For Mariah Carey on Her Golden Anniversary
Fifty years ago today** in Long Island, New York, a baby girl was born to a biracial family of limited means. By the age of 20, this girl had burst onto the music scene with a voice that astounded the world. By the age of 30, she had broken countless industry records and established herself as one of the most successful musicians of all time. Following some major personal and professional setbacks, she mounted one of the most astonishing comebacks in entertainment industry at age 35. Now at 50, she appears to be living her best life with a pair of beautiful children, a record-extending 19th #1 song, and an industry finally starting to give her the respect she deserves. In honor of this monumental occasion, I detail my feelings of personal connection with the icon and count down her fifty greatest songs.
Mariah Carey: “Often Imitated, Never Duplicated”
One of the first things I did after venturing into the world of blogging just over two years ago was publish an ode to the singer-songwriter who was my first pop culture obsession — Mariah Carey. I ranked what I felt were her 48 best songs in honor of her, um, corresponding anniversary. (Mariah Carey has anniversaries, not birthdays).
In the intervening two years, I have written about her a handful of other times. As a mental health professional, I underscored the gravity of her disclosure of her diagnosis of bipolar disorder. As a captivated fanboy, I wrote about her successful return to the Las Vegas strip for her second residency, The Butterfly Returns. As an aspiring music critic and industry observer, I detailed her critical resurgence with her acclaimed 2018 album Caution and the notable accolades that followed, including the Billboard Icon Award and her induction to the Songwriters Hall of Fame (despite the persistent belief of many, she writes her own songs!). And just three months ago, I catalogued the astonishing quarter century ascent of her perennial holiday classic “All I Want for Christmas Is You” to the top of the Billboard charts. And now I am here again to celebrate her monumental anniversary.
I have written at length about Mariah’s commercial success, like the fact that she has more #1 songs than any other solo artist (her 19 #1s is second only to the Beatles), the fact that she had the most successful song of the 1990s (her 1995 duet with Boyz II Men “One Sweet Day”) and the 2000s (her 2005 comeback single “We Belong Together”), the fact that she is the only musical act to have a #1 song in four different decades, and the fact that she has has sold over 200 million records worldwide.
I have also written about the quality of her work, highlighting the fact that she has been nominated for 34 Grammys (winning 5), 48 American Music Awards (winning 21), and 96 Billboard Music Awards (winning 32). I have written about her under-appreciated power as a live performer, her underrated work as a character actress (post-Glitter at least), her admirable charity work, and her nearly unparalleled connection with her fans.
But I have rarely written about why she means so much to me personally.
“Me and Mariah, Go Back Like Babies and Pacifiahs”
I rose to pop culture consciousness just as Mariah Carey entered the national stage. I was around the age of 6 at the time and got hooked into popular culture at a very young in large part due to having two music- and movie-loving older brothers. I was already sneaking MTV on whenever I could and reveling at the big acts at the time like Madonna, Janet Jackson, Prince, Whitney Houston, Michael Jackson, and Paula Abdul. But nothing prepared my 6-year-old self for the arrival of Mariah Carey. Her otherworldly voice transcended me, her catchy songs became my anthems, her beauty and grace captivated me, and her astonishing chart success kept me glued to Casey’s Top 40 and Billboard.
Before long, however, I realized it wasn’t very cool to like pop music … especially a big haired diva whose aesthetic gravitated toward rainbows and butterflies. Well, “uncool” is a mischaracterization. It was worse than that. It got me labeled as a “fag” (an unimaginably terrifying designation in a rural elementary school in a Catholic, military, Republican-dominated town at the height of the AIDS epidemic). So, like many of my queer brothers and sisters, I suppressed the things I was passionate about. I hid. I lied. I put on a show.
