Celebrate Whitney with “I Will Always Love You: The Best of Whitney Houston”

We lost the woman who many would agree had the best voice in the history of pop music earlier this year with the passing of the iconic Grammy winning Whitney Houston. The singer, actress, producer, and mother to Bobbi Kristina left us far to soon, but she also left a body of work that is simply sensational. And on November 13th, you can celebrate “The Voice” with the release of I Will Always Love You: The Best of Whitney Houston, a new greatest hits collection. This one will include  her 11 # 1 Hot 100 chart toppers (including her record-breaking 7 consecutive # 1’s) plus several top ten smashes and two new recordings. The first is a duet version of her hit “I Look to You” with the song’s writer R.Kelly and the second is a never before released single from the 90’s entitled “Never Give Up”. I’m especially excited for the latter song, and you can hear her new duet below…. The album will be released in a single disc version and a deluxe set. Check out the track list for both albums below and celebrate Whitney on November 13th and watch for her the dvd of her final film Sparkle to hit stores at the end of the year.

I WIll Always Love You: The Best of Whitney Houston

1. You Give Good Love
2. Saving All My Love For You
3. How Will I Know? [Remastered]
4. Greatest Love Of All
5. I Wanna Dance With Somebody [Remastered]
6. Didn’t We Almost Have It All?
7. So Emotional [Remastered]
8. Where Do Broken Hearts Go?
9. I’m Your Baby Tonight
10. All The Man That I Need
11. I Will Always Love You
12. I’m Every Woman
13. I Have Nothing [Remastered]
14. Exhale (Shoop Shoop)
15. I Believe In You And Me [Film Version]
16. My Love Is Your Love
17. I Look To You (With R. Kelly)
18. Never Give Up (Unreleased Song)

Deluxe Version (2nd disc)
1. Love Will Save The Day
2. One Moment In Time [Remastered]
3. It Isn’t, It Wasn’t, It Ain’t Never Gonna Be (With Aretha Franklin)
4. My Name Is Not Susan
5. I Belong To You
6. Run To You
7. Queen Of The Night [Radio Edit]
8. Count On Me (With CeCe Winans)
9. Step By Step
10. It’s Not Right But It’s Okay
11. I Learned From The Best
12. If I Told You That
13. Heartbreak Hotel (Featuring Kelly Price & Faith Evans)
14. Million Dollar Bill

And here’s her new duet version of “I Look to You” with R. Kelly

* And here’s some interesting tidbits… Hit songs missing from both versions of I Will Always Love You include “Hold Me” (her hit debut duet with Teddy Pendergrass), “Miracle” (a # 9 hit from 1991), her iconic top ten hit version of “The Star Spangled Banner”, “When You Believe” (her Oscar-winning hit duet with Mariah Carey), “We Didn’t Know” (her R&B hit duet with Stevie Wonder),”Why Does It Hurt So Bad?” (her top 30 hit from Waiting to Exhale), “I Didn’t Know My Own Strength” (her comeback anthem and the remix was a # 1 dance hit) and no songs from her 2002 album Just Whitney.

The Expendables are Back on Top of the Box Office

Two years ago, Sylvester Stallone led a comeback of action movie has beens to the top of the box office with the surprise smash The Expendables. This summer he has added Jean-Claude Van Damme and beefed up roles for Arnold Schwarzenegger and Bruce Willis and done it again as The Expendables 2 debuts at # 1 with a good $28.7 million. While that was a little under the first films opening weekend tally, it was on par with expectations and worldwide grosses for this type of film are usually quite large. Falling to second was The Bourne Legacy which may now struggle to reach a profit it seems while last week’s other new releases The Campaign and Hope Springs held up well. (Springs looks like it will enjoy good legs in the weeks ahead slipping a small 37%)… Also debuting this weekend was the animated Paranorman with $14 million, the delightful musical movie Sparkle (which I enjoyed despite its flaws and gave a “B” grade too) with $12 million, and Disney’s The Odd Life of Timothy Green with $10.9 million (and $15 million since opening Wednesday)…. For more on all the numbers head to Box Office Mojo here and check out the new top ten below.

