Burnin' is a studio album by American singer-songwriter Patti LaBelle. It was released by MCA Records on October 1, 1991, in the United States to mixed reviews. The album features several collaborations, including duets with Gladys Knight and Michael Bolton, and a reunion track with Nona Hendryx and Sarah Dash from Labelle. It yielded three Billboard R&B chart hits: "Feels Like Another One", "Somebody Loves You Baby (You Know Who It Is)" and "When You've Been Blessed (Feels Like Heaven)". The album, released on CD, LP, and cassette, was certified Gold in April 1992 by the Recording Industry Association of America for sales in excess of 500,000 copies. It reached number 71 on the Billboard 200 and number 13 on Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums. The title track Burnin' won the Grammy Award for Best Female R&B Vocal Performance at the 1992 ceremony, jointly with a single by Lisa Fischer. In 1992, LaBelle released her first solo live album, simply titled Live!, featuring several songs from Burnin' as it was recorded during this album's promotional tour. Under the pseudonym "Paisley Park", Prince co-wrote the song "I Hear Your Voice" along with his vocalist collaborator Rosie Gaines and her husband Francis Jules. Prince helped produce the track. The album track "Temptation", B-side of the fourth single released from the album, "When You Love Somebody (I'm Saving My Love for You)", was written by Cuban-American singer Martika, who originally released it on her album Martika's Kitchen.

Critical reception

Critical reviews were mixed: Entertainment Weekly gave it a B+, while the Los Angeles Times ranked it 2.5 stars out of 5, noting a reduction of LaBelle's usual intensity. Dave Obee from Calgary Herald wrote, "Not only is she on fire, she`s lighting matches and tossing them in all directions. Many hit gravel and quickly burn out. Look out, though, for the ones that touch anything flammable. Consider the song "I Don't Do Duets", a duet - huh? - with Gladys Knight. Listen as two of the strongest, most soulful and experienced voices turn a fair-to-average song into a R&B masterpiece. It's no surprise that La Belle couldn't keep the heat turned up at that level for the entire disc, but the best stuff here - the Knight song and a duet with Michael Bolton - more than makes up for its weak moments."

Track listing

Notes

Personnel

Production

Studios

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications