Butterfly

Great voice and vibe but don’t feel any desire to come back to it

Does nothing for me. But I appreciate her game. I’ll await her return in November when everyone starts celebrating Christmas way to early.

My first Mariah! I read that she considers this to be her magna opus. I enjoyed it- good hits, great vocals. But started getting a little same-y in the second half. Overall- good album. 3.5

obviously so quintessentially 90s; very of the time sort of sensual album. the feeling that i’m listening to albums that are the blueprint for so much that has come after it is becoming increasingly familiar! really long songs also which was nice to see; although obviously sometimes it dragged. I’m a big fan of that sort of squelchy bass; really liked that in the first song - the second song sounded more like the cover looked (gospelly 2000s girl in the big city movie). she’s got an insane voice (of course!! it’s mariah carey!!) overall liked it; but a little saccharine for my usual taste

Favorite Track: Honey

Too poppy for my taste. Still, not offensive. Love hearing Bone Thugz on the album.

It’s ok. She sounds very good. Breathy, loads of runs, registration changes, and belting. Vocal-technique wise, it’s very strong. Her voice is very recognisable as well. But too much flex. It does remind me of the vocal coach in X factor many years ago. Ariel Burdett. Academically, she’s ok. but no one will like to listen to that. Music wise, not good either. Very mellow ballads. Pretty standard song writing and 90s pop-star production.

I mean she’s got pipes but I guess I thought there’d be a little bounce to the album. It was pretty slow despite having some features that I thought would make it a little more hip-hoppy. Objectively maybe it should be a 4 for technical ability alone but I just don’t know when I’d listen to any of this on purpose. The songs about love or heartbreak weren’t gripping despite her ability sing well. It lacked variety and nothing really drew me in.

Not entirely sure what’s notable about this album. Not bad by any means, there were more than a few songs I was grooving to, but it doesn’t really have any of her biggest hits and kinda blends in with other 90s acts. Love the house beat on the Butterfly reprise and The Beautiful Ones cover. Enjoyable but won’t come back to listen through the whole album again.

Beautiful voice but very forgettable to me. It sounds like a soundtrack to a 90s-00s rom com movie. nice background music and she is a name you know, so I get why it would be on the list... still nothing stuck out to me. At least it wasn't "All I want for Christmas"....

It's all very soft and quiet. Not unpleasant, not I'm not really enjoying it

Honey is a banger lead off track. I didn’t pick it as one of my favorite songs though, because I think the Bone Thugs ‘n’ Harmony track epitomizes the rap/R&B trends of the time, and “Outside” is the closer and really demonstrates how great Carey could be as a vocalist. Didn’t love the album but some great songs.

средняя хорошая крепкая попса 2000х, кому нравится жанр скорее всего заценит, но мне как любителю другой темы не хватило чего-то.

Fine enough. She has better albums.

Sweet sweet fantasy maybe? Still great.

2.8 // The songs are pretty repetitive, but that's for a reflection of the era the album comes from. 90s R&B, sounds great to just listen to, but nothing much there imo

Very much a 90s artifact but I enjoyed listening nonetheless

ok

Mariah Carey obviously has an impressive voice, but this album really does feel like listening to almost an hour of Disney end credits music, and it’s hard to get past that.

Rnb is not my genre, but Mariahs vocals are sooo goood.

Not really my cup of tea genre-wise BUT stupendous vocals and top-rate production...

magical voice and 'Honey' will always be a classic! Quality features that remind one of yesteryear

She has such a good voice. Altogether pretty cibey

Gran voz, pero repertorio standar.

5 stars for vocal performance, 2 stars at best for songwriting. It's a shame that the tracks are so utterly uninspired and forgettable. They're dull enough that this can hardly be considered more than pleasant background listening.

Послушать можно разве что иногда фоном. Так-то вроде и неплохо, но ни одна песня не запомнилась. 6 из 10.

𝘉𝘶𝘵𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘧𝘭𝘺 moves further into a smooth mix of R&B and hip-hop, with Carey’s signature vocal control and polished production firmly in place. Tracks like 𝘏𝘰𝘯𝘦𝘺 and 𝘔𝘺 𝘈𝘭𝘭 stand out as the clear highlights, showing her ability to deliver both upbeat hooks and emotive ballads. While it’s a well-made and enjoyable album, it doesn’t feel groundbreaking — more a refinement of her established style than something truly distinctive. Solid, but far from essential.

She has a great voice, and the album's well-produced and arranged. The songwriting is not on par, a bit too generic IMHO.

I can see why people like her

I can see why people like this Personal enjoyment: 2/5 Relevance to this list: 4/5

Meh

Great voice and variety of music.

Similar complaint about the boring back half of a lot of pop albums ... but the singles are nostalgic.

Nice work. Voice was almost ad good as Whitney. Tunes were smooth. No complaints. Just not my daily vibe.

Breathy pop

not a huge fan, but this was a nice listen

ok, canta muito, boa ref de R&B, mas ....3 estrelas

Pretty ok…pop r and b

#648. I've complained before that all the 90s pop music on here is tired and dated and doesn't stand up anymore, but Mariah does still sound good all these years later. I mean, it still sounds of it's time, but it's not so painful to listen to like a lot of the other 90s pop. 3/5: still fine

Not my thing now, never been my thing. Appreciate that she has a great voice and I know that many albums like this are very collaborative in terms of performance and song writing. As I've said a number of times now, this is not for me. And by that I don't just mean that I don't prefer it, I mean that I was never the intended audience for this art. Now to rate it - my preference, my enjoyment, a 2. Quality of the work, recording, how much this deserves, in my opinion, to live on a list of 1001 albums to give your time to - I'm going with a 3 here, and since there are no halvsies, I'll give her the benefit of the doubt and go with 3 overall.

It’s no Mimi, but it’s still very good, and you can see the different direction she was starting to take towards the more hip hop/r&b oriented sound. Lots of bangers on here, but definitely some misses as well. A good precursor to what was to come.

She has such an amazing voice! And the sound was good. It just isn’t my style of music.

#28 Butterfly ~ Mariah Carey A much more laidback project for Mariah, and definitely a lot more consistent. I may prefer something like Daydream, but Mariah's famous vocal power is more tightly controlled and but to great effect in each of Butterfly's songs. Instead of whistle notes and stratospheric belts, Mariah leans more into effortless melisma to really capture the attention of the listener, and it is done very well. The songs of Butterfly sound very polished as well: a slick finish of RnB pop with very caramel sampling and instrumentation choices. These sounds do well to catch the ear every now and then. The song as SONGS though is plainly a bit flat. It lacks a bit of spark that I find with Daydream and earlier records. A bit of energy. It's a noted direction where she's taking her sound, although I might not necessarily agree with it

Decent background music. She does have a nice voice.

surprisingly very pitchy, always thought of Mariah Carey as a great singer, but her voice is all over the place and sometimes doesn't really fit the song.

look, mariah carey is undoubtedly an extremely talented vocalist and this is on full display here. the problem is that i find a lot of mariah carey's music to be incredibly dull. the more uptempo stuff here is fine enough, but the ballads kill it. maybe i'm not a love-making romantic enough to appreciate the subtleties of her whispery voice over sensual backing tracks, but it's just not for me. there are some decent tracks here ('honey,' 'the roof (back in time)' and 'babydoll') but it does not outweigh the majority of this album being mind-numbingly boring ballads. sorry, not really for me.

