''Destiny'' is the sixth studio album by

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

R&B/

funk Funk is a music genre that originated in African American communities in the mid-1960s when musicians created a rhythmic, danceable new form of music through a mixture of various music genres that were popular among African Americans in the m ...

singer

Chaka Khan Yvette Marie Stevens (born March 23, 1953), better known by her stage name Chaka Khan (), is an American singer. Her career has spanned more than five decades, beginning in the 1970s as the lead vocalist of the funk band Rufus. Known as the " Qu ...

, released on

Warner Bros. Records Warner Records Inc. (formerly Warner Bros. Records Inc.) is an American record label. A subsidiary of the Warner Music Group, it is headquartered in Los Angeles, California. It was founded on March 19, 1958, as the recorded music division of the ...

in 1986. ''Destiny'' was Khan's follow-up to the platinum-selling ''I Feel for You'' and was as high tech as its predecessor—symptomatically and characteristically for its period with more producers and sound engineers credited in the liner notes than musicians—but was musically more geared towards rock and pop than soul and R&B, most prominently on tracks such as "So Close", the self-penned title track "My Destiny", "Who's It Gonna Be" and "Watching the World" featuring

Phil Collins Philip David Charles Collins (born 30 January 1951) is an English singer, musician, songwriter, record producer and actor. He was the drummer and lead singer of the rock band Genesis and also has a career as a solo performer. Between 1982 and ...

on drums and backing vocals. The album spun off five single releases, the first being " Love of a Lifetime", co-written, co-produced and featuring backing vocals by

Green Gartside Green Gartside (born Paul Julian Strohmeyer; 22 June 1955) is a Welsh songwriter, singer and musician. He is the frontman of the band Scritti Politti. Early life Gartside was born on 22 June 1955 in Cardiff, Wales, to a " Cup-a-Soup salesman da ...

of British band

Scritti Politti Scritti Politti are a British band, originally formed in 1977 in Leeds, England, by Welsh singer-songwriter Green Gartside. He is the only member of the band to have remained throughout the group's history. Beginning as a punk-inspired collect ...

(US Pop #53, US R&B #21, UK #52). The second single "Tight Fit" was a midtempo R&B ballad, just like "Eye to Eye" from ''I Feel for You'' produced by

Russ Titelman Russ Titelman (born August 16, 1944, Los Angeles, California) is an American record producer and songwriter. He has to date won three Grammy Awards. He earned his first producing the Steve Winwood song " Higher Love", and his second and third f ...

, which reached #28 on the US R&B chart. The satirical "Earth to Mickey" (''When are you going to land?''), featuring Khan both singing and rapping (and keyboardist Reggie Griffin rapping in the role of 'Mickey'), was released as the third single in early 1987 and only just made the Top 100 of the R&B chart, peaking at #93. The dramatic ballad "The Other Side of the World", written by Mike Rutherford of

Genesis Genesis may refer to: Bible * Book of Genesis, the first book of the biblical scriptures of both Judaism and Christianity, describing the creation of the Earth and of mankind * Genesis creation narrative, the first several chapters of the Book of ...

and

B. A. Robertson Brian Alexander Robertson (born 12 September 1956) is a Scottish musician, composer and songwriter. He had a string of hits in the late 1970s and early 1980s characterised by catchy pop tunes and jaunty humorous lyrics, including " Knocked It ...

and which had first been released as part of the '' White Nights'' soundtrack album in late 1985, reached #81. The fifth single "Watching the World" never charted. The album itself fared slightly better, reaching #25 on ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...

s R&B albums chart, but stalling at #67 on Pop and #77 in the UK. ''Destiny'' however gave Khan another

Grammy nomination The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pres ...

1987 File:1987 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The MS Herald of Free Enterprise capsizes after leaving the Port of Zeebrugge in Belgium, killing 193; Northwest Airlines Flight 255 crashes after takeoff from Detroit Metropolitan Airport, k ...

for

Best R&B Vocal Performance, Female The Grammy Award for Best Female R&B Vocal Performance (previously called Best Rhythm and Blues Solo Vocal Performance, Female) was an honor presented at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards ...

. The track "My Destiny" was used as the theme song for Richard Pryor's motion picture ''

Jo Jo Dancer, Your Life Is Calling ''Jo Jo Dancer, Your Life Is Calling'' is a 1986 American biographical comedy-drama film directed, produced by and starring Richard Pryor, who also wrote the screenplay with Paul Mooney and Rocco Urbisci. ''Jo Jo Dancer, Your Life Is Calling'' w ...

