The Sweetest Days

The Sweetest Days
The Sweetest Days
Studio album by Vanessa Williams
Released	December 6, 1994
Recorded	January 1993–October 1994
Studio	Axis (New York City); Battery (New York City); Electric Lady (New York City); Power Station (New York City); The Hit Factory (New York City); Bass Hit (New York City); Sorcerer (New York City); Right Track (New York City); RPM Sound (New York City); East Wing (New York City); Sony Music (New York City); Capitol (Hollywood, California); Westlake (West Hollywood, California); Mad Hatter (Los Angeles); Music Grinder (Hollywood, California); Larrabee Sound (North Hollywood, California); The Bennett House (Franklin, Tennessee); Javelina Recording (Nashville, Tennessee); Goodnight (Dallas, Texas);
Genre	R&B; pop; jazz;
Length	52:08
Label	Wing; Mercury;
Producer	Babyface; Gerry E. Brown; Keith Thomas; Vanessa Williams;
Vanessa Williams chronology
Singles from The Sweetest Days
	"The Sweetest Days"; Released: October 18, 1994; "The Way That You Love"; Released: January 24, 1995; "Colors of the Wind"; Released: April 25, 1995; "You Can't Run"; Released: July 17, 1995; "Higher Ground"; Released: October 10, 1995; "Betcha Never"; Released: January 30, 1996;

Professional ratings
Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	^[1]
Robert Christgau	^[3]
Muzik	^[2]

The Sweetest Days is the third studio album by American singer Vanessa Williams, released on December 6, 1994, by Wing Records and Mercury Records. The album peaked at number 57 on the US Billboard 200 and at number 25 on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart, and has been certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA).^[4]

The album includes the singles "You Can't Run", "Betcha Never", "The Way That You Love", and the title track. It also includes the first recording of the song "Higher Ground" later covered by Barbra Streisand as the title track from her 1997 self-titled album, as well as cover versions of songs previously recorded by Patti Austin and Sting. The album was re-released in 1995 with the additional track "Colors of the Wind", the theme from the Disney animated film Pocahontas.

"The Way That You Love" and "You Can't Run" were nominated at the 1995 Grammy Awards for Best R&B Vocal Performance, Female and Best R&B Song, respectively.

Track listing

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Producer(s)	Length
1.	"Intro-Lude"	Nick Moroch Gerry E. Brown	Brown Vanessa Williams	0:55
2.	"The Way That You Love"	J. Dibbs Abenaa	Brown Williams J. Dibbs^[a]	4:48
3.	"Betcha Never"	Babyface	Babyface	3:55
4.	"The Sweetest Days"	Jon Lind Wendy Waldman Phil Galdston	Keith Thomas	3:31
5.	"Higher Ground"	Steve Dorff George Gree	Brown Williams	4:19
6.	"You Don't Have to Say You're Sorry"	Patti Austin	Brown Williams	4:10
7.	"Ellamental"	Laythan Armor Bunny Hull	Brown Williams	6:06
8.	"Sister Moon"	Sting	Brown Williams	5:28
9.	"You Can't Run"	Babyface	Babyface	4:27
10.	"Moonlight Over Paris"	Peter Mayer James Mayer Roger Guth	Brown Williams	5:07
11.	"Constantly"	Donald Robinson	Brown Williams Galdston^[a]	5:04
12.	"Long Way Home"	Brock Walsh Eric Carmen Galdston	Brown Williams	4:18

1996 Japanese reissue bonus tracks^[5]
No.	Title	Writer(s)	Producer(s)	Length
13.	"Love Is" (duet with Brian McKnight)	Tonio K John Keller	Brown Williams McKnight	4:46
14.	"Colors of the Wind" (radio mix)	Alan Menken Stephen Schwartz	Thomas	4:20

1995 Target exclusive edition (bonus CD single)
No.	Title	Writer(s)	Producer(s)	Length
1.	"For All the Children"	Don Sebesky Gloria Nissenson	Brown Moroch	3:20
2.	"Colors of the Wind" (radio mix)	Menken Schwartz	Thomas	4:18

Notes

^{^[a]} signifies a co-producer

Charts

Weekly charts

Weekly chart performance for *The Sweetest Days*
Chart (1994–1995)	Peak position
Australian Albums (ARIA)^[6]	72
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)^[7]	74
US Billboard 200^[8]	57
US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums (Billboard)^[9]	25

Year-end charts

Year-end chart performance for *The Sweetest Days*
Chart (1995)	Position
US Billboard 200^[10]	142
US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums (Billboard)^[11]	68

Certifications

Certifications for *The Sweetest Days*
Region	Certification	Certified units/sales
Japan (RIAJ)^[12]	Gold	100,000^{^}
United States (RIAA)^[4]	Platinum	1,000,000^{^}
^{^} Shipments figures based on certification alone.

