Sparkle (2012 soundtrack) explained

Sparkle: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack
Type:Soundtrack
Artist:Various Artists
Cover:Sparkle - Official Album Cover.png
Recorded:201112
Length:36:45
Label:RCA Records

Sparkle: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack is the soundtrack album for the 2012 Sony/TriStar Pictures film Sparkle, a remake of the 1976 film of the same name. The album was released through Sony Music Entertainment's RCA Records on July 31, 2012. The film's soundtrack includes new recordings of four songs from the original film's soundtrack as well as new original music by Jordin Sparks, Whitney Houston and Cee Lo Green. The soundtrack's first official lead single is the last song recorded by Whitney Houston before she died on February 11, 2012, a duet with R&B/pop singer and American Idol winner Jordin Sparks on a song called "Celebrate".[1] The song premiered on On Air with Ryan Seacrest on May 21, 2012[2] and was made available for digital download on iTunes on June 5. Whitney Houston's other track, "His Eye is On the Sparrow", debuted only one day after the premiere of "Celebrate".[3] The official music video for "Celebrate" was filmed on May 30, 2012. It made its world premiere on BET's 106 & Park on June 27, 2012.[4]

Background

The songs on the soundtrack are performed by the actors in the film, including Jordin Sparks, Whitney Houston, Cee Lo Green, Carmen Ejogo, Tika Sumpter, and others. Sparkle features songs from the original film written by soul musician Curtis Mayfield as well as new compositions by R&B artist R. Kelly and others.[5] [6] The soundtrack includes new songs not present in the 1976 version of Sparkle: "Celebrate", "His Eye is On the Sparrow", among others. "Celebrate" was sent to radio the week of May 21, 2012 as the first official from the Sparkle soundtrack. The song premiered on On Air with Ryan Seacrest on May 21.[2] and was made available for digital download on iTunes on June 5. Houston's other track, "His Eye is On the Sparrow", debuted only one day after the premiere of "Celebrate".[3]

Composition

Music and themes

Sparkle: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack takes on matters of the celebration, heartache, heartbreak and seduction with a mixture of ballads, mid- and up-tempos.[7]

Release

The Sparkle: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack was released on July 31, 2012; though announced with 13 tracks,[8] it was released with only 11 tracks. Five days before the soundtrack's official release the entire soundtrack was made available to stream exclusively through Sparks' Official store and Essence.com.[9] [10] Jordin Sparks, who worked closely with Houston throughout the making of Sparkle, finds the release of the soundtrack to be "bittersweet."[11] Sparks states, "I worked with my idol and that was a dream come true. I used to watch the Cinderella adaptation with her and Brandy every day after school. But she should really be here promoting it with me and [it's] really hard for me to be doing it alone."[11] [12]

Reception

Critical response

AllMusic writer Andy Kellman gave it three and a half out of five stars and called the soundtrack "an enjoyable if muddled affair" and commended the four songs covered on the new soundtrack stating "the 2012 soundtrack features faithful and decent covers of four songs from the original.[7] When it comes to "Something He Can Feel," it would be an understatement to say that the deck is stacked against Sparks and her vocal partners, Carmen Ejogo and Tika Sumpter." Entertainment Weekly's Melissa Maerz gave Sparkle: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack a B rating and praised Sparks version of "Look Into Your Heart" stating "Sparks bellows Mayfield's power ballad Look Into Your Heart with absolute conviction.Jody Rosen of Rolling Stone gave the soundtrack 3½ of 5 stars, commenting that "Sparkle revives four soul chestnuts and includes three originals written and produced by R. Kelly. It's the second-most-satisfying retro-soul album of the year – after Kelly's Write Me Back"; however, he was ambivalent towards Houston's last two recordings before her passing, saying that, "Celebrate is forgettable disco-pop, and on the gospel standard "His Eye Is on the Sparrow" Houston sings – and croaks – in a voice octaves lower than in her prime. At times the song has a ravaged magnificence, but mostly it's painful."[13]

Chart performance

Singles

"Celebrate" is the first official single from the soundtrack. It is the last song recorded by Whitney Houston before she died on February 11, 2012, a duet featuring her and R&B/pop singer Jordin Sparks. It was officially released on June 5, 2012 for digital download and it was written by R. Kelly who also produced the track. For the week June 16, 2012, "Celebrate" debuted at number 34 on the US Adult R&B Airplay chart, having amassed 45 spins for that week ending.[15] During that same week, "Celebrate" also debuted at number 84 on the US Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart,[16] and has since peaked at number 54.[17] The music video for "Celebrate" was filmed on May 30, 2012. A preview of the video premiered on Entertainment Tonight on June 4, 2012. The music video made its world premiere on BET's 106 & Park on June 27, 2012.[4]

"His Eye Is on the Sparrow" is the second official single from the soundtrack. The song is a gospel hymn performed by Whitney Houston. Houston is seen performing the song in a church scene in the film trailer. The song was officially released on June 8, 2012 for digital download from Amazon[18] and iTunes. The song was originally written in 1905 by lyricist Civilla D. Martin and composer Charles H. Gabriel. The song is most associated with actress-singer Ethel Waters who used the title for her autobiography.[19]

Track listing

See "Performers" section below for credited singers on each track. Credits adapted from Sparkle: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack liner notes.[20]

Notes(*) donates as co-producer

Charts

Chart (2012)Peak
position
South Korean International Albums (Gaon)[21] 11
US Billboard 200[22] 21
US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums[23] 3
US Soundtrack Albums[24] 1

