La Bouche - Sweet Dreams

great music

I love this CD cause I met someone special listening to it.
the fact that the lead singer dies makes it even more sentimental!
If you want to listen to love songs, buy it. April 22, 2008

One of the best dance albums of the 90s

La Bouche (which is the French translation of the word "mouth") spawned two monster club hits (Be My Lover and Sweet Dreams), a loyal following on the club circuit, and inclusion of those 2 songs on many dance compilations. Tragically, Melanie Thornton died at the age of 34 in a plane crash in 2001. Group partner Lane McCray soldiered on with a new female partner, but Thornton's death truly marked the end of the La Bouche legacy.

Footnote: Not sure whether or not this is available as a recording, but around 2001-2002-ish, DJ Richie Rich of Philadelphia's Q102 created a special version of "Sweet Dreams" which keeps its memorable melody intact, but pumps about twice as hard and has some subtle added sound effects. Presumably, the station played an hour of high energy, beat-heavy music as part of a daily afternoon workout. If it is at all possible to obtain this, I recommend by all means that you do. I think you will probably like it more than the original version. October 23, 2007

awesome cd

This cd is great!!! I have been a La Bouche fan since Ive heard Tonight Is The Night. Melanie Thorton is a great singer and I also enjoy the fact that she co wrote some of the songs which makes it sound more from the heart. Sadly she died in a plane crash in 2001. Check out the other La Bouche cds. They're just as good, if not better. This cd check out Nice N Slow, I Love to Love, and Be My Lover (house mix). R.I.P. Melaine Thorton what an awesome singer!!! September 10, 2007

Part of the soundtrack of my high school years

I was 15 years old and a sophomore in high school when "Be My Lover" started burning up the U.S. charts toward the end of 1995, and I loved every second of that song: Eurodance-pop perfection, bolstered by the catchy "La-da-da-dee-da-da-da-da" hook and the powerful diva voice of the late Melanie Thornton. As I recall, most radio stations played the edited version without Lane's rap, without which the song seems kind of empty (even though it is cheesy: "Like Boyz II Men I'm on bended knee"... sorry, that line makes me giggle). As much as this song simply smokes, the extended mix which also got some radio play on "mix shows" and the like is even better.
Anyway, when I bought this album I expected an album's worth of songs in the same Eurodance style which I had grown to know and love thanks to Real McCoy, 2 Unlimited, Fun Factory, and (remember "The Rhythm Of The Night?") Corona. To my surprise, there were some slow jams here too! Despite being well-sung by Melanie, as is everything here, the slow jams - especially "I'll Be There" (which is NOT the Jackson Five/Mariah Carey classic) - aren't as memorable as the dancefloor thumpers. "Be My Lover," the title song, "I Love To Love" and "The Heat Is On" are all red-hot, catchy, well-crafted Eurodance classics. And it is the talents of Melanie Thornton that make them really special. In the hands of any other singer these songs wouldn't sound nearly as hot. There's also "Where Do You Go," which is ALMOST the same song that became a hit in 1996 for the Cuban-American trio No Mercy - I say "almost" because the verses are different. Equally fun is Le Click's "Tonight Is The Night," a #89 Hot 100 hit in 1995. (Of course, after Melanie and Lane McCray got together as La Bouche, Le Click continued on with a new singer named Kayo Shekoni who was sort of a soundalike for Melanie, and scored a Top 40 hit in 1997 with "Call Me.")
And there's an oldie here too - that would be "Fallin' In Love," the Hamilton, Joe Frank & Reynolds #1 hit from 1975. The album version is a nice, breezy, mid-tempo pop tune that wouldn't sound out of place on adult contemporary radio. It's certainly far superior to the horrid Eurodance remix that was issued to radio stations after the success of "Be My Lover" and "Sweet Dreams." Actually, "Fallin' In Love" was originally La Bouche's first single in the United States in 1995, but it flopped, getting into the "Bubbling Under the Hot 100" chart for a few weeks and then vanishing. When it was re-promoted to radio the following year, RCA did not re-release the single and CHR stations played it as an album cut (though most of them, unfortunately, played the remix, which was not all that bad on its own, but was horrible compared to the album version).

In short, this is a more-than-competent survey of the mid-1990s Eurodance sound, with a pair of big hit singles and a few extras as well. La Bouche injected some soul into the Euro beats and came up with a winner. Rest in peace, Melanie, you are still missed.
June 23, 2006

A cd that makes you dream!

Who hasn't danced even once with the big smash hit ''be my lover'' way back in 1995? And who hasn't dreamt by listening to the hit ''sweet dreams''? The unique voice of Melanie Thornton - tragically gone in a plane crash in Zurigh in 2001 - along with the rap rhymes of Lane McCray make a combination of passion, adrenaline and of course ... dancing!! Beautiful melodic songs, such as ''fallinf in love'', ''i'll be there'' and ''nice n' slow'', dance hits like ''where do you go'', ''i love to love'', ''the heat is on'', along with one beautiful ballad - ''do you still need me?''and the 2 smash hits we just talked about. The cd ends with 2 great remixes of ''be my lover'' and ''fallin' in love'', plus another big hit ''tonight is the night'', which mysteriously isn't enclosed in the 2001 compilation ''greatest hits'' of the group. A cd that everybody who loves dance music should have. The group may not exist anymore, but will always be remembered, especially Melanie. October 4, 2005

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