Released September 28, 1990 Genre R&B | Format 7"
12"
CD
cassette
VHS Length 5:00 | |
B-side "Feels So Good"
"I'm Knockin" Recorded 1989; Elumba Recording Studios
(Hollywood, Los Angeles, California)
1990; Axis Studios
(New York City, New York) | ||
"I'm Your Baby Tonight" is the lead single and title track from Whitney Houston's 1990 third studio album of the same name. The song was written and produced by Babyface and L.A. Reid. The single features a B-side, "Feels So Good", which has not been featured on any Whitney Houston album. While the original version, written and produced by L.A. Reid and Babyface, was released in the United States, the Yvonne Turner mix (also known as the "European Version" or the "International Version"), was released in other countries. Houston was nominated for Best Pop Vocal Performance, Female with this track at the 33rd Grammy Awards in 1991.
Contents
The song became a huge hit for Houston, reaching the top 10 worldwide. It reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, her eighth single to do so; "I'm Your Baby Tonight" is her fifth biggest hit in the US.
A live performance was included in the 2014 CD/DVD release, Whitney Houston Live: Her Greatest Performances.
Composition
"I'm Your Baby Tonight" is written in the key of A minor (recorded in G-sharp minor) with a tempo of 110 beats per minute in compound quadruple meter (12
8 time). The song follows a chord progression of Am9 – Fmaj7 – Bm7♭5 – E7sus – E7, and Houston's vocals span from C4 to A5.
Critical reception
The song received mixed reviews, being named as a stand-out track from the album by AllMusic, while Entertainment Weekly said it "tries too hard to follow in the footsteps of Michael Jackson's 'The Way You Make Me Feel.'"
Following Houston's death in 2012, Entertainment Weekly published a list of her 25 best songs and ranked "I'm Your Baby Tonight" at number 18. BET placed it at number 23 in their list of "The 40 Best Whitney Houston Songs" writing that the producers "deliver a streetwise production" which gives Houston "a perfect launchpad for one of the funkier, harder-edged performances of her career".
Music video
The music video (directed by Julien Temple) features an edgier, rougher Houston - very different from in videos such as "How Will I Know" (1985) and "I Wanna Dance with Somebody (Who Loves Me)" (1987) - paying homage to the sounds of black music that have helped define her sound, paying tribute in simulation of the Harlem Renaissance (with Houston as Marlene Dietrich), Motown (most notably The Supremes as Houston uses cloning imagery to create two clones of herself), and Hollywood's Golden Age (with Houston dressed as Audrey Hepburn in Funny Face), finally returning to present day by the video's end. The video uses the single edit of the song rather than the album version, whereas all of Houston's subsequent greatest-hits compilations have used the album version.
Chart performance
"I'm Your Baby Tonight" hit the Top 10 in several major markets including Australia (#7), France (#4), Italy (#1), Canada (#2), Switzerland (#4), UK (#5), and Germany (#5). After having charted ten Top 10 hits (and seven consecutive number ones) on the Billboard Top 100, Houston continued her chart momentum as "I'm Your Baby Tonight" would become her 11th Top 10 hit and eighth number one. The song had an impressive debut at number 42 the week of October 20, 1990. Six weeks later, it hit number one, ending Mariah Carey's three-week run at the top with "Love Takes Time". "I'm Your Baby Tonight" spent only one week at number one, being knocked off by Stevie B's "Because I Love You (The Postman Song)". Altogether, the single spent 14 weeks in the Top 10, 19 weeks in the Top 20, and 23 consecutive weeks in the Top 40. It also reached number one on the Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart for two weeks. "I'm Your Baby Tonight" was Houston's eighth number-one single on the Billboard Hot 100, sixth number-one single on the Billboard Hot 100 Airplay chart and fourth number-one single on the Billboard R&B singles chart. The single was certified Gold by the Recording Industry Association of America.