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CLICK ON GLOBAL REQUEST WHITNEY & HELP INCREASE
AIRPLAY FOR WHITNEY
GLOBAL REQUEST WHITNEY IS SUPPORTED BY ARISTA
RECORDS & THE PLATINUM CLUB
Video Exclusive... Friday was day one of the video shoot for Whitney's duet with Enrique Iglesias, 'Could I Have This Kiss Forever'. The video is described as very hot (read: sexy!) and with many beautiful people featured wearing very little clothing. You read it here first! UK Chart Update... WHITNEY
THE GREATEST HITS
Scans of the German release of 'If I Told You That'
Track List: [Thanks Dzemil] Global Charts... In Switzerland, 'Whitney The Greatest Hits' bounds up to No.3 (from No.29) and in Australia the album slips two places to No.13. In Belgium, the album is up to No.2 (from No.15). 'Could I Have This Kiss Forever' is off to a flying start on the Tokio Hot100 as it climbs to No.55 (from No.92). In the Netherlands, 'If I Told You That' climbs to No.63 (from No.77) this week. [Thanks Lopez]
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Chartbeat Chat... [Text From Billboard's Fred Bronson's Chartbeat Chat] BRITNEY & WHITNEY: Britney Spears maintains her 1.000 batting average, as she enters The Billboard 200 at the top for the second time in her career. Her debut Jive set, ". . . Baby One More Time," opened at No. 1 the week of Jan. 30, 1999. Seventeen months later, oops, she did it again. The other solo female artist to debut in the top five this issue is Whitney Houston, whose double-CD greatest-hits collection on Arista is new at No. 5. That's the highest debut for a Houston album since her second album, "Whitney," started off at No. 1 in June 1987. That's not counting the multi-artist soundtrack to "The Bodyguard," which opened at No. 2. [Thanks Lopez]
Hitmakers Editorial on 'Could I Have This Kiss Forever': The superstar duet "Could I Have This Kiss Forever" by WHITNEY HOUSTON f/ ENRIQUE IGLESIAS is reacting big time and will debut on the Rhythm Monitor next week in the Crossover world. Everyone is feeling the buzz on these records and this incredible Greatest Hits project. This is just the beginning....wait until you see the video for "Could I Have This Kiss Forever" f/ENRIQUE, it is HOT! [Thanks Lopez]
The Radio & Records Airplay Chart For The Week Ending 19 May 2000: Urban- Same Script, Different Cast - Up to No.19 (From No.25) with
bullet; [Thanks Lopez]
Here's a few more international chart positions for 'Whitney The Greatest Hits': Europe: No.3 - Austria South America: No.2 - Brazil [Thanks Lopez/Gogi]
The first three days sales of 'Whitney The Greatest Hits' in Germany saw the album shift over 143,000 copies to ensure a No.2 debut. [Thanks Lopez/Gogi]
According to Billboard Magazine's European Album Chart, 'Whitney The Greatest Hits' debuts at No.3. [Thanks Lopez]
[Paragraph From Sydney Morning Herald Interview With Tom Jones] Reload, his new double-platinum-selling album of duets with the
cream of Cool Britannia has just claimed the No 1 spot in the UK for the second time in
six months while the second single Sex Bomb (what else?) has debuted at No 3. He has plans
to record a US follow-up featuring Macy Gray, Whitney Houston
and the Dixie Chicks. He's even become, somewhat improbably one would think, at 60 years
old, the new poster boy for the NRL. And even if the Reload CD was given a leg-up to the
UK top spot by a national Mother's Day discount, it remains indisputable that, once again,
a new generation is hopping [Thanks MG] NEWSFILE: 27 MAY 2000 |
The Billboard update for the week ending 3 June 2000: WHITNEY THE GREATEST HITS: MY LOVE IS YOUR LOVE: SAME SCRIPT, DIFFERENT CAST: COULD I HAVE THIS KISS FOREVER: I LEARNED FROM THE BEST: [Compiled By Lopez]
Based on three days sales, 'Whitney The Greatest Hits' debuts at No.2 on the German Album Chart and has been certified Platinum (shipment of one million copies). [Thanks Deborah]
'Whitney The Greatest Hits' climbs 13 places from No.15 to No.2 (2nd week on the chart). [Thanks Deborah] Spain... "Whitney The Greatest Hits" has debuted at No.4 on the Spanish album chart. [Thanks Laura]
Whitney Houston Makes Her Move! Whitney The Greatest Hits' Album Debuts at #5! R&B Album Chart: Debut #3 Music DVD Chart: Debut #1 NEW YORK, May 24 /PRNewswire/ -- Following its May 16th in-store date on Arista Records, the 2-CD/2-cassette WHITNEY - THE GREATEST HITS has posted a first week SoundScan figure of 157,768 units, bulleting onto the Billboard 200 album chart at #5, Billboard R&B chart at #3, and the Billboard DVD/VHS chart at #1. At the same time, "Could I Have This Kiss Forever," Whitney's duet with Enrique Iglesias, is the #1 most-added record at top 40 and A/C (Adult Contemporary) radio, according to music industry trade paper R&R. The music video is being filmed this week. Internationally, GREATEST HITS made its debut at #1 on the U.K. national album chart. "If I Told You That," the new duet with George Michael, is #1 most-added record at radio across Europe and the video was shot last week in New York. Whitney is also set to shoot videos for "Same Script, Different Cast" her new duet with Arista artist Deborah Cox that is exploding at R&B radio and has been described as "an instant classic." [Thanks Lopez]
The US TV show Access Hollywood aired a short segment of both Whitney and George Michael on the set of the If I Told You That video. The scene was from a night-club and they were dancing. The segment was extremely short and no interviews were done. Both singers appeared to be in good spirits. [Thanks Andrea]
The following is a look at how well Whitney's albums have scanned in their first week out in the US. The information is SoundScan era (so non information is available for the first three albums):
[Thanks Chris] NEWSFILE: 25 MAY 2000 |
'Whitney The Greatest Hits' will debut at No.5 on the US Billboard 200 Album Chart due to be announced tomorrow with sales of 158,000 copies. Here Is The Complete Billboard Report: Britney Scores Second Best SoundScan Week With an opening week of 1.3 million units, Britney Spears' album, "Oops! ... I Did It Again," scored the second-largest seven-day sales totals in SoundScan history. "Oops" trails only 'N Sync's "No Strings Attached," which sold 2.4 million units during its first week. The album is set to debut tomorrow (May 25) at No. 1 on The Billboard 200. With Backstreet Boys' "Millennium" in third, having sold 1.13 million units in its first week a year ago, Jive Records now owns the three largest sales weeks since Billboard adopted SoundScan data in 1991. Spears' debut held Pearl Jam's "Binaural" (Epic) at a No. 2 premiere, on the strength of 226,000 copies sold. Big Tymers' "I Got That Work" (Universal) rolls in at No. 3, having sold 187,000 units and knocking "No String Attached" to No. 4. Whitney Houston's Arista "Greatest Hits" collection opens at No. 5, with 158,000 copies sold. In another notable debut, Phish's "Farmhouse" (Elektra) opens at No. 12, the second-highest album chart placement ever for the Vermont jam band. Full chart information will be released tomorrow. [Thanks Chris]
[Jam Showbiz Report] Britney sells 1.4M in first weekBy PAUL
CANTIN Britney Spears will be shedding no tears
after record industry figures show she sold 95,000 copies in Canada of her new album,
"Oops...I Did It Again", and a hefty 1.3 million in the U.S. during the album's
debut week.
The Princess Diaries... ''Diary'' dear to Marshall [Thanks MG]
German TOTP... Whitney Houston will appear on TOP OF THE POPS in Germany May, 27 at 17.45 on German TV channel RTL. It's not know which performance this is or whether it's a totally new one. [Thanks André]
I LEARNED FROM THE BEST The Greatest Hits albums hits at No.1 at the Compilations Charts (25 places only). Compilations/Best Of albums do not enter the "regular" album Charts (75 places). [Thanks Sebastien]
The Radio & Records Airplay Chart For The Week Ending 19 May 2000: Urban- Same Script, Different Cast - Up to No.25 (From No.40) with
bullet; [Thanks Jeffrey] NEWSFILE: 24 MAY 2000 |
[Music Week Albums Factfile] This week was always going to be one in which an 'itney' was going to be number one, but most pundits believed it was going to be Britney rather than Whitney, and all the early indications were that they would be proved correct. Spears established a lead of more than 6,000 over her rival but faded on Saturday, allowing Houston to take the throne. Spears can take some solace from the fact that the 88,000 sales generated by Oops!...I Did It Again last week was the highest tally for a number two album in the chart this year, even though the record was slightly more than 1,200 sales short of Houston's own total. With three number one singles, Spears has still to reach the top of the album chart - her debut album Baby One More Time also peaked at number two but has sold over 940,000 copies.