I am not sure anyone is more iconic of the 90's...I honestly think she made the butterfly popular! And this album cover, is there anything more 90's. Somewhat rightly deserved, she has pipes and epitomizes a whole persona that is hard to not be interested in even if you don't like it. But this is about the album. Whenever You Call, was the song I liked the most, it showed off her range (in a not breathy, moany, raspy kind of way) and she seemed to have some genuine emotion, but not enough. The rest of the time, I don't think she showed off her voice, it was just whispery singing that didn't really do her any favors. Then it just seemed to scream diva, I am here, I am Mariah, that is enough. You should just know I have emotion and what I am trying to convey, I don't have to do anything for it. Is it iconic yeah, but others have done it better even she did it better on other albums.

Oh Mariah! While you’re technically a brilliant vocalist, with a big ass range, I just don’t FEEL you like I do Whitney or even far less proficient singers. Your voice flutters all over the place and yet it never lands anywhere. I’d say that could go along with the theme of your album title but you do this on all of your albums. There’s ZERO restraint with you. I get it, girl, you can SING! Then why do I feel nothing when I’m done listening to your records? A good (random) comparison is to Papa Don’t Preach. Nobody is going to accuse Madonna of being the best singer of all time, but when she sings that song, I feel every ounce of the desperation she’s feeling with that single “PLEEAASSSE!” when begging her father to help her and to not abandon her in her choice. Plus, that song and her voice are hyper focused on the topic at hand. That’s what I’m looking for with any singer, not vocal gymnastics just because you can. I won’t even go into comparison between you and Whitney’s “I Will Always Love You” because you don’t even come close to winning that battle in any universe.

This album starts off with a banger, and I was hoping it would continue that way. I want more Honey! Unfortunately most of it veered into ballady R&B and wasn’t really my thing. Mariah is awesome though, and she has a beautiful voice.

This is the most 90s album. I do not need to listen again but it was fine.

Я ніколи раніше не слухав Mariah Carey, і послухавши цей альбом, який, як кажуть, ознаменував її перехід від поп-звучання у бік соулу та хіп-хопу, можу сказати, що втратив небагато. Він аж ніяк не поганий - естетично вельми привабливий. На ньому ніжний і "загадковий" вокал Mariah ллється в унісон із такими ж ніжними соуловими хіп-мелодіями, огортаючи тебе атмосферою тихого, спокійного нічного міста. Десь до середини альбому ти просто розчиняєшся в ньому, розслабляєшся та відпочиваєш. Проте варто пам’ятати, що це була друга половина 90-х, коли подібний R&B із соул-відтінками лунав із кожної праски - згадаймо хоча б супергіт Un-Break My Heart від Toni Braxton, який вийшов роком раніше. Тож чим Butterfly настільки відрізняється від усього іншого, щоб вважатися проривним чи видатним, я не зрозумів. Він безумовно гарний, і якщо ви скучили за тим звучанням 90-х (або ніколи його не чули) - то послухати можна. Але щоб варто - ні, я так не думаю.

Started strong, i really liked the shook ones sample. Kinda just got exhausting and turned into sex music. Talented but not for me.

D’la bonne r&b des années 90 mais maudit qu’elle est déprimée sur cet album.

Soothing but I don't really like R&B! Enjoyed 'Fly Away' though.

143/1089 - It certainly sounds like pop music. Nothing remarkable or horrible about it. Apparently it's the first album to steer Pop in a more Hip-Hop direction so I can see why it's influential.

Better than Coldplay.

01) Honey - 8,5 02) Butterfly - 8,0 03) My All - 9,0 04) The Roof (Back In Time) - 7,5 05) Fourth of July - 6,0 06) Breakdown - 6,0 07) Babydoll - 5,5 08) Close My Eyes - 5,5 09) Whenever You Call - 6,0 10) Fly Away (Butterfly Reprise) - 7,0 11) The Beautiful Ones - 7,0 12) Outside - 6,0 TOTAL: 6,83 (68/100) Current ranking: 367/561

Starts with a bop, then it's all ballads

Honey is a GREAT song. She’s an amazing singer. The rest of the album bores me.

Mariah is certainly very talented, but perhaps there is too much exploration in her vocals for me to get lost in her music. It’s very similar to Christina Aguilera where both jump around the key with their voice and arpeggio the chords. I recognize the power of both, but I feel Mariah is a one trick pokey. She has incredible range and can absolutely SING. I just can’t get lost in her music. Couple that with generic 90s r&B tracks. This becomes antiquated quickly.

It’s fine but not really for me. Really like her debut and Christmas albums though.

It was fine.

The ending credits of every Richard Curtis film. I don't even dislike it, it's just a bit generic of this time and not my thing. I swear half of these 90s albums are in there to mess up the overall ratings.

Famous album. Some good songs.

Good

tell me why am I sobbing into my work e-mails as I listen to My All. she is, indeed, the moment. probably not her best album but still very very beautiful and fun

Not her best

Classic Mariah

I'm excited for this one! I love upbeat pop Mariah and some of her big hits, but I haven't listened to an album beginning to end. Now that I'm a few songs in. Man, Mariah's voice is (as everyone knows) one of the best in the game of all time. She's really impressive with her ability to improvise scales. There's a lot of ballads here but they might be some of the best 80s-90s r&b ballads. This too is the peak of the Mottola/Carey musical and marriage partnership, off the top of my head. They did some good work together. Almost can't help but think about how he tried to replace her with...JLO. ha. Anyway. I like this a lot but I feel like I maybe needed more upbeat pop songs in between each ballad. Sometimes they can start sort of running together after a few too many songs. Even though this isn't my favorite thing ever, it did really inspire me to download a greatest hits Mariah collection. I need more!

Not for me and too long. Beautiful voice but I just get bored with this style after a while. Light 3.

Honestly shocked I didn't know any of the original songs on here given the number of hits Mariah Carey has. I'm not sure this is essential listening, and lots of the songs blended together for me but it was certainly a welcome change of pace.

She has an amazing voice, she's like the opposite of Bob Dylan. None of her songs resonate with me but her voice is amazing.

It's fine, I guess. 2.5 stars.

Getting this right after Pantera might be the biggest case of whiplash I've experienced in this whole album project so far. That's kind of what I love about the randomness to be honest. We have arguably one of the most masculine albums on the list immediately followed by one of the most feminine. No offense to femininity, but I prefer the Pantera album. That's just my bias towards the metal genre speaking though. By all accounts, Butterfly is a solid album. Well, apparently not all accounts seeing as this album currently sits at an average of 2.47 on this website. For reference, Marilyn Manson currently has a 2.5. That's messed up. This album's pretty good, okay? It certainly has its influence. Mariah Carey may be overplayed during the Christmas season, but this album's got some songs that are better than that Christmas song that honestly isn't even bad. It's literally just overplayed. The songs on Butterfly are fairly standard modern r&b affairs. But I don't know, I'm kind of nostalgic for this kind of stuff, okay? Mariah is definitely a strong singer. She's always had that going for her. The notes she hits do go kind of crazy though. The writing does its job. None of it is particularly horrendous, but nothing really stuck out much as top-tier either. It's solid. The production's pretty good. I can see why some might call these songs samey, but I wouldn't say they feel exactly the same. I do feel that the album's a bit long. That might just be me though. Overall, Butterfly is a solid showing that I can understand the success of. It's good! High 3/5.

