Today’s classic dance song of the day is “I Wanna Dance with Somebody (Who Loves Me)” by Whitney Houston. This track, released in 1987, was a huge hit, reaching the #1 position on charts in Australia, Belgium, Canada, Finland, Italy, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, West Germany, and the UK. Here in the U.S. it hit #1 on Billboard’s Hot 100, Adult Contemporary, and Dance Club Singles charts.. It sold more than 14 million copies worldwide and won Ms. Houston a Grammy for Best Female Pop Performance.
“I Wanna Dance With Somebody” was a huge hit on the dance circuit and on MTV. It was written by the team of George Merrill and Shannon Rubicam, who wrote Ms. Houston’s previous (and similar sounding) hit “How Will I Know.” Narada Michael Walden did the producing, although he was initially skeptical of the tune:
“[It] reminded me of a rodeo song with Olivia Newton-John singing. I love Olivia Newton-John, but for Whitney Houston, it didn’t seem right. I felt the song needed a much funkier feel. I slept, dreaming about it, woke up in the morning thinking about it, wondering what am I gonna do with this dance song. So, we just jumped in the water and lo and behold a magic record was born, Houston just knocked it out and then I knew we had a good record.”
Whitney Houston was the daughter of singer Cissy Houston and cousin of Dionne Warwick and Dee Dee Warwick. That’s quite a heritage and it showed in her prodigious vocal technique and commanding stage presence. She was one of the most influential and best-selling vocalists of all time, selling more than 220 million records and racking up eight Grammy Awards, 16 Billboard Music Awards, and two Emmy Awards. She was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame (twice), the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, the Rhythm and Blues Music Hall of Fame, and the National Recording Registry of the Library of Congress.
“I Wanna Dance With Somebody” was Ms. Houston’s fourth #1 hit (after “Saving All My Love for You,” “How Will I Know,” and “Greatest Love of All).” She’d go on to have seven more number ones, including “Didn’t We Almost Have It All,” “So Emotional,” “Where Do Broken Hearts Go,” “I’m Your Baby Tonight,” “All the Man I Need,” “I Will Always Love You,” and “Exhale (Shoop Shoop).” She continued recording and performing through her untimely death in 2012, due to accidental drowning fueled by unbridled cocaine use. She was only 48 years old.