UK Album Chart Commentary... [Alan Jones Chart Commentary For Music Week] Whitney Houston registers only the second number one album of her career this week, debuting in pole position with The Greatest Hits, having previously topped the chart with 1987's Whitney. The album, which sold more than 89,000 copies last week, was helped by some serious discounting - with Woolworths offering the double album for as little £9.99 in certain stores - and also by the fact that it contains both new tracks and exclusive mixes, in a week which saw artist album sales climb 17% last week - an unusual occurrence mid-month.
The Music Week Review Of 'If I Told You That' WHITNEY HOUSTON &
GEORGE MICHAEL Lifted from Houston's Greatest Hits collection, this smooth R&B workout is exactly what one would expect, with both stars turning in polished performances. An A-listing at Radio One, C-listing at Radio Two and strong ILR (Independent Local Radio) play will ensure it scores a high chart placing to support the hits set. The other key release on 5 June 2000 is Travis' 'Coming Around' which is not lifted from their 2 million-plus selling 'The Man Who' CD and is a likely contender for number one according to Music Week.
[Music Week Cover Story Report] Prices Hold Up On Key Releases Key new albums from Whitney Houston and Britney Spears generally held up their high street prices last week, despite a heavy round of discounting from Woolworths and selected indies. Woolies marked up the Houston best of double album at £12.99 with the price dropping to £9.99 in selected stores to match rivals' prices. However, most other stores were selling the album at £14.99 with Spears going out at £12.99, although Our Price went with a £10.99 price for Oops!...I Did It Again. This compares favourably with the release of the year's last key new album, Oasis's Standing On The Shoulder Of Giants, which faced heavy discounting to £9.99 in it's week of release in February. Virgin Megastores head of marketing Andy Kendrick, whose company is selling Spears as £12.99 and Houston at £14.99, says of the discounting, "It's sending a confused message to customers that, in Houston's case, an album of all her best work, that has taken three years to produce is only worth £10." A Woolworths spokesman says, "Certain areas are extremely competitive and we need to maintain our leaving music retailing position."
UK Airplay... [Music Week: Airplay Factsheet] 29-26-16-9: That's the progress of the Whitney Houston & George Michael duet 'If I Told You That', which is thus one of the fastest growing hits of the year. The track looks like vying with Sonique as a potential [airplay] number one.
If I Told You That Airplay Stats... Four weeks on, 'If I Told You That' has entered the UK Airplay top ten climbing from No.16 to No.9 this week. It is awarded the Highest Top 50 Climber award. The song was played 1414 times, an increase of 26% over last week with a new audience high of 49.46 million, an increase of 17%. 'If I Told You That' is the fourth biggest growing single of the week achieving 289 more plays over last week. It is the No.2 song on the Pre-Release top ten (only Sonique ahead of it and that single was released this week). Radio One played the song 22 times - it climbs from No.30 to No.14 on their chart with an audience of 14.336m. On ILR, the song is up from No.14 to No.12 with an audience of 29.483m. The song was played 1208 times on ILR (up from 966 the previous week).
[Number One Commentary From BMG Backstage] Whitney Houston: Whitney beats Britney! No Whitney has NOT beaten Britney Spears up - but she has pipped her to the top album spot in the charts! This is very exciting news for Whitney Houston and Arista as this
weeks chart shows that no-one has managed to defeat the inimitable, definite album
'Whitney- The Greatest Hits'. No-one. Not even hot new rival Britney Spears whose album
went in at number two!
Music365: Whitney Beats Britney... [Music365 Report] WHITNEY BEATS BRITNEY TO TOP UK ALBUMWHITNEY HOUSTON thrashed Britney Spears in the race to the top of the UK album
charts this Sunday (May 21). Sun May 21 2000 19:11 BST [Thanks Sanj]
Charts Of The World... UK: FRANCE: IRELAND: Switzerland: Denmark: [Thanks Lopez/Gogi/Dzemil/Scott H/Julian]
[Billboard Online Report] Judge: No Bail For Bobby BrownBobby Brown was deemed a flight risk by a Florida judge on Monday (May 22), and ordered to remain in custody until a scheduled June 19 hearing. Brown pleaded not guilty to charges he violated his probation, stemming from a 1998 drunken driving conviction in the state, a spokesperson for the court confirms. Brown was returned to Broward County Jail following Circuit Judge Leonard Feiner's refusal to grant the R&B singer bail while awaiting the next round of hearings. Whitney Houston, Brown's wife, did not attend the hearing. Brown was arrested May 10 on an outstanding warrant at an airport in Newark, N.J., upon returning from a trip to the Bahamas. The warrant was issued last June after his probation officer reported he tested positive for cocaine. Note: See The Report On The Newsfile Dated 12 May 2000 - Bobby Brown was not arrested in Newark, he returned to Florida of his own accord.
NEWSFILE: 23 MAY 2000 |
'Whitney The Greatest Hits' debuts this evening at No.1 on the UK album chart. No details available as yet as to how many copies it sold in the week. Radio One reports that Britney Spears' album 'Oops! I Did It Again' lead for the whole week but Whitney's album pulled ahead during Saturday. This is Whitney's second number one album on the main album chart following her six week number one album 'Whitney' in 1987. 'The Bodyguard' was also a number one album on the compilation chart and it's sales for several weeks during the end of 1992 and early 1993 were more than any other album available, compilation or otherwise. Here's the rest of this weeks UK Chart News: WHITNEY THE
GREATEST HITS
Read More Reviews of 'Whitney The Greatest Hits' Here - new reviews from sonicnet.com, Atlanta Constitution, Barnes & Noble, Jam! Showbiz and CNN. [Thanks MG/Sanj]
'Whitney The Greatest Hits' has debuted at number one in Ireland's Album Chart, the first of many countries which will see the album at the top in the coming weeks. [Thanks Tom]
'If I Told You That' remains A listed at Radio One in the UK for a second week. The commercial single is due for release in little over two weeks time.