Mariah is one of the most iconic singers of the twentieth century and has written or cowritten more hit songs than almost anyone. She absolutely deserves to be on an all-time list. Some of my favorite songs ever are Mariah's (Always Be My Baby was the first single I ever bought). That said, I'm much more of a Mariah singles fan than an album fan. The only full album I ever purchased was Rainbow, and though I've listened to most of the big albums once or twice, none of them left much of an impression on me. The list of collaborators on Butterfly is pretty mind blowing — Missy Elliott, Bone Thugs, Elton John, Dru Hill, Walter Anafasieff, and that dude in jail we won't mention... There's even a Prince cover. And yet, the album is still kind of lackluster (at least in my opinion). Besides the singles, it's kind of boring in a lot of spots. This was the era when Mariah was starting to break away from the demure crooner her record label wanted her to be and leaning more into her sexy, "urban" side. But this album feels like she's still figuring things out and isn't sure which path she wants to go down — not that she should have to pigeonhole herself into a particular box, mind you — but what results is an odd mix of adult contemporary ballads, sultry r&b, and hip-hop adjacent jams that doesn't quite gel together into a coherent album. It feels like she's trying to please every possible audience at once and ends up not totally succeeding with any of them. Mariah's songs also have a tendency to retread the same territory over and over — similar melodies, the same themes, etc. Even the Bone Thugs song sounds like they just rewarmed the melody from Crossroads. There's a lot of talent on this album, and I don't know if I'd say any of the songs are truly bad. But at almost an hour long, there's a lot of filler that could have been cut and songs that could have been shortened. Again, all the respect in the world for her, but I'll be sticking to the Mariah #1s. 3.5/5

what the hell is the christmas woman talking about she is an incredible singer, but it gets tiring how much flair she has to put into making the extremely derivative tracks interesting.

Bryjaði svakalega leiðinlega fannst mér en svo vann þetta töluvert á. Röddin er misskemmtileg en oft flott. Beautiful ones útgáfan er flott karaoke, hin lögin eru oft þægilega soulkennd og ekki leiðinleg þegar betur er að gáð. Jájá, þristur simpatico.

It was ok but doesn't have any of her banngers on it which was a shame

Solid album. Nostalgic. The Roof is a great song.

Its an OK album. Good production all songs are sinilar but all good as her voice is absolutely pristine. Too popish for me find it a bit repetitive. Still great to hear her sing. Great love songs

I’m not usually into this sort of virtuosic singing style, but the vocals combined with the great mixing and production make this one not terrible. Favorite Track: Breakdown

2.5 In a better world Mariah would be Balkan

Yea I kinda agree with the other reviews on this one. Mariah has an undeniably incredible voice but she doesn't really have many interesting songs to utilize it. Anyways this is a solid pop album. Favorite track: Fly Away (Butterfly Reprise)

Hmmmmm. Ok, but dated and so American.

3.5/5

Aika perus rnb poppia. Herkkää ja tunteellista. Meinas kyllä käydä vähän pitkästyttäväksi. Onko The Roof kappaleessa sama piano sample kuin Mobb Deepin Shock Onessa? Itseasiassa kappale taitaakin samplata Shock Onesia kun kuulen sen synan kanssa. Parhaat: The Roof ainoa hyvä, muuten niin tasapaksua

Extraordinary voice, ordinary R&B songs. I feel that her debut album would have been more appropriate to be on this 1001 list than "Butterfly." I didn't dislike it, but after about 25 minutes, I was wondering when this was going to be over. An hour of Mariah Carey who wanted to release an quasi-Hip-Hop album isn't what I signed on for, yet here I am, listening to 57 minute album that's just OK.

This was ok. As always, she has a fantastic voice, but the music became less and less interesting after the 20min mark.

There's no doubt that she has a great voice, but I really just cannot stand her music. LOL

It's fine?

3.5 my gut says that Carey abandoned more creative song writing in exchange for hip-hop production beats. And yes, rap can be incredibly creative (Thank you Dr. Octagon) But when you give Puffy the reins, you're getting production, not words. Honey- love this song, even with Puffy acting the fool in the background Butterfly- standard Ballad about letting something go and hoping it returns My All The Roof (Back in Time)-Mariah's amazing voice over a dark hip hop beat Fourth of July Breakdown Baby doll- Carey is almost like a jazz artist- even if you don't know the words, her voice is a beautiful instrument Close My Eyes Whenever You Call- the intro is wildly unnecessary, it Mars a pretty good song. Fly Away The Beautiful Ones- Dru Hill still sucks, but the Prince feel on this song is incredible Outside Honey (Radio Mix) Honey (Def Club Mix) Mi Todo

I was not looking forward to this at all and yet the first track has my attention. This may be enjoyable after all. I’m enjoy the performances in the record. Sound wise it’s so 90s. And that not bad. I feel like this sound set a blueprint. Unfortunately that blueprint was left outside for birds to poop on and no one can read it now. But the production here is great.

what a voice to waste on mediocrity whistle tones be banging tho

One can find the cooing pretty sexy without thinking too much of this overall – which is just too much – oversung, overproduced and overlayered, which collectively would point to her massive overexposure. Some of the singing is more like vocalese filligree anyway than actual singing. To paraphrase the editors, "the excessive warbling very much puts one off." There are some moments of songbird-y sweetness – the opener is good, and "Fourth of July" sneaks up softly and to pretty pleasant effect. The Prince cover does little to elevate an underrated song. At least it's mostly mellow and on the quieter side. Interesting to listen to the presaging of hip-hop's taking over of everything – this would be an early example and seems almost a template for how rap has infiltrated even country music in recent years.

Totally and completely acceptable R&B/pop. Some of the disco influences on these songs were really fun.

Great voice but I can't get into her music. Just not for me

No sé puede dudar que tiene una grandiosa voz, pero para mí, escuchas una canción y parece que ya oíste todo su repertorio. Voz y música, fabulosa, pero, sigue siendo lo mismo

I'm annoyed to death by Carey's Christmas song. It feels refreshing to listen to her other work. The songs are lacking in variety. But Carey's singing makes it better. Unfortunately, two songs are produced by P. Diddy. 3 stars for "Butterfly".

where is the album

Definitely boring. But her voice is great and there are some super fun pop tunes in here and she covers an album cut from Purple Rain so triple dub

I’ll always have a small attachment to 90s R&B, I don’t know why. I think it was just being a kid and hearing this stuff on the radio and being subject to the overt emotionality of it. I still respond to it, even though it’s not anything I really ever seek out. This album was like the last one, didn’t blow me away, but went down smooth.

a little repetitive in its overall sound at times, but still moderately enjoyable

2.8 She's got a beautiful voice but my god aren't these songs dull. Saved down the Shook Ones one, but the rest could have just blended into one. Probably nice played at very low volumes in a waiting room somewhere, but other than that I don't see why anyone would want to hear this before they died.