''. The closing track, the heavily edited one minute thirty-nine seconds "Coltrane Dreams", a tribute to John Coltrane, had a backing track mainly made up of samples of Khan's voice. The actual full-length version of the track (4:54) was only released as the B-side of the 12" single "Love of a Lifetime". "Love of a Lifetime", "Tight Fit", "Earth to Mickey" and "Watching the World" were all released as 12" singles including extended remixes. While the success of Khan's own single releases in 1986 was limited to the R&B charts, she appeared as featured vocalist/vocal arranger on two worldwide pop/rock chart hits that same year,

Steve Winwood Stephen Lawrence Winwood (born 12 May 1948) is an English musician, singer, and songwriter whose genres include blue-eyed soul, rhythm and blues, blues rock, and pop rock. Though primarily a keyboard player and vocalist prominent for his disti ...

's "

Higher Love "Higher Love" is a 1986 song by English singer Steve Winwood. It was the first single released from his fourth solo LP, ''Back in the High Life'' (1986). It was written by Winwood and Will Jennings and produced by Russ Titelman and Winwood. The ...

" and Robert Palmer's " Addicted to Love"; on the latter she was only credited for 'vocal arrangement' in the liner notes. The song was originally recorded with Khan sharing lead vocals with Palmer but due to contractual problems between

and

Island Records Island Records is a multinational record label owned by Universal Music Group. It was founded in 1959 by Chris Blackwell, Graeme Goodall, and Leslie Kong in Jamaica, and was eventually sold to PolyGram in 1989. Island and A&M Records, anoth ...

her own vocals were removed from the final mix.Interview, thestar.com February 9, 2008
/ref>

Track listing

#"Love of a Lifetime" ( David Gamson,

) – 4:21 #"Earth to Mickey" (Charlie Singleton) – 5:37 #"Watching the World" (John Lang,

Richard Page Richard Lewis Page (born 22 February 1941) is a former Conservative Member of Parliament (MP) in the United Kingdom from 1976 to 1979 and from December 1979 to 2005. Early life Born the son of Victor Charles Page, he went to the independent Hu ...

, Steve George) – 4:44 #"The Other Side of the World" (

, Mike Rutherford) – 3:41 #"My Destiny" (Chaka Khan) – 4:39 #"I Can't Be Loved" (

Glen Ballard Basil Glen Ballard Jr. (born May 1, 1953) is an American songwriter, lyricist, and record producer. He is best known for co-writing and producing Alanis Morissette's 1995 album ''Jagged Little Pill'', which won Grammy Awards for Grammy Award fo ...

Randy Goodrum Charles Randolph Goodrum (born July 7, 1947) is an American songwriter, pianist, and producer. Goodrum has written number one songs in each of the four decades since his first number one hit, 1978's "You Needed Me". Goodrum's songs have appeare ...

) – 4:30 #"It's You" (Portia Griffin, Tony Patler) – 4:19 #"So Close" (Richard Feldman,

Marcy Levy Marcella Levy (born June 21, 1952), known professionally as Marcy Levy and (later in her career) Marcella Detroit, is an American singer, songwriter, and guitarist. She co-wrote the 1977 Eric Clapton hit "Lay Down Sally" and released her debut al ...

, Pam Tillis) – 4:19 #"Tight Fit" (Bunny Siegler, Marvin Morrow) – 4:39 #"Who's It Gonna Be" (Gary Goetzman, Mike Picirillo) – 4:37 #"Coltrane Dreams" (Chaka Khan, Julie Mardin, Arif Mardin) – 1:39

Personnel

Track 1 “Love of a Lifetime”
Drums – Fred Maher
Bass, Guitar dditional–

Marcus Miller William Henry Marcus Miller Jr. (born June 14, 1959) is an American musician, songwriter, and record producer. He is best known for his work as a bassist. He has worked with trumpeter Miles Davis, pianist Herbie Hancock, singer Luther Vandros ...

Guitar – Nick Moroch
Keyboards dditional– David Lebolt
Synthesizer Programmed By – David Gamson
Additional Synthesizer Programming – Jason Miles, Michael Colina
Backing Vocals – Chaka Khan, Mark Stevens,

Saxophone lto & Solo– Bob Gay
Saxophone enor– Scott Gilman
Trumpet – Matthew Cornish Track 2 “Earth to Mickey”
Synthesizer, Keyboards, Guitar, Rap ickey's Rap Performed By– Reggie Griffin
Special Effects Editing – Arif Mardin
Backing Vocals – Chaka Khan, Mark Stevens,

Sandra St. Victor Sandra Kay Matthews, known professionally as Sandra St. Victor, is a Dallas-born singer-songwriter most known for her work as lead singer of The Family Stand and their international hit single "Ghetto Heaven". She attended the now famous Booke ...

