THROWBACK THURSDAY: WHITNEY HOUSTON'S DEBUT ALBUM

1985 saw the official arrival of arguably the best voice in the history of pop music, Whitney Houston. Her self-titled debut album blew the loads minds of the record buying/radio listening public and America's sweetheart was born. Now Whitney had appeared briefly to duet the previous year on Jermaine Jackson's self-titled album and also on the 1984 comeback album, Love Language, by Teddy Pendergrass. This, by the way, disqualified her from Best New Artist category at the Grammy Awards the year her debut was released, which is a controversy to this day. Anyway.....the first single from the album Whitney Houston was the smooth, sexy You Give Good Love. If this didn't move your hand down your significant other's pants, you are a eunuch, girl! YGGL hit #3 on the Hot 100 and topped the R&B charts and probably got about a million people pregnant in the process. The all-important follow up single was Saving All My Love. An ode to infidelity (yep), this song gave Whitney her first of many #1 singles on the Hot 100 and won her first Grammy for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance and moved your hand down someone else's significant other's pants. Work!! From this point on, all bets were off. Girl was unstoppable. How Will I Know hit #1 in February 1986, and The Greatest Love of All topped the charts in May of that year. Whitney became the first artists to have their debut album produce three #1 singles, and the first female artist to ever achieve that feat. The album has sold over 13 million copies in the US and 25 million worldwide, was nominated for Album of the Year at the Grammys, and appears on almost every list of the greatest albums of all time. There is no denying that this album launched one of the brightest stars to ever burn into the conscience of the music listening world. Whitney is greatly missed. Here are the videos for the singles from 1985's Whitney Houston. Please take note of 1) THAT BODYSUIT and the very unsanitary work outfits of the people working in the kitchen in the You Give Good Love video 2) the bright AF 80s-tastic ENTIRE video for How Will I Know and 3) 23 year-old Whitney looking like the hottest possible version of your 3rd grade teacher in The Greatest Love Of All video. Enjoy the throwback, lovers.