"Dreamlover" is a song by Mariah Carey as the lead single from her third studio album, "Music Box." The single was released on July 27, 1993 through Columbia Records. The song was written & produced by Mariah Carey, Dave Hall, and Walter Afanasieff.
Song Background[]
While recording the "Music Box" album, Mariah began to alter her songwriting and music genre choices. While searching for new record producers for the album, Mariah came across New York native, Dave Hall (who was known for working on Mary J. Blige's debut album, "What's the 411?" in 1992.)
Mariah wanted to incorporate a sampled loop from an older song into "Dreamlover" and after reviewing several older tunes & melodies, she chose the Emotions' 1972 song, "Blind Alley." Even though Mariah heard the hook used in other various songs over the years, she felt the use of the "Blind Alley" sample was done in an innovative way.
After the song was completed, Dave Hall complimented Mariah's work ethic and form of writing, calling her a "perfectionist" and "very professional." He also explained that they incorporated the hook, a melody, and the sample into the song in only one night. The song's title wasn't added until the end of production.
When Mariah's fiancé at the time, Tommy Mottola, came to hear the song in the studio, he had mixed feelings about it. He approached Walter Afanasieff and asked him to add some additional instrumentation and flavor. Afanasieff changed the song at the production level, altering the way in which the hook sample was incorporated into the song, along with adding several new instruments.
Chart Performance[]
"Dreamlover" became Mariah's 7th number one single on the Billboard Hot 100, topping the chart for 8 weeks, replacing UB40's cover version of "Can't Help Falling in Love" and was late replaced by Meat Loaf's song, "I'd Do Anything For Love (But I Won't Do That)."
The song spent 26 weeks in the Top 40 and ranked at #8 on Billboard's Hot 100 1993 Year-End Charts and #20 on Billboard's Decade-End charts. In the United States, the song was certified Platinum by the RIAA, with shipments of over 1 million units. "Dreamlover" holds the title as the highest-debuting song on Billboard's Pop Songs chart.
In Canada, the song became Mariah's 5th number one hit on the Canadian RPM Singles chart, topping it for six weeks. In Australia, the song peaked at #7 on the Australian Singles chart and was later certified Gold, with shipments of over 35,00 units throughout the country. In New Zealand, the song peaked at #2 on the New Zealand Singles chart and was certified Gold, with shipments of 7,500 units in the country.
Music video[]
On August 7, 2020, the video was remastered in HD as part of #MC30 and on August 19, 2023, it was remastered once again, this time in 4K, as part of #MusicBox30.
Charts[]
| Chart (1993) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Australian Singles Chart | 7 |
| Canadian RPM Singles Chart | 1 |
| Dutch Singles Chart | 9 |
| French Singles Chart | 49 |
| German Singles Chart | 39 |
| Irish Singles Chart | 19 |
| New Zealand Singles Chart | 2 |
| Swedish Singles Chart | 31 |
| Swiss Singles Chart | 13 |
| UK Singles Chart | 9 |
| US Billboard Hot 100 | 1 |
| US Billboard Pop Songs | 1 |
| US Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs | 2 |
| US Billboard Hot Dance Club Songs | 1 |
| US Billboard Adult Contemporary | 2 |
| Music Box | |
|---|---|
| August 31, 1993 • 42:01 • Columbia Records | |
| Songs | |
| Released | All I've Ever Wanted • Anytime You Need a Friend • Dreamlover • Hero • I've Been Thinking About You • Just to Hold You Once Again • Music Box • Never Forget You • Without You |
| Bonus | Everything Fades Away • Heroe • Do You Think Of Me |
| Artists | |
| Mariah Carey | |
| Tour | |
| Music Box Tour | |