Song:My Heart Will Go On
Album:My Love: Essential Collection
Though I don't like Celine Dion's overblown singing style, she deserves credit for coming out of nowhere to become one of the biggest stars in pop music. My Heart Will Go On from the 1997 film Titanic is probably her biggest hit. She was born Mar. 30, 1968 in Charlemagne, QC the youngest of fourteen children. Her big break came when her brother saw Rene Angelil's name on an album cover and sent him Celine's recording. He's the one who made her a star first in Quebec and then everywhere else. And they got married. The major barrier to Celine becoming a star was she didn't speak English. I first heard Celine in the mid-80s and at the time I thought she was a pretty good singer. But Angelil sent her to English classes and also had her undergo dental surgery to improve her appearance. Angelil convinced Columbia Records that Celine was ready to record in English. To save money, they recorded English vocals over tracks she had previously recorded in French. Unison was released in 1990 and Where Does My Heart Beat Now was the big hit from the album. That ballad set the stage for future stardom. The record was produced by Christopher Neil who had produced Sheena Easton. She continued to alternate recording in English and French. I like some of her French albums including the 1992 album Dion Chante Plamondon which was a tribute to famed Quebecois songwriter Luc Plamondon. It has a harder rock sound than you might expect from Celine. By the mid-90s, Celine was a huge star with number one hits like The Power Of Love and Because You Loved Me. But My Heart Will Go On launched Celine to a new level of stardom. James Horner wrote the music for the 1997 film Titanic. He thought there should be a song with a vocal playing over the end credits. Director James Cameron said no at first but Horner thought he could convince him so he hired veteran songwriter Will Jennings to write My Heart Will Go On. Then he had to convince Celine to sing the song. He hired Simon Franglen to work on the arrangement. He worked with Celine previously. Then Angelil convinced Celine to record the song. Then Sony execs convinced Cameron though he still didn't like the idea. The song was a worldwide chart topper. Though she never had another hit that big, it's been enough to cement her long term success. You can get all of Celine's hits on this budget comp. She's slowed down in recent years because of Angelil's poor health though she still has a standing residency at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas. Her latest CD of new music was released in 2013 though she released a live CD/DVD set last year. She will return to Caesars Palace in August. Here's the video for My Heart Will Go On by Celine Dion.
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