Admittedly, it wasn’t a very successful show. I could never be macho. I was never able to muster the courage to join the bullies on the football field or the basketball court. I carved out my own niche, one that was authentic enough to keep me living but not one so honest that it would constantly put me at risk for emotional (and possibly physical) harm. By all accounts, Mariah did the same. She appeared to shine in public, but was suppressing her true spirit and ambitions due to an oppressive marriage and recording contract (which unfortunately for her were one and the same).
As I progressed through high school, I stopped caring quite so much. This was around the same time Mariah shed the weight of the past with 1997’s revelatory Butterfly. I let at least a small group of people in to who I really was and what I loved. I even skipped school and rescheduled my own confirmation (with my parents’ permission, of course) to travel 300 miles to Boston, MA to see Mariah in concert (my first ever).
As Mariah hit rock bottom personally and professionally, with the intersection of her disastrous film debut Glitter and the onset of her struggles with bipolar disorder, I went through a period of significant personal struggles of my own. I came out as gay. I struggled with depression and sought therapy. I worked hard to strip away the layers of artifice and shame and learn how to be myself publicly.
As Mariah came roaring back with one of the most astonishing comebacks in music history, I was also finally coming into my own. I ended college on a tremendous high note and ventured off on a journey that would take me from rural Upstate New York to two of the nation’s biggest cities, a doctorate in a field I am passionate about, and meeting my now husband.
Now, fifteen years after that astonishing comeback, Mariah seems to be living her best life. In her social media posts and interviews, she seems happy, confident, surrounded by love, appreciative of mounting professional recognition, and re-energized to create. Maybe I don’t have quite as much going for me (God knows my bank account and social media following are minuscule in comparison), but I am doing pretty well, too.
Many “lambs” (the nickname Mariah’s fans have collectively bestowed upon themselves) have described Mariah Carey as the “Soundtrack of [their] Life.” They talk about how her inspirational songs helped them during dark times, her joyful pop hits provided a backdrop for holidays and other monumental occasions, and how they felt uniquely seen and heard by her incisive explorations of painful themes like insecurity and ostracism in her lyrics. These things are all true for me, but I feel something beyond this when it comes to Mariah. For all those reasons listed above, I feel like we evolved together.
Don’t get me wrong, I am under no delusion that we have a special connection. I only met her once (an unforgettable night arranged by my husband as the best birthday present of all time). But I know I’m not alone with feeling that I have an extra special connection her. After all, creating that sense of connection is what great artists and entertainers excel at.
And regardless of what the trashy tabloids and highfalutin critics say, Mariah Carey is a great artist and entertainer. And now, finally, as Mariah and I each approach a certain age and have remarkably few fucks left to give, I have no hesitation about belting my love for her from the rooftops.
So, without further ado, here is my revised list of the greatest songs Mariah Carey has ever recorded, updated to include newly released music, my evolving taste, and my (re)discovery of some truly under-appreciated gems.
[**Author’s Note: Although official sources have long stated that Mariah Carey was born on March 27, 1970, recent investigations have determined that it is most likely that she was born March 27, 1969. That would mean this article is a year off. Mystery surroudning her actual age is, in fact, the most Mariah thing possible, so I’ll chalk the confusion up to part of being a lamb.]
Mariah Carey’s 50 Greatest Songs
50. Loverboy (2001, Glitter). My initial list did not contain a single song from the Glitter era not because I think it is a bad album, but rather because no single song from the album ever particularly stood out from the others as a classic to me. But that has changed. Maybe I was convinced by the #JusticeForGlitter movement. Maybe it was the fact that I haven’t been able to remove this song from my workout playlist at any point since its release. Or maybe it’s just that despite its bubblegum lyrics, overproduction, and gaudy music video, “Loveboy” is just an absolutely delightful earworm.
49. Butterfly (1997, Butterfly). In stark contrast to the rest of the “lambily,” I have long been lukewarm on the title track of her most beloved album. It’s still not my favorite, but recent revisits to the song have blown me away. I have now been won over by the profound and nuanced lyrics evoking her fantasy of benevolent liberation by her oppressive husband, the remarkably tricky vocal performance, and the stunning gospel-fueled crescendo.