The Billboard update for the week ending 27 May 2000: MY LOVE IS YOUR LOVE: SAME SCRIPT, DIFFERENT CAST: I LEARNED FROM THE BEST: [Compiled By Lopez]
BETWEEN THE BULLETS (Billboard -W/E May 27, 2000) [Thanks Rita W] Hitmaker... [Programmers Comments From hitmaker.com] SONNY RIO, MD, KBFM, McAllen-BrownsvilleWHITNEY HOUSTON & ENRIQUE IGLESIAS Could I Have This Kiss Forever (ARISTA) - This is going to be a huge record! Double big. It's the best team since Julio and Willie! RAY MICHAELS, PD, KHTO,
Springfield RANDY WILLIAMS, MD, KRQ, Tucson DAVE ROBLE, PD, KSXY, Santa Rosa WHITNEY HOUSTON & ENRIQUE IGLESIAS Could I Have This Kiss Forever (ARISTA) - This one is going to be big! Two CHR superstars on one record! STEVE KING, PD, WBAM, Montgomery WHITNEY HOUSTON & ENRIQUE IGLESIAS Could I Have This Kiss Forever (ARISTA) - This will be a huge song! SMILEY JAY, APD/MD, WILN, Panama City WHITNEY HOUSTON & ENRIQUE IGLESIAS Could I Have This Kiss Forever (ARISTA) - Whitney and Enrique together - how can you lose? KIDD PHILLIPS, PD, WJMX, Florence WHITNEY HOUSTON & ENRIQUE IGLESIAS Could I Have This Kiss Forever (ARISTA) - A good duet! JOHN VINCENT, PD, WLKT, Lexington WHITNEY HOUSTON & ENRIQUE IGLESIAS Could I Have This Kiss Forever (ARISTA) - This is a no-brainer! STEVE SMITH, PD, WMGI, Terre Haute WHITNEY HOUSTON & ENRIQUE IGLESIAS Could I Have This Kiss Forever (ARISTA) - This is gonna be huge! It's already a given from two superstars! DAVE LOZZI, PD, WMRV, Binghamton WHITNEY HOUSTON & ENRIQUE IGLESIAS Could I Have This Kiss Forever (ARISTA) - I really like this song. It's a good collaboration and I'm very impressed. BOB QUICK, PD, WNKI, Elmira WHITNEY HOUSTON & ENRIQUE IGLESIAS Could I Have This Kiss Forever (ARISTA) - I like it. DAVEY MORRIS, MD, WPRO, Providence WHITNEY HOUSTON & ENRIQUE IGLESIAS Could I Have This Kiss Forever (ARISTA) - A perfect duet! TOMMY EDWARDS, PD/MD, WPRR, Altoona WHITNEY HOUSTON & ENRIQUE IGLESIAS Could I Have This Kiss Forever (ARISTA) - A nice duet from two superstars! MIKE DANGER, PD, WPXY, Rochester WHITNEY HOUSTON & ENRIQUE IGLESIAS Could I Have This Kiss Forever (ARISTA) - Great combination. This should be big! STEVE BROWN, MD, WQAL, Cleveland WHITNEY HOUSTON & ENRIQUE IGLESIAS Could I Have This Kiss Forever (ARISTA) - Even with all the recent turmoil, Whitney can still sing great. A duet with star power! JIMMY STEELE, PD, WRVW, Nashville WHITNEY HOUSTON & ENRIQUE IGLESIAS Could I Have This Kiss Forever (ARISTA) - We're big fans of this one! This will be a great record for radio. STEW SCHANTZ, PD, WSKS, Utica-Rome WHITNEY HOUSTON & ENRIQUE IGLESIAS Could I Have This Kiss Forever (ARISTA) - The uptempo version will work for us. GINA JONES, MD, WSKS, Utica-Rome WHITNEY HOUSTON & ENRIQUE IGLESIAS Could I Have This Kiss Forever (ARISTA) - When you put two artists of this caliber together, how can you go wrong? SCOTTY MACK, PD, WSPK, Poughkeepsie WHITNEY HOUSTON & ENRIQUE IGLESIAS Could I Have This Kiss Forever (ARISTA) - This is a dynamic duo and a no-brainer! DAVE MICHAELS, PD, WSTO, Evansville WHITNEY HOUSTON & ENRIQUE IGLESIAS Could I Have This Kiss Forever (ARISTA) - This is a stone-cold smash! I love this song. Top 10 phones! BRETT SHARP, PD/MD, WVSR, Charleston, WV WHITNEY HOUSTON & ENRIQUE IGLESIAS Could I Have This Kiss Forever (ARISTA) - They sound great together. I just broke out the Visine. TODD CHASE, MD, WYOY, Jackson WHITNEY HOUSTON & ENRIQUE IGLESIAS Could I Have This Kiss Forever (ARISTA) - This is very good. JENNA WEST, MD, WZOK, Rockford WHITNEY HOUSTON & ENRIQUE IGLESIAS Could I Have This Kiss Forever (ARISTA) - This is a great record that I like a lot!
Dutch Update... Next week, 'Whitney The Greatest Hits' will enter the Dutch Album Top 100 at
no.15. [Thanks Deborah] Concert in the Net: Arista's 25th Aniversary Hamburg (Game Channel) MCY.com shows one of the Concert Highlights of the year in the Internet: 25 Years of Number 1 Hits - the celebration of the 25th Aniversary of Arista Records. Bernhard Fritsch, founder and president of MCY.com, says that the show will be available from May 30th 2000 on at MCY.com. The show includes stars like Whitney Houston, Carlos Santana, Aretha Franklin or Barry Manilow. MCY.com was a sponsor of the 25-year celebration. There are also many other stars like Sarah McLachlan, Annie Lennox, Puff Daddy, Notorious B.I.G., Faith Evans, Patti Smith, Carly Simon, Kenny G and Toni Braxton. [Thanks Nadine] NEWSFILE: 21 MAY 2000 |
'My Love Is Your Love' has been certified quadruple platinum in the US by the RIAA, representing a unit shipment of four million copies. Whitney's US certifications now read as follows:
The 'Waiting To Exhale' soundtrack stands at 7 Million copies shipped. Whitney is tied in second place as the female artist with the highest certification level and will take first place in the first round of certifications for 'Whitney The Greatest Hits'.
[Billboard Online Report] New Britney Album Flying Off Shelves After enjoying weeks of record-breaking sales with 'N Sync, Jive Records has scored again with Britney Spears' new release, "Oops!...I Did It Again." The album dominated the U.S. retail market Tuesday (May 16) in its first day in stores, according to a survey of retail outlets, far outdistancing Pearl Jam's "Binaural" (Epic) and Whitney Houston's two-CD greatest-hits set (Arista), which were also released yesterday. Retailers told Billboard Bulletin that Spears' album, on average, outsold Pearl Jam and Houston at a rate of at least two to one. Tim Devin, store manager of Tower Records on New York's Upper West Side, said, "Britney is leading the pack. She's sold double that of Pearl Jam, at number two, and Houston, at number three. Pearl Jam and Houston are neck and neck." Todd Wager, store manager of Camelot Music in Slidell, La., near Spears' hometown of Kentwood, said, "We pre-sold about 100 copies. Today, we've sold about 20 of them, and about 10 of Pearl Jam and 3 of Whitney." However, retailers do not predict that Spears will close in on the phenomenal first-day sales of labelmate 'N Sync's "No Strings Attached." Jay Enyart, manager of the Wherehouse in West Los Angeles, said, "I think it will do well, but it won't match 'N Sync. I've probably sold 20 or 30 copies so far, but I had sold about 80 'N Sync albums on its first day. I sold about 20 or 30 'N Sync albums by 10 a.m." -- Jill Pesselnick, L.A.
Two New Reviews of 'Whitney The Greatest Hits' added. Times Magazine review of the DVD and the Star Ledger (NJ) review of the double CD. [Thanks MG]
Hitmakers reports that 'Could I Have This Kiss Forever' received 77 Top 40 radio station adds this past week - the joint highest for the week and an additional 15 adds at Rhythm Top 40. [Thanks JR]
I LEARNED FROM THE BEST [Thanks Sebastien]
NEWSFILE: 18 MAY 2000 |
[Platinum Club Report On Whitney's Arista25 Performance]
The Arista 25th Anniversary special was filled with many talents and highlights that included Aretha Franklin, Dionne Warwick, Barry Manilow, Brooks & Dunne and Annie Lennox, but all these stars seemed to pale and fade when compared to Whitney's show-stopping display. She opened her set, getting the ENTIRE audience on its feet with "I Wanna Dance With Somebody" and kept the momentum fueled with "How Will I Know." Rolling into "I Believe In You And Me," which she dedicated to Arista Records genius, Clive Davis, we saw Whitney teasing her way through the melodies, nailing every high note and register, making the work appear like child's play. Clearly, her command of the musical scale and making it sound so angelic is why she is one of the most decorated vocalists in music history. As she segued her way into "I Will Always Love You," Whitney wore that million-dollar smile, beaming because she knew she was in her element and the crowd was following close behind. She played the drama card with the skill of a stage veteran, pausing at one moment for a glass of water (courtesy of her husband, Bobby Brown) just before delivering the Grammy winning song's crescendo. The whole auditorium erupted with applause and a standing ovation. Whitney ended on a feel-good note, performing a spirited version of "My Love Is Your Love" and was joined on stage by Faith Hill, Monica and Deborah Cox. Bobby even got into the act, working the crowd during the breakdown. Most telling was Whitney's closing remark, "And the record's not over yet," as if to answer the critics and tabloids in the best way possible - delivering a solid, inspiring set that only she could pull off. Congratulations, Whitney, and thank you to Arista for bringing her gift to us!
