Petaluma songwriter remembers Whitney Houston

<p>The death of singer Whitney Houston on Saturday stunned the music world, but the loss was more deeply felt by Petaluma resident George Merrill.</p><p>Merrill, an accomplished singer songwriter, co-wrote two of Houston's hit songs in the mid-1980s, <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m3-hY-hlhBg">"How Will I Know"</a> (1986) and <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eH3giaIzONA"> "I Wanna Dance With Somebody”</a> (1987). </p><p>Houston, one of pop music's biggest stars, died Saturday in a Los Angeles hotel room. She was 48.</p><p>Her death came as a shock, Merrill said in a phone interview on Sunday. “It was a sad ending after such a brilliant beginning.” He recalled when he and his singing and writing partner, Shannon Rubicam, met Houston backstage at the Greek Theater in Los Angeles in the mid-1980s. </p><p> “She was just a girl. She was truly just a bubbly teen girl,” Merrill said. “She was just elated. She was on Cloud Nine -- a girl on top of the world in those days.</p><p>“Being part of those early days (of Houston's career) for Shannon and me was very heady,” Merrill said. "We were fortunate to be part of that early time.”</p><p>“We were thrilled to be able to have such a gifted singer record and perform our songs,” he said. </p><p>Houston's first two albums, which featured the two songs written by Merrill and Rubicam, were produced by Narada Michael Walden and recorded at his studio in San Rafael. “When we heard the versions that Narada had so brilliantly produced, it brought the songs to a whole other level that (all songwriters and musicians) aspire to.”</p><p>“I'll never forget the call that came from Narada Michael Walden's studio,” Merrill wrote on a blog on his website, www.boymeetsgirlmusic.com, Saturday night after hearing of Houston's death. “Our friends Alan and Preston Glass had just finished the day working with Whitney and called us, and breathlessly said, ‘You better hear this!' They played back “How Will I Know” over the phone, and it was obvious she was about to change the music landscape forever.”</p><p>“Every one of us who heard her stunning voice for the first time knew we were hearing greatness,” Merrill said.</p><p> "I Wanna Dance With Somebody” won a Grammy Award for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance in 1987.</p><p>“As with any artist, she began to broaden her range, and she went on to have many more huge and exciting songs,” he added. “She left us a great gift by singing our songs.”</p><p>Merrill and Rubicam, performing as the vocal duo Boy Meets Girl, scored a worldwide hit in 1988 with their song, <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zB8txXS2PFs"> “Waiting for a Star to Fall"</a>.</p><p>Merrill said he did not stay in touch with Houston personally, but he and Rubicam had a catalog of songs that they had written for her. One of them, “Just Like it Was Yesterday,” was written three years ago with Thom Bell. </p><p>“I've been humming that song today, and I can hear her singing it,” he said.</p><p><i>(Contact Chris Samson at chris.samson@arguscourier.com)</i></p>