48. I’ll Be There (1992, MTV Unplugged). After the astonishing vocals of her first two albums were accompanied by extremely few live performances, some suspected that Mariah was a mere studio creation. Then she did a flawless 7-song set on the legendary MTV live music series and she put an end to those rumors. The highlight was this soulful cover of the Jackson 5 classic, also featuring wonderful vocals from her longtime backup singer Trey Lorenz.
47. With You (2018, Caution). Although perhaps a bit too subdued to have been the most commercially viable choice for a lead single from her latest album, “With You” is nevertheless a winner. It is a love story that joins evocative, detailed storytelling with effectively restrained vocals and production. (The song gets bonus points for the reference to her classic 1997 song “Breakdown” that is cleverly embedded in the chorus.)
46. Everything Fades Away (1993, Music Box). Mariah surprised fans by playing a snippet of this little known, decades-old song (a bonus track on the international editions of one of her most successful albums) at a recent Las Vegas concert. That performance — and the accompanying social media video of her rehearsing it with her backup singers — was a striking reminder of how good this song is. It is a masterpiece of vocal arrangements and orchestral production that hauntingly evokes the dying embers of a once-passionate love affair.
45. Underneath the Stars (1995, Daydream). Two of Mariah’s favorite lyrical themes are nostalgia for young love (“Fourth of July,” “Candy Bling”) and the heady throes of new love (“Bliss,” “The Impossible”). These two themes collide in this ethereal and melodic masterwork that upon first glance may appear to be just another silly love song, but upon deeper exploration is so much more.
44. Someday (1990, Mariah Carey). Mariah has admitted that this song is one of her least favorites. In fact, only when she started her residency in Las Vegas that included all 18 of her #1s was she willing to put it on a concert setlist. It’s easy to see why she dislikes it. It sounds particularly dated compared to her other ’90s hits. But nevertheless, it is pure pop perfection and everything about it (particularly the high school-set music video) instantly transports you to 1990.
43. When You Believe (1999, #1s). Perhaps the only song in Mariah’s catalogue that she did not write or cover, this song was written by Stephen Schwartz for the animated film The Prince of Egypt. Schwartz won the Oscar for the song (as that goes to the songwriters), but arguably the most notable contributions come from the three people who didn’t — R&B super-producer Babyface, who skillfully adapted the film version to have a more mainstream sound, and its performers Mariah Carey and Whitney Houston. Some criticized it as a shameless promotional stunt to promote their albums and quash their supposed beef. Even if it was, the experience of these two extraordinary vocalists uniting is something truly astounding.
42. Anytime You Need a Friend (C+C Remix) (1993, Music Box). The gospel-fueled album version is exceedingly earnest, but the club remix is urgent and revelatory. It rivets for nearly 11 minutes and features some of the greatest vocal improvisations of her career.
41. Clown (2002, Charmbracelet). This brutal takedown of Eminem, who crassly alleged a sexual liaison between the two, this is a restrained, guitar-driven, tell-off that contains countless lyrical allusions and a sucker punch of a chorus (“Nobody cares when the tears of a clown fall down.”)
40. For the Record (2008, E=MC²). This lean, yearning ballad finds Mariah refusing to take no for an answer when it comes to getting a second chance at a romance gone wrong. It’s an emotional powerhouse and it has the benefit of a classic bridge that references over a half dozen of her earlier hits.
39. Slipping Away (1996, B-side to Always Be My Baby). This soulful slow jam about a great love that is slowly dying is one of the finest songs of what is arguably Mariah’s creative peak. It presumably didn’t make the cut of Daydream and was relegated to the B-side of one of its singles because it was either “too R&B” or because her then-husband/manager objected to how sharply the lyrics pointed to their disintegrating marriage.
