Houston began singing at New Hope Baptist Church in Newark, New Jersey, as a child and became a background vocalist while in high school. She was one of the first black women to appear on the cover of Seventeen after becoming a teen model in 1981. With the guidance of Arista Records chairman Clive Davis, Houston signed to the label at age 19. Her first two studio albums, Whitney Houston (1985) and Whitney (1987), both peaked at number one on the Billboard 200 and are among the best-selling albums of all time. Hit singles from the albums, including "How Will I Know", "Greatest Love of All" and "I Wanna Dance with Somebody (Who Loves Me)", established her as a catalyst in the acceptance of black female artists on MTV. Her third studio album, I'm Your Baby Tonight (1990), yielded two Billboard Hot 100 number-one singles, the title track and "All the Man That I Need". Houston's rendition of "The Star-Spangled Banner" at Super Bowl XXV in 1991 received widespread media coverage.
Houston made her acting debut with the romantic thriller film The Bodyguard (1992), which despite its mixed reviews became the tenth highest-grossing film to that date. Its soundtrack won the Grammy Award for Album of the Year and remains the bestselling soundtrack album of all time. It generated multiple hit singles, including "I Have Nothing", "I'm Every Woman" and "I Will Always Love You"; the latter won the Grammy Award for Record of the Year, spent a then-record 14 weeks atop the Billboard Hot 100 and became the best-selling single by a woman in music history. Subsequently, she went on to star in the films Waiting to Exhale (1995) and The Preacher's Wife (1996), and she recorded their respective soundtracks; the former scored her last Billboard Hot 100 number-one single, "Exhale (Shoop Shoop)", while the latter, produced by Houston herself, became the bestselling gospel album of all time. As a film producer, she produced multicultural movies and series such as Cinderella (1997) and The Princess Diaries and The Cheetah Girls.
Houston's first studio album in eight years, My Love Is Your Love (1998), spawned several hit singles, including the title track, "Heartbreak Hotel", "It's Not Right but It's Okay" and the Academy Award-winning Mariah Carey duet "When You Believe". Following the success, she renewed her contract with Arista for $100 million in 2001, one of the biggest recording deals of all time. However, her personal problems began to overshadow her career. Her 2002 studio album, Just Whitney, received mixed reviews, while her drug use and a tumultuous marriage to singer Bobby Brown received widespread media coverage. After divorcing Brown, Houston returned to the top of the Billboard 200 chart with her final studio album, I Look to You (2009). In February 2012, Houston accidentally drowned in a bathtub at the Beverly Hilton hotel in Beverly Hills, with heart disease and cocaine use as contributing factors. News of her death coincided with the 2012 Grammy Awards, which took place the day following her death, and was covered internationally. Her life and career were dramatized in the 2022 biopic I Wanna Dance with Somebody. Her assets amounted to $250 million, earned over a 25-year career.
Full Wikipedia article: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Whitney_Houston
Discography
Whitney Houston (1985)
Whitney (1987)
I'm Your Baby Tonight (1990)
My Love Is Your Love (1998)
Just Whitney (2002)
One Wish: The Holiday Album (2003)
I Look to You (2009)
I Know Him So Well
Whitney Houston Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Perfect situations must go wrong
But this has never yet prevented me
From wanting far too much for far too long
Looking back, I could have done it differently
Won a few more moments, who can tell?
But it took time to understand the man
Now at least I know, I know him well
Wasn't it good, Wasn't it fine
Isn't it madness he can't be mine
But in the end, he needs a little more than before
Security, he needs his fantasy and freedom
I know him so well
No one in your life is with you constantly
No one is completely on your side
And though I move my world to be with him
Still the gap between us is too wide
Looking back, I could have played it differently
Learned about the man before I fell
But I was ever so much younger then
Wasn't it good (oh so good), Wasn't it fine (so fine)
Isn't it madness he can't be mine
Didn't I know how it would go
If I knew from the start
Why am I falling apart
Wasn't it fine
Isn't it madness he can't be mine
But in the end, he needs a little more than before
Security, he needs his fantasy and freedom
I know him so well
It took some to understand him
Hoo ooh I know him so well
The song 'I Know Him So Well' by Cissy Houston is about reflecting on a past relationship, acknowledging the impermanence of all good things and understanding the flaws that can lead to a breakdown in a relationship. The lyrics convey a sense of nostalgia and introspection, with the singer looking back on their past and wondering if they could have done anything differently to prevent the relationship from ending. The line "Nothing is so good it lasts eternally" highlights the fact that even the most perfect situations have to come to an end eventually.
The singer acknowledges her desire for the man in the relationship and how this made her blind to the fact that he needed more than just her love. She realized that he needed both security and freedom in order to be happy, and this realization came through experience and time. The line "But it took time to understand the man, now at least I know, I know him well" shows that the singer has gained a better understanding of her partner, but also hints that this understanding has come too late.
The song's refrain of "Isn't it madness he can't be mine" highlights the pain of lost love and how difficult it is to let go of something that once seemed perfect. Overall, 'I Know Him So Well' is a poignant reflection on the complexities of human relationships and the importance of understanding our partners on a deeper level.
Line by Line Meaning
Nothing is so good it lasts eternally
Nothing in life can last forever, no matter how great it seems.
Perfect situations must go wrong
Even situations that seem like they could not be any better will eventually fall apart.
