Higher Ground (Barbra Streisand album)

Higher Ground is the twenty-seventh studio album by American singer Barbra Streisand, her first in four years. The album was inspired by and dedicated to Virginia Clinton Kelley. It was released in North America on November 11, 1997, and a day earlier in Europe.

Higher Ground
Studio album by
Barbra Streisand
ReleasedNovember 11, 1997 (1997-11-11)
RecordedAugust–September 1997
GenrePop
Length56:31
LabelColumbia
Producer
Barbra Streisand chronology
Back to Broadway
(1993)		 Higher Ground
(1997)		 A Love Like Ours
(1999)
Singles from Higher Ground
  1. "Tell Him"
    Released: October 7, 1997
  2. "If I Could"
    Released: 1997
  3. "Higher Ground"
    Released: 1998
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[1]
Entertainment WeeklyC[2]
The Guardian[3]
Los Angeles Times[4]
People Magazine(mixed)[5]

The lead single, "Tell Him"—a duet with Celine Dion—was released on October 7, 1997, and become an international hit. Follow-up singles "If I Could" and the title track failed to chart. "If I Could" and the title track had been previously recorded by jazz singer Nancy Wilson and Regina Belle, respectively, as well as a medley of the inspirational standards "I Believe" and "You'll Never Walk Alone", later both issued as standalone recordings by the singer. The album also contains a cover of Bernard Ighner's "Everything Must Change" which Streisand had previously recorded in sessions for her 1974 album ButterFly but remained unreleased.[6]

Higher Ground became Streisand's eighth number-one album in the US and has sold over five million copies worldwide.[7]

Critical reception

Bob Cannon from Entertainment Weekly opined that the "persistent" strings-and-choir treatment on these 12 tunes "reduces the whole collection to one long, lush ballad that would be more at home over The Prince of Tides' closing credits."[8] Caroline Sullivan from The Guardian wrote, "If divas there must be, let them be like Streisand, who simply eclipses wannabes like Celine Dion (whose duet with Babs, "Tell Him", appears on both women's albums). Her 54th LP, inspired by a friend's death, concerns 'the power of prayer', which led her to record uplifting tunes like "I Believe" and "You'll Never Walk Alone". Gloriously OTT, she out-does Dion, a gospel choir and entire orchestras. It all starts a bit tentatively, but she hits her breast-beating stride by the time we get to the gospelised title track, and from there till the Hebrew finale, "Avinu Malkeinu", she drains songs dry and leaves their husks behind. Fab."[9]

Track listing
  1. "I Believe/You'll Never Walk Alone" (Ervin Drake, Irvin Graham, Jimmy Shirl, Al Stillman/Oscar Hammerstein II, Richard Rodgers) – 6:12
  2. "Higher Ground" (Kent Agee, Steve Dorff, George Green) – 4:24
  3. "At the Same Time" (Ann Hampton Callaway) – 4:18
  4. "Tell Him" (duet with Celine Dion) (Walter Afanasieff, David Foster, Linda Thompson) – 4:52
  5. "On Holy Ground" (Geron Davis) – 6:14
  6. "If I Could" (Ken Hirsch, Ron Miller, Marti Sharron) – 4:25
  7. "Circle" (Jud Friedman, Cynthia Weil) – 4:15
  8. "The Water Is Wide/Deep River" (Traditional) – 5:33
  9. "Leading with Your Heart" (Alan Bergman, Marilyn Bergman, Marvin Hamlisch) – 3:33
  10. "Lessons to Be Learned" (Dorothy Sea Gazeley, Marsha Malamet, Alan Rich) – 4:43
  11. "Everything Must Change" (Bernard Ighner) – 4:05
  12. "Avinu Malkeinu" (Max Janowski) – 4:07

Charts

Certifications and sales
Region CertificationCertified units/sales
Australia (ARIA)[30] Platinum 70,000^
Canada (Music Canada)[31] 3× Platinum 300,000^
Netherlands (NVPI)[32] Platinum 100,000^
New Zealand (RMNZ)[33] Gold 7,500^
Spain (PROMUSICAE)[34] Gold 50,000^
United Kingdom (BPI)[35] Gold 100,000^
United States (RIAA)[36] 3× Platinum 3,000,000^
Summaries
Worldwide — 5,000,000[7]

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

Awards

"Tell Him" was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Pop Collaboration with Vocals in 1998.