38. Joy to the World (1994, Merry Christmas). 375 years after it was written, Mariah put an unforgettable spin on the perennial Christmas carol. Her voice has rarely sounded better than on the slow build introduction and she has rarely produced anything as joyful as what occurs when it kicks into full gear. The song gets extra credit for its clever mashup of the traditional carol with Three Dog Night’s decidedly less religious song of the same name. And thanks to the recent release of the 25th Anniversary Deluxe Edition of the album, we also now have access to her live performance of the song at St. John the Divine, one of her finest hours as a live performer.
37. One and Only/So Lonely (2005, The Emancipation of Mimi). On the Platinum Edition of Mariah’s comeback album you will find not one but two red-hot rap-sung collaborations with motor-mouthed rapper Twista. Their unlikely union is a match made in R&B heaven as he pushes the songstress to up her game with a pair of dizzying gems about the search for a man that’s worth her time and everything she wants to do with him once she finally pins him down. (Favorite lyric: “See I’m looking for a man that’ll rub me slow/ Make me sing real high when he goes down low”).
36. If It’s Over (1991, Emotions). Legend has it that at the young age of 21, Mariah caught the ear of legendary singer-songwriter Carole King. After Mariah turned down King’s suggestion to cover her classic “(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman” for her second album (she thought it would be disrespectful to her idol Aretha Franklin, who iconically covered the song), she flew to N.Y. and decided to co-write an original song with her. They got right to work and by nightfall they had produced this slow building breakup anthem.
35. Touch My Body (2008, E=MC²). Her 18th #1 shows her at her most playful, with tongue-in-cheek lyrics, a lullaby-like melody, a terrific hook, several pop culture references, and its riotously self-aware music video.
34. Fly Like a Bird (2005, The Emancipation of Mimi). Even on her non-Christmas albums, Mariah often taps into her spiritual side, assembling a choir for a Gospel-fueled track or two. She never did it better than on this anthem about being delivered from suicidal desperation by her faith in God.
33. Hero (1993, Music Box). Although it’s far from her favorite of her songs, she sings this in every live performance she ever gives because it’s that beloved by her fans. Sure it gravitates toward the schmaltzy, but its power and cultural impact are utterly undeniable.
32. Make It Look Good (2014, Me. I Am Mariah … The Elusive Chanteuse). When you have reached a stage of your career where 25-time Grammy winning music legend Stevie Wonder is willing to play backup to you, you know you have reached a special height. He giggles and plays harmonica in the background of this Motown throwback with exceedingly clever lyrics. This is one of the most under-appreciated songs in her catalogue.
31. Obsessed (2009, Memoirs of an Imperfect Angel). This Eminem bashing dance hit doesn’t quite reach the lyrical depths of “Clown” or the club banger intensity of “It’s Like That” but it’s a wholly successful mashup of those two songs. It’s hard to choose the more humorous insult: “You’re a mom and pop/ I’m a corporation/ I’m the press conference/ You’re a conversation” or “Got you all fired up/ With your Napoleon Complex/ I can see right through you/ Like you’re bathing in Windex.”
30. Side Effects (2008, E=MC²). Typically, Mariah’s dance floor tracks are filled with innocuous lyrics about romance and partying and you have to go to her ballads for the deeper, darker material. Here, she breaks the mold by delivering piercing and nuanced lyrics about the mental health consequences of a former abusive relationship (presumably her marriage to record executive Tommy Mottola) over an infectious beat and a rap verse by Young Jeezy.
29. It’s Like That (2005, The Emancipation of Mimi). “I came to have a party.” That opening line is the perfect introduction to this aggressive club-banger, which itself provided the perfect introduction to the massive comeback that was this song’s parent album.
28. One Sweet Day (1995, Daydream). Until Lil Nas X and Billy Ray Cyrus’s novelty tune “Old Town Road” broke the record in 2019, this song held the title of all-time longest running #1 song for over two decades. It’s not hard to see why. It features two musical acts at their commercial peak collaborating on a gorgeous ballad touching on universal themes of loss and grief that was inspired by a mutual friend’s death from AIDS.
