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Emotions is the second studio album by Mariah Carey, released on September 17, 1991, through Columbia Records. The album was recorded between January and July of that year, and was produced by Mariah Carey, Walter Afanasieff and Robert Clivillés & David Cole (of C+C Music Factory fame). Emotions has sold over eight million copies worldwide since its release, and was certified 4x platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA).
Writing and recording[]
With the success of her self-titled debut album, Carey and top Sony/Columbia executives—such as Tommy Mottola and Don Lenner—realized it was time to work on the singer's next record. Carey was given permission to produce (which had been denied for most of her debut album) and the option to work with producers of her choice. She chose to work with Walter Afanasieff (the only holdover from her debut) and Clivilles & Cole (of C+C Music Factory) as well as singer-songwriter Carole King, one of Mariah's longtime favorite artists.
Album Promotion and Reception[]
Emotions did not receive as substantial of promotion as Mariah's debut album, and she faced criticism, once again, when she denied touring at that pivotal moment of her career. In the wake of a recent lip-synching scandal at the time involving duo Milli Vanilli, critics once again attacked Mariah, believing that she was a "studio artist" who was unable to perform live, and that her famous belts and whistle notes were nothing more than a creation of synthesized instruments in the studio.
Mariah later said she did not tour because she faced her own insecurities and a general lack of self-confidence in performing for an audience. She explained her issues by stating that most artists overcome anxiety during their live performances before they get a record deal, but she did not have the same experience performing live. Despite this, she made a successful appearance on NBC's Saturday Night Live singing her hit single, "Can't Let Go" and the expressive R&B/gospel tinged song, "If It's Over", in the fall of 1991.
The reviews for the album were mixed. Mariah was mostly criticized for the abundance of high notes in her vocals on the album, especially those on the title track, where her vocal range is showcased more than on any of her previous songs. More characteristically, "Rolling Stone" magazine found her singing too showy, writing: "Carey has a remarkable vocal gift, but to date, unfortunately, her singing has been far more impressive than expressive". The album earned two 1992 Grammy Award nominations for Producer of the Year and Best Female Pop Vocal Performance (for "Emotions"), losing in both categories.
"Emotions" debuted and peaked at no. 4 on the U.S. Billboard 200 with first-week sales of 129,000 copies, which surprised some following the huge success of Mariah Carey. It spent twenty-seven weeks in the top twenty and a total of fifty-five on the Billboard 200. It became the first of four of Mariah's studio albums not to sit atop the Billboard 200 and was her lowest-peaking album until "Glitter (album)" in 2001.
In Japan, the album reached number three on the Oricon chart and has sold one million copies. "Emotions" performed better on the chart than her debut in the UK, peaking within the top five and spending four weeks more in the top seventy-five, with a total of forty weeks. The album was a success in Canada and Australia, but as in the U.S. it did not sell as well as Mariah Carey. The album made the Canadian top five and the Australian top ten, and was certified 4x platinum in Canada and platinum in Australia. Carey's success was once again moderate across continental Europe.
The singles from Emotions were not huge hits and, like her debut album, only the lead single was a success outside of the U.S. The first single, "Emotions", became Carey's fifth consecutive number 1 single in the U.S., making her the only act in chart history to have their first five U.S. singles reach the top of the Billboard Hot 100. It also made the top five in Canada, but failed to go beyond the top twenty in the UK and Australia.
"Can't Let Go" became her sixth consecutive top five hit and broke her string of number-one hits, it was a modest hit elsewhere: despite making the Canadian top ten, it barely reached the UK top twenty and missed the Australian top forty altogether. "Make it Happen" peaked at number 5 in the U.S. and became her first single to miss the Canadian top ten, but managed to peak within the UK top twenty and the Australian top forty. A fourth single, "Till the End of Time," was commissioned to radio in Costa Rica and Mexico in an attempt to boost sales of the album. Because the song received minimal airplay, and to make way for the release of the MTV Unplugged EP, it was not given further promotion as a single.
The album was certified 4x Multi-Platinum, Platinum in the UK, Sweden, New Zealand, Australia, and the Netherlands, Gold in Switzerland and France, and 4x Platinum in Canada.
