Anytime is the third studio album by American singer Brian McKnight. It was released by Mercury Records on September 23, 1997, in the United States. Following I Remember You (1995), McKnight enlisted a broader range of collaborators for the project, including producers Sean Combs, Keith Thomas, Poke & Tone, and songwriters Diane Warren, and Peter Black. Although McKnight wrote most of the album's material, Anytime marked a departure from the urban adult contemporary sound of his earlier work, incorporating greater elements of hip hop soul through its production and collaborations.

Upon its release, the album garnered generally mixed reviews from music critics, with some praising its hip hop-influenced direction while others criticized its uninspired material. Commercially, it broke into the top 20 on the US Billboard 200, while becoming McKnight's first album to top the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart. A steady seller, it was certified double platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), indicating sales in excess of 2.0 units, and spawned several singles, including the top 20 hit "You Should Be Mine (Don't Waste Your Time)". Anytime marked McKnight's last record with Mercury Records before moving to Motown Records.

Background Anytime marked McKnight's third studio album with Mercury Records. While his previous album I Remember You (1995) was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), it only sold half as much as its predecessor Brian McKnight (1992). Feeling initially pressured after what he called "the pseudo-failure of the I Remember You album,” McKnight, who was used to writing and producing most of his music by himself, decided to work with a wider range of musicians on the Anytime, including Sean "Puffy" Combs, Keith Thomas, Poke & Tone, Diane Warren, and Peter Block. With Anytime exposing to a wider McKnight audience, McKnight elaborated in a 2012 interview: "If Anytime was the spark, then Back at One became the fire. I was doing things then that I had never done before, that an audience had never heard or seen."

Promotion Anytime spawned four singles, several of which achieved significant success on the US Billboard charts. The lead single "You Should Be Mine (Don't Waste Your Time)" became McKnight's biggest hit in four years, peaking at number 17 on the US Billboard Hot 100 and number 4 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart. It featured rapper Mase, whose own career was at its peak during 1997. The title track was an even bigger hit, reaching number 6 on the Billboard Hot 100 Airplay chart in May 1998. Since it was not released as a physical single, it was ineligible to chart on the Hot 100, but was still one of the most played songs on the radio during 1998. Anytimes third single "The Only One for Me" hit number 14 on the Rhythmic Top 40, as again no physical single was released for it. The fourth and final single was "Hold Me" hit number 35 on the Hot 100 and number 12 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs. The music video for "Hold Me" was released for the week ending on November 8, 1998.

Critical reception

Anytime garnered generally mixed reviews from music critics. Stephen Thomas Erlewine from Allmusic felt that McKnight "continues with the mellow, romantic urban R&B that has become his trademark, but there's a new twist [...] McKnight hasn't exhausted its possibilities yet – Anytime is as strong as its predecessor – but "You Should Be Mine" and "Hold Me" suggest that he may be better off pursuing a new, hip-hop-influenced direction." In a contemporary review, The Rolling Stone Album Guide wrote that Anytime "signaled the start of a new phase in McKnight's career." In his review for Vibe, Darren McNeill called Anytime a "collection of mostly tired joints [...] McKnight's solo effort pales in comparison to work by emerging-soul craftsmen like Eric Benét and Rahsaan Patterson." In his consumer guide for The Village Voice, critic Robert Christgau gave Anytime a "cut" rating, indicating "an album that isn't worth your time or money – sometimes a Neither, more often a Dud."

Commercial performance In the United States, Anytime became McKnight's highest-charting album yet, peaking at number 13 on the Billboard 200. McKnight's first album to do so, it also reached the top on Billboards Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart, spending three weeks at number one. According to Soundscan, Anytime had sold 1.7 million copies by January 1999. It was eventually certified double pltianum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), indicating sales in excess of 2.0 million copies. Billboard ranked the album fourth on its 1998 Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums year-end chart.

Track listing

Samples "Anytime" contains an uncredited sample of "Outside Your Door" performed by Meshell Ndegeocello. "You Should Be Mine (Don't Waste Your Time)" contains a sample from "I Got Ants in My Pants", written and performed by James Brown. "Hold Me" contains an interpolation of "I Get Around", written by Roger Troutman, Larry Troutman, Shirley Murdock, Tupac Shakur, Ronald R. Brooks, and Gregory E. Jacobs. "Jam Knock" contains an interpolation of "I Can't Wait", written by John Robert Smith.

Personnel Musicians

Brian McKnight – lead vocals, background vocals , all instruments , keyboards , additional keyboards , keyboard programming , rhythm and vocal arrangement Murray Adler – violin Rick Baptist – trumpet/cornet Bob Becker – viola Peter Black – all instruments Gary Bovyer – bass clarinet Denyse Buffum – viola Susan Chatman – violin Ron Clark – violin Jon Clarke – English horn DJ (Step Up) Clue – background vocals Lisa Cochran – background vocals Larry Corbett – cello Louise De Tullio – alto flute David Duke – French horn Bruce Dukov – violin Chris Ermacoff – cello Charles Farrar – drum programming Kim Fleming – background vocals Armen Garabedian – violin Berj Garabedian – violin James Getzoff – violin Harris Goldman – violin Endre Granat – violin Mark Hammond – drum programming Scott Haupert – viola Tom Hemby – classical guitar Dann Huff – guitars Rodney Jerkins – additional drum programming Suzie Katayama – orchestra contractor/coordinator and cello Peter Kent – violin Dan Greco – percussion Janet Lakatos – viola Joy Lyle – violin Mike Markman – violin Mase – rap vocals Jerry McPherson – guitars Joe Meyer – French horn Bill K. Meyers – orchestra arrangement Oscar Meza Jr. – bass Ralph Morrison – violin Anthony Nance – drum programming , all instruments Maria Newman – viola Bob Peterson – violin Poke & Tone – drum programming Barbra Porter – violin Kelly Price – background vocals and vocal arrangement Steve Richards – cello Cory Rooney – keyboards Jay Rosen – violin Anatoly Rosinsky – violin Gerry Rotella – alto flute John Scanlon – viola Haim Shtrum – violin Dan Smith – cello Rudy Stein – cello Troy Taylor – background vocals and drum programming , rhythm and vocal arrangement Keith Thomas – arrangements, piano, synthesizer, and bass programming Brad Warnaar – French horn John Wittenberg – violin Don Williams – percussion Willie Max – background vocals Ken Yerke – violin David Young – bass Bob Zimmitt – percussion

Technical

Tom Bender – assistant mix engineer Brant Biles – mix engineer Peter Black – mix engineer "Bassy" Bob Brockmann – mix engineer Andy Cardenas – recording engineer Doug Elkins – assistant engineer Dan Evans – production coordinator Mick Guzauski – mix engineer Doug "The Colonel" Kern – assistant engineer Paul Logus – mix engineer John "JM" Meredith – second engineer Carl Nappa – recording engineer Axel Niehaus – recording engineer Greg Parker – assistant engineer Joe Perrera – recording engineer Herb Powers – mastering engineer Pierre Smith – second engineer Ed Rasso – assistant mix engineer David Retinas – orchestra engineer Shaun Shankel – production coordinator Mary Ann Souza – assistant engineer Rich Travali – recording and mixing engineer Bill Whittington – recording engineer Chris Wood – recording engineer

Charts

Weekly charts +Weekly chart performance for Anytime Chart (1997–1998) Peakposition

Year-end charts +Year-end chart performance for Anytime Chart (1998) PositionUS Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums (Billboard)4

Certifications

References

External links