Mariah Carey – #1’s (1998/2022)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/44,1 kHz | Time – 01:12:45 minutes | 859 MB | Genre: R&B, Soul, Dance, Pop
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Front Cover | © Columbia – Legacy
Protest as she may – and she does, claiming in the liner notes that #1’s is “not a greatest hits album! It’s too soon, I haven’t been recording long enough for that!” – it’s hard to view #1’s, Mariah Carey’s first compilation, as anything other than a greatest-hits album. Carey was fortunate enough to have nearly every single she released top the pop charts. Between 1990’s “Vision of Love” and 1998’s “My All,” all but four commercially released singles (“Anytime You Need a Friend,” “Can’t Let Go,” “Make It Happen,” “Without You”) hit number one, with only a handful of radio-only singles (“Butterfly,” “Breakdown”) making the airwaves, not the charts. That leaves 12 big hits on #1’s, all number ones. Since Carey’s singles always dominated her albums, it comes as no surprise that #1’s is her best, most consistent album, filled with songs that represent state-of-the-art ’90s adult contemporary and pop-oriented urban soul. That said, it isn’t a perfect overview – a couple of good singles are missing because of the self-imposed “#1 rule”; plus, the Ol’ Dirty Bastard mix of “Fantasy” is strong, but fans familiar with the radio single will be disappointed that the chorus is completely missing on this version. The album is also padded with a personal favorite (her Brian McKnight duet “Whenever You Call,” taken from Butterfly) and three new songs – the Jermaine Dupri-produced “Sweetheart,” the Whitney Houston duet “When You Believe” (taken from The Prince of Egypt soundtrack), and “I Still Believe,” a remake of a Brenda K. Starr tune – which are all fine, but not particularly memorable. Still, that’s hardly enough to bring down a thoroughly entertaining compilation that will stand as her best record until the “official” hits collection is released. – Stephen Thomas Erlewine
(more…)
Mariah Carey – Music Box: 30th Anniversary Edition (2023)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/44,1 kHz | Time – 02:48:29 minutes | 1,92 GB | Genre: Pop
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Front Cover | © Columbia – Legacy
Grammy-winning and best-selling female recording artist of all time Mariah Carey will celebrate the 30th anniversary of her debut album, “Music Box,” this fall.
The celebration will include the release of new unreleased tracks, mixes, live audio, and remastered audio with “My Prayer,” “Hero (2009 Version),” “Anytime You Need A Friend (Extended Mix),” and “Music Box (Acapella).”
A remastered version of “Mariah Carey Live at Proctor’s Theatre” will also be released.
Carey will release a mini documentary behind-the-scenes of “Dreamlover,” which will also be released in 4k.
Mariah Carey’s “Music Box: Then & Now” celebration will begin on September 8.
“I’ll never forget creating this record, fully immersing myself in the music that would change my life and connect me with YOU, the lambily, in a way that bonded us forever,” Carey said in a social media post.
Read moreMariah Carey – The Roof (Back In Time) EP (Remastered) (1997/2020)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/44,1 kHz | Time – 54:04 minutes | 629 MB | Genre: Pop
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Front Cover | © Columbia – Legacy
Mariah Carey has the most number-one singles for a solo artist in the United States (eighteen; second artist overall behind The Beatles), where, according to the Recording Industry Association of America, she is one of the best-selling female artists and sixteenth overall recording artist. In addition to her commercial accomplishments, Carey has earned five Grammy Awards, and is well-known for her vocal range, power, melismatic style, and use of the whistle register. She is ranked as the best-selling female artist of the U.S. Nielsen Soundscan era (third best-selling artist overall), with sales of over 50 million albums in the US and has sold over 200 million records worldwide. Here are vocal transcriptions of all five octaves of her 20 most popular tunes …
Read moreMariah Carey – The Rarities (2020)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/44,1 kHz | Time – 02:16:44 minutes | 1,60 GB | Genre: Pop
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Front Cover | © Columbia – Legacy
The Rarities is a compilation of fan favorites, rare songs and unreleased gems, all hand-picked by Mariah herself. In addition, the second disc is the never before released full length audio from Live at the Tokyo Dome, Mariah’s first concert performance in Japan in support of her 1996 Daydream World Tour.
Read moreMariah Carey – My All EP (Remastered) (1998/2020)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/44,1 kHz | Time – 45:56 minutes | 542 MB | Genre: Pop
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Front Cover | © Columbia – Legacy
Mariah Carey has the most number-one singles for a solo artist in the United States (eighteen; second artist overall behind The Beatles), where, according to the Recording Industry Association of America, she is one of the best-selling female artists and sixteenth overall recording artist. In addition to her commercial accomplishments, Carey has earned five Grammy Awards, and is well-known for her vocal range, power, melismatic style, and use of the whistle register. She is ranked as the best-selling female artist of the U.S. Nielsen Soundscan era (third best-selling artist overall), with sales of over 50 million albums in the US and has sold over 200 million records worldwide. Here are vocal transcriptions of all five octaves of her 20 most popular tunes …
Read moreMariah Carey – Music Box (1993/2015)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/96 kHz | Time – 41:44 minutes | 900 MB | Genre: Pop
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Front Cover | © Columbia
Linda Ronstadt was America’s sweetheart of the ’70s, because she was able to combine a pretty face, a pretty voice and a safe personality. Her songs might be full of big notes and high emotions, but they satisfied every predictable expectation of a love ballad or good-time rocker. Mariah Carey is America’s sweetheart of the ’90s for the exact same reasons. Music Box topped the Billboard album charts, yielding number-one singles like “Dreamlover” and “Hero.” The titles, one a hollow Minnie Riperton knock-off and the other a stiff Barbra Streisand imitation, are tip-offs to Carey’s reliance on untethered fantasy (she’s the fantasizer in the lyrics and the fantasy object in the videos). These songs, co-written and co-produced like most of the album by Walter Anasieff and Carey herself, are constructed to show off her dizzying soprano, not to provide an original approach to a well-worn subject. Even when she gets a strong ballad to sing, like her current singles–Babyface’s “Never Forget You” or Badfinger/Nilsson’s “Without You”–she overdoes the self-pity bit so much that the song loses its dramatic tension.
Read moreMariah Carey – Merry Christmas (Deluxe Anniversary Edition) (1994/2019)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/96 kHz | Time – 01:52:43 minutes | 2,43 GB | Genre: Pop
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Front Cover | © Columbia – Legacy
Mariah Carey Merry Christmas (Deluxe Anniversary Edition) celebrates this modern Christmas classic in honor of its 25th Anniversary! This expanded edition features the original album, plus a very special bonus disc that includes rare remixes, previously unreleased live tracks from Mariah’s 1994 St. John the Divine concert, and Mariah’s brand-new, festive rendition of the Sugar Plum Fairy.
Read more