27. O Holy Night (1994, Merry Christmas). Her flawless cover of the traditional holiday hymn is perhaps the best showcase for her lower register in her entire catalogue. When she belts “Fall on your knees” at the song’s climax, it’s almost enough to compel you to do so.
26. Honey (1997, Butterfly). This co-production with Sean Combs (then Puff Daddy) was more notable for announcing her transformation from scrupulously managed pop star to sexy and free-spirited R&B songstress than it was for its production. But nevertheless it’s a late ’90s R&B classic that was elevated immensely by its iconic music video.
25. Make It Happen (1991, Emotions). This bold anthem about perseverance in the face of hardship marries personal lyrics about her impoverished upbringing with a masterful production that blends numerous musical genres. Her vocal performance here is as commanding as anything she has ever done.
24. Love Hangover/Heartbreaker Remix (2000, Live Performance; B-side to Can’t Take That Away). There are at least 3 other great versions of “Heartbreaker” — the original with Jay-Z, the female-centric remix with Missy Elliott and Da Brat, and the club mix that mashes the song up with a cover of the minor Motown hit “If You Should Ever Be Lonely.” But my favorite is this one. She opened up VH1’s live tribute to Diana Ross with this flawless mashup of “Heartbreaker” and Ross’s #1 disco hit “Love Hangover.” The vocals are brilliant and the production is inspired.
23. Crybaby (1999, Rainbow). Snoop Dogg and Mariah are not the most obvious match, but they create a spectacularly soulful duo on this mid-tempo hip-hop track that details the sleepless nights of a woman unable to shake her yearning for a former lover. (Favorite lyric: “Sipping Bailey’s Cream by the stereo/ Trying to find relief on the radio/ I’m suppressing the tears, but they start to flow/ ’Cause the next song I hear is the song I wrote/ When we first got together early that September/ I can’t bear to listen so I might as well drift/ In the kitchen, pour another glass or two, and try to forget you.”)
22. Caution (2018, Caution). The title track of Mariah’s 15th studio album is this atmospheric, restrained, mid-tempo song in which she encourages the object of her desire to “proceed with caution.” This is a lean, urgent, and sultry song marked by synth beats that feels unlike anything she has ever recorded.
21. Love Takes Time (1990, Mariah Carey). When she played a demo of this song for Sony, they literally stopped the presses of her debut album so that it could be included. That was a smart decision. It’s a flawless love song with some of her most emotionally resonant vocals (and it became her second #1).
20. H.A.T.E.U. (2009, Memoirs of an Imperfect Angel). Like countless artists before her, Mariah frequently delves into painful breakups for lyrical inspiration. But here she achieves what few artists have ever done — perfectly evoking that complicated emotional state of utter confusion and desperation that exists between the realization that a relationship is over and the anger that later sets in. It is one of her most vocally restrained and lyrically impressive songs. (Fun Fact: The title is stylized that way because she jokingly referred to the dramatic and emotional nature of the song by saying that she was “Having A Typical Emotional Upset.”)
19. Shake It Off (2005, The Emancipation of Mimi). This mid-tempo jam about moving on from a relationship that wasn’t worth her time is one of the hippest, sassiest, cleverest, and most unique sounding songs in her catalogue. (Fun Fact: It was a mega-hit, but had to settle for #2 because her prior single We Belong Together didn’t leave the #1 position for nearly four months).
18. Can’t Let Go (1991, Emotions). It may have been her first single not to hit #1 (it settled for several weeks at #2), but this captivating ballad about a wounded lover who just can’t seem to move on is better than many of her songs that hit the pole position.
17. Looking In (1995, Daydream). The first time she truly showed us the depth of her pain, this ballad hauntingly closes what is arguably her most romantic and upbeat album. (Favorite Lyric: “She smiles through a thousand tears/ And harbors adolescent fears/ She dreams of all that she can never be/ She wades in insecurity/ And hides herself inside of me.”)