[Report Commenting On NBC's Ratings For Arista25] ABC edged CBS in viewers and placed second to Fox in young adults
on May 15 behind the three-hour premiere of ``Air Force One'' (13.87 million viewers,
5.1/14 in adults 18-49). ``Air'' really soared in its final hour, winning by 4 million
viewers and by 6 shares in adults 18-49. [Thanks Gregg] Target... A promotional CD was just released on Tuesday at Target (in the US) honouring Arista Records' 25th anniversary. None of Whitney's performance at the Arista 25 special is on the CD (though four other Arista 25 performances are on it--Monica, LFO, Deborah Cox, and Westlife), but it does include the Club 69 Mix of "It's Not Right But It's Okay", supposedly never released before on CD. This doesn't appear on either the U.S. or overseas versions of "The Greatest Hits" (the Thunderpuss Mix appears on both; the overseas release also has the original version), nor is it on the vinyl "Unreleased Mixes" set, so U.S. fans who are into remixes might want to check it out. [Thanks Richard] Still On Target... Here's the tracklisting for the Arista25 CD selling at Target (USA): 1. Santana - Maria Maria (Spanglish Version) [Thanks Dave] Limited Edition Album... A limited edition 'Whitney:The Greatest Hits' CD set is
available at Circuit City (US) containing a bonus CD featuring The album is packaged in the traditional, larger double set.
Cover Story... If you go to the official GetMusic/peeps.com site for Whitney The Greatest Hits,
the cover version they're using is slightly different from the one that's been distributed
to the media [Thanks Richard] R&R... 'Same Script, Different Cast' debuts on the R&R Urban Chart at No.19 for the week ending 12 May 2000. Site Of The Week... Classic Whitney is Esprit's Site Of The Week! Here's what they have to say: The new site by the maker of the first officially recognised website dedicated to Whitney Houston, Classic Whitney combines libraries of information, images and sounds with excellent design and layout. Definately worth checking out, Whitney fan or not! Official recognised? - nice thought!
[AOL Report] Whitney Houston's 3 New Duet Singles with Enrique Iglesias, Deborah
Cox, and George Michael Exploding at Pop and R&B Radio, and International Markets;
Internet Promotions Launched on Over a Dozen Websites, with MSN.com Logging 70,000
Downloads Initiated in 2 Weeks for 'My Love Is Your Love' [Thanks Tony L]
NEWSFILE: 17 MAY 2000 |
Commercial Reviews... You can read some of the commercial reviews of 'Whitney The Greatest Hits' here. Please mail me any reviews you find in magazines or online. Some of the reviews included so far are Billboard, Music Week, NME, New York Daily News, USA Today and Entertainment Weekly. Thanks to all the contributors to date. Whitney & Britney: UK Profile... Whitney Houston is pictured in the cover story for UK music trade magazine Music Week. The report titled, 'Whitney & Britney bid to ease release famine', discusses the relatively low levels of new releases this time of year and warns record labels that if they don't come up with more consistent new releases throughout the year, customer apathy will set in. Whitney and Britney are the contenders for the top two positions on the UK album chart on Sunday. Whitney & Britney Stateside... [Sonicnet Report] Whitney Greatest-Hits
Collection Expected To Sell Well Contributing Editor Eric Schumacher-Rasmussen reports: Despite R&B superstar Whitney Houston's several recent, well-publicized performance cancellations, her greatest-hits album, which arrives in stores Tuesday (May 16), should do well amid competition from major releases by Britney Spears and Pearl Jam, retailers say. "It's a huge release day," said Cathie Ronnenburg, general manager of the Tower Records store in Paramus, N.J., near Houston's home in suburban Newark. "Whitney tends to be the kind of artist who sells well her first week and then sells solidly for another six or eight months." Whitney — The Greatest Hits is a two-CD collection featuring one disc of ballads such as "I Will Always Love You" and "Same Script, Different Cast," a new duet with Deborah Cox that is at #28 on the Billboard R&B/Hip-Hop singles chart. Disc two comprises remixes of Houston's uptempo hits, including "I'm Every Woman" and "How Will I Know." Houston blamed throat problems for her missed performances at this year's Academy Awards and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony in March. Numerous articles appeared in various publications speculating that Houston's problems concerned drugs. The singer also blamed illness for several cancelled shows on her summer 1999 tour. Ronnenburg contrasted the release of Whitney — The Greatest Hits with Spears' Oops! ... I Did It Again, which she said may be typical of a "fast burn" release, which sells very well during its first week or two then drops off significantly. "Houston's got no chance against Britney [during the first week of sales]," she said, but she added that Houston's sales ultimately could rival those of the pop princess. Ronnenburg said she ordered several hundred copies of each album. Whitney — The Greatest Hits has a list price of $25.99, which Ronnenburg said is low for a two-disc package. Tower will start selling the album at a sale price of $22.99. "That's a pretty good price for two discs," Ronnenburg said. "I don't think the cost will deter people from picking it up." Jim Fath, music manager of the Virgin Megastore in downtown Chicago, ordered more than 1,000 copies each of the Houston and Spears albums and said that in his store, Whitney will probably outsell Britney — at least until the weekend. "We're in a huge tourist and business area, and the demographic that buys Britney Spears albums won't get down here until Saturday," said Fath, whose store is located on Michigan Avenue in the city's shopping and office district. Stores in more suburban locations, such as Ronnenburg's, are likely to see bigger sales of Spears' album during the week. Fath said he planned to be open at midnight Monday to sell the singers' albums, as well as new releases from Pearl Jam and Phish. He said he expects Pearl Jam's Binaural and Phish's Farmhouse to be the biggest overnight sellers. Fath added that Houston has a proven sales track record and noted that her 1998 album, My Love Is Your Love, continues to sell well. The album, which features the single "It's Not Right but It's Okay", has sold more than 3 million copies and is at #99 on the Billboard R&B/Hip-Hop albums chart. Arista has been promoting the greatest-hits compilation heavily, including placing a full-page ad in Sunday's New York Times. Fath said his store sold 20 copies of the vinyl-only collection Whitney — The Remixes in the week after its April 25 release. That's a sizeable number for a vinyl release, he said, and it bodes well for the greatest-hits album. "This is almost like an early Christmas release for us," Fath said. "People will be buying this one right through the end of the year."[Thanks Sanj] If I Told You That makes an impressive airplay surge this week in the UK. The song is the biggest growing single of the week with an increase of 321 spins over last week. The song climbs to No.16 on the main airplay chart (up from No.26) on this third week. It's spins increased by 40% to 1125 for the week and it's audience increased by 41% to 42.37 million. The song is now No.2 on the pre-release chart and is not due for commercial release for another three weeks. If I Told You That was played 13 times by Radio One in the tracking week (their No.30) with an audience of 9.68m on that station alone and played 966 times on Independent Local Radio stations, ranking it No.14 on the ILR chart with 24.615m audience impressions.
Whitney Websites... Two new official Whitney websites have opened - www.whitneysgreatesthits.com and www.whitney-houston.de are both up and running (almost). Also, Nikesh's Whitney Website has reopened - check it out.
NEWSFILE: 16 MAY 2000 |
Whitney Websites...
Don't forget, US fans, it's Arista 25 night tonight!
UK Video... The tracklisting on the video for 'Whitney The Greatest Hits' is different to that already cited: You Give Good Love Videos for Love Will Save The Day, I'm Every Woman, I Have Nothing, Run To You, Queen Of The Night, Exhale (Shoop Shoop), I Believe In You And Me and When You Believe are not listed and, presumably, will feature on the DVD which is released next week. The video compilation does feature a few interview segments with Whitney and Clive Davis. UK Prediction... UK retailer, Woolworths predict 'Whitney The Greatest Hits' to debut at No.2 behind Britney Spears album this coming Sunday. The album, which is available from today is widely available but with limited instore displays and marketing. Hopefully Arista UK will find a second gear before the week is out.
Australia becomes the first country in the World to see Whitney The Greatest Hits debut on it's album chart. Coming in at No.8 with very little marketing, the album is Whitney's first top ten album since her 'Waiting To Exhale' project. Whitney's albums have performed as follows in Australia: Whitney Houston - No.1
All entries for the competition to win the UK promo of 'I Learned From The Best' are due in today.