Track listing[]
- "Emotions" (Mariah Carey, David Cole, Robert Clivillés) — 4:09
- "And You Don't Remember" (Carey, Walter Afanasieff) — 4:26
- "Can't Let Go" (Carey, Afanasieff) — 4:27
- "Make It Happen" (Carey, Cole, Clivilles) — 5:07
- "If It's Over" (Carey, Carole King) — 4:38
- "You're So Cold" (Carey, Cole, Clivilles) — 5:05
- "So Blessed" (Carey, Afanasieff) — 4:13
- "To Be Around You" (Carey, Cole, Clivilles) — 4:37
- "Till The End of Time" (Carey, Afanasieff) — 5:35
- "The Wind" (Carey, Russell Freeman) — 4:41
Unreleased[]
"Can You Hear Me" (Carey, Barry Mann) — 4:07
Personnel[]
Musicians
Mariah Carey - lead vocals, background vocals
David Cole - keyboards, keyboard arrangements, drum programming, background vocals (tracks 1, 4, 6, 8)
Robert Clivilles - keyboard arrangements, drums, drum programming (tracks 1, 4, 6)
Walter Afanasieff - keyboards, synthesizers, Hammond B3 organ, synthesizer bass, drums, percussion, strings, vibes, instrument arrangements, programming, Synclavier (strings, acoustic guitar, acoustic bass) tambourine, Bosendorfer SE grand piano (tracks 1-3, 5, 7, 9-10)
Ren Klyce - Synclavier, Akai programming (track 2-3, 5, 7, 9-10)
Gary Cirimelli - Synclavier, MacIntosh programming (track 2-3, 5, 7, 9-10)
Paul Pesco - guitars (tracks 1, 4, 6, 8)
Michael Landau - guitars (tracks 2-3, 7, 9)
Cornell Dupree - guitars (track 5)
Vernon "Ice" Black - guitars (track 10)
Carl James - bass guitar (track 4)
Will Lee - bass guitar (track 5)
Earl Gardner - trumpet (track 5)
Keith O'Quinn - trombone (track 5)
George Young - tenor saxophone (track 5)
Larry Feldman - tenor saxophone (track 5)
Lewis Delgatto - baritone saxophone, horn arrangements (track 5)
Steve Smith - drums (tracks 5, 10)
Alan Friedman - programming (YIPE!) (tracks 1, 4, 6, 8)
Trey Lorenz - background vocals (tracks 1, 4-5, 8)
Patrique McMillan - background vocals (tracks 4-5)
Cindy Mizelle - background vocals (tracks 5, 8)
Jamillah Muhammed - background vocals (track 6)
Deborah Cooper - background vocals (track 8)
Production
Acar S. Key - engineer (tracks 1, 4, 6, 8)
Bruce Miller - engineer (tracks 1, 6)
John Mathias - engineer (track 4)
Tony Maserati - engineer (track 8)
Dana Jon Chappelle - engineer, mixing (tracks 2-3, 5, 7, 9)
Bruce Calder - assistant engineer (tracks 2-3, 5, 7, 9-10)
Craig Silvey - assistant engineer (tracks 2-3, 7, 9-10)
Manny LaCarrubba - assistnat engineer (tracks 2-3, 7, 9-10)
M.T. Silva - assistant engineer (tracks 2-3, 7, 9-10)
Lolly Grodner - assistnat engineer (tracks 2-3, 9)
Bob Edwards - additional engineering (track 10)
Bob Rosa - mix engineer (tracks 1, 4, 6, 8)
Mariah Carey - vocal arrangements, arranger
David Cole - vocal arrangements, arranger (tracks 1, 4, 6, 8)
Walter Afanasieff - vocal arrangements, arranger (tracks 2-3, 5, 7, 9-10)
Robert Clivilles - arranger (tracks 1, 4, 6, 8)
Bob Ludwig - mastering, Masterdisk, NY
Josephine DiDonato - art direction
Phillip Dixon - photography
Tommy Mottola - executive producer
Charts[]
| Country | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Australian Albums Chart | 8 |
| Austrian Albums Chart | 39 |
| Canadian Albums Chart | 5 |
| Dutch Albums Chart | 7 |
| French Albums Chart | 38 |
| German Albums Chart | 46 |
| Italian Albums Chart | 16 |
| Japanese Albums Chart | 3 |
| New Zealand Albums Chart | 6 |
| Norwegian Albums Chart | 8 |
| Spanish Albums Chart | 38 |
| Swedish Albums Chart | 13 |
| Swiss Albums Chart | 15 |
| UK Albums Chart | 4 |
| U.S. Billboard 200 | 4 |
| U.S. Billboard R&B\Hip-Hop Albums | 6 |