Track 3 “Watching the World”
Drums –

Additional Drum Sounds – David Rosenberg
Bass – Pino Palladino
Guitar –

Dan Huff Dann Lee Huff (born November 15, 1960) is an American record producer and songwriter. For his work as a producer in the country music genre, he has won several awards, including the ''Musician of the Year'' award in 2001, 2004, and 2016 at the Co ...

Synthesizer dditional Sequenced By –

Joe Mardin Joe Mardin (born Yusuf Mardin) is a Turkish-American music producer, arranger and engineer from New York City. He is a Berklee College of Music graduate and is the son of the Turkish American producer Arif Mardin. Joe Mardin is also a conductor, s ...

Synthesizer, Programmed By – David Lebolt
Backing Vocals – Chaka Khan, Mark Stevens, Phil Collins
Saxophone enor– Michael Brecker
Trombone – Tom Malone
Trumpet – John Faddis, Marvin Stamm, Michael Mossman, Randy Brecker Track 4 – “The Other Side of the World”
Producer, Synthesizer – Robbie Buchanan Track 5 – “My Destiny”
Drums –

Steve Ferrone Steve Ferrone (born 25 April 1950) is an English drummer. He is known as a member of the rock band Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers from 1994 to 2017, replacing original drummer Stan Lynch, and as part of the "classic lineup" of the Average Whi ...

Bass – Anthony Jackson
Guitar – Randy Fredrix
Keyboards, Programmed By –

Philippe Saisse Philippe Saisse is a French jazz multi-instrumentalist, composer, record producer, and arranger. Career He was born in Marseille and raised in Paris. After studying at the Conservatoire de Paris he won a scholarship to the Berklee College of Mus ...

Track 6 “I Can't Be Loved”
Keyboards, Programmed By ynthesizer Programming Guitar, Backing Vocals – Reggie Griffin
Keyboards, Programmed By ynthesizer Programming Percussion dditional– Joe Mardin
Drum Sounds – David Rosenberg
Guitar – Paul Pesco
Sequenced By dditional Sequencing–

Backing Vocals – Cindy Mizelle, Sandra St. Victor
String Arrangement – Arif Mardin
Concertmaster trings– Gene Orloff Track 7 “It's You”
Keyboards, Saxophone, Guitar, Programmed By – Reggie Griffin
Additional Keyboards – Tony Patler
Backing Vocals – Chaka Khan, Mark Stevens, Sandra St. Victor Track 8 “So Close”
Drums – David Rosenberg
Synthesizer ynthesizer Bass Keyboards – Beau Hill
Guitar – Reb Beach
Backing Vocals – Chaka Khan, Sandra St. Victor Track 9 “Tight Fit”
Drum Programming – Jimmy Bralower
Synthesizer ynthesizer Bass– Tony Patler
Guitar – Paul Pesco
Keyboards, Programmed By ynthesizer Programming– Joe Mardin
Backing Vocals – Chaka Khan, Mark Stevens, Sandra St. Victor
Saxophone lto– Robert Gay Track 10 “Who's It Gonna Be”
Drum Programming – Bob Riley
Guitar – Nick Moroch
Producer, Arranged By, Synthesizer, Programmed By – Joe Mardin
Synthesizer olo– Reggie Griffin
Synthesizer, Programmed By – David Lebolt
Backing Vocals – Chaka Khan, Mark Stevens, Sandra St. Victor
Timbales, Cowbell – Chaka Khan Track 11 “Coltrane Dreams”
Drums – Steve Ferrone
Drum Programming – Thomas Oldakowski
Keyboards – Cengiz Yaltkaya
Synclavier Programming – John Mahoney
Saxophone enor Sax Solo– Sam Rivers

