I will admit that I have never been a massive Whitney fan. She was no longer in her prime as I was starting to listen to Pop music but I was clearly aware of her iconic back catalogue: I Will Always Love You and I Wanna Dance With Somebody were and are both stalwarts of popular culture and that will never change. And there were countless songs that were used regularly as TV backing tracks or for emotional compilation videos (generally used at the end of a contestant's "journey" on a talent show) which I came to know and love but only much later, did I realise they were Whitney classics. Such was her influence and command of Pop: her songs became part of our conciousness without us realising.
Since her tragic death on Saturday afternoon, I went back and listened to several tracks that I'd never heard and I was blown away by her talent. While she might not have been game-changing in terms of her song choices which remained in the spheres of dance/pop and R'n'B throughout her career, her voice was astounding. The strength and range was stunning and watching some older, live performances was extremely moving.
While I may not have been aware of the extent of her musical career, I was concious of her personal problems. There was the issue of drugs and her relationship with Bobby Brown and all this appeared to affect that once-perfect voice. In later years, her live performances left much to be desired; in 2010, many people complained she had lost that great talent during her Nothing But Love tour when she appeared unable to hit the big notes in many of her most iconic songs.
When a tragedy such as this happens, the overriding feeling (apart from great sadness) is of disappointment. She had such a talent and it just feels like a waste. Her legacy will live on in the form of those great songs and spell-binding performances. I'll still be dancing around my bedroom to I Wanna Dance With Somebody every morning and hopefully many more will discover her talent in the years to come.
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