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Mail Problems... Classic Whitney is in the process of moving to a new server and there are a few problems getting the mail server working correctly. If you have mailed me at my usual address, manish@classicwhitney.com you may have the mail bounced back. Apologies for this. Please email me on my other mail account Exhale_Tonight@compuserve.com if you need to contact me until this problem has been resolved. Competition entries will also need to be mailed to Exhale_Tonight@compuserve.com - all entries need to be in by the end of tomorrow. Apologies for the confusion. NEWSFILE: 14 MAY 2000 |
Whitney The Greatest Hits... I don't do this often, indulge me... A greatest hits album is usually a singles collection; the biggest hits from an artist's repertoire. As far as I was concerned, buying Whitney The Greatest Hits was a case of obtaining four new Whitney songs. I didn't spend too much time thinking about the other 31 tracks on the CD. I had those already, they are mostly featured in their original versions. Holding the 2CD thick jewel case and studying the cover of the CD, I realised just how long I have waited for this set. I knew what I wanted it to be for Whitney - a Best Of collection, not a Greatest Hits. The commercial balance between the two is a fine line but it's there. I knew what it had to be to capture the essence of what the past 15 years has been about. What I didn't know I'd actually play this CD almost endlessly in the background for so long. It's not even a case of skipping tracks. Each song has it's place in Whitney's history and in the soundtrack of the lives of any Whitney fan - whether you love a particular song or whether it reminds you what you didn't like about Whitney's back catalogue, the memories are what makes Whitney The Greatest Hits the most comprehensive, timeless and addictive greatest hits collection of our generation. This is very much the Best Of Whitney Houston that I had hoped for. Sure, there are different versions than I had expected, a couple of songs missing, maybe a couple that perhaps could have been left in the volts, but the final selection as a complete body of work is most impressive. Whitney The Greatest Hits is a biography of Whitney's recording career and the growth and diversity between what was Whitney in the eighties, nineties and what Whitney is in the new millennium prove the one thing that has been said all along - she is the voice of our generation. If you're reading this, you're either a Whitney Houston fan or an interested party of some description. The fact that you are here means you would enjoy Whitney The Greatest Hits. That you would appreciate most - if not all - of what it has to offer. As a fan for the whole 15 years of Whitney's career, I'm playing songs that I know like the back of my hand as though I am discovering something new from each track. I can only imagine what it will be like for the many millions of people who will be discovering Whitney's back catalogue for the first time. I envy their discovery. Enjoy, this is it. Manish. UK: Whitney The Greatest Hits... All the things you want to know about the UK issue of 'Whitney The Greatest Hits' having got my hands on a pre-release copy yesterday. The packaging of the double CD is in the thick double set (a la Michael Jackson's 'HIStory' and George Michael's 'Ladies & Gentlemen' sets). The booklet has twenty sides, including front and back and is consistent to the scans already appearing over the internet. The 'Cool Down' CD runs for 78:44 (18 tracks) and the 'Throw Down' CD runs for 77:47 (17 tracks). Greatest Love Of All is featured in it's remixed single version, as in the video and
not the original album version. Fine... Available on Classic Whitney, the lyrics to Fine.
The UK's biggest national radio station, Radio One, has A-Listed 'If I Told You That'. This means the song will receive a minimum of 30 plays in the coming week. A commercial single is not due until 5 June 2000.
It' s not too elaborate, in fact, it's a UK in-house pressing of the promo single for 'If I Told You That' - see the CD and cover below.
[Thanks Bev] Classic Whitney... Don't panic if Classic Whitney goes down over the next day or so - the site is in the process of moving to a new server. Saved? Lets hope so. Thank U for Ur Support. I appreciate
U. NEWSFILE: 13 MAY 2000 |
Bobby Brown... In keeping with tabloid tradition, the media have published some exaggerated stories about Bobby Brown over the past couple of days. Here are the facts of the matter at hand: Bobby surrendered voluntarily to Florida authorities after US Customs met him at Newark NJ airport to tell him that Florida had a warrant out. He was NOT arrested by customs in N.J. He went to Florida on his own, not under arrest, not accompanied by any Law Enforcement officials. His hearing is set for 22 May 2000. Bobby Brown is in good spirits and anxious to get this all behind him. Whitney Houston is now back at home with Bobbi Kristina. She will be filming the
videos for the first three singles from 'Whitney - The Greatest Hits' as scheduled. Billboard Rhythm Section... SCRIPTS AND CASTING: With an illustrious 15-year career for Arista, six Grammy wins this year alone, and over 70 million albums sold in the U.S., Whitney Houston keeps moving onward and upward. Houston's latest single, "Same Script, Different Cast," is a duet with labelmate Deborah Cox. "Same Script" is the Greatest Gainer/Airplay on Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks (48-28), fed by spins from WGCI Chicago, KBXX Houston, WPGC Washington, D.C., and most of our radio panel. This is the lead track for Houston's much-anticipated "Whitney-The Greatest Hits," which will be released May 16 on CD and cassette. The double-album comprises 36 songs, including new duets with Enrique Iglesias, George Michael, and Q-Tip, as well as Cox. Already released is a vinyl boxed set containing select remixes. [Thanks Lopez] Interactive DVD... PICTURE THIS: Houston Gets Interactive On Arista DVD; Baker & Taylor Forms
Web Division (Billboard May 20, 2000) INTERACTIVE WHITNEY: Having gotten its feet wet in the DVD market with releases from Britney Spears, "N Sync, and others, BMG Entertainment is pulling out all the stops for "Whitney-The Greatest Hits." Priced at $24.98, the title will be released on Tuesday (16), day and date with Whitney Houston's 15-year Arista Records career retrospective, also titled "Whitney-The Greatest Hits." The two-CD set features 36 songs; a four-record vinyl boxed set, titled "Whitney-The Unreleased Mixes," is also available. In addition to the audio tracks, the DVD features 23 videos, rare performances such as her TV debut on "The Merv Griffin Show" in 1985, and behind-the-scenes footage from the "Greatest Hits" album photo shoot. Another feature is performances from various concert and TV appearances, including her 1989 Grammy performance of "One Moment In Time"; two versions of "My Love Is Your Love," from "The Making Of The Album" and from her 1999 Mannheim, Germany, concert; and her rendition of "Impossible" from the Disney TV movie "Rodgers & Hammerstein's Cinderella." While the DVD is packed with material, BMG is most proud of its interactive menus that feature Houston introducing many of the segments. "We think we have the first DVD where the artist comes out and talks to you," says BMG senior VP of creative services Ken Levy. "It was shot especially for the DVD." Levy says Houston acts as the viewer's guide through the disc and provides commentary about what the viewer is about to see. Production of the disc began only in January and was "put together pretty quickly," Levy says. "When we saw the magnitude of the tracks, we wanted it to be different," he says. This is the first disc that BMG has created in-house; it features an interview with outgoing Arista Records founder and president Clive Davis, who signed Houston. More Houston performances will be seen on the "Arista Records Anniversary Celebration," which airs Monday (15) on NBC and will be released June 6 on DVD. The label, which is distributed by BMG, is celebrating its 25th anniversary this year. [Thanks Lopez] Billboard Review: Album... ALBUM SPOTLIGHT REVIEW: WHITNEY HOUSTON (Billboard - May 20, 2000) Whitney-The Greatest Hits For Houston, who's celebrating her 15th anniversary at Arista and who recently received her sixth Grammy Award (for "It's Not Right But It's Okay"), the timing couldn't be better for this two-disc, 36-track career retrospective. One disc, subtitled "Cool Down," includes such signature Houston ballads/downtempo tracks as "Greatest Love Of All," "All The Man That I Need," and "I Will Always Love You." The second disc, subtitled "Throw Down," places the spotlight firmly on the singer's many forays into clubland and includes such exclusive remixes as Jellybean & David