#1 [url]

Mar 18 10 4:30 PM

robjv1 wrote:
For me, you could eliminate Music Box before E. Dreamlover and Music Box are the only songs I truly LOVE from that album. Hero is great because its one of her signature songs, but aside from those three I could drop the album and never bat an eyelash. The other best songs from that era aren't even on the album (Everything Fades Away, Do You Think of Me?, Anytime You Need a Friends C&C remix, Never Forget You JD remix).

This surprises me.  I agree that Everything Fades Away is top notch material and is sorely missing from the album, but I always felt "Do You Think of Me" as just being pretty good -- it's not on the same level as "Everything Fades Away" or "Slipping Away."  The JD Remix of Never Forget You is about as notable to me as the Underneath the Stars - Drifting Remix -- overhyped because of it's relative rarity or lack of exposure, but minor in the whole scheme of things.

Music Box gets lambasted for being one of her most commercial albums (it is) but it has one thing E=MC^2 doesn't have going for it and that is great vocals.  Neither CD is going to win an award for lyrical brilliance however.  I often wonder if people dislike it more because they see it as a representation of Tommy Mottola's vision of Mariah Carey than because of the material.  It is similar to Emotions in that it has a lot of schmaltz (Hero, Just To Hold You Once Again, All I've Ever Wanted, Without You) but it has a pretty good hit-miss quotient by my ears -- I could do without Hero, but I love Dreamlover, Anytime You Need A Friend, Music Box, Now That I Know, Without You, and Never Forget You.  All I've Ever Wanted is a pretty amazing vocal performance if nothing else.  Plus there was so much great stuff coming out of this era that I could never do without -- The C&C mix as you mentioned, the great Dreamlover Remix.  There was a lot of great, creative output coming from her at this time.  Anyhow, now that I've turned this from a E=MC^2 thread, to a Music Box thread, to a Music Box Era thread, I'll shut up now








I agree, however, I do have to add that imo the NFY Remix is just a slightly better version of an awful song.

I think that Music Box actually has a lot more filler than E=MC2. You have a few great songs, but pretty much the majority is filler or just plain awful songs (Never Forget You, All I Ever Wanted, I've Been Thinking About You, Just to Hold You Once Again, Now That I Know). It's her one album that reminds me of a Celine Dion album in how it's mainly poor songwriting paired with going-through-the-motions singing, with no real thought put into the songs.