Whitney Houston 1963-2012
Submitted by Pop Culture Nerd on February 11, 2012 – 5:50 pm11 Comments
I was a radio DJ at a top 40 station in 1985 when a single by a new singer named Whitney Houston was added to the rotation. I was told she was going to be huge, something I always took with a grain of salt (remember Timbuk3?). Then I listened to “You Give Good Love.” Though I didn’t love the song, I was knocked out by her voice. I remember thinking, “That is a gift from heaven.” I hope she’s there now.
Rest in peace.
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I wasn’t a big fan, but I sincerely pitied her. She’s troubled no more.
Devastating and very sad news. Such a pure singing talent. Even with Kelly Clarkson’s good anthem recital at the recent Super Bowl, nothing will ever come close to what Whitni did in ’91:
http://youtu.be/YHmdu_I_0zI
It’s a moment I want to remember her by with this news. May she rest in peace.
Once she put her stamp on something, I think she set the bar by which all other versions are judged. I don’t know why American Idol wannabes even try to sing her songs every year because they can’t come close to what she could do.
What a tribute. Brief, but beautiful.
You picked the perfect photograph. Transcendent.
When she was healthy no one could ever touch her. Her voice was just amazing…and so many of her songs were very much a part of my younger days…I am very sad.
I had a close friend from college who I always thought was very hard core rock ‘n’ roll and we would road trip a lot up and down the New England coastline. He drove. My job was to scan the dial in search of a good radio station whenever we began to lose the current signal. During one of these scans, “I’m Your Baby Tonight” came on. As I went to hit the scan button again, my friend yelled at me, “What’re ya doing?!” I replied, “It’s Whitney Freakin’ Houston!” “Well I happen to LIKE Whitney Houston!” he said. I made a remark about how girly that sounded but I left the dial alone since it was his car. When the song finished, I had to admit that that girl could sing. I still gave my buddy shit about it, but it remained a guilty pleasure of mine to listen to Whitney whenever one of her songs came on the radio. Of course, I wouldn’t listen unless I was alone in the car. Whatever people say about her crazy personal life, it remains undeniable how well she could sing.
Very nice, PCN!
She was a huge part of my childhood, in terms of soundtrack, and it’s so strange that Whitney Houston and Michael Jackson – both huge musical influences for me – are dead.
I was out with my family last night when we heard the news, and the restaurant played “I Will Always Love You.” It broke my heart.
Odd how public deaths can affect you in such private ways.
May she rest in peace.
There are quite a few of her songs on my playlists, but two songs I always stop and really listen to: her rendition of the Star Spangled Banner and One Moment in Time (from ’88 Olympics).
Such a voice…