Morales' mix of "Love Will Save The Day," the Dronez's mix of "I'm Your Baby Tonight," and Junior Vasquez's mix of "How Will I Know." Special highlights include three newly recorded duets: "Same Script, Different Cast" with Deborah Cox, the Metro mix of "Could I Have This Kiss Forever" with Enrique Iglesias (the song originally appeared on Iglesias' album "Enrique"), and "If I Told You That" with George Michael (the song originally appeared on "My Love Is Your Love" sans Michael). Also included is the summer-ready "Fine," which was produced by Q-Tip, DJ Quik, and Raphael Saadiq. Quite the stellar collection. [Thanks Lopez] Billboard Review: Single... R&B: WHITNEY HOUSTON & DEBORAH COX (Billboard - May 20, 2000) Whitney Houston & Deborah Cox Despite the talk out there these days about Whitney Houston, this diva can still outsing the best of them. And what a partnership-the queen of the Arista empire with outgoing president Clive Davis' diva-in-training, Deborah Cox. Instead of competing vocally (which was the vibe with Mariah Carey for the sappy melodrama "When You Believe"), the two complement each other perfectly. The song is sung as if it's a scene between two actors. From the simple, classical piano intro, it builds gradually, growing more intense musically as the story intensifies, ultimately culminating in a powerfully performed finale with full strings, magnificent high notes, and all the emotion that comes with an expertly written lyric. The story starts with the former lover, Houston, giving advice to the new woman, Cox, explaining that she'll experience the same sad story of those who went before her. The song could have been tacky and catty, but instead, it's sweet, compassionate, and nostalgic. "Same Script, Different Cast" is one of several new tracks featured on the upcoming Whitney Houston greatest-hits set, and it's already getting substantial airplay at radio. Despite any bad press Houston might be suffering, her talent always outshines any personal challenges. And Cox demonstrates that she is as good as the best and still getting better. [Thanks Lopez] Whitney Changes Flavors... Check out this interview with Whitney from BET Weekend Magazine by Ingrid Sturgis. [Thanks Lopez]
Sunday May 14th will be Whitney Houston Day on TMF (Dutch version of MTV). This is the schedule for Sunday: 12.30 Deja Vu 18.00 Post Op Zondag (mail On Sunday) [Thanks Deborah]
Some of the comments from Hitmakers confirming radio approval of 'Could I Have This Kiss Forever' and 'Same Script, Different Cast'. Mainstream Discovery Jeff Jacobs, PD, KFFM Yakima Rob Ryan MD, KKMG-Colorado Springs Eric Brown, PD KLRS, Chico Mike Lowe OM/PD WA1A, Melbourne Ellen Rockwell, MD WFLY, Albany Paul Madison, CO-MD WRVQ, Richmond Rhythmic Top 40 Discoveries Lisa Trygg, PD KPTY, Phoenix Geronimo APD/MD WKTU NYC Gizmo, MD WOCQ Ocean City, MD Same Script Different Cast [Thanks Lopez]
MTV's Whitney Houston All Access will air on MTV UK & Ireland on Saturday 20 May 2000 at 20:00BST. [Thanks Ben]
NEWSFILE: 12 MAY 2000 |
Classic Whitney will be in the process of transferring it's domain to a new server over the next few days. Much of the audio and video clips will not be available during this transition and the image galleries will also not be available. Apologies for the untimely change but increased hosting fees have meant the site can no longer run on it's current server. Failing all things, there is a possibility that Classic Whitney will close. I will keep you informed of developments. I fight incredibly hard for the things I believe in and I believe in Classic Whitney - Manish.
The Billboard update for the week ending 20 May 2000: MY LOVE IS YOUR LOVE: SAME SCRIPT, DIFFERENT CAST: I LEARNED FROM THE BEST: [Compiled By Lopez] Australian Exclusive... The biggest Australian Whitney Houston website by Wes Horton features the first detailed scans of the booklet for 'Whitney - The Greatest Hits'. [Thanks Wes]
[Comment From Deborah Cox Website & Mailing List] What's up! Thank you for your comments about the duet. It's doing really well at radio because of all your requests! We are doing the video in a couple weeks. I'll keep you posted.
I LEARNED FROM THE BEST [Thanks Sebastien]
[Thanks Dzemil]
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Music Week... Whitney - The Greatest Hits is
featured on the cover ~ and a total of four sides ~ on
UK Airplay... 'If I Told You That' climbs three places to No.26 on the UK airplay chart following a 64% increase in the number of plays it received to a new total of 804 spins for the week. The song's audience impression was 29.96m, a 9% increase over last week. Additionally, 'If I Told You That' is the fourth biggest growing song of the week (an increase of 313 plays over the previous week) and fifth most added song of the week. On the Pre-release airplay Top 10, 'If I Told You That' is listed at No.5. This is Music Week's comment: Travis may have performed modestly this week but they still manage to leapfrog over Whitney Houston & George Michael, whose 'If I Told You That' was last week's highest new entry at number 29 and now advances just three places to number 26. It is often the case that the biggest hits at the end of the day make very uneven progress, with initial success followed by slower advances - and this is likely to be the case with both Travis and the Houston/Michael pairings, which should top the sales chart and ultimately reach the Top 10 of the airplay chart with some ease. Could I Have Mexico...
The Mexican promo for Could I Have This Kiss Forever. [Thanks Dzemil] Free Poster... You can order Whitney Houston's Greatest Hits album by calling 1 800.897 1313. By ordering through this television promotion, you will receive a limited edition Whitney poster. It is the same shot of they are using on the album. [Thanks David] USA Today Review... Whitney in USA Today May 9,2000 Whitney's "Greatest" Lined Up In Smart Order Greatest-hits packaged by nature are built on an artist's best work. But they often do little more than collect the star's top-charting hits and throw in a few unreleased tracks as filler. The 36-track Whitney: The Greatest Hits (four stars out of four) puts its subject in context by smartly arranging the material so it's easy to follow Whitney Houston's 15 year progression from ingenue to mature singer. The set is divided into two discs, the first cataloguing her hit ballads in their original forms. The second disc acknowledges her impact on the club scene with dance remixes of 14 songs. There also are a few hard-to-find bonus numbers, such as her Star-Spangled Banner at the 1991 Super Bowl, a 1986 duet with Jermaine Jackson and the theme to the 1988 Olympics, One Moment In Time. The set does its job well, encapsulating a career that's still a work in progress, as evidenced by new duets with Q-Tip(produced by Raphael Saadiq),Enrique Iglesias(David Foster)and George Michael(Rodney Jerkins). Most telling is Same Script, Different Cast, on Which Houston trades lines with vocal power house Deborah Cox. There was a time when Houston was the diva-on-the-rise taking on established stars, But the track is a reminder that a generation of "Next Whitneys" has come up since You Give Good Love in 1985. Meanwhile, the original Whitney-whose tabloid troubles have often gotten as much attention as her music-has grown edgier but still seems to have more love to give. By Steve Jones, USA Today. [Thanks Lydia]
Getmusic.com have a new page on the Peeps.com website with some promotional blurb on 'Whitney The Greatest Hits'. You can listen to the Metro Mix of 'Could I Have This Kiss Forever' in it's entirety from that site. The Take5 section of Real.com also features the Metro Mix of 'Could I Have This Kiss Forever'. [Thanks Stavrone/Lopez]
NEWSFILE: 9 MAY 2000 |
[Information About The UK Release Of The CD From BMG Backstage] Whitney Houston is a world-class superstar. She is so popular today that it is hard to believe that her career started in 1985. 'Whitney's Greatest Hits' album is the
soundtrack to each of our lives. Starting in 1985 with 'saving All My Love' and 'I Wanna
Dance With Somebody' to 'The Greatest Love Of All', 'I'm Every Woman', 'I Will Always Love
You' to the modern classics 'My Love is Your Love' and 'It's Not right, But It's Okay'.
[Information About The UK Release Of The Video & DVD From BMG Backstage] Whitney Houston is simply a superstar. She has dominated the charts since the 1980's. Since then she has gone supernova and her popularity has expanded massively into the Millennium. We certainly do not need reminding just how
brilliant this artist is - but now there is the golden opportunity to re-live all her
classic, smash hit videos again! It is called 'Whitney- The Greatest Hits' and is released
on 22nd May 2000. Who can resist? It contains all of her very
best material that you will remember with affection...
