no its not a remake of Duran Duran's hit from the 90's. Its an original but it marks a return of Walter Afanasieff, one of the great music arrangers and writers of the last 2 decades. This song is a showcase for McPhee's excellent range, but makes you think why Mariah and Walter cant work on something again? I have often thought that Walter was responsible for alot more than just music back in Mariahs early days, there really never was a reason that they parted ways, though her music changed direction. It would be interesting to see the return of Walter and Mariah on a track, i think it might spark something in Mariah too.

I agree with you.. I HAVE SAID The same thing in 2001(she should go back to writing and working with Walter).. you know the one song i really enjoyed on the glitter album was from walter afanasieff...

if mariah goes back to working with this guy... i would definitly buy her new albums...

Walter Afanasieff still wants to work with Mariah but she's the one who blocked him away.

After she got divorced from their boss, he flipped out on her and thats when she cut him out for good.

Shame too, coz Walter is a good musician/producer and nobody recreated the same magic as they did but then again for his credit, I think SHE TOO turned her back on everybody who reminded her of her years with Tommy.

TotalAlisa said:

Yeah i have heard that the Glitter track was not really new, that it was something they did when they were working together and it wasnt used on an earlier work of hers.

lastdecember said:

oh there actually was, and it's a huge one.

And it doesn't have to do with music at all actually. It was Walter stabbing her in the back during the time she was seperated from Motola. He was using her trust in him by leaking everything she entrusted him with to Tommy.

The whole "not getting along musically" story was just a method they both used to keep that mess in the dark.

Also, a lot of fans think they got together again with Lead The Way, which was actually and outtake from an old session during the Butterfly project.

Though at one point during the 00's it seemed Walter was trying to make peace with her by agreeing to appear on a special dedicated to her. But it never picked up.

One Journalist asked her during a Sundance Festive conference (Wise Gilrs), if she'd ever work with Walter again, and she simply replied "why not".

It's clear she doesn't want any ties with him anymore.

Harlepolis said:

Yeah i have heard that too, its also a reason that she doesnt do any of her early material live, she said recently that even Vision of Love is something she cant listen to anymore, that really is the only song she still performs.

Speaking of the supposed Glitter-reunion, there're TONS & TONS of their music that are sitting on the shelf.

Sony could make a good buck if they remastered her albums and released the outtakes of each album. Also, they should release the shelved album she recorded right after her debut

PricelessHo said:

Actually meant there wasnt a "clear" reason, since there were many rumours circulating. Everything from a relationship, to artistic, to him being the creator of songs and getting ripped off, to the ones you have mentioned.

well mariah is crazy.. because she hasn't had a FULL decent album since Walter Afanasieff... (an album you could actually listen to EVERY SONG) and even during the rainbow album... i was 13 and liked it for a little while... but even that album wasn't good.. and i noticed she didn't have that many songs with walter on there....

Harlepolis said:

'cause every single one of her team was an employee of Tommy. From the lawyers to the drivers. And apparently Walter's doing was the final straw

you know, one thing i salute her for though was that - as if she sensed it - she paid everything she owned with Tommy in half. She refused to be basking in his own money.

In her own words "from that mansion, down the water bottles"
[Edited 9/26/07 9:24am]

PricelessHo said:

He was the main force behind that infamous "Entertainment Weekly" feature cover

I don't blame her for shutting him out of her circle,,,,he was playing on both fences and back then when they wanted to end her career, Tommy fence seemed more SAFE than Mariah.

The sad thing is he NEVER released anything successful after Butterfly - in 10 years.

And 'Lead The Way' seemed like an obvious 2nd single(instead of Never Too Far) and I'm sure it would've been a massive success, but something tells me she doesn't want to give him the credit nor satisfaction.

Yeah its not so much for commercial reasons, its just that it was a good match. And i understand her wanting to change direction, being she felt stifled all those years, but she still does ballads on each album and she needs a more solid arranger like Walter for that. Thats mainly what i got from hearing this Katharine McPhee song, you almost think its Mariah at times.

PricelessHo said:

Yeah i agree totally about Mariah, though some people say she talks too much of Tommy in interviews, its really because they ask the same questions of her to this day. If she wanted to "deal dirt" she could have from day one and wrote books and made it very ugly and bitter. But she didnt, mainly, because there was some love there at the end of the day, but she was way too young to be in that situation. As for Walter well he made a choice, he could have sided with MC or Tommy and he chose Tommy, funny thing is Tommy is not even with Sony anymore, Walter is still licensed through Sony/Bmg.

Harlepolis said:

Very true. Which actually, come to think of it, was something for her own good, because if anything, it proved to nay-sayers that she did actually contribute to everything they created together musically as much as lyrically.

Those two heads REALLY had chemistry in the studio

The only remarkable projects Walter has done post-Mariah, was his work with Savage Garden, which SCREAMED Mariah but was still good.