16. I Still Believe (Pure Imagination Remix) (1999, #1s). When most people think about Mariah Carey as a pioneer in the art of remix, they tend to think about her then-revolutionary fusion of pop and rap (which she kicked off by inviting Ol Dirty Bastard to join her on “Fantasy”). But I think her greatest work in the world of remixes involve her completely rerecording and reimagining her hit songs, often by blending them with other well known tunes. No where did she do this more ingeniously than when she mashed up her soaring cover of Brenda K. Starr’s 1980s power ballad “I Still Believe” with the melodic theme song from Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory and somehow created an R&B masterpiece.
15. Dreamlover (1993, Music Box). This infectious number is one of her catchiest songs. It perfectly evokes a summer daydream about being rescued from your humdrum existence by “the one.” It is pure, flawless pop.
14. Close My Eyes (1997, Butterfly). “Still I feel like a child as I look at the moon/ Maybe I grew up a little too soon.” This heartbreaking ode to lost innocence features some of her most sophisticated and introspective lyrics as well as one of her subtlest vocal performances.
13. Vanishing (1990, Mariah Carey). This track from her debut album was never released as a single, but it is adored by her fans more fervently than many that were. With only a piano and a flawless voice, Mariah delivers a total knockout with this song about a love that she can’t save.
12. My All/Stay Awhile (So So Def Remix) (1997, Butterfly). The original version of My All is a smoldering Latin-influenced ballad that represents one of her most mature compositions. But this hip hop remix elevates the song to another level. By flawlessly weaving the ballad with a cover of 1980s R&B hit “Stay a Little While, Child” she honors both songs while creating something wholly original.
11. Vision of Love (1990, Mariah Carey). Her first single remains one of her best and most iconic songs. The subject matter of the lyrics is continuously debated — is it about romantic love, her relationship with God, or a general sense of gratitude for life? Who knows. What matters is that this soaring ballad is one of her finest hours and one of the best showcases for that five-octave vocal range imaginable.
10. Emotions (1991, Emotions). The song is most famous for the series of superhuman whistle registers that cap the song, but what comes before those notes is a classic disco anthem that features Mariah at her most soulful and euphoric.
9. Breakdown (1997, Butterfly). This slow jam collaboration with hip-hop group Bone Thugs-N-Harmony is not only one of her most musically creative endeavors but also features some of her most soul crushing lyrics. For example: “So what do you do when/ Somebody said you’re so devoted to/ Suddenly just stops loving you/ And it seems they haven’t got a clue/ Of the pain that rejection is putting you through?/ Do you cling to your pride and sing I Will Survive?/ Do you lash out and say, ‘How dare you leave this way’?/ Or do you hold on in vain as they as they just slip away?” I don’t know, Mariah. I just don’t know.
8. Giving Me Life (2018, Caution). No song in Mariah’s catalogue is as breathtaking and bizarre as this moody, slow-burning epic from her most recent album. It sprawls over 6 minutes and incorporates dialogue from Eddie Murphy in Coming to America, a killer rap verse from Slick Rick, clever wordplay referencing Marilyn Monroe and Barbra Streisand, and an extended outro that completely upends the mood and tempo of the song. Oh, and all those elements are seamlessly layered over a killer R&B track that would make this list even without all these added elements. The song is evocative, nostalgic, sexy, and mysterious and is proof that she has so much left to give as a songwriter, producer, and vocalist.
7. #Beautiful (2013, Me. I Am Mariah … The Elusive Chanteuse). This duet with honey-voiced up-and-comer Miguel was not the comeback hit it deserved to be, but it nevertheless received a great deal of critical acclaim. The stripped down, mid-tempo R&B song represents a fresh sound from Mariah and lyrically and musically captures the infatuation of new love in an utterly captivating and lean 3 minutes.
