If I Could Tell You

If I Could Tell You is the tenth studio album by Greek keyboardist and composer Yanni, released in October 2000 by Virgin Records. It peaked at #1 on Billboard's "Top New Age Albums" chart and at #20 on the "Billboard 200" chart in the same year.[1]

This article is about the album by Yanni. For the 1940 song, see If I Could Tell You (song).
If I Could Tell You
Studio album by
Yanni
ReleasedOctober 3, 2000
StudioYanni's home studio in Florida, U.S.
GenreInstrumental
Length62:40
LabelVirgin
ProducerYanni
Yanni chronology
Snowfall
(2000)		 If I Could Tell You
(2000)		 The Very Best of Yanni
(2000)

Background

In July 1998, Yanni completed his 1997–1998 world tour, staged in support of his 1997 live album Tribute.[2] The tour's schedule left Yanni exhausted and marked a period of decline in his life and career, stemmed by his separation from a decade-long relationship with actress Linda Evans and the depression that followed. Yanni then put his career on hold for two years, during which he avoided interviews, lived with his parents for three months in his native Greece, and travelled.[2] Sometime in 1999, while watching the sunrise, Yanni felt he had recovered enough to resume his music career. He returned to his Florida home and started work on material for a new studio album, his first of all original songs since his 1993 album In My Time.[3] While writing he demanded to be left alone: "I instructed everyone: 'Don't talk to me. If you see me in the morning, say good morning and let me go'."[2]

Critical reception
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[4]

In a review by Zac Johnson of Allmusic, Greek composer/musician Yanni has scaled back his grand musical architecture for If I Could Tell You, a sharp contrast to 1997's grandiose Tribute. The synthesized choral works seem almost sparse and frail, and the elements of world music that have been increasingly injected into his previous works are scaled back as well. Still present, however, are the straightforward melodies and overtly romantic themes that Yanni has been known (and in some cases disliked) for, but these too are less classically inspired and almost atmospheric. Unfortunately, this release may not be sweeping enough for those who fell in love with his romance novel soundtracks, and conversely it doesn't get dreamy enough to attract fans of ambient electronic musicians like Vangelis and Brian Eno. While it is somewhat surprising for Yanni to back away from the richly orchestrated works on Tribute and 1993's In My Time, the move shows a real sense of direction and growth that few give him credit for.[5]

Track listing

All music composed and arranged by Yanni.

No.TitleLength
1."On Sacred Ground"7:08
2."The Flame Within"5:53
3."Midnight Hymn"5:49
4."November Sky"4:43
5."With an Orchid"5:05
6."Wishing Well"5:43
7."A Walk in the Rain"4:55
8."Highland"5:53
9."If I Could Tell You"5:51
10."In Your Eyes"5:09
11."Reason for Rainbows"6:01

Personnel

Adapted from the album's liner notes.[6]

Music

  • Yanni – all instruments, including a Yamaha CF III S 9' concert grand piano and Yamaha DC7 E3-Pro Disklavier grand piano

Production

  • Yanni – production, engineering, mixing
  • Anthony Stabile – assistant engineer
  • Chris Bellman – mastering at Bernie Grundman Mastering in Hollywood, California

RIAA certification

Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) Gold and Platinum database entries:[7]

  • (G=Gold, P=Platinum, M=Multi-Platinum)
  • YANNI IF I COULD TELL YOU 11/20/00 VIRGIN RECORDS G ALBUM SOLO Std

Certifications and sales
Region CertificationCertified units/sales
United States (RIAA)[8] Gold 627,000[9]

References
  1. "Chart history for If I Could Tell You". AllMusic. Retrieved 2015-04-20.
  2. Segal, David (24 October 2000). "Yanni's back-and Ready for a Group Hug With the World". Los Angeles Times. p. F12. Retrieved 3 November 2020 – via Newspapers.com.
  3. Ethnicity World Tour 2003–2004 - Official concert program. Yanni. 2003.
  4. AllMusic
  5. Zac Johnson. "Review of If I Could Tell You". AllMusic. Retrieved 2015-05-10.
  6. If I Could Tell You (CD liner). Yanni. Virgin Records. 2000. 7243-8-49893-2-3.CS1 maint: others (link).
  7. "Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) Gold and Platinum database". Archived from the original on 2006-12-21. Retrieved 2007-01-01.
  8. "American album certifications – Yanni – If I could tell you". Recording Industry Association of America. If necessary, click Advanced, then click Format, then select Album, then click SEARCH. 
  9. "Yanni Slates Ambitious North American Tour". Billboard. 8 January 2003. Retrieved 30 October 2018.
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