Mariah Carey: Daydream Album Review (1995)

 


Welcome back everyone, today we are going to continue with Mariah Carey’s album cycle with her fifth album Daydream. This is album and era does have some leadup to it. The year before Mariah had conquered Christmas and was ready to continue her urban streak. But Tommy Mottola wanted her to go back to the adult contemporary sound of the first two albums. But Mariah still wanted to test the urban streets as this was the first album she would work with Jermaine Dupri, a future collaborator of hers. Daydream winded up being a massively successful. Hope it lives it up for me.

Mariah Carey: Daydream Album Review

1.       Fantasy: One of the more recognizable songs on the album. This song used the “Genius of Love” sample. Of course, the song is good, but I do want to shine the light on the ODB Bad Boy Remix because I can’t help but smile when I hear Dirty’s verse. His energy and whenever he introduces the remix, he always put forth energy on Dirty can know how. The remix does have one line from Puffy that’s aged weirdly and that’s when he says “What you going to do when you get out of jail, I’m going to have some fun”. So the song is an absolute classic and while I prefer the remix, the original still holds up (AMAZING).

2.       Underneath The Stars: This has an 1970s R&B feel. The harmonies, the vocals. This song reminds me of At Your Best by the Isley Brothers. Not much to the content but when the song sounds amazing, you can’t igonore it. This song was deemed one of Mariah’s favorites and with good reasons and it should’ve been a proper single. (AMAZING)

3.       One Sweet Day: I’m going to keep this one brief as I have constantly talked about this song. Let’s just say there was a reason that I placed this as the best song of the entire 90s decade. Just saying (AMAZING)

4.       Open Arms: This was a cover song originally sung by Journey, so I decided to listen to the original before I get into Mariah’s cover. The Journey cover while not being my thing, it was fine enough. Now does this cover overshadow the original. Sadly no, but like this one defiantly holds her own. I love how Mariah starts the cover with acapella before the pianos come in to make this a power ballad. I will say for a ballad it’s short with only two verses (and that’s for both Journey and Mariah). But you know what might not match the original, it did it’s job, fine enough (GOOD)

5.       Always Be My Baby: And this is where Jermaine Dupri enters the fray and it’s one of Mariah’s most signature songs in her catalog and it’s one of my favorites. How does a song wind up being a love song and a breakup song at the same time. Cause Mariah is basically saying you want to leave the relationship fine enough but you will be back and I’ll be here. Mariah kind of come of as addicting like a drug, but a healthy one. In all, like the previous songs this one is another classic, and one of my favorites from her. (AMAZING)

6.       I Am Free: Now we are in the album cut phase of the album. This one has aged kinda wonky given her circumstances with her controlling husband Tommy Mottola. Given the toxic marriage Mariah singing about being free while she herself isn’t free. The production goes back to this gospel mixture of 1960 ballads. It’s not bad but I’ve heard Mariah done this type of song before. But with the Mottola-Mariah aftermath, I wonder what Tommy Mottola think about this song now? (DECENT)

7.       When I Saw You: Another ballad, at least this one feels different. Mariah is having a love at first sight moment as she believes that he could bring her out of darkness. This song could’ve been something but I don’t know, I feel like it doesn’t quite get there. Even the key change kind of underwhelms. Not a bad song, just didn’t move the needle that it more than capable of doing (DECENT)

8.       Long Ago: This might be Mariah most funkiest songs to date and Jermaine Dupri is back on production. It’s Mariah talking about a relationship things were cool, but she started noticing signs that he was using her but Mariah remembers how the love mostly felt and wants to recapture that feeling. I would say this is good, in some ways the content is similar to Always Be My Baby. Again, production nice and the content is decent enough even if she already done this. Call it an in-betweener. (GOOD)

9.       Melt Away: The last time I talked about a Babyface song, it just didn’t do much for me. Fortunantly, this one does get there and then some. For one, I just love that Mariah is using her lower register on this one even though the whistle register appear in the tail end of the song if you catch it. But overall, this song is very easy to listen to, it’s a typical 90s babyface song. But it’s great nonetheless.  (AMAZING)

10.   Forever: And we are back to the 1950-60 feel songs and this have to be the Tommy Mottola pick as it was a hit on adult contemporary. There are some good things going on, I love the guitar in the beginning and Mariah vocally sounds good, shocker. Just only the content is self-explanatory. So I can call this good, but not quite the album best. (GOOD)

11.   Daydream Interlude (Fantasy Sweet Dub Mix) (N/A)

12.   Looking In: The album closer and it’s a piano ballad. This one is one of her personal songs. Her whole life she’s been outside looking in. Whether it’s her being biracial, media unsure to label her as a pop artist or R&B artist or her whole relationship with Tommy Mottola. But Mariah tells listeners, they’ll never know the real Mariah. That’s the big takeaway for this song. It a great piano ballad and good album closer (GOOD)


That concludes this album review. While Mariah showed progress, this one managed to stick. It had some of her iconic songs and she finally doing the music she wanted to make, instead of the semi-boring adult contemporary songs of the early 90s. Despite Tommy Mottola’s many attempts to sabotage this era this wound up being one of the best of 1995-96. With that 8/10 ranking will do, Mariah’s best album to date, how did this album not win a Grammy? Anyway next album is Butterfly and it’s another album I am looking forward to. 

ABSOLUTE BEST: One Sweet Day (ft. Boyz II Men)

Best Songs: Fantasy, Always Be My Baby, Melt Away

Worst Songs: When I Saw You


8/10

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