Not my favorite style of music but a couple good tunes. More importantly, her voice is absolutely insane. Wish I fit her style more because I love listening to her sing!

I know she can sing, but there's a lot of sameness to this album.

Kinda repetitive and not my style of music but her voice is one of a kind

ehhhhhhh

A masterclass in 90s R&B with 90s hip hop influence. She even got Dru Hill and Krayzie Bone to feature on this record - so dope. It's interesting hearing the vocal harmonies she used and how closely they resemble those of other R&B artist's harmonies of this era, namely Boyz II Men comes to mind. Of course, her voice is absolutely beautiful and is forever timeless, especially thanks to the abhorrent holiday that is Christmas.

My favorite part of mariahs singing is in her mid range where there's some real power in her voice. There's not a whole lot of it here. I understand she's stretching her style range here but i feel like you have jimi Hendrix on guitar and he's playing rhythm. She stays in the higher head voice throughout most of this and it gets a little grating, but there is no denying her talent. Singer and songwriter.

Decent album

Wouldn’t listen to again all the way through, but would always listen to the bangers; nostalgic but not Mariah’s best; favorites: honey, butterfly, breakdown might be my favorite Mariah song of all time

I never have really listened to mariah carey but her music is really beautiful. Good R&B/ hip hop / pop blends. Her voice is impeccable. Christmas will always be both better/ruined because of her one song but she's a solid artist otherwise.

Was going to give this a 4/5 based on the first half (despite not being thrilled to listen to it when it came up. Mariah is very much not in my wheelhouse as far as artists go, and I'm not too well versed in R&B to be able to accurately rate it), but the second half hit, and while not bad, the songs tended to drag a bit and could have used some cutting down. No reason for The Beautiful Ones to be 7 mins long. Lots of stuff getting close to 5 mins too. The more hip-hop, darker vibe songs (The Roof) are the better tracks. The more stereotypical, 90's slow ballad R&B songs are the more forgettable ones IMO. Honey also, despite doing everything in its power to be as repetitive and annoying as possible also managed to be a standout. Definitely grew on me. Very much a song that sounds ahead of its time and not trapped in the 90's like a lot of the rest of the album. Surprising album to me. Better than I was expecting.

в целом - норм. но такой жанр мне не очень нравится.

speaking as someone who loves pop, i think that even more so than other genres what you like is going to be heavily colored by the time you grew up in, and unfortunately i was 3 when this came out so i just hear it as some passable pop r&b

I never thought I'd be listening to something by Mariah, but like most of the 1001 albums challenge it really is making me consider music I never thought too hard about. This album plays into a lot of what I expect out of most R&B and pop stuff but I'm kinda glad it goes for more than just that, the way the album starts had me thinking it would be more typical to radio pop stuff but once The Roof hits it just shifts everything into such a cool sound, the way the album starts adding hip hop beats or soul instrumentals just really elevate the songs along with Mariah's obviously wonderful vocals. Something like the trip hop beats in The Roof or the chorus to Breakdown are absolutely killer, Fly Away is like the most ideal 90s house song the beat is absolutely fantastic I wish I was more down with the production and sound for Honey or Butterfly because this album would otherwise be my kind of 90s pop. Certainly a great time

Mariah has pipes but an entire album is just a no go. The album is boring but I'm giving a 3 because she can sing

It's not that bad, there just isn't much variation between the tracks. 2.5 rounded up

When this first came out I didn’t like the r and b direction it went in These days it has aged pretty well but is it REALLY one of the 1001 albums i need to hear

Carey's vocals rescue what would otherwise be a pretty bland album.

The album has its moments, but it feels a bit bloated. A few tracks truly stand out, like "Breakdown," "My All," and "Butterfly," which are undeniable highlights. If the tracklist were trimmed down, the album could have been exceptional. As it stands, it’s just okay. Also, "The Roof" feels like a missed opportunity; it features an incredible Mobb Deep sample, but the instrumental doesn’t quite live up to its potential.

I struggle a bit with these albums that are fine but they I don’t care about.

I almost swerved my fan boat off the side of the bayou when I saw this was the album. Simply can't have bigger whiplash from CCR. I did NOT like Diddy whispering "MC, I like that" the first 30 seconds of the album on "Honey". Good R&B, Hip-Hop track but an indulgent 5 minute song when there's no melodic, rhythmic change. "My All" is the best ballad and "The Roof" is by far the coolest song on the album. I guess it's hard to make something uncool when you use the Shook Ones sample but it's awesome how they fade into it and Mariah just lets it rip. I want to have a hotter take but ultimately...Mariah is a very good singer, a couple of these songs are good, it is well produced but not anything particularly special.

Puffy Daddy said it… “Mariah, you’re on fi-re!” My brain may be rotten from spending a week in Vegas but I genuinely enjoyed this. I’ve always had a strong distaste for MC and the over singing, could be that Christmas song, but I was really taken with her voice and her ability to use it as an instrument here. I can’t say I’ve listened to a lot of music like this, so there may be others like this, but her ability is awesome. The instrumentation sounds cheap and manufactured to me but I think this is the just the style of 90’s R&B. Was very surprised to hear the Mobb Deep Shook Ones sample (who sampled Herbie Hancock for that song) but enjoyed that as well as the other features. The Roof, Breakdown and Fly Away (reprise) stood out. I really wanna go 4 but gonna play it safe. Might get into divas.

Poppy and inoffensive, but not interesting. But her ability to sing was a nice change from Sleater-Kinney's caterwauling.

Just another one of the many artists who I would have never guessed would one day make an appearance. Interestingly enough, Mariah Carey has managed to cement herself as a one-hit wonder in maybe the best way possible that is most beneficial to her career. She makes millions off of her iconic Christmas song, but I couldn’t name one other hit from her by name without hearing it first. So she’s been around a while. But her relevance also relies on the existence and seasonal popularity of one song. Like I said, have never heard anything else, and never would have sought it out on my own until today. Before we get into the general positives, I’d like to get my one gripe with this. And it’s more so a gripe with the era as a whole. Why was the R&B trend of the late 90s and into 2000s for every artist to release an album that’s nearly an hour long. I have a hard time getting into records that long, even from my favorite artists. And I wouldn’t say that Mariah does enough from song to song to justify that length. Now, as everyone knows, the woman has a wonderful voice. And I was genuinely surprised at how much influence there is on here from hip-hop. This seems to mark the transitional phase in her career where hip-hop took more of a precedence in the music and her celebrity persona began to shift. I mean, you’ve got production from Puff Daddy and Q-Tip on the opening song, two members of Bone Thugs-N-Harmony on another, and they even sample Shook Ones, Pt. II for the The Roof. That sample is maybe a little more on the nose than I’m generally a fan of, but it’s not terrible. There are a select few highlights here and there, but this just isn’t the kind of music I listen to a lot, so much of it sounds very stale to my ears. Rating: 6/10

The voice is timeless, but some of the songs and sound effects are a bit dated. The Bone Thugs feature is a great change up.