References

^ Allmusic review
^ Jones, Bob (September 1995). "Vanessa Williams: Sweetest Days" (PDF). Muzik. No. 4. p. 81. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2 April 2022.
^ Consumer Guide: Vanessa Williams
^ ^a ^b "American album certifications – Vanessa Williams – The Sweetest Days". Recording Industry Association of America. August 1, 1995. Retrieved December 13, 2018.
^ "Sweetest Days : Vanessa Williams". HMV Japan. Retrieved May 11, 2022.
^ Ryan, Gavin (2011). Australia's Music Charts 1988–2010 (PDF ed.). Mt Martha, Victoria, Australia: Moonlight Publishing. p. 303.
^ "Offiziellecharts.de – Vanessa Williams – The Sweetest Days" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved March 14, 2021.
^ "Vanessa Williams Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved March 14, 2021.
^ "Vanessa Williams Chart History (Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved March 14, 2021.
^ "Billboard 200 Albums – Year-End 1995". Billboard. Archived from the original on January 22, 2021. Retrieved March 14, 2021.
^ "Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums – Year-End 1995". Billboard. Archived from the original on May 11, 2021. Retrieved March 14, 2021.
^ "Japanese album certifications – ヴァネッサ・ウィリアムス (Vanessa Williams) – スウィーテスト・デイズ (The Sweetest Days)" (in Japanese). Recording Industry Association of Japan. Retrieved March 23, 2020. Select 1995年2月 on the drop-down menu

[1] Allmusic review

[2] Jones, Bob (September 1995). "Vanessa Williams: Sweetest Days" (PDF). Muzik. No. 4. p. 81. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2 April 2022.

[3] Consumer Guide: Vanessa Williams

[riaa-4] "American album certifications – Vanessa Williams – The Sweetest Days". Recording Industry Association of America. August 1, 1995. Retrieved December 13, 2018.

[5] "Sweetest Days : Vanessa Williams". HMV Japan. Retrieved May 11, 2022.

[6] Ryan, Gavin (2011). Australia's Music Charts 1988–2010 (PDF ed.). Mt Martha, Victoria, Australia: Moonlight Publishing. p. 303.

[ac_Germany4_Vanessa_Williams-7] "Offiziellecharts.de – Vanessa Williams – The Sweetest Days" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved March 14, 2021.

[ac_Billboard200_Vanessa_Williams-8] "Vanessa Williams Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved March 14, 2021.

[ac_BillboardRandBHipHop_Vanessa_Williams-9] "Vanessa Williams Chart History (Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved March 14, 2021.

[10] "Billboard 200 Albums – Year-End 1995". Billboard. Archived from the original on January 22, 2021. Retrieved March 14, 2021.

[11] "Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums – Year-End 1995". Billboard. Archived from the original on May 11, 2021. Retrieved March 14, 2021.

[Japanヴァネッサ・ウィリアムス_(Vanessa_Williams)スウィーテスト・デイズ_(The_Sweetest_Days)albumCertRef-12] "Japanese album certifications – ヴァネッサ・ウィリアムス (Vanessa Williams) – スウィーテスト・デイズ (The Sweetest Days)" (in Japanese). Recording Industry Association of Japan. Retrieved March 23, 2020. Select 1995年2月 on the drop-down menu

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v t e Vanessa Williams
Discography Awards and nominations
Studio albums	The Right Stuff The Comfort Zone The Sweetest Days Star Bright Next Silver & Gold Everlasting Love The Real Thing
Compilations	Greatest Hits: The First Ten Years Love Songs
Singles	"The Right Stuff" "(He's Got) the Look" "Dreamin'" "Darlin' I" "Running Back to You" "The Comfort Zone" "Save the Best for Last" "Work to Do" "Just for Tonight" "Love Is" "The Sweetest Days" "The Way That You Love" "Colors of the Wind" "Where Do We Go from Here" "Do You Hear What I Hear / The Little Drummer Boy" "Happiness" "Oh How the Years Go By" "Merry Christmas Darling" "You Are Everything" "The Real Thing" "Legs (Keep Dancing)"
Relatives	William A. Feilds Chris Williams Jillian Hervey
Related topics	Maxine Joseph Chadway Wilhelmina Slater Renee Perry Vanessa Williams and Miss America
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