My least favorite Mariah album is by no means her worst. Its just that this is one of those CDs that don't really cry out to you - "Play Me!". In fact, other than the single choices here, there is very little that interests me. I would rate it a couple notches higher than her debut album, but for some reason find her debut definitely more interesting than this one. The lead single, "Emotions" was a No. 1 single for Mariah on the Billboard Hot 100, but it was also the only single from the album that made No. 1. Many Mariah fans consistently list this as one of her best achievements, but I think this is purely for associative reasons, as sonically the album sounds dated and rather generic.

My personal favorite track is the timeless "Can't Let Go". Despite breaking Mariah's streak of back-to-back No. 1 singles (at the time in 1991, this single stalled at No. 2), it remains one of her finest artistic achievements. The same can be said to a lesser degree of the gospel-R&B track "Make it Happen" that these days is considered a classic by the gospel-loving community at large. "If It's Over" was another single off the CD (though it failed to make an impact on radio) - this song was also better covered by Mariah herself on her "MTV Unplugged" CD a few years later.

The main problem with this CD is that despite containing ten songs, at least six of them are forgettable, which is not a good thing for any album, let alone one by Mariah. The greatest issue with this is that most of the weak tracks take up the back-end of the CD, and it really sags (I dare most listeners to sit through the last fifteen minutes of this album without getting really, really bored, or cringing). It's the worst of the Adult Contemporary genre times five, and sounds really dated. Subsequently, I would have to say that Mariah is definitely the kind of singer who could take even this average album to No. 1, but if you listen to her entire catalog, this album and "Charmbracelet" stand out as being less listenable than the others.

Two Stars.