A former guilty pleasure of mine. Not as good as Daydream. Even in the '90s I disliked Puff Daddy and his mumbles and grunts add nothing to Honey.

Astonishing Voice but this album is just to safe. Not risking anything only one little hip hop sample and the same on one of the expanded edition songs. Lyrics, themes and everything felt too safe and not really interesting on album length. still few great songs. 3.0/5.0

1. Mariah Carey is s gifted and skilled singer and absolutely deserves to be famous. 2. I will never listen to this album again.

I mean, it's Mariah. It been in the public space for so long it makes me feel like I'm wandering a mall listening. That isn't exactly a bad thing.

Inoffensive, but almost offensively so.

Musically a good album, she has a great voice. Not my kind of music but still good.

It's a little more mellow than I prefer my Mariah, but it's hard not to involuntarily fall into the laid back groove.

A pretty good album with a very talented vocalist at the helm. However, I'm glad we've moved on from the style of "slow ballad with twinkly piano and a synthesizer in the background while a female vocalist wanders around their vocal range occasionally saying words" that you hear a lot of on this album and others of the same era. I would have liked to hear a little more flexing from Mariah Carey on this album. As is, I was most impressed by the Butterfly track.

The album is good, I miss that 90s sound of the beats and rhythm. What was not good was the cover of Prince’s The Beautiful Ones. Like if you’re going to do it, do it right? Otherwise why bother. Lacking emotion especially during the pivotal part.

The album's sometimes somnolent production occasionally holds things down, but Mariah's generational voice lifts it all up, adding a grace that elevates the overall experience.

Smooth and sexy album. Really like the Prince cover and of course Mariah taking any opportunity to pop off on some vocal runs. Not a repeat listener for me, but I’d put it on every once in a while.

Somehow, I don't see her appeal.

Lays it on lush, lavish and way too thick. There are plenty of pleasing bits and sweetnesses, but they are buried under an avalanche of glissando, melissima and vibrato. Phil Spector was better with much less advanced studio tech. Sinead O’s title as top Prince interpreter remains unchallenged.

3.5

Not bad

I'm certainly no stranger to Mariah Carey. I mean, she's only been a mainstay in pop/R&B for the better part of 30 years (without aging somehow) and those who live under a rock certainly at least know her for her Christmas song covers. This album has seemingly escaped me though. I come into this having listened to Carey's previous album "Daydream" a ton back in the day and I'd consider that among my personal favorite R&B albums. "Butterfly" seems to pale in comparison in a way unfortunately. It's almost entirely slow ballads with some hip-hop features mixed in. I don't feel like Carey really showcased her impressive vocal range here like she did in her previous albums. There just isn't a smash hit here, it's all too safe and by the book. I guess this is an OK R&B record on its own, but I personally feel that there are better album representatives for Mariah Carey the vocalist.

Good I guess, idk

Aina perus rnb-tausta ja fraseerausta imelien sanojen sekaan. Honey-biisissä on persoonallisemmat koukut, mutta se kerkeää levyn mittaan unohtua. Laulu on kyllä todella hienoa. Butterfly-nimi on jotenkin todella suloinen. Tunnelmasta yksi tähti.

Mejor de lo que esperaba. Soportable. La verdad es que tiene muy buena voz. No sabía que Honey era suya.

It's well put together, and better than I thought, but that style of singing grates on me - it has infected every talent show singer

Modern day Queen of easy listening. She’s got a nice voice. I could sleep to it.

Cool

you guys are misereable this is a good album it is such a night time vibe

Is this album one that I will ever listen to again by choice? Nope. Mariah Carey has a beautiful voice and the songs are very exacting, though.

Mariah unquestionably has an amazing voice. But a lot of this sounds incredibly dated. The album also has the classic 90's bloat problem, although not as bad as some of its contemporaries.

Well, that was .... insipid. Maria does have a pretty good voice, but the never ending warbling, and so-so songs really grates after a while. Two listens are enough for my lifetime.

Impressive voice. But not really my jam. Weak three stars for this. best known: "Honey", "My All"

I think the other reviews have said all I wanted to say. Amazing voice with mediocre songs. They just feel so generic.

Most songs sound the same but I didn’t hate it. Kind of surprised.

The first song got me optimistic but didn’t really vibe with the rest. I can see why some like this but just not my thing. Rating: 2.8

I was hoping to like this a lot more than I did. I liked "Honey" and "My All" and felt like there were some interesting things going on with the music in "The Beautiful Ones". Otherwise found most of the rest of this pretty boring. She has a beautiful voice, and this very much feels like a nostalgia blast from my childhood. I think for my own personal enjoyment level it's a 2 star, but it probably should be upgraded to a 3 for how much it captures a time. I am pretty sure I read someone else say that a lot of this was used as movie credit music but if not true, it EXACTLY sounds like the type of music you would hear at the end of many movies. While listening to this I would not be surprised to look up at the tv and see some credits rolling. This all to say, worth a listen once to experience that little slice of 90s sound. 3 stars from me for my 100th album.

I can understand why there should be a Mariah Carey album on this list as her voice is unique and exceptional. I am just not sure this album does her justice. To me all the music, lyrics, harmonies, melodies are jnterchangable, like lego. One exception is the song "Close My Eyes", which I do think stands out.

It's a little bit of a disappointing album because you'd think that for such an incredible voice you'd have better songs. Waited the whole album for something but that never came. Also, gotta deduct for the cover song near the end. 6/10.

One of the best pop singers of the 90s. My All is a great radio hit

Beautiful voice.

Kinda slay

I just don't like this style of music. It doesn't turn my crank. In actuality, it grinds my gears. It's well done, she has an amazing voice, the writing is reasonably good, as is the production. But I just have a hard time listening to it.

Much compression, repetitive song writing and overly long. What a way to waste a talent.

Incredible talent, but just not my favorite music.

Never spent much time with these mega pop artists of my youth. Interesting going back and listening now. Something about the vocals/production are so distinctive of the 90s, but I can't really describe it. I've definitely heard My All before. A Spanish-inspired love ballad. Girl's got pipes for sure. Instrumental sampling of Shook Ones pt II on The Roof is sick. Solid track. The rest of the album kind of fell to the background for me. Somewhere in the space of I didn't mind it. Clearly talented and certain songs were more engaging than others, but largely this is stuff I would be happy to only hear in the background at the mall. 3 / 5.

She's fine...

Nice vocals.

I wanted to like this one but there was just nothing here that made this above average

Nobody did '90s collabs better than Mariah. "Honey" is a classic jam and the other hip-hop collabs on here are weird, cool, fun ... whatever. But certainly, a formula that got replicated over and over — resulting in some amazing music and some utterly terrible music (looking at you, Ja Rule)

Mejor de lo que esperaba. Soportable. La verdad es que tiene muy buena voz. No sabía que Honey era suya.

Running scales are tiresome, but her voice is beautiful.

For the most part, not a huge fan of her singing, in spite of her clear talent. I did enjoy a couple songs, though.

Why this album? She has way better albums with more standout songs.

Pop, 1997 -> 3

Very nice maar beetje emo it’s cute tho

Emblematic sounds of the 90, and a truly fantastic voice.

