All the Man That I Need
In 1990, American singer Whitney Houston had a number-one multiple chart hit with this song, recorded as "All the Man That I Need", from her third album, I'm Your Baby Tonight (1990).
Her version featured production from Narada Michael Walden and the single became a major worldwide hit, received mainly positive reviews from music critics, and reached number one on the US Billboard Hot 100; it remains her fourth biggest-hit in that chart.
[3] Stephen Holden of The New York Times, wrote that the song was an "expression of sexual hero worship.
[9] It later peaked at number one on the chart, the issue date of March 2, 1991, making it Houston's fifth R&B number-one hit.
[14] The single was certified Gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) for shipments of 500,000 copies or more on March 21, 1991.
Larry Flick from Billboard complimented it as a "shimmering jazz-and gospel-inflected ballad", and stated that it "fully demonstrates Houston's vocal beauty".
[30] Greg Kot of Chicago Tribune was also positive in his review, writing that through the song, Houston was providing "soundtrack to a million love affairs.
"[31] A reviewer from Melody Maker said, "She really sounds as if she means it and the chorus is more than suitably sumptuous and soaring and shouty so it really ought to be Number One all over the world by Chrimbo.
"[32] Pan-European magazine Music & Media declared the song as a "staggering gospel-tinged ballad with an overwhelming build-up in the chorus.
"[33] A reviewer from Music Week commented, "Another sterling performance from Whitney, on a slightly sub-standard song.
"[34] The New York Times' Stephen Holden was also positive in his review, viewing the song as a "hunk of gargantuan pop bombast swathed in echo and glitzy astral twinkles.
[35] James Hunter from Rolling Stone called it "an outsize ballad about poverty and damaged self-regard, so expertly that the song, with its effective whiff of Spanish guitar, stages undeniable pop drama.
"[36] About.com ranked "All the Man That I Need" number four in their list of "Top 20 Best Whitney Houston Songs" in 2018, noting that it has "a prominent gospel choir in the final chorus.
[40] The video begins with Houston, donning a curly hairstyle, and wearing a black turtleneck, with her initials "WH" embroidered on it, standing against a wall in a house.
The video then switches into another room in the house with all white furniture, including a bed, wardrobe, and grand piano, in which Houston sings.
After that scene, she is now seen performing, accompanied by a children's choir, on a stage, in front of an audience at some sort of program.
Two different performances of the song on this tour were taped in Yokohama, Japan, on March 15, 1991[43] and in A Coruña, Spain, on September 29, 1991.
On December 11, 1990, Houston appeared on The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson (guest host: Jay Leno) and performed the song to accompaniment of her tour band.
