I Feel for You (album)

I Feel For You
Studio album by Chaka Khan
Released	October 1, 1984
Recorded	1984
Genre	Funk, hip hop, electronica, soul, R&B
Length	46:51
Label	Warner Bros.
Producer	Arif Mardin, David Foster
Chaka Khan chronology
Stompin' at the Savoy - Live (with Rufus) (1983) I Feel For You (1984) Destiny (1986)

Professional ratings
Review scores
Source	Rating
Allmusic	[1]
Boston Phoenix	(favorable)[2]
Robert Christgau	C+[3]
Slant	[4]
Yahoo! Music	(mixed)[5]

I Feel for You is the Platinum certified fifth solo album by American R&B/funk singer Chaka Khan, released on the Warner Bros. Records label in 1984.

Overview

After having balanced her two simultaneous careers as a member of the band Rufus and a solo performer during the years 1978 to 1983, which culminated with the release of the final Rufus & Chaka Khan album Stompin' at the Savoy - Live after which the band dissolved, Khan recorded the album that was to make her a pop star with mainstream chart success; 1984's "I Feel for You".

The title track, "I Feel for You" was a cover of a 1979 Prince track, featuring Grandmaster Melle Mel on the classic Ch-ch-ch-chaka-chaka-chaka Khan rap intro and Stevie Wonder on chromatic harmonica (and also a sample from one of his first hits, "Fingertips") and saw Khan embracing high-tech funk, rap and hip hop and stands as one of her best known songs and her biggest commercial hit, reaching #3 on the US Pop Chart (and becoming Billboard's #5 song of the year in 1985), and was #1 US R&B, Dance, and UK singles. The song earned her a second Grammy Award in 1985 for Best R&B Vocal Performance, Female.

The album reached #16 on Billboard's Album Chart, #4 R&B and #15 in the UK. Additional hit singles were "This Is My Night" (US #60, R&B #11, Dance #1, UK #14), "Eye To Eye" (UK #16 ) and the ballad "Through The Fire," which crossed over to the adult contemporary chart (#16) and charted at #77 in the UK. The I Feel for You album's second ballad, "Stronger Than Before" co-written by Burt Bacharach, Bruce Roberts and Carole Bayer Sager, was released as the fifth single in certain markets.

"I Feel for You", "This Is My Night" and "Eye To Eye" were released as extended 12" remixes in 1984, and other mixes were created for the 1989 remix compilation Life is a Dance - The Remix Project. The 1984 mixes by Arif Mardin and Russ Titelman remain unreleased on CD.

1985 saw two other songs by Khan released on other albums: "(Krush Groove) Can't Stop The Street" from the Krush Groove soundtrack (US R&B #18, UK #80), and "Own The Night", from the Miami Vice soundtrack (US Pop #57, US R&B #66).

Track listing

1. "This Is My Night" (David Frank, Mic Murphy) - 4:38
2. "Stronger Than Before" (Burt Bacharach, Bruce Roberts, Carole Bayer Sager) - 4:21
3. "My Love Is Alive" (Gary Wright) - 4:42
4. "Eye to Eye" (Don Freeman, Dan Sembello, John Sembello, Michael Sembello) - 4:38
5. "La Flamme" (Rhoda Roberts, Philippe Saisse) - 4:27
6. "I Feel for You" (Prince) - 5:44
7. "Hold Her" (James Newton-Howard, David "Hawk" Wolinski) - 5:14
8. "Through the Fire" (David Foster, Tom Keane, Cynthia Weil) - 4:45
9. "Caught in the Act" (Joe Mardin, Alec Milstein) - 3:45
10. "Chinatown" (Chaka Khan, Rhoda Roberts, Philippe Saisse) - 4:37

Personnel

• Chaka Khan - lead vocals, backing vocals
• David Frank - keyboards, synthesizer track: 1, keyboards, synthesizer, programming track: 6
• Mic Murphy - backing vocals track: 1
• Steve Ferrone - drums tracks: 1, 4
• Paul Pesco - guitar track: 1
• Philippe Saisse - additional keyboards track: 1, keyboards, synthesizer, programming track: 5, 6, 10
• Steve Lukather - guitar track: 7
• Nathan East - bass guitar track: 2, 8
• J.R. Robinson - drums track: 2, 7, 8
• Dan Huff - guitar track: 2
• Robbie Buchanan - keyboards, synthesizer track: 2, keyboards, synthesizer, programming track: 6
• Craig Siegel - Fairlight programming track: 2
• John Robie - keyboards, synthesizer, programming track: 3
• Cruz Sembello - backing vocals track: 4
• Tony Maiden - rhythm guitar track: 4
• Michael Sembello - guitar solo, backing vocals track: 4
• Danny Sembello - keyboards, synthesizer track: 4
• Don Freeman - keyboards, synthesizer track: 4
• Rob Mounsey - Synclavier track: 4
• Hamish Stuart - backing vocals track: 5
• Mark Stevens - backing vocals track: 5
• Reggie Griffin - guitar, bass, keyboards, synthesizer, programming track: 6
• Stevie Wonder - chromatic harmonica track: 6
• Grandmaster Melle Mel - vocals track: 6
• Steve Porcaro - keyboards track: 7
• Hawk - bass, keyboards track: 7
• James Newton Howard - keyboards track: 7
• Michael Landau - guitar track: 8
• David Foster - keyboards, synthesizer track: 8
• Marcus Ryle - programming track: 8
• Alec Milstein - backing vocals track: 9
• Vadim Zilberstein - guitar track: 9
• Keith "Plex" Barnhart - keyboards, synthesizer track: 9
• Joe Mardin - drums track: 9

Production

• Arif Mardin - record producer tracks: 1 to 3, 5 to 7, 9, 10
• Lew Hahn - audio mixing tracks: 1, 2, 5 to 7, 10
• Robbie Buchanan - producer track: 2
• John Robie - producer, audio mixing track: 3
• Russ Titelman - producer track: 4
• Elliot Scheiner - audio mixing track: 4
• Hawk - producer track 7
• James Newton Howard - producer track: 7
• David Foster - producer, musical arranger track: 8
• Humberto Gatica - producer, audio mixing track: 8
• Joe Mardin - producer, audio mixing track: 9
• Bill Dooley - audio mixing track: 9
• Michael O'Reilly - audio mixing track: 9

Non-album tracks and remixes

• "I Feel for You" (Extended Remix, remixed by Arif Mardin) - 7:12
• "This Is My Night" (Extended Version a.k.a. Dance Remix, remixed by Arif Mardin, Lew Hahn & Michael O'Reilly) - 6:12
• "Eye To Eye" (Extended Remix, remixed by Russ Titelman) - 6:35

References