TW LW Title (click to view) Studio Weekend Gross % Change Theater Count / Change Average Total Gross Budget* Week #
1 N The Expendables 2 LGF $28,750,000 – 3,316 – $8,670 $28,750,000 – 1
2 1 The Bourne Legacy Uni. $17,020,000 -55.4% 3,753 +8 $4,535 $69,581,000 $125 2
3 N ParaNorman Focus $14,008,000 – 3,429 – $4,085 $14,008,000 – 1
4 2 The Campaign WB $13,385,000 -49.7% 3,255 +50 $4,112 $51,694,000 – 2
5 N Sparkle (2012) TriS $12,000,000 – 2,244 – $5,348 $12,000,000 $14 1
6 3 The Dark Knight Rises WB $11,140,000 -41.3% 3,157 -533 $3,529 $409,916,000 $250 5
7 N The Odd Life of Timothy Green BV $10,909,000 – 2,598 – $4,199 $15,187,000 – 1
8 4 Hope Springs Sony $9,100,000 -37.9% 2,361 – $3,854 $35,051,000 – 2
9 6 Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Dog Days Fox $3,850,000 -51.9% 2,737 -664 $1,407 $38,762,000 $22 3
10 5 Total Recall (2012) Sony $3,500,000 -56.3% 2,434 -1,167 $1,438 $51,782,000 $125 3

Happy Birthday Whitney Houston!!!!

Earlier this year, we lost what I consider to be the best singer of the pop music age, Grammy winning icon, Whitney Houston, aka “The Voice”. She was gone too soon and we will all miss her. Today, would’ve been her 49th birthday and so I wish her a very special Happy Birthday Whitney!
Houston was such an accomplished singer and performer that the Guiness Book of World Records names her as the most awarded singer in history. Well deserved I say… And she still has some music on the way for us. The soundtrack to her final film, Sparkle, is out now and the film hits theaters next week. It features the Adult R&B and AC hit “Celebrate” a duet with co-star Jordin Sparks and her version of the gospel classic “His Eye on the Sparrow”… And today, her record company announced they will be releasing an all new Greatest Hits collection of Whitney songs this fall. The album will likely include her 11 # 1 singles (7 of which hit the top consecutively, a record which still stands today) and her 23 top ten singles. I can’t wait. When the full track listing and information are release, I will let you know. In the meantime, let’s all wish Whitney a Happy Birthday and please enjoy her very appropriate Olympic anthem from 1988 below, “One Moment in Time” which I say is arguably her best vocal ever.

Whitney Houston “One Moment in Time” (live at the 1989 Grammys) 

Jordin Sparks Pays Tribute to Whitney Houston in the Video for “Celebrate”

The late great Grammy winning superstar Whitney Houston’s final film Sparkle hits theaters on August 17th and the soundtrack features her final musical recordings. The first single from the film is the awesome duet “Celebrate” by Houston and the film’s other star Jordin Sparks. The singer play mother and daughter in the film which tells the story about a singer’s rise to fame in the Motown era and her family. You can see their chemistry in the first trailer I posted a few months back and you can hear how great they sound on their new single which is already top 20 at Urban AC radio, top 30 at AC radio and about to hit top 40 on the R & B charts. Now, the video for the single has hit the web, and in it, Sparks and her films costars pay tribute to Houston. Check out the uplifting and fun video below and watch for the Sparkle soundtrack to hit stores in August.

Whitney Houston & Jordin Sparks “Celebrate”

“Pitch Perfect” could be the Perfect Movie!

I’ve been waiting for the next hilarious girl comedy following last year’s brilliant Oscar nominated Bridesmaids. Lots of pundits and bloggers and studio execs have been looking for the next one too. However, all they had to do was check out the trailer for this fall’s musical comedy Pitch Perfect and the search would’ve been over. Check out the trailer for the film below. It looks like a riot and it stars Bridesmaids own scene stealer Rebel Wilson plus Oscar nominee Anna Kendrick (who also sang up a storm in the wonderful indie Camp), Hairspray‘s Brittany Snow, Christopher Mintz-Plasse (Superbad), Anna Camp (The Good Wife), and the amazing duo of Elizabeth Banks (who’s also a producer on the film) and John Michael Higgins (who I had the pleasure of working with on Kath & Kim). The comedy revolves around the rivalry between a capella singing groups in college and follows a wave a music films hitting theaters this year including this weekend’s Rock of Ages, August’s Sparkle with Jordin Sparks and the late great Whitney Houston and the sure-fire Oscar contender Les Miserables with Anne Hathaway, Russell Crowe and Hugh Jackman out at Christmas… So, get out your pitch-pipe and get ready to giggle when Pitch Perfect hits theaters on October 5th.

Pitch Perfect trailer

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m2UFx3UIEgA&feature=related

More New Whitney Houston Music~ “His Eye Is on the Sparrow”

A few days ago, I gave you your first listen to new music from the late great Whitney Houston with her duet with Jordin Sparks, “Celebration”. The song will be included on the soundtrack to their new film Sparkle due in theaters August 17th. Now, we another new track has hit the web with Houston’s beautiful version of the Gospel classic “His Eye is on the Sparrow”. Take a listen below!

