Sweet Dreams (La Bouche album)

Sweet Dreams is the debut studio album by German Eurodance duo La Bouche, consisting of singer Melanie Thornton and singer/rapper Lane McCray. It was released in 1995 by MCI Records and was produced by Frank Farian under the pseudonym FMP. Four singles were released from the album: "Sweet Dreams", "Be My Lover", "Fallin' in Love" and "I Love to Love". The album was very successful all over the world, reaching number two in Finland and Switzerland, and number three in Germany. It was certified Platinum in Australia, New Zealand and the United States, and Gold in Canada, Finland, Germany, Hong Kong, Japan, Poland and Switzerland.

Sweet Dreams
Studio album by La Bouche
Released	12 June 1995
Recorded	1994–1995
Genre	Eurodance dance-pop
Length	55:16
Label	MCI
Producer	FMP (Frank Farian)
La Bouche chronology
Sweet Dreams (1995) A Moment of Love (1997)

Critical reception

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[1]
Robert Christgau	[2]
The Encyclopedia of Popular Music	[3]
Entertainment Weekly	B[4]
The Indianapolis Star	[5]
Knoxville News Sentinel	[6]
Los Angeles Times	[7]

J.D. Considine from The Baltimore Sun complimented Thornton's voice, as a classic soul singer, "blessed with power, tone and an impressive interpretive ability".^[8] Gil L. Robertson IV from Cash Box wrote, "Their vocal delivery is crisp, fresh and full of personality that should provide them with a winning edge in the highly competitive world of dance/R&B." He highlighted "Sweet Dreams", "Nice 'N' Slow", "Do You Still Need Me" and "Be My Lover".^[9] Chuck Eddy from Entertainment Weekly found that "their electro-boogie keyboards, chesty diva choruses, and bellowed raps are irksomely interchangeable with any old C+C Music Factory hit: the sound of house music spinning its wheels."^[4]

Lynn Dean Ford from The Indianapolis Star said the "real treats" on the album include a remake of Hamilton, Joe Frank & Reynolds' 1975 hit "Fallin' in Love", "which La Bouche turns into an engaging R&B shuffle; "Do You Still Need Me", a ballad with an understated country feel; and "Shoo Bee Do Bee Do (I Like it That Way)", a jaunty, hook- filled, midtempo ditty with a jangly rhythm guitar. Through it all, Thornton emerges as a talented vocalist who probably would jam harder on meatier material."^[5] Chuck Campbell from Knoxville News Sentinel stated that the duo "manages some functional rhythms similar to "Be My Lover" on the title track and "I Love to Love"." He felt that La Bouche "pours dance-conscious heart" into "Fallin' in Love", "plus "Nice 'N' Slow" is an agreeable slap-and-stomp number. However, Thornton and McCray stray disastrously from standard dance formula with the swaggering country-esque "Do You Still Need Me" and the mid-tempo "I'll Be There".^[6]

Track listing

Adapted from album booklet.^[10]

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Producer(s)	Length
1.	"Forget Me Nots"	Freddie Washington Patrice Rushen Terry McFadden	FMP	4:10
2.	"Sweet Dreams"	Melanie Thornton Gerd Amir Saraf Robert Haynes Mehmet Sönmez	Andy Brenner Saraf FMP	3:23
3.	"Be My Lover"	Thornton Brenner Saraf Lane McCray	Brenner Saraf FMP	3:58
4.	"Fallin' in Love"	Dan Hamilton Ann Hamilton	FMP	3:55
5.	"I'll Be There"	Felix Weber Irmgard Klarmann	Brenner Saraf FMP	4:10
6.	"Nice 'N' Slow"	Thornton McCray Saraf Brenner	Brenner Saraf FMP	3:58
7.	"Where Do You Go"	Peter Bischof-Fallenstein FMP James Walls	FMP	4:16
8.	"I Love to Love"	McCray Saraf Brenner	Saraf Brenner	3:59
9.	"Do You Still Need Me"	Mary S. Applegate FMP Dietmar Kawohl	FMP	3:35
10.	"Poetry in Motion"	Applegate FMP	FMP	3:40
11.	"Shoo Bee Do Bee Do (I Like That Way)"	Bischof-Fallenstein FMP Walls	FMP	3:58
12.	"The Heat Is On"	Bischof-Fallenstein FMP	FMP	3:42
13.	"Mama Look (I Love Him)"	Bischof-Fallenstein FMP Walls	FMP	3:58
14.	"Be My Lover" (House Mix)	Thornton Brenner Saraf McCray	Brenner Saraf FMP	3:56

1996 version

No.	Title	Length
1.	"Be My Lover"
2.	"Sweet Dreams"
3.	"Fallin' In Love"
4.	"Where Do You Go"
5.	"I'll Be There"
6.	"Do You Still Need Me"
7.	"I Love To Love"
8.	"The Heat Is On"
9.	"Poetry In Motion"
10.	"Shoo Bee Do Bee Do (I Like It That Way)"
11.	"Nice 'N' Slow"
12.	"Fallin' In Love (Spike Mix)"
13.	"Be My Lover (House Mix)"
14.	"Tonight Is The Night"

