Caution

by Mariah Carey

Overview

Mariah Carey briskly shook off the cold commercial response to Me. I Am Mariah... The Elusive Chanteuse by switching out much of her inner circle, returning to the Sony family through a deal with Epic, holding a number ones-themed Vegas residency, and touring Europe, among a surplus of other undertakings. The rejuvenation of Carey continues with Caution. A compact, Music Box-sized album, it's unelaborate in presentation and makeup, a measured and understated collection of slow and midtempo R&B ballads. Carey retains almost none of the collaborators who worked on the previous album and uses a different combination of co-producers and co-writers on each of these ten songs. Other than the contributors and the various relationship stages it covers -- flirtatious enticement, celebration, reminiscence, perseverance, rejection -- nothing else about about the album is scattered. No songs are highly energized, but Carey sounds like she's deriving joy from each one, even while she flatly expunges a false lover with "How 'bout you get the fuck out?," delivered in her upper register with part-scarred, part-relieved finesse. Sharper yet is "A No No," in which the deletion of a deceiver is graphically revelrous -- "Off with your head, now slither out the door" -- repurposing Lil' Kim's "Crush on You" in the process. Clever-as-ever nostalgic references are planted elsewhere, like when Carey swoons about "Loving you so long, ever since that Bone Thugs song" and wittily lures with "Addicted to you, come support my habit/Third person, yeah, she gotta have it." Carey is likewise still into rekindling teenage emotions, evident most on "8th Grade," a sweetly Aaliyah-referencing highlight co-produced by Timbaland, and in "Giving Me Life," a stone(d) Blood Orange groove with a grin-inducing appearance from Slick Rick (plus Billy Ray Valentine and Even Bigger Black Guy of Trading Places). At the end is the one proper belter, "Portrait," a strings-and-piano number about emotional suppression and devotion. The escalation in intensity hits hard, even if its imminence can be sensed from the moment Daniel Moore's fingers make contact with the piano. ~ Andy Kellman

Product Details

Release Date:	12/21/2018
Label:	Epic
UPC:	0190758991313

Tracks

1. GTFO
2. With You
3. Caution
4. A No No
5. The Distance
6. Giving Me Life
7. One Mo' Gen
8. 8th Grade
9. Stay Long Love You
10. Portrait

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Mariah Carey   Primary Artist
Slick Rick   Primary Artist,Featured Artist
Gunna   Primary Artist,Featured Artist
Ty Dolla $ign   Primary Artist,Vocals,Featured Artist
Blood Orange   Primary Artist,Featured Artist
Josh Baker   Percussion
Serena McKinney   Violin
Timbaland   Vocals
Angel Lopez   Keyboards
Larrance Dopson   Keyboards
Jonathan Yip   Synthesizer
Ray Romulus   Drums
Jeremy Reeves   Percussion
Daniel Moore II   Piano
Mary Ann Tatum   Vocals (Background)
Priscilla Renea   Vocals (Background)
Federico Vindver   Keyboards
Ray Charles McCullough II   Bass

Technical Credits

Andreao Heard   Composer
The Stereotypes   Mixing,Producer
Chris Gehringer   Mastering
Will Quinnell   Assistant
Ricky Walters   Composer
Jeff Lorber   Composer
Mariah Carey   Composer,Producer,Executive Producer
Jermaine Dupri   Additional Production
Serena McKinney   String Arrangements
Shea Taylor   Composer,Producer
Timothy Mosley   Composer
Timbaland   Producer
Brian Garten   Mixing,Engineer
Sonny Moore   Composer
Ezekiel Lewis   A&R
Jaycen Joshua   Mixing
Angel Lopez   Composer,Engineer,Producer,Programming
Poo Bear   Producer
Ernest Wilson   Composer
Phil Tan   Mixing
Lido   Producer,Programming
Chris Galland   Mixing Engineer
Larrance Dopson   Composer
Jonathan Yip   Composer
Ray Romulus   Composer
Jeremy Reeves   Composer
Mikaelin 'Blue' BlueSpruce   Mixing
Tyrone Griffin   Composer
Daniel Moore II   Composer,Producer
Christopher Wallace   Composer
Matt Anthony   Assistant
Mason Betha   Composer
Anita Marisa Boriboon   Design,Art Direction
Jason Patterson   Assistant
Richard Evatt   Assistant
Colin Leonard   Mastering
Devonte Hynes   Composer,Producer,Instrumentation
Fred Ball   Composer,Producer
Cameron Giles   Composer
Skrillex   Producer
DJ Mustard   Producer
Dijon McFarlane   Composer
Priscilla Hamilton   Composer
Federico Vindver   Composer,Engineer,Producer,Programming
Ray Charles McCullough II   Composer
Brendan Morawski   Assistant
Peder Losnegard   Composer
Dominique Dunn   A&R
Ebony Oshunrinde   Composer
James Royo   Engineer
Bill Zimmerman   Mixing Assistant,Assistant Engineer
Kimberly Jones   Composer
Jason Boyd   Composer
Jeremy Nichols   Assistant,Assistant Engineer
Zach Brown   Assistant
Robin Florent   Mixing Assistant
Luca Polizzi   Composer
Rashawn McLean   Assistant,Mixing Assistant
Jordon Manswell   Producer
Mohamed Sulaiman   Composer
Scott Desmarais   Mixing Assistant
Sergio Kitchens   Composer
Greg Lawary   Composer
Jacob Richards   Assistant,Mixing Assistant
Mike Seaberg   Assistant,Mixing Assistant
An Le   Photography
Charles Henshaw   Composer