Critical Reception
The review of the single by Billboard magazine was a very positive one:
| “ | Salsero extraordinaire and Grammy winner Marc Anthony makes it perfectly clear why he is due to be the next big Latino thing. His reputation for having one of the world's finest voices, not to mention for being one of the nicest guys out there, is well-known. On this single, his first English-language recording, he remains true to his salsa roots with a sexy, swaying cha-cha number that will keep entrenched fans feeling well taken care of while enlisting a horde of new followers. The song is great fun-it opens with a playful violin and piano and quickly pops into a midtempo, beat-happy plea for the attention of a deeply longed-for woman. The chorus, with trumpets calling out in the background, is electric and will have you helplessly singing along. Smart programmers will quickly recognize that "I Need To Know," co-written and co-produced by the artist, sounds like nothing else over the airwaves and that Anthony is a treasure who could develop into a major mainstream force. This song will penetrate rapidly, adding more firepower to the summer's wonderful Latin-U.S. explosion. Absolutely smashing." | ” |
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On the Entertainment Weekly's Chart Flashback by Whitney Pastorek, posted on December 1, 2006, analyzing the Billboard Hot 100 chart of December 4, 1999, she gave the single a "B" grade:
| “ | OMG like looking back how could we have known that someday, not only would Marc Anthony and Jennifer Lopez be vying for space on the charts, but within each other's hearts! Sniff. Anyway. I've always respected the way Marc Anthony stays true to his Latino heritage when working outside the salsa genre, but that doesn't mean the songs are necessarily all that good. In fact, I think he's trying too hard almost all the time (and for some reason, in my mind, he is always wearing a turtleneck, although I couldn't tell you why). This track — backed by a sassy string section — is maybe the least cheesy thing he's ever come up with. Bonus points for using the phrase baby girl with the smallest amount of condescension permitted by law." | ” |
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Read more about this topic: I Need To Know (Marc Anthony Song)
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