If you like breathy pop, Mariah is for you.

I have a new appreciation for this album after always lumping it in with Brittany Spears or Christina Aguilera. However, I now see it really is legitimate (modern) R&B that was then used as a template for many other R&B singers, especially female ones. There are one or two songs I liked on the album, but, mostly, I did not personally like it. However, I will give it 3 stars, as I can definitely appreciate the impact.

11 year old me loved 'My All,' and part of me still does. Gets a bit repetitive at times, and there's only so much R&B diva I can stand at any given time. 3/5

She's an absolute talent for sure but musically I found this fairly boring.

Crazy good voice just not my cup of tea.

Beautiful voice but the album was boring. 3.5

Pleasant, but far too safe. I had basically forgotten most of the tracks by the end of the record.

Mariah's voice is great, the production here is quite clean and crisp, but not too adventurous. Holds up well, but doesn't really hook me - when I listen to Mariah Carey I just always wish I was listening to Fantasy. Fave Track: Breakdown 3.3/5

Fine. Nothing crazy but shows the skill of Mariah well and was pleasant to listen to.

Not bad at all. Its not 'better than I thought it would be', as she clearly has an incredible voice, and this period of time is great for female singers in RnB/pop. But it is a pleasant surprise Production is outstanding. Songs are good A decent 3

While more familiar with her yearly seasonal hit, it was nice hearing a different side of her music! Maybe not everyday listening for me, but it was a chill vibe.

Great singing talent, insane range. Songs felt a bit too similar for my taste, considering how many tracks are on the record.

This album's all right, it's like a backing track for sex. Mariah's voice is all over the place as usual. More popular with women I think. I'll give it 3 stars since it sold a bajillion copies.

Did not change my opinion about her. She’s a talented singer but don’t like the music.

If it wasn’t for her vocals, I would have rated this album a 2. The lyrics were so basic, everything sounded very similar. Mariah is obviously insanely talented and I was expecting a lot from this album and was stunned at how bland it was

while she is crazy talented, obviously, she seems to have made popular the trend many female pop singers still utilize… what i call over singing. other than that, a pretty solid pop album, although not a fan of when pop singers blend rap into the songs, which she tended to do during this period in her career.

Kinda nice

Best Song: Fly Away (Butterfly Reprise). The combination of the absolutely alien notes she's hitting and the pure 90s groove makes this track a winner. Worst Song: Whenever You Call. Obviously vocally impressive, but also like the dictionary definition of a diva track. Overall: Clearly well sung, but after a certain point the vocal runs all start to fade together and lose their appeal - and when that happens there's little else on the album worth listening to.

Mariah Carey has an unbelievably beautiful voice and a phenomenal range...the type of thing you only see a few times in a generation of musicians. That said, much of this album feels like generic R&B; it's listenable, and it's baseline "good", but most of the songs are not memorable and most of the songs don't allow her skills to actually shine through. I may be in the minority here, though, as many people (including Mariah herself) regarded this album as a turning point in her career that projected her further into stardom. In any case, Mariah does deserve a spot on this project, but in my mind, it would be one where her talents are better represented.

Not her best work. But I enjoyed this way more than I would have 27 years ago. Melodic and highly musically competent

Mariah has that luscious voice that dances around the notes whenever she sings anything. Really awesome if you like that sort of thing. I don't

It is alright 90's R&B/pop. I enjoyed the track with Bone Thugs, but that is because it sounded like it was Bone Thugs and Harmony instead of Mariah. Not bad, but not going to be listened to again either. It could probably be a two star, but it is right in line with a bunch of other mostly unobjectionable albums I have already given three stars so I guess we will strive for consistency.

Although her music is outside the usual genres and styles to which I am accustomed and to which I mostly listen, I can hear the impressive talent in her voice. She really can sing amazingly well. Impressive!

It’s ok not good or bad really mid 5

6/10

She is a horrible person and it affects my opinion of her music. But the album is good. I just would never choose to listen to it.

Mariah Careying these vocals. - 6/10

There were some songs I liked, others were too slow, breathy, or boring. I liked her voice and the overall vibes.

A bit poppy but pretty good. Whenever You Call was kinda painful, super cheesy strings, but at least she didn’t do gratuitous riffs like that on every song. 6/10

A good album, I like all of the songs. Mariah Carey has a nice and calming voice. I liked Butterfly and Outside the most.

The hip-hop tracks are solid late 90s singles. The Top 40 vocal pop songs are rough. The vocal performances are great, of course, but suffer because they are accompanied by middle of the road instrumentals.

Was this really as late as '97? I would have sworn it was, like,' 93 or '94. Oh well. I didn't enjoy it in the 90s, and while I can't exactly say that I enjoyed it at the arse end of 2024, I may have grown more tolerant of the warbling.

Listening to this album is a bit like taking a bath in warm syrup - soothing and relaxing, but ultimately a bit over sweet. Mariah Carey has a gorgeous voice, but she does that thing where it warbles over half a dozen notes in a single word. It’s probably technically very accomplished, but it sounds like a real life autotune in places. The best song was a cover of Prince’s Beautiful Ones and I liked the tweeting bird noises too.

Brings back memories

This is purely for MC's magnificent voice that sounded great even through my tinny headphones

She's clearly an amazing singer, but I found a lot of the songs on this record pretty boring.

90s nostalgia, a lot of average songs on it. But 3 for the memories.

“Honey” is just incredible. So smooth, so sexy, so easy to listen to. And it’s got that great, funky beat! The sparkling slow jams are beautiful but sometimes too cheesy for my taste. I prefer the hip-hop-leaning numbers. I love how the mix layers different vocal tracks so that we’re sometimes listening to seven Mariah Careys at once. You can lose yourself in the mix and surround yourself with her voice. I think the effect adds to the sexy, bedroom appeal of the music. “Close My Eyes” is great. I love that “la-da-da-da-da” hook. Ooh “Fly Away” has a nice house beat! I wish there were more dance tracks like this.

Mariah Carey is one of the best pop/R&B singers of all time and I'm super glad she is finally on this list. From the minute you hear her backup scat-like harmonies in track 1, to her wildly impressive technical vocal runs, you KNOW that it's Mariah. IMO this isn't one of Mariah's best albums though as I think she's not really daring enough in it. I want more of her front and center stage voice when I hear her, and this one comes across as more of the sultry smooth voice. She truly has one of the best pop voices ever and I don't mean to hate on it. I just hope we get her Christmas album or "The Emancipation of Mimi" or "Daydream" on here.

Songs I already knew - none Songs I liked- none This is the type of album you get when a talented singer is sucked into the music factory to churn out an album of unmemorable pleasantness.

Nostalgic but still not super great.

Good voice.

Good grooves. Singing great but not as perfect as I thought out remembered. Definitely sent me back to junior high dance

Probably my favorite MC album. Loved the maturity and more r+b feel of this one.

Pretty classic 90s r and b, not my favorite genre but fun throwback

Production is very lush and slick, and Carey can sing. Has a relaxing 90s vibe.

Surpised - never listened to an entire a Mariah Carey album - she has an amazing voice and very talented. Unfortunately, the sounds sort of all sounded similar... not bad but nothin stood out. I bet album cover added to sales number...