Production

;Producers * Arif Mardin (tracks 1-11) * David Gamson (track 1) *

(track 1) *

(tracks 3, 6 & 10) * Robbie Buchanan (track 4) *

(track 5) *

(track 5) * Reggie Griffin (tracks 6 & 7) * Beau Hill (track 8) *

(track 9) * Cengiz Yaltkaya (track 11) ;Recording and Mixing * Ray Bardani – recording (track 1) * Bruce Robbins – assistant engineer (track 1) * Ed Garcia – assistant engineer (tracks 1, 2, 5, 7, 9 & 10), mix assistant (track 3), additional recording (track 6). * Bruce Robbins – assistant engineer (track 1) * Iris Cohen – assistant engineer (track 1) * Steve Boyer – assistant engineer (track 1) * Steven Carthy – assistant engineer (tracks 1, 4-7 & 9) * Wayne Warnecke – assistant engineer (track 1) * John "Tokes" Potoker – mix and drum recording (track 1), mixing (track 7). * Ellen Fitton – assistant engineer (tracks 2 & 9) * Michael O'Reilly – recording and mixing (tracks 2, 3 & 10), re-recording and remix (track 4), additional recording (tracks 6 & 11), recording (track 9). * Mike Ging – assistant engineer (track 3) * Paul Gomersall – assistant engineer (track 3) * Simon Sullivan – additional recording (track 3) *

Hugh Padgham Hugh Charles Padgham (born 15 February 1955) is an English record producer and audio engineer. He has won four Grammy Awards, for Producer of the Year and Album of the Year for 1985, Record of the Year for 1990, and Engineer of the Year for 1 ...

– recording of Phil Collins segment (track 3) * Mike Ross – assistant engineer (track 4) * Philip Castellano – assistant engineer (track 4) * Steve MacMillan – assistant engineer (track 4) * Rod Hui – re-recording (track 4), recording and mixing (track 6), additional recording (track 7). *

Jack Joseph Puig Jack Joseph Puig is an American audio engineer, A&R executive, and record producer. He has worked with Tonic, Hole, Jellyfish, The Black Crowes, John Mayer, Weezer, Fiona Apple, Roger Hodgson, Taxiride, Green Day, Counting Crows, No Doubt, Klaxo ...

– recording and mixing (track 4) * Acar Key – assistant engineer (tracks 5, 7 & 10) * Craig Vogel – assistant engineer (tracks 5 & 9) * Dave O'Donnell – assistant engineer (track 5) * Eric Calvi – mixing (track 5) * David Harrington – assistant engineer (track 6) * Ellen Fitton – assistant engineer (tracks 6, 9 & 11) * Ira MacLaughlin – assistant engineer (tracks 6 & 8) * Stephen Benben – assistant engineer (track 6), re-recording (track 8) * Rod O'Brian – recording (track 6), additional recording (track 7), assistant engineer (track 9). * Reggie Griffin – mixing (track 6) * Joe Mardin – mixing (track 6) * Bob Rosa – recording (track 7), assistant engineer (track 10). * Bobby Warner – additional recording (track 8) * Barbara Milne – assistant engineer (track 9) * Ernie Wilkins – assistant engineer (track 9) * Jeff Lord-Alge – assistant engineer (track 9) * Chris Lord-Alge – recording (track 9) * Steve Peck – additional recording (track 9), assistant engineer (track 10). *

Tom Lord-Alge Tom Lord-Alge (born January 17, 1963) is an American music engineer and mixer. He began his career at The Hit Factory in New York. Subsequently, he was the resident mixer at what used to be known as "South Beach Studios", located on the ground f ...

– recording and mixing (track 9) * Jimmy Douglass – assistant engineer (track 10), recording and mixing (track 11). * Hugo Dwyer – additional recording (track 11) * Michael Morongell – additional recording (track 11) * Mark Pawlowski – assisting engineer (track 11) ;Additional Credits * Arif Mardin – executive producer * Christy Allerdings – production coordinator (tracks 1-8, 10 & 11) * Leyla Turkkan – assistant production coordination (tracks 1-8, 10 & 11) * Jill Dell'Abate – production coordinator (track 9) * Phillip Namanworth – project supervisor (tracks 1, 2, 3 & 5-11) * Jeri McManus – art direction * Lynn Robb – design and lettering * George Holz – photography * Burt Zell Management – direction

Non-album tracks and remixes

* "Love of a Lifetime" (extended dance version) – 6:09 * "Coltrane Dreams" (long version) – 4:54 * "Tight Fit" (extended version, remixed by

) – 6:18 * "Earth to Mickey" (extended version) – 6:48 * "Earth to Mickey" (instrumental version) – 3:17 * "Earth to Mickey" (a cappella voices) – 0:51 * "Earth to Mickey" (CK's Duet Space Rap) – 5:22 * "Watching the World" (extended remix) – 6:11

Charts

References

External links

*
Destiny
' at

Discogs Discogs (short for discographies) is a database of information about audio recordings, including commercial releases, promotional releases, and bootleg or off-label releases. While the site was originally created with a goal of becoming the la ...

{{Authority control 1986 albums Chaka Khan albums Albums produced by Arif Mardin Albums produced by Russ Titelman Warner Records albums