But this has never yet prevented me
Despite knowing things will change, the singer cannot help but strive for perfection and longevity in relationships.
From wanting far too much for far too long
The artist desires too much from a relationship and for longer than they should.
Looking back, I could have done it differently
Reflecting on past experiences, the artist realizes they could have acted differently to avoid negative outcomes.
Won a few more moments, who can tell?
Perhaps if the singer had acted differently, more happy moments could have been experienced.
But it took time to understand the man
It took the singer time to truly understand their partner.
Now at least I know, I know him well
The artist has finally come to understand and know their partner well.
Wasn't it good, Wasn't it fine
The relationship was once great and enjoyable for both parties involved.
Isn't it madness he can't be mine
The artist cannot comprehend why the relationship has ended and cannot be continued.
But in the end, he needs a little more than before
The partner requires more than the singer can give.
Security, he needs his fantasy and freedom
The partner needs to feel secure in the relationship and have the freedom to live their own life and pursue their own interests.
No one in your life is with you constantly
No one will always be by your side and available all the time.
No one is completely on your side
Even those closest to you will not always agree with or support you.
And though I move my world to be with him
The singer has made many sacrifices to be with their partner.
Still, the gap between us is too wide
Despite the artist's efforts, there are still significant differences between them and their partner that cannot be reconciled.
Didn't I know how it would go
The artist had an idea of how the relationship would turn out.
If I knew from the start
Had the singer known how things would turn out, they could have acted accordingly.
Why am I falling apart
The singer is struggling emotionally to accept the end of the relationship.
It took some to understand him
The artist had to go through some struggles to really understand their partner.
Hoo ooh I know him so well
Despite the challenges, the artist believes they now truly understand their partner.
Lyrics ยฉ BMG Rights Management, Universal Music Publishing Group, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: Tim Rice, Benny Goran Bror Andersson, Bjoern K. Ulvaeus
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
็ถ ๅบฆๆฏ
I Know Him So Well"lyrics:
Nothing is so good it lasts eternally
Perfect situations must go wrong
But this has never yet prevented me
From wanting far too much for far too long
Looking back, I could have done it differently
Won a few more moments
Who can tell?
But it took time to understand the man
Now at least I know
I know him well
Wasn't it good
Wasn't it fine
Isn't it madness he can't be mine
But in the end
He needs a little more than before
Security
He needs his fantasy and freedom
I know him so well
No one in your life is with you constantly
No one is completely on your side
And though I move my world to be with him
Still the gap between us is too wide
Looking back
I could have played it differently
Learned about the man before I fell
But I was ever so much younger then
Wasn't it good (oh, so good)
Wasn't it fine (so fine)
Isn't it madness he can't be mine
Didn't I know how it would go
If I knew from the start
Why am I falling apart
Wasn't it fine
Isn't it madness he can't be mine
But in the end
He needs a little more than before
Security
He needs his fantasy and freedom
I know him so well
It took some to understand him
Hoo, ooh
I know him so well
JUNYANG TV
Nothing is so good it last eternally
Perfect situations must go wrong
But this has never yet prevented me
Wanting far too much for far too long
Looking back I could have played it differently
Won a few more moments
Who can tell?
But it took time to understand the man
Now at least I know
I know him well
Wasn't it good? oh
So good! Wasn't he fine? oh
So fine!
Isn't it madness
He can't be mine?
But in the end he needs a little bit more than me
More security
He needs his fantasy and freedom. I know him so well
No one in your life is with you constantly
No one is completely on your side
And though I move my world to be with him
Still the gap between us is too wide
Looking back I could have played it differently
Learned about the man before I fell
But I was ever so much younger then
Now at least I know
I know him well
Wasn't it good? oh
So good! Wasn't he fine? oh
So fine!
Isn't it madness
He won't be mine?
Didn't I know how it would go if I knew from the start
Why am I falling apart?
Wasn't it good? Wasn't he fine? Isn't it madness
He won't be mine
But in the end he needs a little bit more than me
More security...
He needs his fantasy and freedom (I know him so well...)
It took time to understand him. I know him so well...
Lady Paul
In her prime NO ONE came close to that remarkable voice.
Ross Lamb
Celine Dion, Mariah Carey and Rachel Lester
Lady Paul
@Ross Lamb / Whitney is great(timeless) but Let's not forget faith Hill,. She has a video on YouTube of her singing live, I think it's in Las Vegas. Many times I thought it was auto tuned, but it's not. That woman is just that dame good.
A Williams
@Ross Lamb maybe Mariah
MusicLover
Mariah takes you to heaven from earth. Whitney takes you to heaven kicking the doors down. The strength and power of her voice is irreplaceable & incomparable.
Lady Paul
Judson Wallace /I'll be honest and say I never heard of her but I did go listen to her. She's great, along with Faith Evans but Whitney stole/hijacked my ears.
Laufilm
A maior de todos os tempos eu te amo Whitney!โค
Jj Jj
I wish this was released as a single in the United States ๐บ๐ธ . Would've been a number one song ๐ต and probably a Grammy for either pop or r&b duo performance . Great second album . Miss you Miss Whitney ๐ ๐ข ๐
Sharon
๐Cissy & Whitney... Love mother & daughter singing such a beautiful duet
Ricardo Domingues
Love This Song. I love the Complete WHITNEY ALBUM. I listen to It every day on Spotify โค