Single Reviews: Heartbreak Hotel

Date: January 09, 1999

From Billboard
Submitted by: Rachel D.


WHITNEY HOUSTON FEAT. FAITH EVANS AND KELLY PRICE Heartbreak Hotel (3:59)
PRODUCERS: Soulshock, Karlin
WRITERS: C. Schack, K. Karlin, T. Savage
PUBLISHERS: Jungle Fever/EMI-Blackwood/Soulvang, BMI; Marshai, ASCAP Arista 3601 (CD promo)

After the embarrassing radio performance of the heavily hyped Mariah Carey duet "When You Believe" from "The Prince Of Egypt," Arista is calling upon hot R&B singers Kelly Price and Faith Evans to lend a little street cred to Houston's second single from "My Love Is Your Love."

On this track, launched last month at the Billboard Music Awards with a smoking live performance, Houston eases into the role of the dissed lover who's taking things into her own hands with a letter telling her man how much he hurt her with his cheating. It's a highly effective setting for Houston, who wears her emotions on her sleeve and serves up one of the most effective performances on the album.

Price and Evans sell themselves grandly as empathetic sisters alongside their pained friend, soaring with emotion and helping keep the timeless artist identifiable to a new generation of R&B fans.

Top 40 programmers who embraced Price's "Friend Of Mine" won't even have to play this one all the way through to add it, and with the format's heavy R&B lean, this should see quick action across the board. Of course, R&B radio will give this a hug in an instant. It's nice to see Houston on track, leaning away from the syrup and juicing up for the real deal here.