I Wanna Dance with Somebody (Who Loves Me)

Infobox Single
Name = I Wanna Dance with Somebody (Who Loves Me)


Artist = Whitney Houston
from Album = Whitney
B-side =
Released = May 1987
Format = CD single, cassette single, 7" single, 12" single
Recorded =
Genre = Dance-pop, R&B
Length = 4:52
Label = Arista
Writer = George Merrill, Shannon Rubicam
Producer = Narada Michael Walden, Whitney Houston
Certification = Platinum (RIAA), Gold (Sweden)
Last single = "Greatest Love of All"
(1986)
This single = "I Wanna Dance with Somebody (Who Loves Me)"
(1987)
Next single = "Didn't We Almost Have It All"
(1987)
Misc = Extra tracklisting
Album = Whitney
Type = studio
prev_track =
prev_no =
this_track = "I Wanna Dance with Somebody (Who Loves Me)"
track_no = 1
next_track = "Just the Lonely Talking again"
next_no = 2Extra tracklisting
Album =
Type = compilation
prev_track = "So Emotional
prev_no = 11
this_track = "I Wanna Dance with Somebody (Who Loves Me)"
track_no = 12
next_track = "How Will I Know"
next_no = 13

"I Wanna Dance with Somebody (Who Loves Me)" was released in May 1987 and is the first single from Whitney Houston's second studio album "Whitney". It was written by George Merrill and Shannon Rubicam of the band Boy Meets Girl, who had previously written the number-one hit "How Will I Know", also for Houston, and produced by Narada Michael Walden. The original arrangement was more of a country tune but was transformed to make it a dance song.

Chart information

The song reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100 on June 27, 1987 (the same day that Houston's album "Whitney" debuted at number one, the first time ever by a female artist), and remained there for two weeks. It remained in the top forty of the Hot 100 for fourteen weeks, and was ranked fourth on the Year-End Chart.

The song reached number one on the Hot 100 Single Sales chart for two weeks, and on the Hot 100 Airplay chart for three weeks, Houston's longest run at that time. It was also a milestone in Houston's career, as it eventually sold enough units to be certified platinum, her first single to achieve this. It was also number one on the Adult Contemporary chart for three weeks, and reached number two on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks. It became Houston's first number-one on the Hot Dance Club Play chart.

Internationally, Houston made the song a global smash, becoming her biggest hit at that point. It sold over three million copies internationally, setting its sales record at over 4.2 million copies, and reached number one in over a dozen other countries, including the United Kingdom, West Germany, Australia, and Switzerland, propelling the album "Whitney" to number one in all of those countries as well. It reached #1 on the United World Chart and became the most successful single of 1987. A remixed version of the song, released nine years later in 1996, also became successful in its own right, reaching number eleven on the chart.

The original version of "I Wanna Dance with Somebody," as recorded by the songwriters George Merrill and Shannon Rubicam, was released on the multi-artist album "Number One with a Bullet" on Cypress Records

Awards

* 1988: Grammy Award for "Best Female Pop Vocal Performance"
* 1988: American Music Award for "Favorite Pop/Rock Single"

The song also won "Best Music Video" at the First Annual Garden State (New Jersey) Music Awards.In 1988, Whitney Houston open the night of the 30th Annual Grammy Awards singing "I Wanna Dance with Somebody (Who Loves Me)".

ingle track-listing

#"I Wanna Dance with Somebody (Who Loves Me)" (album version)
#12" remix
#12" remix — radio edit
#Dub mix yeah
#Acappella mix
#"Moment of Truth"

Music video

The video for "I Wanna Dance with Somebody" (directed by Brian Grant) is one of Houston's best recognized music videos. In the intro of this video, Houston just finishes a performanc onstage. She walks backstage, and the scene is intercut with more vivid, colorful images of her. The song then explodes into its beginning, with a myriad of locations and various outfits by Houston, as dancers trying to impress her as she dances around, just having a good time.

Cover versions

*Shortly after the songs release in 1987, The Justified Ancients Of Mu Mu (later to become The KLF) sampled extensively from the song for their composition "Whitney Joins The JAMs". Houston never officially joined The JAMs.
*In summer 2006, R&B artist Lumidee and Fatman Scoop collaborated and released a song for the FIFA 2006 World Cup soundtrack. The song entitled 'Dance' featured a sample of 'I Wanna Dance With Somebody'.
*In a live concert from Union Chapel former Talking Heads front man David Byrne performed his own "sincere" version. He also performed it for his "Live from Austin" album.
*Noisettes performed the song [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zP1B79Uwrfs live at Fopp London]
* The Young Divas have released this track on their new Album New Attitude as a bonus track for iTunes
* Ashley Tisdale covered this single for her new cover EP, "Degree Girl: OMG! Jams" for her new campaign.
*German group Royal Gigolos used samples of this and Cyndi Lauper's "Girls Just Wanna Have Fun" to create their 2008 single "Girls Just Wanna Dance".
* Alexandra Burke (X Factor UK 2008 finalist) covered the song in the first live show.

In pop culture

The song is played in a scene of the movie "13 Going on 30".

The a cappella version of the song was used in a commerciel for So You Think You Can Dance?

"Slant Magazine" ranked the song at #88 in their 100 Greatest Dance Songs [ [http://www.slantmagazine.com/iframes/dance_100/90_81.asp Slant Magazine - 100 Greatest Dance Songs: 90 - 81 ] ]

"Blender Magazine" ranked the song #275 in their Top 500 songs since 1980 List. [ [http://www.blender.com/guide/articles.aspx?ID=1756 The 500 Greatest Songs Since You Were Born: 251-300 Article on Blender :: The Ultimate Guide to Music and More ] ]

Comprehensive charts

"I Wanna Dance with Somebody (Who Loves Me)" was ranked fourth on The Billboard Hot 100 Year End Charts (1987), and remained in The Billboard Hot 100 for nineteen weeks.

It was Houston's fourth number-one single on The Billboard Hot 100, her third on The Billboard Hot 100 Airplay, fourth on The Billboard Hot 100 Single Sales, her fourth on The Billboard Adult Contemporary, and her fifth overall Billboard Top Ten hit.

References

*cite web | title= Songfacts entry | url=http://www.songfacts.com/detail.php?id=6071