Ironically though, Mariah's Thank God I Found You & Garden's I Knew I Loved You went head to head on the Hot 100 battling over the spot. Mariah managed to kicked them off the #1 spot for two weeks, then they kicked her off and regained the spot again

PricelessHo said:

Don't 4get "Brown Eyes" with DC3,,,I thought Beyonce sounded alot like Mariah in that tune, like a tribute to her if you ask

Walter is a BEAST,,,,he played almost EVERYTHING in "The Wind"(remember that tune? ). I love that song so much.

Harlepolis said:

Yeah Walter still has it, i just think the tides have really turned in music especially in the "ballad" world. I recently went back and watched Mariah doing "If its over" on SNL back in 1991 with Walter on Piano, amazing to this day, still blows me away like it did then, between her "raw" vocals to his playing. Which is why this Katharine McPhee track blew my mind because its all LIVE playing and the vocals are raw like early Mariah. It will never be a single since labels dont really push ballads at this point, and im sure they arent interested in her singing.

Harlepolis said:

agree with everything there

lastdecember said:

Even though still, she is never even close to being clear on the one thing that made her finally decide to leave him.

it is also alleged that she was made to sign a paper of cofidentialy as a condition from his side to go on with the divorce process.

Which may be the reason she's been tip toing when talking Tommy.

here's my take on it:

she kept hinting that it was something one thing done to her that was untolerable that made her finally decide to leave.

at the same time there's this story that she kept mentioning every now again, away from the subject of Tommy himself, that i deeply believe was the reason for it.

Read on:

This is a New Yorker who so wanted to be sexy that at the age of six she would sign pictures of herself in a bikini. Suddenly she is in protective custody in a mansion, with companions twice her age, who are mostly male and in the music industry, all more interested in dinner at a good restaurant than a night in town. Her husband is vetting the people she can work with, and sees to it that she is demure and diva-like on her rare public appearances, for which she must wear a long gown. As a marketing move this is shrewd: dressing plainly does not threaten the audience. But Carey begins to suffocate. 'Once, this guy was at my house, and he's a wealthy older man, a billionaire,' she says. 'I guess he used to enjoy watching me get drunk. So I'm sitting there, bored, and he's giving me tequila shots. I suddenly felt really sick. And he's laughing at me, like, "Look! She's drunk!' So I'm walking up the stairs, trying to maintain my composure, but I was a mess, throwing up... I decided to take a bath, but my psychotic housekeeper was like, "No! You've got to go to bed!' But I really wanted a bath, so I'm running around naked in this room, trying to rebel against my housekeeper. Finally, I pretended I was going to go to sleep, and she left.

I remember that interview(it was 98's VIBE, right? I'm not sure). But the cofidentialy thing is a big thing among the celebs, I don't think its far fitched but its mostly known among employers who work celebs for fear that if they get fired or quit, they may ditch the dirt.

I take Wendy with a grain of salt but she did say something that ringed in my head, "Tommy pimped Mariah for his wealthy friends" BOOM just like that,,,,and you know what? I don't put it past him.

Another thing, I once read an article than hinted 'domestic and mental abuse',,,but he really dominated EVERYTHING about her.

Sounds like another Diana Ross story after 20 years,,,,only in this case, Diana didn't marry her boss

PricelessHo said:

Yeah i agree. I also feel that Mariahs insecurities were played on from day one. Told to cover one side of her face because one side was her "bad" side. People forget that "fame" doesnt solve insecurities and issues within, and i really feel she still has them to this day. Regardless of any issue i still feel no matter the person you cannot "control" someone, especially that age. Mariah was a kid, she wanted to party, go out, see people, but she couldnt dress or go where she wanted to, very similar to the days of Sonny and Cher when Sonny would control her that way.

Harlepolis said:

THANK YOU. i swear that was exactly my reaction too 2 what Wendy said. When she threw De Neiro's name as the guy to be done man was Mimi ANGRY during that interview. It was one of her best interviews EVER. I always wants her to go on Wendy


.

I believe you mean the one where she mentioned she would at times go cry at the beach during the honeymoon. It was America magazine from 2 years go.

Harlepolis said:

Its very much like that, though i dont think for a second that Mariah slept around, though after the divorce everyone made it seem that way, i do believe Mariah when she says that she can count the number of men she has slept with on one hand. As for Tommy, well it proves my point about just how it works in the business, though tommy has signed some great talent, from Mariah to Hall and Oates, he also has left quite a trail of destruction behind him

lastdecember said:

I do believe she still loves Tommy to this very day. Just look at her lyrics, the hots are kept for Jeter, but the love always hits home as a clear message to Tommy.

Petals:

"I gravitated towards a patriarch
So young predictably"

then you have this:

"And I missed a lot of life
But l'II recover
Though I know you really like
To see me suffer
Still I wish that you and I'd
Forgive each other
'Cause I miss you, Valentine
And really loved you"

PricelessHo said:

Yeah i agree, i always felt she deeply still loves him, mainly she views him as this Saviour to her, he found her, gave her the chance and the stage to be on.