Australia First... Australia is the first country in the world to see the release of 'Whitney - The Greatest Hits'. The album's track listing is identical to the European release. The booklet contains all the new photos we have seen so far on the internet and includes a bio/passage about Whitney's achievements. [Thanks Michael Z/Scott H]
Kiss92 Showdown.... The Canadian radio station, Kiss92.com (Toronto) has an 8 o'clock Showdown in which they have pitched Whitney Houston & Enrique Iglesias' 'Could I Have This Kiss Forever' against Carl Thomas' 'I Wish'. Please help Whitney & Enrique along by voting for Could I Have This Kiss Forever today. [Thanks Gosia] NEWSFILE: 8 MAY 2000 |
UK R&B Singles
Another report in the latest issue of Billboard Magazine which is a tribute edition to Clive Davis & Arista Records. This article is an interview with Charles Goldstruck, Arista's Executive VP/GM. Notable comments include the confirmation that 'My Love Is Your Love' has now scanned over 10 million copies and continues to scan well around the world. [Thanks Lopez]
[FMQB Magazine's Street Beat] Arista Tom Maffei is working hit record: Toni Braxton 'He Wasn't Man Enough For Me"(LaFace/Arista). The research and stories are coming back strong everywhere this record is getting played! The album debuts at #2 with 199,000 sold! Carl Thomas "I Wish"(Bad Boy/Arista). This record is a SMASH! Next Wifey(Arista) (see Burke's Best Bet). On deck: Whitney & Enrique and Whitney & Deborah Cox! They're both smoking!!! [Thanks Lopez]
The week's Top 10 Audio Downloads from Classic Whitney:
The week's Top 10 Video Downloads from Classic Whitney:
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RealVideo Advertising... Check out this RealVideo clip from the Finnish BMG site promoting 'Whitney - The Greatest Hits'. The only problem with it is that at the end, it cites the URL to a Whitney Houston fansite and not an official Arista/Whitney Houston website. The website in question is not open anymore. [Thanks Sebastian]
'If I Told You That' has been B listed on Radio One in the UK.
The latest issue of Billboard Magazine is a tribute to Arista Records and along with several interviews and articles, it features the Top 100 Albums & Singles from the label's 25 year history. You Can See The Complete Lists Here. [Thanks Lopez] Arista Changes... Read This Billboard Magazine Article about changes at Arista Records following Clive Davis' departure at the end of next month. The article clearly states that no superstar artists will be leaving Arista with Clive. The new heads of Arista's first priority come 1 July 2000 will be to get behind the albums that are already in the market place so hopefully this means that 'Whitney - The Greatest Hits' will not suffer during Arista's internal transition. [Thanks Lopez]
This article, written by David Nathan for Billboard Magazine talks about Arista being the home of the most prominent Divas in the music industry. [Thanks Lopez]
NEWSFILE: 6 MAY 2000 |
The final new track from 'Whitney - The Greatest Hits', 'Fine', is now available to download from Classic Whitney!
[Thanks Andy]
The Billboard update for the week ending 13 May 2000: MY LOVE IS YOUR LOVE: SAME SCRIPT, DIFFERENT CAST: I LEARNED FROM THE BEST: [Compiled By Lopez]
[Thanks Dzemil]
I LEARNED FROM THE BEST [Thanks Sebastien]
Entertainment Tonight will feature an interview with Whitney this evening. [Thanks Rodney]
Arista Changes... [New York Daily News Article] Music Is Over [Thanks Lopez]
Yahoo: Clive Davis... Clive Davis-A Record Industry LegendNEW YORK (Reuters) - In 1967, Clive Davis, then president of Columbia Records, was leading rock singer Janis Joplin and her band Big Brother & The Holding Company into a stark conference room as he prepared to sign her to a ,000 contract -- an extravagant sum at the time. Davis, whose extraordinary career in the record industry reached another milestone this week, told Joplin not to be put off by the austere surroundings and that the staff was indeed informal. At that point, a band member rose from the conference table to reveal he was wearing no clothes at all. ``This is how informal we are,'' Joplin said with a laugh. Joplin suggested that she and Davis consummate the contract by having sex but Davis declined. Instead, as he had with so many other music careers, he helped guide Joplin and her band to the top of the show business charts. The story symbolizes the seismic changes Davis brought to the record business. He finds talent, spends freely, has a legendary ear for a hit single and makes friends and admirers. On Tuesday it was announced that the 67-year-old executive would step down as head of Arista Records, the hit label he founded. Arista's parent, Bertelsmann AG(BTGGga.D)-owned BMG Entertainment, named rap executive Antonio ``L.A.'' Reid to succeed Davis as president and chief executive of the label. A boardroom battle over Davis' future with BMG has been going on for months and a BMG spokesman says Davis is still in discussions with the label regarding his future. ``Clive is one of the rare people in the business who's a music person,'' Arif Mardin, a record producer who has worked with Aretha Franklin, Phil Collins and others, told Reuters in an interview late last year. Davis is credited for bringing Columbia Records into the rock 'n' roll market, signing Bruce Springsteen, Billy Joel and Chicago, as well as Joplin, during his six-year tenure. Joe Smith, a former chairman of Capitol Records, was a vice president at Warner Brothers, Columbia's chief competitor, at the time and recalled, ``We had a pretty potent management team at Warner at the time. And Clive was a single guy at Columbia and he was beating the pants off of us.'' Davis would spend extravagantly to attract the likes of Neil Diamond to Columbia. But he was also fired from Columbia for using corporate funds for personal use, and pleaded guilty to income tax evasion in 1975. That year, he founded Arista Records, home to Whitney Houston and Barry Manilow. Last year, Davis shepherded Santana's album Supernatural to the top of Billboard's Top 200 charts for the first time since 1971. The album won nine Grammy awards, including two for Davis himself for his work as a producer. He was also awarded the Lifetime Achievement Award by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences at the Grammy awards in February and inducted into the Rock 'n' Roll Hall of Fame in the nonperforming category in March. ``This has been one of the most satisfying years of my life,'' Davis told reporters at the Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony in March. ``I hope you all have as many options at the end of your career as I have in mine.'' When Davis joined Columbia at age 28 as an attorney in 1960, Columbia was the home to Tony Bennett, Andy Williams and Mitch Miller, a bandleader who was the antithesis of rock 'n' roll. When he became president in 1967, Columbia had only dipped its toe into the widening rock 'n' roll pool. The label was home to Bob Dylan, as well as folk-rock stalwarts Simon & Garfunkel and the Byrds. But Columbia under Davis dove head-first into the music, signing the bands Santana, who had two No. 1 albums in 1970 and 1971 and Blood Sweat & Tears, who had three No. 2 hits in 1969. Davis was not King Midas, however. In 1972, he would buy from Atlantic the contract of Delaney & Bonnie, a blues rock act with modest success, for ,000. The group made one album that did not chart before splitting up. In 1967, Aretha Franklin, who languished for seven years on Columbia without a hit, would defect for Atlantic where she would rule the pop and R&B charts into the mid-1970s. Davis would eventually redeem himself, however, by signing Franklin to Arista in 1980, where she would hit the top 10 in 1985 with ``Freeway of Love'' and ``Who's Zoomin' Who.'' Throughout the years, Davis also acquired a reputation for a sizable ego. ``He's certainly had his clashes over the years,'' Smith said. ``And there are some people who will tell executives, 'Never get bigger than your talent.' That's not Clive.'' In 1983, Davis visited a Manhattan nightclub to see a 19-year-old singer named Whitney Houston. When he signed her, her lawyer Paul Marshall insisted on a ``key-man'' clause, which stipulated that if Davis left Arista for any reason, Houston would become a free agent. Houston subsequently had a string of 19 Top 10 hits, 11 of which went to No. 1. [Thanks Nikesh]
Impact Date... Same Script Different Cast is going for radio adds at Urban and Urban AC radio on May 1. [Thanks Chris B]
Hitmaker... DJ Comments on 'Could I Have This Kiss Forever': WHITNEY HOUSTON & ENRIQUE IGLESIAS "Could I Have This Kiss
Forever" (ARISTA) [Thanks Lopez]
Mary... A recent comment from Mary J Blige on Whitney Houston: I respect Whitney because every little girl wants to be that. Whitney is someone
that has stayed who she is. She's done her movies, in spite of whoever said what. 'Oh,
she's doing this, she's selling out and blah, blah, blah.' She stayed Whitney, and I
appreciate that. I respect Lauryn because she does what she wants to do. People appreciate
that. People [Thanks Lopez] NEWSFILE: 4 MAY 2000 |
Note: There Are Still More Platinum Discs Whitney Needs To Tend To.