Whitney Houston “His Eye is on the Sparrow”

Whitney Houston and Jordin Sparks go Old School on “Celebrate”~ Here’s your First Listen!

Last night on the Billboard Awards, Jordin Sparks honored her mentor, the late Whitney Houston with a glorious performance of “I Will Always Love You”. Now, we get to hear the two divas sing together for the first time. The new song “Celebrate”, a duet by the ladies from their film Sparkle, just hit the airwaves. It’s mixes an old school R&B vibe with a contemporary spin and they sound wonderful together. It has all the markings of a genre hit, but will it cross over? I don’t know, but I do know that I can’t wait for a dance remix! Anywho, check out this wonderful summer song below and catch Sparkle in theaters this August.

Whitney Houston & Jordin Sparks “Celebrate”

The Women of “Idol” wow at the Billboard Awards

Last night’s Billboard Awards aired on ABC, but there was a whole lot of Fox going on as three previous winners of American Idol stole the show. Those three women Grammy winners Kelly Clarkson and Carrie Underwood and Grammy nominee Jordin Sparks all gave astounding performances that made everyone else look pretty silly. Kelly did her amazing new single “Dark Side” and it was simply a gorgeous vocal (and she looked wonderful too) while Carrie threw down the gauntlet with a soaring version of her next single “Blown Away”. However, I actually think the best performance of the night belonged to Sparks who tackled the late great Whitney Houston‘s “I Will Always Love You” in a special tribute to her. It was beautiful, powerful and emotional and a fitting tribute to this brilliant lost singer who Sparks will costar with in her final film this summer, Sparkle.
There were other performances of course and I will rank them below, but the night was also about awards as Billboard handed out trophies for the biggest hits, albums and artists of the past year. Adele (who was conspicuously absent and thus all of her wins were off camera) was the big winner with 12 awards including Artist and Album of the Year. LMFAO grabbed 6 awards while Coldplay nabbed 4. For more on the awards show which also featured tributes to Stevie Wonder and the recently passed Queen of Disco Donna Summer and all the winners, head to Billboard here. And check out all the winners below.

2012 Billboard Music Award Winners~
ARTIST AWARDS

Top Artist: Adele
Top New Artist: Wiz Khalifa
Top Male Artist: Lil Wayne
Top Female Artist: Adele
Top Duo/Group: – LMFAO
Top Billboard 200 Artist: Adele
Top Hot 100 Artist: Adele
Top Digital Songs Artist: – Adele
Top Radio Songs Artist: – Adele
Top Touring Artist – U2
Top Social Artist: – Justin Bieber
Top Streaming Artist: – Rihanna
Top Digital Media Artist – Adele
Top Pop Artist: – Adele
Top R&B Artist: – Chris Brown
Top Rap Artist: – Lil Wayne
Top Country Artist: – Lady Antebellum
Top Rock Artist: – Coldplay
Top Alternative Artist: – Coldplay
Top Latin Artist – Shakira
Top Dance Artist – Lady Gaga
Top Christian Artist – Casting Crowns

ALBUMS AWARDS:

Top Billboard 200 Album: – Adele “21”
Top Pop Album – Adele “21”
Top R&B Album – Beyonce “4”
Top Rap Album: – Lil Wayne “Tha Carter IV”
Top Country Album: – Jason Aldean “My Kinda Party”
Top Rock Album: – Coldplay “Mylo Xyloto”
Top Alternative Album: – Coldplay “Mylo Xyloto”
Top Latin Album: -Romeo Santos “Formula: Vol. 1″
Top Dance Album: – Lady Gaga “Born This Way”
Top Christian Album: – Casting Crowns “Come To The Well”

SONG AWARDS:

Top Hot 100 Song: – LMFAO Feat. Lauren Bennett & GoonRock “Party Rock Anthem”
Top Digital Song : – LMFAO Feat. Lauren Bennett & GoonRock “Party Rock Anthem”
Top Radio Song: – Pitbull Feat. Ne-Yo, Afrojack & Nayer “Give Me Everything”
Top Streaming Song (Audio): – Adele “Rolling in the Deep”
Top Streaming Song (Video): – Nicki Minaj “Super Bass”
Top Pop Song: – LMFAO Feat. Lauren Bennett & GoonRock “Party Rock Anthem”
Top R&B Song: – Kelly Rowland Feat. Lil Wayne “Motivation”
Top Rap Song: – LMFAO Feat. Lauren Bennett & GoonRock “Party Rock Anthem”
Top Country Song: – Jason Aldean “Dirt Road Anthem”
Top Rock Song: – Foster The People “Pumped Up Kicks”
Top Alternative Song: – Adele “Rolling In The Deep”
Top Latin Song: – Don Omar & Lucenzo “Danza Kuduro”
Top Dance Song: – LMFAO Feat. Lauren Bennett & GoonRock “Party Rock Anthem”
Top Christian Song: – Laura Story “Blessings”