Charts

Weekly charts Chart (1995) Peak position Australian Albums (ARIA)[11] 10 Austrian Albums (Ö3 Austria)[12] 9 Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)[13] 41 Finnish Albums (Suomen virallinen lista)[14] 2 German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[15] 3 New Zealand Albums (RMNZ)[16] 6 Norwegian Albums (VG-lista)[17] 26 Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan)[18] 29 Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)[19] 2 US Billboard 200[20] 28

Year-end charts Chart (1995) Position German Albums (Official Top 100)[21] 46 Chart (1996) Position Australian Albums (ARIA)[22] 43 New Zealand Albums (RMNZ)[23] 43 US Billboard 200[24] 59

Certifications

Region	Certification	Certified units/sales
Australia (ARIA)[25]	Platinum	70,000^
Canada (Music Canada)[26]	Gold	50,000^
Finland (Musiikkituottajat)[27]	Gold	23,414[27]
Germany (BVMI)[28]	Gold	250,000^
Hong Kong (IFPI Hong Kong)[29]	Gold	10,000*
Japan (RIAJ)[30]	Gold	100,000^
New Zealand (RMNZ)[31]	Platinum	15,000^
Poland (ZPAV)[32]	Gold	50,000*
Switzerland (IFPI Switzerland)[33]	Gold	25,000^
United States (RIAA)[34]	Platinum	1,000,000^
* Sales figures based on certification alone. ^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

Release history

Region	Date	Format	Label
Various	12 June 1995	CD cassette	MCI

References

1. Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. Sweet Dreams review at AllMusic. Retrieved 11 November 2022.
2. Christgau, Robert. "La Bouche". Robert Christgau. Retrieved 6 January 2023.
3. Larkin, Colin (2006). The Encyclopedia of Popular Music. Omnibus Press. p. 799.
4. Eddy, Chuck (26 January 1996). "Sweet Dreams". Entertainment Weekly.
5. Dean Ford, Lynn (1 February 1996). "There's both Sting and balm in Sumner". The Indianapolis Star.
6. Campbell, Chuck (9 February 1996). "Amos Losing Touch With 'Boys For Pele'". Knoxville News Sentinel.
7. Johnson, Connie (17 February 1996). "La Bouche, "Sweet Dreams", RCA". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 20 January 2023.
8. Considine, J.D. (1 February 1996). "CD Reviews". The Baltimore Sun.
9. Robertson IV, Gil L. (27 January 1996). "Urban" (PDF). Cash Box. p. 11. Retrieved 11 November 2022.
10. Sweet Dreams (liner notes). La Bouche. MCI Records. 1995.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
11. "Australiancharts.com – La Bouche – Sweet Dreams". Hung Medien. Retrieved 19 March 2021.
12. "Austriancharts.at – La Bouche – Sweet Dreams" (in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved 19 March 2021.
13. "Dutchcharts.nl – La Bouche – Sweet Dreams" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 19 March 2021.
14. "La Bouche: Sweet Dreams" (in Finnish). Musiikkituottajat – IFPI Finland. Retrieved 19 March 2021.
15. "Offiziellecharts.de – La Bouche – Sweet Dreams" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved 19 March 2021.
16. "Charts.nz – La Bouche – Sweet Dreams". Hung Medien. Retrieved 19 March 2021.
17. "Norwegiancharts.com – La Bouche – Sweet Dreams". Hung Medien. Retrieved 19 March 2021.
18. "Swedishcharts.com – La Bouche – Sweet Dreams". Hung Medien. Retrieved 19 March 2021.
19. "Swisscharts.com – La Bouche – Sweet Dreams". Hung Medien. Retrieved 19 March 2021.
20. "La Bouche Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved 19 March 2021.
21. "Top 100 Album-Jahrescharts (1995)". Offiziellecharts.de. Retrieved 19 March 2021.
22. "ARIA Top 100 Albums for 1996". Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved 6 June 2021.
23. "Top Selling Albums of 1996". Recorded Music NZ. Retrieved 31 January 2022.
24. "Top Billboard 200 Albums – Year-End 1996". Billboard. Retrieved 6 June 2021.
25. "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 1996 Albums" (PDF). Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved 28 November 2021.
26. "Canadian album certifications – La Bouche – Sweet Dreams". Music Canada. Retrieved 19 March 2021.
27. "La Bouche" (in Finnish). Musiikkituottajat – IFPI Finland. Retrieved 19 March 2021.
28. "Gold-/Platin-Datenbank (La Bouche; 'Sweet Dreams')" (in German). Bundesverband Musikindustrie. Retrieved 19 March 2021.
29. "IFPIHK Gold Disc Award − 1997". IFPI Hong Kong. Retrieved July 20, 2022.
30. "Japanese album certifications – La Bouche – Sweet Dreams" (in Japanese). Recording Industry Association of Japan. Retrieved July 20, 2022. Select 1997年4月 on the drop-down menu
31. "New Zealand album certifications – La Bouche – Sweet Dreams". Recorded Music NZ. Retrieved 2024-11-20.
32. "Wyróżnienia – Złote płyty CD - Archiwum - Przyznane w 1996 roku" (in Polish). Polish Society of the Phonographic Industry. Retrieved July 20, 2022.
33. "The Official Swiss Charts and Music Community: Awards ('Sweet Dreams')". IFPI Switzerland. Hung Medien. Retrieved 19 March 2021.
34. "American album certifications – La Bouche – Sweet Dreams". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved 19 March 2021.