Very 1997. Has a place in my rotation, but not a casual listen.

Beau vibrato, et je m'y connais

tiens mariah un 3 les gens ici sont sexistes

Sorry, but not my thing. I see other people liking it though.

Surprisingly OK

Our first Mariah? Kind of fitting before Christmas, and I learned that infamous song is from 94! This was a good album, I’ve never been a huge fan of hers but her voice is undeniable. Glad we got one of hers!

This was so relaxing lol

3.5

I think there is a maturation of this album from "Vision of Love," which really just has her putting it all out there. My biggest problem is, she does a lot of that whispery, breath-y thing which is a bit frustrating. The Butterfly reprise... whoa, I really liked the high notes as a background, eerieness. If she was a different singer I could imagine her using that effect in some really dark songs (but I don't think that's something she would do). "Honey", although I had heard it before, sounds more like something that's played in the background of a party in a movie. It's background noise, like a number of the songs. Over 25 years later and "Babydoll" just feels all kind of cringe-y to me. Yikes on those lyrics. There are a lot of nice effects and she does her part really well. Some of the production style is very 1997, which really dates it now. But if I was listening to this a bunch back in the day I might not notice it as much. It's the equivalent of cotton candy, in that it just doesn't have a lot of filling or heaviness to it. It's light as air and maybe it'll fill you up but you will definitely get sick living off of it. Definitely in the middle ground for me, so that's a 2.5 rounding up to a 3.

not great, a lot more choir-y r&b bullshit songs than I would have expected given her voice. Several songs where she shows it off though. 2.8.

The opposite of most on this list, this album has a confident, talented vocalist with lackluster instrumentation behind her. This is still too close to the early '90s smooth pop for me to enjoy much.

Un album pop bien foutu. Mariah a indéniablement une voix magnifique, mais comme plusieurs, je trouve ses acrobaties vocales un peu lassantes quand j'écoute plusieurs pièces de suite.

Terrific voice but most of these fell flat for me. I kept wanting more of Fantasy from her earlier album but this never got to that level.

"Adult contemporary" is such a contemptible phrase, but really fits Butterfly: Carey's take on RnB here is highly individual but desexualized to great effect. The AC label obscures the disc's dependence on time, that you can put out a quality sound without breaking ground. Vocal acrobatics then subduction.

2.75

Mejor de lo que esperaba. Soportable. La verdad es que tiene muy buena voz. No sabía que Honey era suya.

Mariah is a great singer, but I tend to prefer her more upbeat songs, and this album is full of ballads. Just bores me, even though she has a lovely voice. The singles from this album are probably my favorite songs from it. I'm giving it an extra star partly just because "Honey" is such a fantastic song. But yeah, just meh on this one.

The music isn’t bad, but it’s hidden behind overindulgent singing. Don’t get me wrong, Mariah Carey has a spectacular voice and I appreciate the virtuosity. But it doesn’t need to be shown off every single phrase of every single song.

Mariah has a beautiful voice but is more chilled in this album. Pleasant listen

Okay, poppy, okay

Pretty okay :) Like the 90s vibe

Une écoute que j'ai plus apprécié que j'anticipais. Je ne suis toujours pas fan de ce style de chant avec beaucoup d'oversinging et de melisma, mais ce n'était pas trop au point que ça écoeure. Je pense que de toutes les chanteuses qui font ça, c'est celle que j'ai le plus apprécié à date (plus qu'Aguilera certain). J'ai trouvé l'album un peu front-loaded, mais généralement il se tient bien. Aussi, il n'y a pas tellement de mauvaise pièce. Par contre, il est un tantinet unidimensionel et vers la fin ça commence à être répétitif, surtout que c'est un peu trop smooth tout le long. 7/10

It's a mixed bag. The upbeat stuff, with it's old school references is great. Conversely, the ballads are all a bit too saccharine to be enjoyable

Potential for a great album sadly eclipsed by oversinging and overproduction. Tear it down a little and we'd have something fantastic here.

I really enjoyed listening to this but was dealing with some complex personal admin at the time so didn't focus that well. It's a banging album and really takes me back to simpler times... The voice is obviously the star of the show, but also love the nostalgic vibes. Not sure this is my fave MC album though and it kind of blurred into one and nothing stood out too much. A cool sound though overall.

Well I am impressed by Mariah Carey, of course I am, and there were some slamming tunes on here but broadly speaking it isn't really my thing. It was perfectly adequate driving music. I remember our A Level music tech teacher (the missionary one) said Mariah was the best singer of all time ever, I often think about that

She undoubtably got a fantastic voice and these are good songs, but it just didn't really interest me, can't imagine actually listening to it for fun but it doesn't seem pretty good.

it has bops of its time and that’s sexy to me

She got nice vocals but a great chunk on this record is just so forgettable and stale. It’s a shame cause i love her singles but ig she just isn’t a album artists. Not much happens here but it’s not the worst and it got some decent cuts, overall 5/10 pretty indifferent to the record

Love "Honey" and "Breakdown," but wasn't overly enamored with the rest of the album. Rounding up from 2.5.

I remember several of these from when they were on the radio. Some of them are ok.

This was a big turning point in her career, but I kinda wish she'd shocked the world and made an art-pop masterpiece with Brian Eno instead. Guess there's still time. One can always dream.

100% not my thing. Mariah Carey is talented at what she does though, so I'll recognize that at least.

Mariah Carey has one of the best voices in the business. The biggest problem with this album today is the dated sound of it all.

Nostalgia gives it 3 stars

Hard to listen to without cringing, hasn’t really held up

uuuugh I remember singles from this coming out and thinking "what's with all these cute pop singers doing DIRTY ASS HOE SHIT with rappers? hahaha. Of course at the time I was like 13 and had no idea how music marketing worked and what a big splash gangsta rap had made in the pop industry, esp. in America. I was into metal and punk but all the girls I was trying to root were right into this, All Saints, etc. Ballads mixed with DIRTY ASS HOE SHIT. It was a trying time lol. I'm surprised how much of this album is familiar - the first 5-6 songs must've all been singles. But the whole thing was a struggle, it's just too much of the same thing. She has a huge range and the vocal theatrics are impressive... but after about 30min it's really tiring. I wonder if Mariah Carey is the reason all the idol-type singers do this shit non-stop? ah either way, if it'd been half the length I could've given this a 4. The imitation Bone Thugs song was actually pretty cool. 3/5.

Mariah does sound lovely here, and songs like Honey and Breakdown are pure 90s RnB goodness. But too many of the other tracks meld into ballad malaise to call this album truly great.

better than I thought, but generally not my preferred genre

Good but not great Mariah

Quite dated now and actually more a novelty record than anything else. Mariah has a great voice and is beautiful. I wonder what music she would have made if born 20 years earlier or later?

som agradável, romantico e tal

I once worked on a show that featured MC and a host of other performers. Dick Clark, who I like to refer to as Cock Clark (because he really was a dick), owned the rights to produce the American Music Awards in 1998(?) Anyhow, the AMAs had booked MC and I remember when she showed up for rehearsal the day before the show, she threw a big shitfit because she didn't have a honeybear. Yep, a honey bear, you know the little plastic bears that squirt honey? The entire crew had their panties in a bunch about working with MC and the people that would interface with her... I think those were the days that she was dating or married to Tommy Mattola who was rumored to be mafia or at least connected(?) Anyhow, she had a long list of demands that her dressing room be stocked with. Honey and tea, because you know, her voice, was one. Evidently someone didn't get the memo about the honey dispenser being the bear kind and MC went on a tear yelling at everyone and threatening not to perform the following day. Anyway, this album doesn't speak to me, but I really did enjoy that first track 'Honey.'

