney ever quite "fell" until the early 2000's. She was just as big in the 90's with The Bodyguard as she was in the 80's, and then in the late 90's was pretty huge with the dance remixes. I think 2000-2001 was when she really started to fade out (she had three US top 5's in 1999 yet hasn't had a US top 40 since 2000's "I Learned From The Best") and then that Diane Sawyer interview in 2002 practically did her in.

Well I think Whitney's voice was the most spectacular voice we heard the past half-century or so, probably it didn't reach as many octaves as Carey's but it was oh so powerful. Was she overshadowed in the 90s by Carey and Dion? I don't think so. Sure both of those ladies were far more successful than Whitney in the '90s but Whitney had the biggest hit of the decade (on a worldwide scale talking), a pretty respectable career as an actress and everytime she was coming up with an album or a soundtrack it was an event (bar Preacher's Wife). I think in the '90s she had successfully reinvented herself as a sort of immaculate star a-la Barbra Streisand. Unfortunately the drugs did her in and she lost the '00s completely but perhaps that saved her from releasing sub-standard material which all the '80s/'90s divas did in the '00s to some extent. The fact that after 10 years in the wilderness she wasn't forgotten and her comeback album sold more than any 2009 pre-2000 diva releases besides Madonna's just proves what a star she is and that she has trully reserved a place among all-times greatest performers no matter what her voice sounds like now

[NothingFails]

I agree with both Jio and Loverboy on this. Whitney was one of the biggest and brightest stars of her day and she was such a natural. She was a major player on MTV back when Michael and Prince were pretty much the only black stars on the network (Janet's Control was still a little while off), and while Prince and Michael made more rock-oriented crossover music in the day, she was getting it with soulful AC ballads... that showed just how wide a range she reached. She was massive in the 80's and early 90's and I think a lot of younger people can't grasp the level she reached back then. You couldn't go anywhere for nearly six months in 92-93 without hearing "I Will Always Love You", that song was all over pop culture at that moment.

Although her voice is lost (and I think her voice is one of the biggest cases one could use against drug addiction), I thought "I Look To You" had some really good tracks on it and gives me hope for some more decent music in the future, although her days of belting out great power ballads are finished.

[Wayne]

What did madonna release that sold more than I Look To You, in 2009?

Also, before you write off everything I wrote, read my entire post; I said 80s and early 90s. Whitney was indeed a massive force during the 90s, shifting well over 60m albums, however I say overshadowed because i feel the other divas had a more successful decade, even not factoring record sales

I'm also not doubting her place in history - she is a pioneer, and set the way for the likes of Mariah and Celine, who have in turn set the way for females that have followed. Whitney is a massive legend

[jio]

What did madonna release that sold more than I Look To You, in 2009?

I believe Celebration sold more than "I Look To You" internationally... if I am wrong I am sorry though. And I didn't write off everything you wrote. I just expressed a different opinion.

[Wayne]

Well that wasn't directed at you, it was directed at the lovely John who i hope won't take it the wrong way, as thats never how I meant it.

And i believe Celebration shipped about as much as I Look To You, about 2.5m

[jio]

who is John? lol

[Wayne]

Oh sorry lol. NothingFails

[NothingFails]

well I apologize for failing to see the "Early 90's" part on your post. You are right that in the late 90's she was largely eclipsed by Mariah and Celine, and I think part of the reason her remixes went over so well was because it was something new and different from her. The "It's Not Right But It's Okay" remix was legendary IMO and her popularity with the gay community exploded as a result, she even played a few pride shows that summer.

[feralamb]

there was a point of time..around when IWALY was released and the movie and the album became HUGE,when Whitney Houston was the biggest star on earth.
In their prime,when WH and Madonna had started out,I remember reading madonna making a comment like ,"I was taking my vocal lessons and i remember whitney had an album coming out..."( well I'm sure she didn't mean she could match Houston's vocals anyway)

That was the time when Madonna and everyone else was actually intimidated by her.

Unlike Carey,who had a dense,heavy tone which then thinned down in the late 90s,Houston had a steely,heavy tone throughout till the drug abuse which made her sound 'more powerful' than her peer.She had the loudness but she also had the 'power'(technical) to pull off amazing belts while others only did have the loudness(most notably celine).
Eventhough she might have not been able to do intricate acrobatics like Carey,her invincible sound made her equally awesome.
Whitney and Carey are the only vocalists who could do most songs off each other's catalogue.

[pat200]

Chimier, is that you?

[jio]

there was a point of time..around when IWALY was released and the movie and the album became HUGE,when Whitney Houston was the biggest star on earth.
In their prime,when WH and Madonna had started out,I remember reading madonna making a comment like ,"I was taking my vocal lessons and i remember whitney had an album coming out..."( well I'm sure she didn't mean she could match Houston's vocals anyway)

That was the time when Madonna and everyone else was actually intimidated by her.

Unlike Carey,who had a dense,heavy tone which then thinned down in the late 90s,Houston had a steely,heavy tone throughout till the drug abuse which made her sound 'more powerful' than her peer.She had the loudness but she also had the 'power'(technical) to pull off amazing belts while others only did have the loudness(most notably celine).
Eventhough she might have not been able to do intricate acrobatics like Carey,her invincible sound made her equally awesome.
Whitney and Carey are the only vocalists who could do most songs off each other's catalogue.

No the comment was that she dreamed going to her vocal couch and him humming the Whitney song. That dream was kind of prophetic since she also dreamed that Whitney's song went to #1 while hers didn't and since it was late 1995 that exactly what happened. Whitney's "Exhale" did go to #1 whereas Madonna's "You'll See" didn't

[feralamb]

Chimier, is that you?

lol,no.But I do know whom you speak of and although he is VERY hot headed,I've not seen a more knowledgeable person(about vocalising/singing etc).

[Wayne]

Chimier, is that you?

[PosziMC2]

I love Whitney!
She's amazing. OK not now with her tour but she still diva