Original Soundtrack - The Bodyguard

Few observers expected that Whitney Houston's first big-screen role in 1992's The Bodyguard would generate a phenomenon. Not that the film itself was a phenomenon -- it was a healthy success, due not only to Houston, but to her co-star Kevin Costner's drawing power -- but the soundtrack's success was astonishing. The Bodyguard followed Houston's cover of Dolly Parton's "I Will Always Love You" to the top of the charts, and once they got there, neither the single nor the album budged for weeks. "I Will Always Love You" spent a record-shattering 14 weeks in the top slot, while The Bodyguard spent 20 weeks at number one, eventually selling over 15 million copies and winning the Grammy award for Album of the Year. Like many phenomena of that magnitude, it's hard to see, in retrospect, what triggered such a massive public response. True, The Bodyguard isn't a typical soundtrack in that its first half plays like Houston's sequel to I'm Your Baby Tonight, but its second half is filled with the flotsam and jetsam typical for a big-budget soundtrack -- an excerpt from Alan Silverstri's score, some flavorless but pleasant Kenny G instrumentals, dated pop and dance numbers, and a cover (Curtis Stigers' take on "(What's So Funny 'Bout) Peace, Love and Understanding," which is notable in some circles as the recording that made the song's author, Nick Lowe, a millionaire). Then again, nobody really paid attention to anything outside of the first six songs, all of which rank among Houston's best efforts, demonstrating progress from the somewhat stilted I'm Your Baby Tonight. It's not startling enough to justify the phenomenon, but "I Have Nothing," "Queen of the Night," "Run to You," and especially her cover of "I'm Every Woman" are all first-rate urban pop songs that skillfully capture Houston at her best. In a sense, the album is no different than any other album Houston recorded. It may seem odd that a soundtrack is Houston's biggest-selling album to date, but consider this -- even her best records had five or six great songs surrounded by well-constructed filler; the same is true here, only the filler is recorded by other artists. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Music Guide

Name Credits Aaron Neville Performer, Vocals Acar S. Key Engineer, Mixing Alvin Chea Vocals (Background) Andy Morris Mixing, Producer Babyface Producer Barney Perkins Engineer BeBe & CeCe Winans Vocals (Background), Arranger BeBe Winans Vocals (Background), Arranger, Vocal Arrangement, Producer Ben Glass Photography Bill Easystone Assistant Engineer Bill Schnee Engineer Bob Rosa Mixing Bobby Boughton Mixing, Engineer Bruce Miller Engineer, Mixing C.J. Mackintosh Remixing, Producer, Drum Programming Cedric Caldwell Arranger Chaka Khan Arranger Charlie Midnight Producer Chauncey Mahan Programming Chris Lord-Alge Mixing Claude V. McKnight III Vocals (Background) Clive Davis Executive Producer Curtis Stigers Performer, Vocals Dana Jon Chappelle Engineer Danny Kortchmar Producer Danny Wilensky Saxophone Daryl Simmons Producer Dave Reitzas Engineer, Mixing Dave Way Mixing David Cole Producer, Arranger, Mixing, Vocal Arrangement, Remixing David Foster Arranger, String Arrangements, Producer Dennis Sands Engineer Duran Ramos Producer, Vocal Producer Ellin La Var Hair Stylist Gary Carlson Engineer Gary Grant Trumpet Gary LeMel Executive in Charge of Music, Music Executive Geoff Stradling Keyboards George Marino Mastering Humberto Gatica Engineer Ian Devaney Producer, Mixing James T. Alfano Programming Jazz Summers Executive Producer Jeremy Lubbock String Arrangements Jim "Z" Zumpano Mixing Jim Walker Engineer Joe Cocker Performer, Vocals John Rollo Engineer, Mixing Jud J. Friedman Arranger Ken Nahoum Photography Kenny G Performer, Producer, Arranger, ? Kevin Becka Engineer, Assistant Engineer Kirk Whalum Saxophone L.A. Reid Producer Lisa Stansfield Performer, Vocals Louis Biancaniello Programming Manny Lacarrubba Engineer Marc DeSisto Engineer, Mixing Marc Reyburn Engineer Mark "Leo T." Townshend Bass Matt Rohr Engineer Matthew Rolston Photography Maureen Crowe Music Supervisor, Supervisor Mick Guzauski Mixing Mike McCarthy Engineer Milton Chan Engineer Moshe Brakha Photography Narada Michael Walden Producer Paul Cox Photography Paul Jackson, Jr. Guitar Paul Wright Remixing Peter Yianilos Engineer Randee Saint Nicholas Photography Richard Joseph Engineer Ricky Crespo Producer, Associate Producer, Assistant Producer, Programming, Editing Ricky Minor Director Robert Clivillés Vocal Producer, Producer, Vocal Arrangement, Mixing, Editing, Remixing, Arranger Ronn Huff String Arrangements Roy Lott Producer, Associate Producer S.O.U.L. S.Y.S.T.E.M. Vocals, Performer Sass Jordan ?, Performer Stephen Earabino Stylist Steve Burton Keyboards Steve Sheppard Engineer, Assistant Engineer Susan Mendola Design Tim Parry Executive Producer Victor Caldwell Engineer Walter Afanasieff Producer Whitney Houston Performer, Arranger, Vocal Arrangement, Executive Producer, Producer, Vocals William Ross Orchestration, Arranger, String Arrangements Zanna Photography