My Love Is Your Love - Houston, Whitney (CD 1998)

There was time when no one could battle the talent that was Whitney Houston. Sadly, Whitney Houston who was once the diva to rival all divas has a career that can be divided into two parts: before crack and after crack. Thankfully, despite whatever personal foils Houston may be going through in her life, she has an impressive anthology of work that is a testament to her enviable talents and savvy as an R&B singer.

1998 s My Love Is Your Love is a perfect reflection of late 90 s R&B. Heavy guest appearances, strong producers, and a m lange of Hip-Hop and R&B, all which Houston captured (mostly) effortlessly. Heartbreak Hotel , a duet with counterparts Kelly Price and Faith Evans blends together all three women s impeccable ability to not only be understated when a song needs it, but to turn around and blow you away with their depth, power and range. The scorned woman who is now triumphant theme (which is very prevalent throughout) continues with It s Not Right But It s Okay , a contagious showcase of Houston s ability to turn a mundane song into something quite special.

The Wyclef Jean produced My Love Is Your Love might be the best thing (besides the Fugees) that Wyclef ever helmed. Slightly reggae-tinged and sublimely funky and cool it comes off as being classy and strong. All In My Business a big $#%)* you to someone (tabloids perhaps) is decent until Missy Elliot makes an appearance. Elliot redeems herself on Oh Yes , a melodically seductive song that is small on Elliot and big on Houston.

There are few missteps on My Love Is Your Love and none of the missteps are made by Houston herself but overzealous producers who spoil good moments by talking over a track too much ( All In My Business , Get It Back ) or with production that winds up simply sounding busy like it does on I Was Made To Love Him (which has a few good moments, that just wind up taking from one another).

In terms of continuity the album is a bit dodgy; jumping from R&B influenced by Hip-Hop to humongous power-ballads like the schmaltzy When You Believe , a duet with Mariah Carey. Diane Warren (Producer and reigning queen of HUGE ballads) contributes on several tracks, I Learned From The Best is the best of the Warren offerings, the only one that can even be remotely described as powerful yet understated. I Bow Out and You ll Never Stand Alone while pretty in their own right, seem like they were better catered to the persona of someone like Celine Dion and certainly feel a bit out of place amidst all of the R&B offerings.

- Final Thoughts -

Regardless of what Whitney Houston decides to smoke or inhale her talent is fiercely strong. While My Love Is Your Love is not her best work or a definitive look at her career as an artist it is a fairly strong offering that was needed at a time when Houston as a foremother of contemporary R&B was becoming not so relevant. Hopefully, there will be more to hear from Houston that is not of the tragic variety and she might be able to teach some people about possessing talent and being a real singer.

Great Music to Play While: Just Saying No To Crack (Because It Is Whack You Know)