Maps of Music

Unison (1990)

Where the lyrics of Unison take you, and where it was really made.

Unison was Dion's first English-language album, and its budget grew from $25,000 to $600,000 after several events changed the label's plans.

Key places

Westside Studios in London (1990)

Recording site Westside Studios — Westside Studios is listed as a recording location for Unison. The album was recorded in London, New York, and Los Angeles. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Skyline Midi in New York (1990)

Recording site Record Plant Studios — Skyline Midi is listed as a New York recording location for Unison. The map point uses the city centre, not the studio building. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

55 studio in Los Angeles (1990)

Recording site 55 (Los Angeles) — The studio labelled 55 is listed as a Los Angeles recording location for Unison. The point marks the building address. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

West Side studio in London (1990)

Recording site West Side — West Side is listed as a London recording location for Unison. The point marks the building address in Earlsfield. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Album story

Overview

• Unison: ninth studio album by Canadian singer Celine Dion
• Her first English-language release
• Released 2 April 1990 by Columbia Records and Epic Records
• Blends dance-pop and soft rock elements typical of late-1980s mainstream production
• Produced by David Foster, Christopher Neil, Tom Keane, and Andy Goldmark
• Contains 10 tracks
• Released in the United States on 11 September 1990

Background

• Through the 1980s, Dion released 11 French-language studio albums in Canada and three in France
• Initially, CBS Records offered a modest budget of $25,000 to record English vocals over existing Incognito tracks
• Three events led the label to increase its investment: a duet with Dan Hill on 'Can't We Try' at the CBS Canada 1987 convention, her performance of 'Have a Heart' at the Juno Awards of 1987, and David Foster's interest after viewing the Juno performance
• The budget rose to $600,000, allowing new material and high-profile producers
• Recording took place in London, New York, and Los Angeles
• Before release, Dion recorded several English-language duets in 1989, including 'Listen to Me' and 'Wishful Thinking', and none of them appeared on Unison

Recording

• Christopher Neil, a British producer, worked on four songs, including 'Where Does My Heart Beat Now' and 'The Last to Know'
• David Foster produced five tracks, among them 'Have a Heart', originally recorded in French for Incognito
• Andy Goldmark produced the title track, a cover of a song used in the film All the Right Moves
• Release dates differed by territory: 2 April 1990 in Canada, 11 September 1990 in the United States, and 1991 in Japan, Australia, and the United Kingdom

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Tracklist

Sources: musicbrainz.org

Artist

Formation

• Born 30 March 1968 in Charlemagne, Quebec, Canada, the youngest of 14 children.
• Discovered by future manager and husband René Angélil after her brother sent him a demo recording of her first song "Ce n'était qu'un rêve".
• Angélil mortgaged his home in 1981 to fund her first record, La voix du bon Dieu, which became a No. 1 hit in Quebec.
• Won the Yamaha World Popular Song Festival in Tokyo in 1982.
• Won the Eurovision Song Contest 1988 for Switzerland with "Ne partez pas sans moi".

Career

• Debuted in the Anglophone market with Unison (1990), followed by Celine Dion (1992).
• Breakthrough with "Beauty and the Beast" (1991) with Peabo Bryson, winning her first Grammy.
• The Colour of My Love (1993) and Falling into You (1996) became major international successes.
• "My Heart Will Go On" from Titanic (1997) became her signature song and one of the best-selling singles.
• D'eux (1995) became the best-selling French-language album.
• Held the A New Day... residency at Caesars Palace (2003–2007), the highest-grossing concert residency; the Los Angeles Times ranked her the top-earning artist of the 2000s.
• Announced in 2022 a diagnosis of stiff-person syndrome, cancelling tours; returned to performing at the Paris 2024 Olympics opening ceremony.

Members

• Solo artist; manager and husband René Angélil (died 2016) guided her career.

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Reception

At release

• Critics generally gave positive reviews, praising Dion's vocal control, versatility, and move into the English-language pop market
• Jim Farber of Entertainment Weekly described her delivery as 'tastefully unadorned', adding that the album presented a more polished approach to pop singing
• Stephen Thomas Erlewine of AllMusic called Unison 'a fine, sophisticated American debut', pointing to its blend of contemporary pop and adult-oriented material
• Jan De Knock of the Chicago Tribune wrote that Dion handled both power-pop and R&B-leaning tracks with ease, viewing the album as a strong introduction to English-language audiences

Reappraisal

• Retrospective analyses note that Unison marked a turning point in Dion's commercial development, showing her ability to compete in the global pop market while keeping strong support in Canada

Records

• Canada: peaked at number 15 on the national chart; seven-times platinum for shipments exceeding 700,000 copies
• Quebec: number one for nine weeks, and among the province's best-selling albums of 1990
• United States: number 74 on the Billboard 200; platinum for sales exceeding 1.2 million copies
• Norway: number eight
• Worldwide sales exceeded four million copies
• Juno Awards 1991: Album of the Year and Female Vocalist of the Year
• Dion became the first French-Canadian artist to receive both honours

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Trivia

• The budget rose from $25,000 to $600,000 after a duet at the CBS Canada 1987 convention, a Juno performance, and David Foster's interest.
• Andy Goldmark's title track is a cover of a song used in the film All the Right Moves.
• Dion performed her winning Eurovision 1989 entry together with 'Where Does My Heart Beat Now' before the album was released.
• In 1990 Dion publicly refused the Félix Award for Anglophone Artist of the Year, since she did not consider herself an Anglophone artist.
• The Félix award for Artist of the Year Achieving the Most Success in a Language Other Than French was created in response to that refusal.

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

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