| "It Isn't, It Wasn't, It Ain't Never Gonna Be" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
) | ||||
| Single by Aretha Franklin and Whitney Houston | ||||
| from the album Through the Storm | ||||
| B-side | "If Ever A Love There Was" | |||
| Released | June 10, 1989 | |||
| Genre | New jack swing[1] | |||
| Length | 5:37 4:49 (single edit) | |||
| Songwriter(s) | ||||
| Producer(s) |
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| Aretha Franklin singles chronology | ||||
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| Whitney Houston singles chronology | ||||
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| Music video | ||||
| "It Isn't, It Wasn't, It Ain't Never Gonna Be " on YouTube | ||||
"It Isn't, It Wasn't, It Ain't Never Gonna Be" is a duet recorded between Aretha Franklin and Whitney Houston, and appeared on Franklin's 1989 album Through the Storm. The song was released on June 10, 1989, as the second single from the album by Arista Records.
The original album version was written by Albert Hammond and Diane Warren and produced by Narada Michael Walden and the "re-mix" version was produced by Teddy Riley. It peaked at #41 on the Billboard Hot 100. However, it reached the Top 10 of the R&B/Hip-Hop Songs, peaked at #5. It also peaked at number 29 on the UK Singles Chart.
Critical reception
Allmusic editor William Ruhlmann retrospectively panned "It Isn't, It Wasn't, It Ain't Never Gonna Be," calling it, "an embarrassing failure for both Franklin and the previously pop-perfect Whitney Houston."[2]
Track listing
- Album version 5:37
- Single Edit 4:49
- Single Remix/Teddy Riley Mix 4:02
- Extended Remix 6:12
- Hip Hop Remix 4:57
- House Radio Mix 5:05
- New Jack Swing Dub Mix 6:20
- After Hours Club Mix 7:35
- 1989 Vogue Dub Mix
Personnel
- Aretha Franklin – lead vocals, vocal engineer
- Whitney Houston – lead vocals
- Walter "Baby Love" Afanasieff – co-producer, keyboards, synth bass, drum programming
- Narada Michael Walden – producer, arrangements
- Ren Klyce – Fairlight CMI programming
- Karen "Kitty Beethoven" Brewington, Melisa Kary – backing vocals
- Lincoln Clapp – engineer
- David Frazer – engineer, mixing engineer
- Dana Jon Chappelle - additional engineer
- Marlene Cohen – art direction
- Norman Parkinson – photography
- Peter Max – front & back cover art
Charts
Chart positions
| Chart (1989) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Canada Top Singles (RPM)[3] | 43 |
| Ireland (IRMA)[4] | 14 |
| Netherlands (Single Top 100)[5] | 40 |
| UK Singles (OCC)[6] | 29 |
| US Billboard Hot 100[7] | 41 |
| US Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs (Billboard)[8] | 5 |
Year-end charts
| Chart (1989) | Position |
|---|---|
| U.S Black Singles[9] | 84 |
References
- ^ "Single Reviews" (PDF). Billboard. June 24, 1989. p. 85. Retrieved August 9, 2016.
- ^ Through the Storm at All Music.
- ^ "Item Display - RPM - Library and Archives Canada". Collectionscanada.gc.ca. Archived from the original on 2014-02-24. Retrieved 2012-07-12.
- ^ [1] Archived July 21, 2011, at the Wayback Machine
- ^ "Dutchcharts.nl – Aretha & Whitney – It Isn't, It Wasn't, It Ain't Never Gonna Be" (in Dutch). Single Top 100.
- ^ "Aretha Franklin: Artist Chart History". Official Charts Company. Retrieved April 23, 2017.
- ^ "Aretha Franklin Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved April 23, 2017.
- ^ "Aretha Franklin Chart History (Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved April 23, 2017.
- ^ "Billboard.BIZ". Billboard.BIZ. 1989-12-31. Retrieved 2012-07-12.