Credits and personnel

Creativity and management
Performances
Technical

Release history

Region! scope="col"
Release dateFormatLabel
Australia[25] July 27, 2012CD, digital downloadRCA Records
Belgium[26]
Denmark[27]
Finland[28]
France[29]
Japan[30]
Netherlands[31]
New Zealand[32]
Norway[33]
Sweden[34]
United States[35] July 31, 2012
Canada[36]
Mexico[37]

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Sparkle Live Chat with Jordin Sparks and Mike Epps. 1 December 2021. Video.ibm.com.
  2. Web site: Ballhorn. Kelly. WORLD PREMIERE: Whitney Houston & Jordin Sparks Duet 'Celebrate' From 'Sparkle' [AUDIO]]. ryanseacrest.com. May 21, 2012. May 21, 2012.
  3. Web site: Whitney Houston's "His Eye is on the Sparrow" Released . www.classichitsandoldies.com . 6 June 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20140225224036/http://www.classichitsandoldies.com/v2/2012/05/24/whitney-houstons-his-eye-is-on-the-sparrow-released/ . 25 February 2014 . dead.
  4. Web site: Sparkle: Official Site . www.sparkle-movie.com . 6 June 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20120609044242/http://www.sparkle-movie.com/site/ . 9 June 2012 . dead.
  5. Web site: 'Sparkle's' Brely Evans Says Give the Remake a Chance . www.eurweb.com . 6 June 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20111121120041/http://www.eurweb.com/2011/11/sparkles-brely-evans-says-give-the-remake-a-chance/ . 21 November 2011 . dead.
  6. Web site: Whitney Houston's Sparkling Big-Screen Comeback . ETonline.com . 2011-11-07 . 2011-11-18.
  7. Web site: Sparkle [Original Motion Picture Soundtrack] – Original Motion Picture Soundtrack | Songs, Reviews, Credits | AllMusic. AllMusic.
  8. Web site: 'Sparkle' Soundtrack Featuring Whitney Houston's Final Recording Set for July Release (Audio). The Hollywood Reporter. 14 June 2012.
  9. Web site: "Sparkle" Movie Soundtrack: Exclusive First Listen | Essence.com . www.essence.com . 6 June 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20120727002428/http://www.essence.com/2012/07/24/sparkle-movie-soundtrack-exclusive-first-listen/ . 27 July 2012 . dead.
  10. http://www.jordinsparks.com/us/news/stream-entire-sparkle-soundtrack-jordin-spark%E2%80%99s-official-store
  11. Web site: 'Sparkle' movie starring Whitney Houston, full streaming soundtrack now available online : Mstarz . www.mstarz.com . 6 June 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20151018052650/http://www.mstarz.com/articles/3449/20120724/sparkle-soundtrack-whitney-houston-jordan-sparks-remake-music.htm#FlOIChGDSRkFbIQB.99 . 18 October 2015 . dead.
  12. Web site: The spundtrack to 'Sparkle' is now streaming online. Ew.com. 1 December 2021.
  13. Sparkle: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack. Rolling Stone. 31 July 2012.
  14. Web site: Whitney Houston Greatest Hits Album Coming This Fall. The Hollywood Reporter. 9 August 2012.
  15. Web site: Billboard Business. Billboard.biz. 2012-06-18. 2012-06-21. https://web.archive.org/web/20120621092918/http://www.billboard.biz/bbbiz/industry/radio/whitney-houston-jordin-sparks-celebrate-1007229752.story. dead.
  16. Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs Chart. Billboard.
  17. [{{BillboardURLbyName|artist=whitney houston|chart=R&B/Hip-Hop Songs}} Whitney Houston Album & Song Chart History: Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs ]. Billboard . Prometheus Global Media. 2012-06-07 . 2012-06-07.
  18. Web site: Amazon. Amazon.com. 1 December 2021.
  19. Waters, Ethel, with Charles Samuels, His Eye Is on the Sparrow: An Autobiography, New York, 1951, reprinted by Da Capo Press, 1992
  20. Sparkle: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack. 2012. liner notes . .
  21. Web site: 2012년 33주차 Album Chart – 국외 . . ko . February 23, 2022.
  22. Billboard 200 – Week of August 31, 2012 . . February 23, 2022.
  23. Billboard Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums – Week of September 1, 2012 . . February 23, 2022.
  24. Billboard Soundtrack Albums – Week of August 18, 2012 . . February 23, 2022.
  25. Web site: Sparkle (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) by Various Artists. iTunes. 27 July 2012.
  26. Web site: 'Sparkle (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)' van Verschillende artiesten. iTunes. 27 July 2012.
  27. Web site: Sparkle (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) by Various Artists. iTunes. 27 July 2012.
  28. Web site: Sparkle (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) by Various Artists. iTunes. 27 July 2012.
  29. Web site: Sparkle (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) par Multi-interprètes. iTunes. 27 July 2012.
  30. Web site: Various Artistsの「Sparkle (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)」. iTunes. 27 July 2012.
  31. Web site: Sparkle (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) by Various Artists. iTunes. 27 July 2012.
  32. Web site: Sparkle (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) by Various Artists. iTunes. 27 July 2012.
  33. Web site: Sparkle (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) by Various Artists. iTunes. 27 July 2012.
  34. Web site: Sparkle (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) av Blandade Artister. iTunes. 27 July 2012.
  35. http://www.jordinsparks.com/us/news/celebrate-sparkle-original-motion-picture-soundtrack-july-31st
  36. Web site: Sparkle (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) by Various Artists. iTunes. 27 July 2012.
  37. Web site: Sparkle (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) de Varios Artistas. iTunes. 27 July 2012.

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