About The Song
“Where Do Broken Hearts Go” is a song recorded by American singer Whitney Houston for her second studio album, Whitney (1987). It was released as the fourth single from the album in February 1988. The song was written by Frank Wildhorn and Chuck Jackson and produced by Narada Michael Walden. A pop ballad set in the key of D major, the record is about someone seeking for a former lover to return after a breakup. Upon its release, the song received mixed reviews from critics.
The song helped Houston to set an all-time chart record on the Billboard Hot 100, in which it became Houston’s seventh consecutive number one single on the chart, beating the record of six, previously held by The Beatles and The Bee Gees. As of 2024, the record still holds. It also made Houston just the second artist to land four number one singles off one album after Michael Jackson had set the record with his Bad album and made her the first female artist to do so.
Both the song and the song’s music video, directed by Peter Israelson, received some negative reaction from some members of Houston’s core black audience who accused the singer of “selling out”. Houston would later perform the song in full on her Moment of Truth World Tour, while in later tours such as the I’m Your Baby Tonight World Tour and The Bodyguard World Tour, portions of the song was included in a “Love Medley” segment, usually near the end of the medley.
By September 1986, Whitney Houston had quickly risen to superstardom following the release of her self-titled debut album, Whitney Houston, which had spawned four consecutive top ten singles, the latter three having gone to number one in a row on the Billboard Hot 100, having sold more copies than any album released by an African-American female artist at the time.That month, while Houston was on her first headlining world tour, The Greatest Love World Tour, Arista head Clive Davis began preparing songs for Houston’s sophomore release. Following the global crossover success of “How Will I Know” produced by Narada Michael Walden, Davis handpicked him to be the primary producer of the second album. During the summer, Houston began recording with Walden with material Davis had previewed for the singer in demo recordings, including “I Wanna Dance with Somebody (Who Loves Me)”. Though Davis wanted Houston to have a younger, accessible sound, Davis agreed to continue the previous album’s use of ballads.
Video
Lyrics
I know it’s been some time
But there’s something on my mind
You see, I haven’t been the same
Since that cold November day
We said we needed space
But all we found was an empty place
And the only things I learned
Is that I need you desperately
So here I am
And can you please tell me, oh
Where do broken hearts go?
Can they find their way home
Back to the open arms
Of a love that’s waiting there?
And if somebody loves you
Won’t they always love you?
I look in your eyes
And I know that you still care, for me (ooh, baby)
I’ve been around enough to know
That dreams don’t turn to gold
And that there is no easy way
No, you just can’t run away
And what we had was so much more
Than we ever had before
And no matter how I try
You’re always on my mind
So here I am
And can you please tell me, oh
Where do broken hearts go?
Can they find their way home
Back to the open arms
Of a love that’s waiting there?
And if somebody loves you
Won’t they always love you?
I look in your eyes
And I know that you still care for me
And now that I am here with you
I’ll never let you go
I look into your eyes
And now I know, now I know
Where do broken hearts go?
Can they find their way home
Back to the open arms
Of a love that’s waiting there?
And if somebody loves you
Won’t they always love you?
I look in your eyes
And I know that you still care
Where do broken hearts go?
Can they find their way home
Back to the open arms
Of a love that’s waiting there?
And if somebody loves you
Won’t they always love you?
I look in your eyes
And I know that you still care for me, for me
You still care for me