Emotions was wayyyyy better

A few tracks were fire, but a handful were dragged. But the ones that hit, hit hard! Girls got pipes like nobodies business.

This album is perfect if you want to listen to pining in specifically the 90s pop genre. I mean that in a very positive sense. It's not something I usually listen to which is kind of fun.

Yeah she can fucking sing!

3/5 smooth production. pleasant as background music. not much variation in tone/color and the melisma is really too much.

I would have said that I didn’t like Mariah Carey, especially when she just shows off the high notes for no apparent reason. However this was quite enjoyable. Maybe I’m mellowing in my old age ! 3*

Pop corriente y moliente

A nice listen, calm

Rating: 6/10 Best songs: My all

Can you see me? I've got my finger on my ear and my eyes closed, head tilted towards the sun. It's a good look for me. I'm certain of it. There's soooo much going on in this album. Too much to unpack.

Very polished and produced. Smooth sweet soulful R&B vibe. Main detraction is that everything blends together on the first listen through... very ballad heavy. Enjoyed Close My Eyes and Whenever You Call.

I may be the only person who thinks "meh" when they hear Mariah :-)

About time I get encountered by a butterfly and all I can think of is... okay. I was rather psyched and pleasantly surprised get this album in the generator and was looking forward to listening to it and the further I got into this album, the more underwhelmed I was by it. After the boppiness that was Honey, I was rather annoyed and irritated by the balladery that followed and the sheer drop of expectations levied towards this album. I get that this album has its fans and I respect what it achieved for Mariah and the people involved, I just expected something different. Oh well. Favorites: Honey, The Roof (Back in Time), Fourth of July, Breakdown, Close My Eyes, The Beautiful Ones.

You know, it's high ticket mainstream hip hop soul, which is fine. Carey is a great singer but it all has a little too much of that record biz gloss on it for my tastes. The unnecessary version of The Beautiful Ones served as an unflattering highlight the difference between this and the equally mainstream output of a genius auteur like Prince.

Must not let my love for this icon skew the voting

There are 3/4 songs on this that carry the whole thing

It is a solid R&B album, but I didn't hear anything timeless or unique from any other good R&B album.

Good production and decent songs. Not my thing overall.

A few things to unpack here - Carey is an amazing vocalist and this album a sold so many records. And if this project is going to have a nineties soul with hip hop influences this is probably the one to include - here the mainstream shift from pop towards urban sound can truly said to have begun - soon damn near every track and artist would have Dre or Puffy or Neptunes or Wyclef Jean or Timbaland producing and a guest rapper for Street cred. Is this album brilliant? The upbeat tracks are pretty good, the ballads could all be the same song and some of Mariah’s vocals stylings are initiating so no, not take, but I’m going to argue the album fully merits a place here on this list (and I would rather listen to this again than, say, The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway).

A logical next album from The Prodigy would be Mariah Carey. Thanks Randomizer. Same year though. "Butterfly" is the sixth studio album by American singer-songwriter Mariah Carey. This album was a further move from Mariah away from strictly pop and into R&B/hip-hop. Yeah, there is a decent split between the two styles. Of couse, in no way do I think of Enimem listening to this. Using a number of different producers including Walter Afanasieff (more pop) and Sean "Puffy" Combs (more hip-hop) helped the diversity. Mariah was separated from her then husband which contributed to some of the lyrical content. The album received general acclaim and sold over 10 million copies worldwide. The album opens with the first single "Honey." It was written with Puff Daddy. Light and airy. Hip-hop with a nice bass. A catchy chorus. She wants the honey. Take that as you may. The second song and single switches to a Aranasieff-produced ballad song in "Butterfly." A piano and a soulful chorus and backing vocals. Let someone from free and see if they come back. A Latin guitar and slow beat highlight the ballad "My All." Inspired by a trip to Puerto Rico. Mariah belting it out. "The Roof (Back in Time)" has more heavy beats and in the R&B/hip-hop category. A sample of Mobb Deep in the chorus. The production of Puff Daddy highlights the third single "Breakdown." A nice blend of R&B and hip-hop. Layered vocals. Two members of Bone Thugs-n-Harmony rap a few of the verses. The album ends with "Outside." It's a slow ballad about Mariah's biracial experience. Maybe her best vocals on the album- souful and beautiful. This was about expectations. I had very low ones coming in. Not exactly in my wheel of music but this was fine. I had heard a few of the songs of course. Mariah has a phenomenal voice. It had great production. The variety between her hip-hop/R&B and pop ballads kept it fairly interesting. I know you can a lot worse in the pop category circa 1997.

5 stars for Mariah's voice 1 star for the very dated mid-'90s production

after the first couple songs i thought i was gonna hate it but i didn’t, there were a couple good listens

3.5

Love song sex song sex song sex song wedding song song for the girlies sex song sex song club song prince cover love song

woman sex music

It's a great representation of 90s music with extra quality added by Mariah's exceptional vocal performances. Three tracks stood out for me: My All, Outside - both with just perfect, dramatic vocal delivery and the first track - Honey, which stands out lyrically from all the sweetness elsewhere on the track - due to its not so subtle double meaning. These double meanings are a bit surprising - if not shocking - for this particular type of an album, which then also makes the entire album more interesting and daring. Still, the sweetness and cornyness drags on a bit too much and there's a bit too much filler. Luckily, the most beutiful vocals are kept for the ending which makes you want to keep on listening to the album to hear that Outside. 3-3.5/5

I like Mariah Carey but... yeah, this really didn't do much for me. Pretty bland, unfortunately.

Again, already had this album... Previous review: I'm not really a fan of pop music and hardly a fan of Mariah Carey. Still, this wasn't as agonizing as I expected it to be. Saved tracks: Honey, My All, The Roof (Back In Time)

beautiful voice, great production, but only a few memorable songs.

Really great, such an amazing voice, great band and top tier songwriting. Feels like a gospel album at times. It felt a little long and repetitive by the end but great stuff

This is our first album in the bottom 20 globally!! This sh** lowkey kinda good. Y’all can’t tell me you ain’t moving on Fly Away (Butterfly Reprise). No, this isn’t Arctic Monkeys. It’s not fast or exciting. It’s 90’s R&B and when taking that into context, this is pretty good. I’m between a 2 and 3. My mind says a 2, but my heart says 3. However, because she has the waist jewelry thing on in the album cover, my quivering member says 3. By majority, it’s a 3, and yes I expect to get flamed for this score. It’s a 2, plain and simple. Idc what my body says. No, I’m going with my heart. It’s a 3. It’s a bottom of the barrel 3, but a 3 nonetheless.

listened a while ago don't remember