6. Petals (1999, Rainbow). The most personal and heartbreaking song she ever wrote, this piano-driven ballad makes complex and haunting allusions to her biography, particularly her abusive relationship with her ex-husband and her complicated relationship with her drug addicted sister. She breaks down before your eyes (or ears, rather), before somehow ending on an ultimately hopeful note. If someone ever argues with me about her songwriting abilities, I look no further than this masterpiece for evidence.
5. The Roof (1997, Butterfly). The sexiest song in Mariah’s catalogue, this stunner may be built around a sample from Mobb Deep’s “Shook Ones (Part Two)” but it never for a moment feels anything less than fresh. The memorable lyrics recount a rooftop romantic encounter that the protagonist can’t get out of her mind. (Favorite lyric: “I was twisted in the web of my desire for you/ My apprehension blew away/ I only wanted you/ To taste my sadness/ As you kissed me in the dark.”)
4. Fantasy (Bad Boy Remix) (1995, Daydream). The album version of this uptempo dance song is one of her finest hours. It is pure pop perfection, with a nice dash of R&B and a perfectly positioned sample of Tom Tom Club’s 1981 hit “Genius of Love.” But the Puff Daddy-assisted remix, which blends the best parts of the original with a gritty verse from Ol’ Dirty Bastard and an enhanced bassline, is even better and is widely credited with being the moment hip hop when mainstream and the now ubiquitous rap-sung collaboration was born.
3. Always Be My Baby (1995, Daydream). Despite becoming her 11th #1, it was overshadowed in its original release by the two mega hits that preceded it (“Fantasy” and “One Sweet Day”). Over time, it has come to be considered by many to be one of the finest pop songs of the 1990s. With a hypnotic “do-do-doop” looping in the background, this insanely catchy song finds Mariah certain that even though she may not be with her man at this moment in time, their love is timeless and they are destined to reunite.
2. We Belong Together (2005, The Emancipation of Mimi). She had not had an unqualified smash hit in nearly 6 years when this flawless union of heartbreaking lyrics, emotionally raw vocals, and understated arrangement shot to the top of the charts. It spent 14 weeks at #1, won a pair of Grammys, and revitalized her career. It’s one of the all-time great R&B ballads and to this day, hearing her perform the climactic octave raise in the final chorus gives me chills.
1. All I Want for Christmas Is You (1994, Merry Christmas). Precious few songs are remembered two and a half decades after their release. Virtually no songs steadily grow in popularity every year for over two decades. But that’s what this song has done and continues to do. It is arguably the only song of the modern era to become a perennial Christmas standard and it has spun off an entire franchise of its own, including a children’s book, an annual tour, and an animated film. But as we all know wild success doesn’t always equal artistic perfection. Here it does. There is no need to elaborate any further as droves of articles have been written about its profoundly challenging vocal arrangement, how it pays homage to the standards of the 40s and the Motown hits of the 60s with its production, and its unparalleled endurance in popular culture.
A Note on the Honorable Mentions. Oh, how I wish I could have found room for these 15 gems amidst my Top 50: “Alone in Love” (1990, Mariah Carey), “I Don’t Wanna Cry” (1990, Mariah Carey), “You’re So Cold” (1991, Emotions), “Without You” (1993, Music Box), “All I’ve Ever Wanted” (1993, Music Box), “Melt Away” (1995, Daydream), “Thank God I Found You (Make it Last Forever Remix)” (1999, Rainbow), “Lead the Way” (2001, Glitter), “Subtle Invitation” (2002, Charmbracelet), “Stay the Night” (2005, The Emancipation of Mimi), “Don’t Forget About Us” (2005, The Emancipation of Mimi), “Oh Santa!” (2010, Merry Christmas II You), “When Christmas Comes” (2010, Merry Christmas II You), “You Don’t Know What To Do” (2014, Me. I Am Mariah…The Elusive Chanteuse), “One Mo Gen” (2018, Caution).
Articles this author has written about other music superstars: Whitney Houston, Madonna, Lady Gaga, Elton John, Florence Welch, Taylor Swift, and Aretha Franklin
