Fine (Whitney Houston song)

"Fine"
Single by Whitney Houston
from the album Whitney: The Greatest Hits
B-side"Love to Infinity Megamix"
ReleasedSeptember 19, 2000 (2000-09-19)
StudioThe Record Plant (Los Angeles)
GenreR&B
Length3:34
LabelArista
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)
Whitney Houston singles chronology
"If I Told You That"
(2000) 		"Fine"
(2000) 		"The Star Spangled Banner"
(2001)
Music video
"Fine" on YouTube

"Fine" is a song by American singer Whitney Houston, and was released as the fourth single from her 2000 compilation album, Whitney: The Greatest Hits, in September 2000.

Composition

"Fine"
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"Fine" is a mid-tempo R&B tune, written by Houston, Raphael Saadiq, and Kamaal Fareed, and produced by Raphael Saadiq and Kamaal Fareed. According to Billboard, it features "languid retro-funk guitars" and a "sneaky hook", brought to life by "richly layered harmonies".[1] It was described as having "a sleek lite-funk sound" by The Star-Ledger.[2]

Critical reception

Billboard wrote that "Fine" is "perhaps her most convincing crack at urbanized pop music to date. [Houston] seems to have eased into the chilled soul that propels a street-wise track. She wisely does not give into the temptation to belt and wail her way through the song [...]. Instead, Houston works the more sultry lower register of her voice, saving the big, beautiful notes as a dramatic accent toward the end of the cut."[1] LA Weekly in its review for Whitney: The Greatest Hits wrote that "Only on the stellar R&B track 'Fine' does Whitney stand out. [...] 'Fine' is soulful, funky and tight as hell. And the vocal performance ranks among Whitney's best."[3] The Baltimore Sun wrote that of the new tracks on Whitney: The Greatest Hits, "only the sultry, soulful 'Fine' manages to convey any of the strengths that made Houston a star", and that, "hearing [Houston] work the tune's insistent, retro-funk groove, there's no doubting that she still has what it takes to make hits".[4] CANOE reviewer Jane Stevenson felt that the song "falls flat".[5] The Star-Ledger wrote that the song "grows tiresomely repetitious".[2] According to New Nation the song takes Houston "to even greater heights, changing [her] vocals to a much lower tone, with an added hip-hop bassline".[6] The St. Louis Post-Dispatch called it "a wonderful composition".[7]

Chart performance

"Fine" appeared on the singles charts only in the United States, Sweden, and Canada.[8][9][10] The song peaked at number 51 on the US Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks chart.[8] In Sweden, it debuted and peaked at number 50, but spent only one week on the chart.[9] In Canada, it peaked at number 39 the week after it debuted and spent a total of four weeks on Nielsen SoundScan's Canadian Singles Chart.[11]

Music video

The music video, directed by Kevin Bray, features Houston at a rooftop cocktail party. In the US, a DVD single was released. It includes the videos for "Fine" and the Houston-George Michael duet "If I Told You That", plus behind-the-scenes footage from the "Fine" video shoot. Houston's then-husband Bobby Brown also appears in the video.

Formats and track listings

  • US CD promo single[12]
  1. "Fine" (radio mix) – 3:34
  2. "Fine" (instrumental) – 3:34
  3. "Fine" (call out hook) – 0:40
  • Europe CD maxi single[13]
  1. "Fine" (album version) – 3:34
  2. "Love to Infinity Megamix" (edit) – 5:17
  3. "Heartbreak Hotel" (R.I.P. mix) – 3:40
  4. "Love to Infinity Megamix" – 9:22
  • Europe CD single[14]
  1. "Fine" (radio edit) – 3:34
  2. "Same Script, Different Cast" (Jonathan Peters radio edit) – 4:20
  3. "Same Script, Different Cast" (Friburn & Urik Cover Your Ears mix) – 10:49
  4. "Fine" (instrumental) – 3:34
  • Europe CD single card sleeve[15]
  1. "Fine" (album version) – 3:34
  2. "Love to Infinity Megamix" (edit) – 5:17
  1. "Fine" (video)
  2. "If I Told You That" (video)
  3. Behind-the-scenes footage of the "Fine" video shoot

Personnel

Charts

Chart (2001) Peak
position
Canada (Nielsen SoundScan)[18] 39
Sweden (Sverigetopplistan)[9] 50
US Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs (Billboard)[8] 51

Release history

Region Date Format(s) Label(s) Ref.
United States September 19, 2000
Arista [19]
September 26, 2000 Rhythmic contemporary radio [20][21]
Sweden December 11, 2000 CD
[22]

References

  1. ^ a b "Billboard magazine – Reviews & Previews – p.24". Billboard. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. September 2, 2000. Retrieved August 13, 2012. (Transcription of original at Classic-Whitney.com)
  2. ^ a b Lustig, Jay (May 16, 2000). "The greatest hits of all, but the remix is just so-so". The Star-Ledger. Retrieved 18 April 2014. (Full review available at Classic-Whitney.com)
  3. ^ Hardy, Ernest (Jun 28, 2000). "Saving It". LA Weekly. Retrieved August 13, 2012.
  4. ^ J. D. Considine (May 25, 2000). "Whitney Houston The Greatest Hits". The Baltimore Sun. Archived from the original on 2013-12-11. Retrieved 17 August 2012.
  5. ^ Stevenson, Jane. "Album Review: Whitney's greatest hits and misses". CANOE - JAM!. Archived from the original on January 15, 2013. Retrieved August 4, 2012.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  6. ^ "allwhitney.com - Whitney Houston album reviews". Whfan.free.fr. Retrieved 22 May 2023.
  7. ^ Johnson, Kevin C. (June 25, 2000). "Whitney Houston "The Greatest Hits," Arista Records". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Retrieved 19 April 2014. (Full review available at Classic-Whitney.com)
  8. ^ a b c "Whitney Houston Chart History (Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved October 24, 2012.
  9. ^ a b c "Whitney Houston – Fine". Singles Top 100. Retrieved October 24, 2012.
  10. ^ "Top 50 Singles". Jam!. Archived from the original on March 21, 2001. Retrieved April 19, 2024.
  11. ^ "Top 50 Singles". Jam!. Archived from the original on March 21, 2001. Retrieved April 19, 2024.
  12. ^ Fine (CD Single). Whitney Houston. US: Arista. 2000. ARPCD-3845.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  13. ^ Fine (Maxi-Single). Whitney Houston. EU: Arista. 2000. 74321 82188 2.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  14. ^ Fine (CD-Single). Whitney Houston. EU: Arista. 2001. 74321-84665-2.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  15. ^ Fine (Card Sleeve Single). Whitney Houston. EU: Arista. 2000. 74321 82189 2.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  16. ^ Fine (DVD). Whitney Houston. US: Arista. 2000. 13920-9.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  17. ^ a b Whitney: The Greatest Hits (Album). Whitney Houston. Europe: Arista, BMG. 2000. 74321 75895 2.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  18. ^ "Top 50 Singles". Jam!. Archived from the original on March 21, 2001. Retrieved April 19, 2024.
  19. ^ "Going for Adds / Advance Notice". Radio & Records. No. 1368. September 15, 2000. pp. 152, 162.
  20. ^ "Gavin Top 40/Rhythm Crossover: Impact Dates". Gavin Report. No. 2322. September 15, 2000. p. 10.
  21. ^ "CHR/Rhythmic: Going for Adds". Radio & Records. No. 1369. September 15, 2000. p. 109.
  22. ^ "Whitney Houston: Fine". click2music.se (in Swedish). Archived from the original on January 13, 2003. Retrieved November 29, 2023.