"I Believe" was nominated for a Grammy Award for Instrumental Arrangement in 1999.

References
  1. AllMusic review
  2. Cannon, Bob (November 28, 1997). "This Week". Entertainment Weekly. Issue 407.
  3. Sullivan, Caroline (November 14, 1997). "Music: This week's pop CD releases". The Guardian.
  4. Hilburn, Robert (November 9, 1997). "Barbra Streisand "Higher Ground" Columbia". Los Angeles Times.
  5. "Picks and Pans Review: Higher Ground". People Magazine. December 8, 1997.
  6. Howe, Matt. "Barbra Streisand Archives - Higher Ground". Barbra Streisand Archives. Retrieved March 28, 2020.
  7. Hubbard, Kim; Gold, Todd. (Mar 9, 1998). "Perfect Harmony". People Weekly; New York Vol. 49, Ed. 9: 78-84.
  8. Cannon, Bob (November 28, 1997). "This Week". Entertainment Weekly. Issue 407.
  9. Sullivan, Caroline (November 14, 1997). "Music: This week's pop CD releases". The Guardian.
  10. "Australiancharts.com – Barbra Streisand – Higher Ground". Hung Medien. Retrieved March 8, 2016.
  11. "Austriancharts.at – Barbra Streisand – Higher Ground" (in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved March 8, 2016.
  12. "Ultratop.be – Barbra Streisand – Higher Ground" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved March 8, 2016.
  13. "Ultratop.be – Barbra Streisand – Higher Ground" (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved March 8, 2016.
  14. "Top RPM Albums: Issue 3394". RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved March 8, 2016.
  15. "Dutchcharts.nl – Barbra Streisand – Higher Ground" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved March 8, 2016.
  16. "Lescharts.com – Barbra Streisand – Higher Ground". Hung Medien. Retrieved March 8, 2016.
  17. "Offiziellecharts.de – Barbra Streisand – Higher Ground" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved March 8, 2016.
  18. "Charts.nz – Barbra Streisand – Higher Ground". Hung Medien. Retrieved March 8, 2016.
  19. "Norwegiancharts.com – Barbra Streisand – Higher Ground". Hung Medien. Retrieved March 8, 2016.
  20. Salaverri, Fernando (September 2005). Sólo éxitos: año a año, 1959–2002 (1st ed.). Spain: Fundación Autor-SGAE. ISBN 84-8048-639-2.
  21. "Swedishcharts.com – Barbra Streisand – Higher Ground". Hung Medien. Retrieved March 8, 2016.
  22. "Swisscharts.com – Barbra Streisand – Higher Ground". Hung Medien. Retrieved March 8, 2016.
  23. "Barbra Streisand | Artist | Official Charts". UK Albums Chart. Retrieved March 8, 2016.
  24. "Barbra Streisand Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved March 8, 2016.
  25. "ARIA Charts – End Of Year Charts – Top 100 Albums 1997". Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved August 7, 2014.
  26. "Top Selling Albums". RPM. Vol. 66, no. 15. December 15, 1997. ISSN 0315-5994. Retrieved August 6, 2017.
  27. "End of Year Album Chart Top 100 – 1997". Official Charts Company. Retrieved April 29, 2015.
  28. "Jaaroverzichten – Album 1998". dutchcharts.nl. Retrieved October 31, 2020.
  29. "Billboard 200 Albums – Year-End 1998". Billboard. Archived from the original on July 5, 2013. Retrieved April 29, 2015.
  30. "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 1997 Albums" (PDF). Australian Recording Industry Association.
  31. "Canadian album certifications – Barbra Streisand – Higher Ground". Music Canada.
  32. "Dutch album certifications – Barbra Streisand – Higher Ground" (in Dutch). Nederlandse Vereniging van Producenten en Importeurs van beeld- en geluidsdragers. Enter Higher Ground in the "Artiest of titel" box. Select 1998 in the drop-down menu saying "Alle jaargangen".
  33. "New Zealand album certifications – Barbra Streisand – Higher Ground". Recorded Music NZ. Retrieved November 16, 2021.
  34. "Solo Exitos 1959–2002 Ano A Ano: Certificados 1996–1999". Solo Exitos 1959–2002 Ano A Ano.
  35. "British album certifications – Barbra Streisand – Higher Ground". British Phonographic Industry.
  36. "American album certifications – Barbra Streisand – Higher Ground". Recording Industry Association of America.
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