Ranking the 2012 Billboard Award Performances:
~ the great
1. Jordin Sparks– “I Will Always Love You”: brilliant and heartbreaking

2. Carrie Underwood– “Blown Away”: FANtastic… literally!

3. Kelly Clarkson- “Dark Side”: all hail Ms. Clarkson!

~the good
4. John Legend- “Greatest Love of All”: lovely
5. CeeLo Green & Goodie Mob– “Fight to Win/Fight for Your Right to Party”: awesome and that one-legged dancer was incredible!
~ the pretty good
6. Usher– “Scream”
7. Stevie Wonder & Alicia Keyes medley
8. The Wanted- “Chasing the Sun/Glad You Came”: um, yes, they’re hot and I think they were on key!
9. Carly Rae Jepsen- “Call Me Maybe”: well, that was surprisingly delightful!
10. Natasha Bedingfield- “Last Dance”: it felt a bit off vocally at times, but it was a nice sentiment to the late Ms. Summer
~ the decent
11. LMFAO– “Party Rock Anthem/Sexy and I Know It”: it was a hot mess, but a really fun one
12. Linkin Park- “Building it Up”
~ the BAD
13. Katy Perry- “Wide Awake”: um, Pink did that at the Grammys a million times better than you girl
14. Justin Bieber– “Boyfriend”: boyfriend sure likes to lip sync for his life!
15. Nelly Furtado– “Big Hoops”: has her voice always been this awful, nasal and annoying? And um, that song kinda sucks.
16. Chris Brown- “Turn Up the Radio: Um, everything he does is awful. He is a hateful talentless lip syncing turd.

First Look~ Whitney Houston’s Final Film “Sparkle”

The late great Whitney Houston seemed like she was on a comeback trail last year when she shot what would become her final film, the remake of Sparkle. The movie which details the formation of a singing group comprised of three sisters and the fallout from fame, drugs and bruised egos co-stars American Idol winner Jordin Sparks in her film debut, plus Mike Epps, Derek Luke, Carmen Ejogo, Tika Sumpter and CeeLo Green while Houston plays the former singer mother of the girls. Now, the trailer for the film which hits theaters on August 17th has hit the web and it looks like Houston was in fine form. The superstar is singing beautifully in the trailer and flexing her dramatic chops much like she did in her other hit films Waiting to Exhale, The Preacher’s Wife and, of course, The Bodyguard. Like those films, Sparkle will have a fantastic soundtrack with lots of new music from Sparks, Green and Houston. I’m so excited we will get to celebrate this incredible performer’s talents again on the big screen this summer. For more on the film, head here and check out the trailer for Sparkle below.

Sparkle

Pitbull v. Huey Lewis~ “Back in Time”

Are movie soundtracks about to have a rebirth? Over the past few years, hit soundtracks have been few and far between unless it was a from a film musical (like Mamma Mia) or the tween crap Twilight saga. However, the current # 1 album in the country is The Hunger Games soundtrack and this spring and summer, there are a lot of big movie music collections coming at you like Think Like a Man,  Sparkle, Rock of Ages, and MIB 3. The latter film is the third action packed movie in the Men In Black trilogy starring Will Smith and Tommy Lee Jones. This new film has them going back in time to the sixties and, fittingly, the theme song for MIB 3 is entitled “Back in Time” by Pitbull. This Latin infused dance track also features a sample from another hit movie song, the 60’s hit “Love is Strange” by Micky & Sylvia which gained legions of new fans when it appeared in Dirty Dancing…. Now, the title “Back in Time” may be familiar to a lot of 80’s movie fans as it was the title of the Huey Lewis & the News hit song from 1985’s Back to the Future…. So now I pose this question to you~ which song really makes you want to go “Back in Time”? For me, Huey Lewis wins by a mile. What about you? Take a listen to both below and let me know in the comments section and watch for MIB3 to hit cinemas on May 25th.

“Back in Time”- Pitbull

“Back in Time”- Huey Lewis & the News