Anita Baker Album My Everything
My Everything is the sixth studio album by American singer Anita Baker.
It was released by Blue Note Records on September 7, 2004 in the United States. It was Baker's first album for the label and her first album of new material in ten years. For her comeback album, Baker wanted to be "in control" of everything, and once again teamed up with Barry J. Eastmond and George Duke. Kenneth "Babyface" Edmonds also contributed. Baker wrote or co-wrote eight of the album's ten tracks. The last track, "Men in My Life" was written for her then-husband and two sons.
| My Everything | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | September 7, 2004 | |||
| Recorded | 2003-2004 at Soup Can Studio (Detroit, MI); East Bay Music Studios (Tarrytown, NY); Conway Studios, Brandon's Way and Le Gonks West Studios (Hollywood, CA); The Village Recorder (Los Angeles, CA); Record One (Sherman Oaks, CA). | |||
| Genre | R&B, soul | |||
| Length | 44:27 | |||
| Label | Blue Note | |||
| Producer | ||||
| Anita Baker chronology | ||||
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| Singles from My Everything | ||||
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The album debuted at number four on the US Billboard 200 and reached the top of the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart, selling 132,000 copies in its first week. By May 2005, the album had sold 568,000 copies in the US and been certified Gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA).
Critical reception
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Allmusic |   |
| Entertainment Weekly | B |
According to the review aggregator Metacritic, My Everything received "generally favorable reviews" based on a weighted average score of 67 out of 100 from 8 critic scores. AllMusic editor Thom Jurek wrote that "some may be frustrated that, after such a long time, Baker doesn't push the envelope more stylistically. This may be true in terms of the material itself, but that's not necessarily a bad thing. Right down the line, Baker delivers on what she does best [...]. This is a worthy return, qualitatively standing head and shoulders above most everything else in its class." Beth Johnson, writing for Entertainment Weekly, remarked that "Baker picks up where she left off in '94. Granted, there isn't a monster hit on My Everything on par with her R&B; classics like "Sweet Love," but in these say-anything times it's next to revolutionary that she can whip her warm, luxurious voice into take-me-now passion while keeping it entirely."
Track listing
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Producer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "You're My Everything" |
| Barry J. Eastmond | 5:03 |
| 2. | "How Could You" |
| Eastmond | 4:21 |
| 3. | "In My Heart" |
| Eastmond | 5:06 |
| 4. | "Serious" | Dawn Thomas | Eastmond | 5:25 |
| 5. | "How Does It Feel" |
| Eastmond | 4:24 |
| 6. | "Like You Used to Do" |
| Babyface | 5:11 |
| 7. | "Close Your Eyes" |
| Eastmond | 4:42 |
| 8. | "You're My Everything" (Revisited) |
| Eastmond | 1:12 |
| 9. | "I Can't Sleep" |
| Eastmond | 5:08 |
| 10. | "Men in My Life" | Baker | Eastmond | 3:44 |
Personnel and credits
Musicians
- Anita Baker – lead and backing vocals, arrangements (1-5, 7, 8, 10)
- Barry J. Eastmond – keyboards, percussion, backing vocals, arrangements (1-5, 7, 8, 10), horn arrangements (1, 9)
- George Duke – additional synthesizer, percussion
- Leo Colon – additional synthesizer
- Eric Rehl – additional synthesizer
- Russell Ferrante – acoustic piano (9), arrangements (9)
- Phil Hamilton – guitar
- Paul Jackson Jr. – guitar
- Robert Randolph – guitar
- Babyface – guitar (6), arrangements (6), backing vocals
- Gerald Albright – bass
- Alex Al – bass
- Nathan East – bass
- Reggie Hamilton – bass
- Jimmy Haslip – bass
- Ron Jenkins – bass
- Al Turner – bass
- Bernard Davis – drums
- Steve Ferrone – drums
- William Kennedy – drums
- Ricky Lawson – drums
- Bashiri Johnson – percussion
- Rafael Padilla – percussion (6)
- Gary Bias – tenor saxophone (1, 9)
- Dan Higgins – baritone saxophone (1, 9), tenor saxophone (1, 9)
- Eric Marienthal – alto sax solo (9)
- Reggie Young – trombone (1, 9)
- Gary Grant – trumpet (1, 9)
- Jerry Hey – trumpet (1, 9), horn arrangements (1, 9)
- The Ridgeway Sisters – backing vocals (1), BGV arrangement (1)
- Gordon Chambers – backing vocals
- Perri – backing vocals
- Kenya Ivey – backing vocals (6)
Production
- Executive Producer – Anita Baker
- Producers – Barry J. Eastmond (Tracks 1-5, 7, 8 & 9); Babyface (Track 6); Anita Baker (Track 10).
- Production Coordinator – Maria Eastmond
- Engineers – Anita Baker, Dylan Dresdow, George Duke, Barry J. Eastmond, Allen Sides, Kevin Syzmanski and Ghian Wright (Tracks 1-5 & 7-10); Paul Boutin (Track 6).
- Assistant Engineers (Tracks 1-5 & 7-10) – Greg Burns, Jared Nugent, Kevin Syzmanski and Tom Wilber.
- Mixing – George Duke and Erik Zobler (Tracks 1-5 & 7-10); Jon Gass (Track 6).
- Mix Assistants – Stefaniah McGowan (Tracks 1-5 & 7-10); Edward Quesada (Track 6).
- Art Direction – Gordon H. Gee
- Design – Greenberg Kingsley
- Photography – Andrew Eccles
- Hair – Q
- Make-up – Reggie Wells
- Wardrobe – Evan Ross and Anita Baker
- Project Management – Shaneika D. Brooks
Charts
Weekly charts
| Year-end charts
|
Certifications
| Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
|---|---|---|
| United States (RIAA) | Gold | 500,000^ |
| ^ Shipments figures based on certification alone. | ||
See also
References
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