First Listen: Mariah Carey’s “Music Box” turns 30 with new deluxe edition and unreleased track

NEW YORK–September 8, 2023–Columbia Records and Legacy Recordings, the catalog division of Sony Music Entertainment, are celebrating the 30th anniversary of Mariah Carey’s blockbuster Music Box album with the digital release of Music Box: 30th Anniversary Expanded Edition and a collectible limited edition cassette of the original album.

The digital configuration of Music Box: 30th Anniversary Expanded Edition and the limited collector’s cassette edition of Music Box are available now. The limited edition cassette of Music Box is available exclusively through Mariah’s official store and Urban Outfitters. Please visit HERE

Deluxe physical configurations (3CD and 4LP) of Mariah Carey’s Music Box: 30th Anniversary Expanded Edition are slated for release early next year and may be pre-ordered now. Please visit HERE

The cover art for digital and physical configurations of Mariah Carey’s Music Box: 30th Anniversary Expanded Edition presents the previously unpublished full-frame un-cropped version of Mariah’s iconic cover photo.

First released on Columbia Records on August 31, 1993, Mariah Carey’s eagerly-anticipated third studio album Music Box built on the already extraordinary musical and commercial achievements of her debut (Mariah Carey, 1990) and its successor (Emotions, 1991) to give the world a transcendent hit-filled masterpiece while securing the singer/songwriter/performer/artist’s international status as an iconic pop culture superstar and musical visionary.

The first of Mariah’s albums to be RIAA certified Diamond, Music Box introduced fans to enduring signature Carey classics including “Dreamlover,””Hero,””Without You”and more.

A three-disc set, Music Box: 30th Anniversary Expanded Edition presents the original album Music Box in its entirety on Disc One with the noteworthy addition of “Everything Fades Away”(previously available only as an international bonus track). Disc Two premieres a variety of previously unreleased tracks including “Workin’ Hard,””All I Live For (Extended Version),””My Prayer,””Hero (2009 Version),””Anytime You Need A Friend (Extended Mix,”) “Music Box (A Capella)”and two live performances from Top of the Pops: “Dreamlover”and “Without You.”Disc Two also includes Mariah Carey’s duet with Luther Vandross on “Endless Love”as well as two brand new remixes from Grammy Award nominated DJ Terry Hunter: “I’ve Been Thinking About You”and “Workin’ Hard.”

Disc Three, “Mariah Carey Live at Proctor’s Theater, NY – 1993” presents Mariah’s complete showcase for the first time and features eight previously unreleased concert performances. (The Proctor’s Theater performances of “Hero”and “Dreamlover”are the only two previously released tracks from the concert).

Spatial Audio versions of the original Music Box and the unreleased track, “Workin’ Hard,”are being released today. Check out below

Video

More Info

On September 12, the “Making of Dreamlover”mini-doc will premiere on Mariah’s YouTube channel. Other 30th anniversary Music Box video content will include “Making of Music Box”mini-doc and the “What’s In MC’s Music Box”social media series featuring lo-fi bite-sized clips with Mariah.

On September 14, an animated explainer video offering insight into the making of the album will debut on Mariah’s YouTube channel.

Mariah Carey’s third studio album, Music Box featured five singles with the first three–“Dreamlover,””Hero” and “Without You”–topping charts around the world. Mariah was nominated for the Best Female Pop Vocal Performance for “Dreamlover”at the 1994 Grammy Awards while “Hero” and Mariah were nominated in the same category at the 1995 Grammy Awards. Music Box reached #1 in 15 countries including Australia, France, Germany, the United Kingdom and the United States. The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) certified Music Box Diamond status as of November 5, 1997, for shipments of ten million copies across the United States. Most recently, the RIAA certified “Hero” as 3x platinum. With more than 30 million copies sold worldwide since its release, Music Box is Mariah Carey’s top-selling album and one of the best-selling albums of all time.