UK music trade publication, Music Week, this week reviews the albums to be released during the week of 15 May 2000. Whitney Houston's 'Whitney - The Greatest Hits' is reviewed this week and has been chosen as their Album Of The Week. Here's what they have to say: The standout track on this double CD package is not, as anticipated, the Rodney Jerkins-produced duet with George Michael, 'If I Told You That', but the follow-up duet with Enrique Iglesias, 'Could I Have This Kiss Forever'. Houston's entire output since 1985 is brought together in a double-CD package. CD1 features classic ballads such as 'Saving All My Love For You' and 'Greatest Love Of All', while CD2 boasts the more upbeat hits including 'I'm Your Baby Tonight' and 'How Will I Know'. Only doubts about her promotional availability, Radiohead and the Spice Girls can stop this being one of the biggest albums of the year.
'If I Told You That' surges on UK airwaves - the song debuts at No.29 on the UK airplay Top 50 (following it's out-of-chart debut last week at No.57). The song was spun 491 times, an increase of 309% over the previous week. It's airplay audience was up to 27.47 million, up 110% from the previous week. This is what Music Week had to say: Our prediction last week that the Whitney Houston & George Michael duet 'If I Told You That' would be the highest new entry to the Top 50 comes through, as the single registers in excess of 400 plays and an audience of more that 27m to make it's Top 50 debut at number 29. 'If I Told You That' received eight plays from Radio One last week but the biggest contributor to it's audience was Capital, where it was played 49 times last week. Capital's audience accounted for 29% of the record's total.
Blues & Soul.... [Comment from Montell Jordan in the latest issue of Blues & Soul magazine] I've done a song for Whitney (Houston). It’s like an RnB soap. The song is dope. It features Whitney and a new vocalist and it deals with the fact that this woman has got the man but he’s gonna do the same to her eventually that he did to the first girl. It’s a case of what goes around comes around – bad karma and that kind of thing. [Thanks Ben] Official German Site... www.whitney-houston.de becomes the official German website for Whitney Houston. The official UK site starts at www.whitney-houston.co.uk [Thanks Sebastian] Out...
On the Dutch Album Top 100 'My Love Is Your Love' drops 7 places from No.65 to No.72. (74th week on chart). Previous weeks: 65-64. [Thanks Deborah]
Dutch Release... 'Whitney - The Greatest Hits' will see it's Dutch release on 12 May 2000. It joins Australia in having the album released on that Friday. [Thanks Deborah]
Clive Davis/Arista Report... [E-Online Report] Goodbye, Clive. Hello, "L.A." Looks like Arista Records' recent "tribute" to legendary hitmaker Clive Davis was more like a going-away party. After months of speculation that the label's embattled president and founder was on the outs, Arista parent company BMG announced today that Antonio "L.A." Reid will replace Davis as president and CEO. Reid, who cofounded LaFace Records and launched the careers of TLC, Toni Braxton and Usher, will replace Davis when his contract expires at the end of June. Reid had been the rumored successor to Davis, 67, who, over the past 25 years, built up the label by nabbing legends like Janis Joplin, Whitney Houston, The Artist and Carlos Santana. Davis had publicly feuded with BMG over its plans to replace him with someone younger, and Arista's artists promptly rushed to his defence. But the axe still fell. "Antonio brings to Arista an inspired track record as a businessman, Grammy award-winning producer and deeply committed record man," BMG President and CEO Strauss Zelnick said in a statement. "As cofounder and copresident of LaFace Records, he has created a music powerhouse and helped develop some of today's top pop and R&B artists." BMG also announced that LaFace Records will be consolidated with Arista, but will hold onto its own imprint and will remain in its Atlanta home. Meanwhile, Reid's cohort at LaFace, soulster Kenneth "Babyface" Edmonds, also has entered into a joint venture with Arista to form a new record label, with a name to be announced later. Prior to founding LaFace, Reid and Babyface were the masterminds behind 33 number one singles, winning three Grammy awards for their work. The team wrote and produced tunes for Houston, Boys II Men, Bobby Brown and Paula Abdul. Reid's take-over of the Davis dynasty comes just as Arista ended one of its best years ever. The label posted $425 million in sales during the first nine months of the fiscal year--in part due to the massive success of veteran rocker Santana's Supernatural disc, which has sold more than 16 million copies. Santana also swept this year's Grammy Awards, during which he praised Davis for believing in him--despite his age. "A lot of people told me they didn't want to work with me because I'm old," he said backstage. "Mr. Davis believed in me. We both believed we had a masterpiece in our belly." Davis, meanwhile, believes he has his own masterpiece in the works. He's been talking with other labels, including BMG, about a reported $225 million proposal to start a new entertainment conglomerate. BMG reps say negotiations regarding his proposal are ongoing. In a statement released after the announcement, Davis said he was disappointed about BMG's decision, but emphasized that he plans to move forward with his new company. "It's time now to turn to a new and vital chapter in this fast changing world of music," the statement reads. "This new chapter couldn't come at a better time, and we will decide among the very substantial offers we've received to begin business in September." Of course, you can see Clive and Arista happily reunited when NBC airs the pre-recorded Arista Records' 25th Anniversary tribute to Davis on May 15. [Thanks Neil C]
NEWSFILE: 3 MAY 2000 |
Clive Davis will officially be replaced by Antonio 'L.A' Reid when his contract expires at the end of next month. The LaFace label artists - such as TLC and Toni Braxton - will merge into Arista whilst the LaFace imprint will continue to exist. More details on this soon.
Check out the BMG Singapore Website with details of 'Whitney - The Greatest Hits' to be released in Asia/the Far East. This is what they have to say: In the midst of her 15th anniversary year as an Arista recording artist, and in the wake of her sixth Grammy win this year for "It's Not Right But It's Okay." Whitney - The Greatest Hits celebrates the career of the artist whose combines sales in the U.S. are more than 70 million units, and who has sold more than 110 million records and videos sold worldwide. Whitney - The Greatest Hits, a 36-track collection, comprises both the Cool Down CD of all the ballad hits in their original version and the Throw Down second CD of all the uptempo signature cuts and sizzling club mixes, both CD's spanning her entire career to date. Newly-recorded for the occasion are duets with Enrique Iglesias (the Diane Warren composition ("Could I Have This Kiss Forever") and Arista label-mates Deborah Cox ("Same Script, Different Cast") and Q-Tip ("Fine"), plus a brand new version of "If I Told You That" (from My Love Is Your Love) that was reconfigured by producer Rodney Jerkins as a duet with George Michael, with additional production done by George Michael. The site also promises new song previews shortly. [Thanks Fal]
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By Popular Demand - Scan Of Whitney: The Unreleased Mixes Cover
This is the US 2 tracks promo of 'Could I Have This Kiss Forever', featuring the radio edit and the call out research hook. [Thanks Dave]
Katsu works in a record store in Japan and reports that the Asian release of 'Whitney: The Greatest Hits' will feature a tracklisting similar to that of the UK/European release. [Thanks Katsu]
Whitney Houston will film the videos for 'If I Told You That', 'Same Script Different Cast' and 'Could I Have This Kiss Forever' during the next few weeks. All videos should be done during the month.
The Classic Whitney Website was featured on the French music channel MCM on the show titled L'integrale. Whitney Houston was their chosen artist for the show this week and Classic Whitney was the pick of the Whitney websites. How Cool Is That!? - Manish. [Thanks Marie]
The RealNetworks Website has a special Arista25 Section marking the upcoming Arista25 special in two weeks in the US. It doesn't currently have any Whitney features but may do as the time draws nearer.
Whitney Fans...
Another great photo of Whitney with fans - next to Whitney is Jay. The photo was taken at London's Regent Plaza Hotel on 16 September 1999. Whitney had come to the hotel where fans were staying and she spent some time with them that evening. Platinum Club members will have read the story of how Whitney dedicated 'You'll Never Stand Alone' at the following London show to Jay and her husband Stu (the only time Whitney has performed the song as part of the tour). If you have had your photo taken with Whitney, please do mail it to me. [Thanks Jay]
NEWSFILE: 1 MAY 2000 |
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