"If I Told You That" is a song by American singer Whitney Houston. It is the fifth track from her fourth studio album, ''My Love Is Your Love'', which was released in November 1998 by Arista Records. A reworked duet version of the song with British singer George Michael was released on June 5, 2000, as the third single from Houston's first greatest hits album, ''Whitney: The Greatest Hits'' (2000). The remix was originally to feature Michael Jackson. Commercially, "If I Told You That" peaked at number one in Iceland, Croatia, and Poland while peaking at nine on the UK Singles Chart.

Critical reception

Larry Flick from ''Billboard (magazine), Billboard'' wrote that "whatever magic might be found in this effort most certainly is going to come from the fine vocal performances. Houston scats and offers shout-outs that give "If I Told You That" a spontaneity and energy [...], while Michael still stands tall as one of the finer soul men to step in front of the mike. This pairing is mightily inspired[.], adding that "the track's instrumental palette is definitely of the moment, with a driving shuffle beat and layered vocals[.] The hook is catchy enough, with a chorus that's simple and easy to sing along with." J. D. Considine of The Baltimore Sun felt that "If I Told You That" is a song on which Houston is "faking attraction with George Michael". LA Weekly in its review for ''Whitney: The Greatest Hits'' commented that "[o]n paper, the Houston-Michael coupling is inspired[.] But Michael simply adds his pinched, nasal vocals to the track [...], the result of which is two people singing at one another and daring the listener to care". The ''Baltimore Sun'' wrote: "when she sings in "If I Told You That" about giving in to temptation and having a fling with a friend, we shouldn't suppose she's thinking of any friend in particular."

Music video

The music video directed by Kevin Bray (director), Kevin Bray features Houston and Michael in a nightclub, eventually meeting on the dance floor, similar to that of Mary J. Blige and Michael's UK hit "As (song)#George Michael and Mary J. Blige version, As". The US DVD single for Houston's song "Fine (Whitney Houston song), Fine" includes the music video for "If I Told You That". The video is also included on George Michael's video compilation ''Twenty Five (DVD), Twenty Five''. The music video on YouTube has 42 million views as of July 2022.

Live versions

*Houston performed the song regularly in her set for the My Love Is Your Love World Tour in 1999, and performed the song during her four-date promotional Whitney: The Greatest Hits#Promotional concerts, Greatest Hits Live in 2000 and the Soul Divas Tour in 2004.

Track listings and formats

*Australian maxi single # "If I Told You That" (album version) — 4:33 # "Fine (Whitney Houston song), Fine" (album version) — 3:35 # "If I Told You That" (Johnny Douglas Mix) — 4:48 # "I'm Your Baby Tonight" (Dronez Mix) — 5:05 *European maxi single # "If I Told You That" (album version) — 4:33 # "If I Told You That" (Johnny Douglas Mix) — 4:48 # "Fine" (album version) — 3:35 *Promo CD single #"If I Told You That" (radio edit) — 4:05 #"If I Told You That" (album version) — 4:38

Personnel

*Produced by Rodney Jerkins for Darkchild Entertainment Inc. *Additional production: George Michael *Remix recorded by Dexter Simmons at Criteria Studios, The Hit Factory Criteria, Miami, FL *Mixed by Jon Douglas *Mix engineer: Ren Swan *All instruments: Rodney Jerkins

Charts

References

External links

If I Told You That
at Discogs {{Authority control Whitney Houston songs George Michael songs 2000 singles 2000 songs Arista Records singles Male–female vocal duets Number-one singles in Iceland Song recordings produced by George Michael Song recordings produced by Rodney Jerkins Songs written by Fred Jerkins III Songs written by LaShawn Daniels Songs written by Rodney Jerkins